by Donna Raider
“Let’s discuss this with the authority on the subject.” Mika smiled as she gestured toward Leah.
Richie ran to his mother, wrapping his arms around her waist and burying his head in her softness. “Can I play video games until dinner is ready?” he pleaded.
“Of course, dear.” Leah smiled happily at his deep affection for her.
She tiptoed to kiss Mika, intending to brush her lips, but Mika wrapped her arms around Leah and held her tightly. She kissed her as if she were a drink of cold water offered to a sun-parched woman.
“Oh my, Priest,” Leah breathed huskily, “I’m not sure you are safe here at all.”
Mika kissed her again, and then released her while she still could.
“What can I do to help you?” Mika inquired.
“Nothing, my love.” She grabbed her hand and led her to the kitchen. “Just keep me company as I put the finishing touches on the bread.”
##
After dinner, they moved to the study while Richie went upstairs to get ready for bed.
Leah set a cup of hot buttered rum in front of Mika, noticing the darkness in her eyes, something she had seen only a few times. “What is wrong, darling?” Leah asked softly.
“We had an, ah, encounter with the sheriff today,” Mika answered her thoughtfully. “I’m worried about her—her drinking, her language. I am worried about her influence on Richie.”
“She cares about Richie.” Leah sighed.
“I noticed you didn’t say that she’s a good mother,’ Mika said. “Whenever anyone speaks of you in that role, they always say that Leah is a good mother or a great mother.”
“We have different parenting styles,” she shrugged. “Of course, I happen to believe mine is the best.”
“It is,” Mika said emphatically. “You are the most wonderful mother I have ever seen, and the most beautiful.”
“Thank you, ma’am.” Leah curtsied playfully. “Flattery will get you anywhere you want to be.”
“I am exactly where I want to be.” Mika laughed at her playfulness. “With my family.
“I take it you ran into the sheriff, too,” she continued. “I hope your encounter was more pleasant than ours.”
“She tried to sit in your seat after you left this morning. I simply asked her to move.” Leah frowned. “I was busy making my shopping list and didn’t want to talk with her.”
Mika told her what had transpired during their exchange with Emily. “I don’t think Richie understood, in any way, what she was insinuating, but it made me furious.” Mika didn’t mention the boat. Thankfully, she assumed the confrontation happened at the church.
“There is something we should discuss after Richie goes to bed,” she said softly.
Richie ran into the room in his pajamas. “Could you both tuck me in?” he asked shyly.
“Of course, dear,” Leah said as Mika nodded, delighted to be included in the nightly ritual.
Running upstairs, Richie jumped into bed and pulled the covers over himself. Leah sat beside him, leaned over, and gave him a kiss. Richie threw his arms around her neck and hugged her tightly as only a child can do. “I am so glad you are my mother. I love you.”
“I love you too, sweetheart.” Joy was the only expression on her face. “Would you like us to read you a story?”
“No,” he said hesitantly, “but I would like for Mika to pray. Mika says prayer is even stronger than magic.”
The priest knelt beside the boy’s bed. She took Richie’s hand in one hand and Leah’s hand in the other. Richie instinctively took his mother’s other hand, forming a family circle.
Mika began praying:
“Our Father which art in heaven
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our trespasses
As we forgive those who trespass
Against us.
Lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil
For thine is the kingdom and the power
And the glory forever and ever. Amen”
Mika squeezed both their hands and said, “Goodnight, son.”
Leah continued to hold Mika’s hand as they walked downstairs. At the bottom of the stairs, she turned to face her. Silently, Mika bent down to meet her lips. Leah slipped her arms around Mika’s neck and kissed her, a long, slow, reverent kiss—a kiss filled with deep respect and awe.
When Leah pulled from her, Mika knew something had changed in her, something that affected her very core. She had kissed her differently than any time before, as if connecting their souls. It affected her, too.
Leah sat on the sofa and patted the seat beside her. “I need to tell you about Father Murphy,” she said, her voice breaking with emotion. “You know I killed him.”
The priest nodded. She had witnessed the scene in Leah’s confession slideshow. Mika waited for her to continue. To justify what she had done.
“You must have had a good reason to kill a priest,” Mika croaked, her mouth dry.
Leah looked at her as if she couldn’t believe what she had just said. Her…belief in her. She was waiting to hear her side of the story without judging her. It was the biggest difference between Mika and Emily.
“There had been rumors, ah, accusations actually, but nothing formal.” She seemed to have difficulty sharing her reasons. “Then the parents of one of the boys filed an official complaint, so we were forced to investigate it.”
“What kind of complaint?” Mika was afraid of the answer.
“They accused Father Murphy of molesting their son.”
Leah hung her head. “I…I brought that monster from another time to prey on children in this one. I had no idea. I was devastated.
“At first, I didn’t believe it. I had selected Father Murphy because he was the epitome of the kindly priest, gently leading his flock. Of course, the fact that he always took up for me and backed me certainly influenced my judgment. I suppose that should have been a red flag. No man of God could have possibly condoned my tyranny.
“The morning after the complaint was filed, I went to talk to him at the church.” She continued, “I looked everywhere for him and couldn’t find him. I finally went to the rectory. He wasn’t downstairs. Then I heard voices from upstairs. I had no idea what was upstairs. When I walked into the bedroom, Father Murphy had Richie.” She gasped pitifully, a sound halfway between a maniacal laugh and a sob.
“Both of them had on only their underwear. I immediately dressed Richie and took him to the diner. I left him in Ruth’s care. I then returned to talk to Father Murphy.
“My wrath was uncontrollable. My initial reaction was to flay the skin from his bones, an inch at a time. To make him suffer excruciating pain for what he had been planning to do to my son. I knew I couldn’t because his screams would call attention to what I was doing.” She spoke matter-of-factly, her eyes black, her countenance dark.
The priest thought she had never seen such pure hatred in anyone’s face.
“I took away his breath until his heart stopped beating.” Leah grinned at the memory. “It appeared to the world that he had a heart attack.
“Richie was only five. Only five,” she cried. “How could anyone hurt a child like that?
“I went back to the diner to check on Richie, and he was playing video games.” She shook her head as if to clear the horrible vision of Father Murphy and Richie from her mind. “He truly didn’t seem to understand what had happened.
“I couldn’t figure out how Father Murphy had gotten Richie in the first place.” She frowned. “I had dropped him off at preschool that morning. Then I found out that Mother Superior had convinced Delilah to let her take him to Mass with her. She left him with the priest even though she was very aware of the charges filed against him.
“Delilah and I have been bitter enemies most of our
lives, and that didn’t help. After endangering my son like that, I hated her even more. I had never given anyone permission to take my son from school. Mother Superior has always disliked me for many reasons. I’m sure she knew what she was doing when she left Richie alone with Father Murphy. I took Richie out of the convent school and enrolled him in public school.
“After Father Murphy’s hypocritical funeral, several other boys came forward with tales of his abuse. Their stories made me sick to my stomach. I felt responsible since I had brought that monster to our town.
“One night after Richie had gone to sleep, I tore through the cathedral and did my best to burn it to the ground. Of course, the ancient structure wouldn’t burn, but I destroyed everything in it. What didn’t burn, I crushed. I am truly sorry about your tapestry, but I did fix it for you.”
Mika nodded, a small smile on her lips.
“For some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to destroy the crucifix over the dais. It was just so sad to see a young man cruelly nailed to a cross.” She frowned.
“You shared this story with Emily,” Mika said.
“Yes, but not the part about me ripping out his heart or destroying the church. You are the only one I trust with that knowledge. I’m sure she thought you already knew about the incident with Father Murphy, so she was just pushing your buttons.” Leah grimaced.
“Well, she succeeded.” Mika nodded. “But now I’m most concerned about her drinking.”
“That is your bailiwick, Priest,” Leah said flatly. “I want nothing to do with her unless it concerns Richie.”
When she loves, she loves deeply, unconditionally, Mika thought about Leah, and when she hates, it is unconditional, too. The woman has extremely strong emotions. That is what makes her the most powerful witch in the world.
“Father Murphy isn’t the only priest I have killed,” she said softly. “I killed a village priest because he gave aid to my enemies. I truly do regret that murder most of all. I didn’t know him, but everyone said he was a wonderful man.”
Mika nodded and held her closely. “I saw that in your presentation.” She frowned. Leah truly had been evil.
CHAPTER 14 - The Second Christmas
“We will be about an hour late for lunch,” Mika told her as she slipped on her collar. “We’re rehearsing part of the Christmas program after the service.”
“No problem.” Leah turned her face up to Mika to receive the kiss she had grown accustomed to whenever she left her. She walked her son and future wife to the door and watched them until they disappeared.
Mika had spent the night at the mansion, sitting on the sofa, holding Leah as she slept. It helped assuage the nightmares she always had after sharing the details of one of her horror stories. Most of the time she pushed her past wicked deeds to the back of her mind and constantly guarded against them surfacing.
Interestingly, she had found that once she shared problems with Mika, they seemed to dissipate. Slowly, but surely, she seemed to be exorcising the demons from her past.
As Leah sipped her coffee, she tried to forget the present and imminent horrors that were hanging over her. She had avoided Legion since the priest had arrived in their town. She had frankly been surprised that the slimy man hadn’t sought her out. Apparently, he had no idea how happy she was. Perhaps he had no desire to encounter the priest. She wondered if she could be this lucky.
She knew she would have to confront Legion sooner or later. She had just been stalling, trying to figure some way to renegotiate the contract she had signed with him. It was just a matter of time before he showed up to collect.
Pushing thoughts of Legion from her mind, she smiled as she recalled the discussion about different parental names for her and Emily. Richie decided that he would call her “Mom” and call his birth mother “Emily.” “After all,” her son had added, “you have always been my mom.”
It had been a week since she had given the priest the book about her land. She wondered if Mika had read it. She knew they would have to discuss it in detail and welcomed the opportunity to tell Mika her side of the story.
She looked at the stack of wedding magazines Mika had brought to her. She leafed through the publications, taking delight in the beautiful bridal dresses, reception decorations, and a multitude of suggestions for the perfect wedding.
Mika and Richie found her asleep with the magazines in her lap and scattered around her. They silently closed the door to the study and went into the kitchen.
“You clean up the breakfast dishes, son,” Mika said softly, “and I’ll fix lunch.”
Richie arched an eyebrow at the priest.
“What?” Mika grinned. “I can cook. I’m more than just a pretty face, you know.”
Richie giggled because he loved that Mika could cook, and he had to admit the priest was very beautiful. He hoped his mother realized what a catch Mika was.
Mika cooked chicken breast with a cream sauce, rice, and broccoli with speed and ease. Richie frowned at the broccoli and Mika grinned teasingly. “Eat your broccoli and we’ll go for ice cream after lunch.”
“Deal.” Richie laughed as he carried the steeping teapot to the table. He thought of how Emily had never been much help to his mother in the kitchen and how Leah had always been the one to take care of anything that had to do with the mansion and their home life. He didn’t know how, but he knew Emily had hurt his mother badly. He suddenly realized that he was happiest when he was with his mother and the priest. We are the way a family should be, he thought.
“May I wake her?” Richie whispered, proud of the meal they had set for her. Mika nodded and followed to watch.
Richie knelt on the floor beside the sofa and leaned down to kiss his mother on the cheek. Her long lashes fluttered, then opened to reveal brown eyes filled with joy at seeing her son’s face.
“Oh, I am sorry. I fell asleep,” Leah exclaimed, sitting up slowly and gathering the magazines from her lap. “I don’t have lunch ready.”
“Taken care of by us, my queen.” Richie stood and made a grand gesture of bowing in a courtly manner. He took his mother’s hand and helped her rise from the sofa.
Mika watched the interaction between the two people she loved most in this world. Leah raised sleepy brown eyes to meet hers, and Mika thought, Every time I see her, she is more beautiful than the last time.
“Where did you learn to cook like this?” Leah smiled at the priest as she placed a bite of chicken in her mouth. “Everything is perfectly cooked. Most people overcook broccoli and dry out the chicken.”
“I am a single woman.” Mika grinned. “I’ve been cooking for myself for many years.”
“I don’t know how you did it, but this broccoli is awesome.” Richie forked another piece of chicken. “How old are you, Mika?”
A fleeting look of consternation passed over the priest’s face before she smiled and answered, “Same age as your mother.”
Leah was surprised at her evasive answer. Mika was usually very direct.
“Three thousand years old?”
“Seriously, dude,” Mika feigned distress, “do I look three thousand years old?”
Richie giggled and started to clear the dishes. “Either way, you are the oldest one at this table.”
“Honestly, Leah,” the priest teased, “have you ever grounded this insolent puppy? But not today, I promised him we would go out for ice cream after lunch.” She smiled, taking Leah’s hand in her. “Will you join us?”
“Of course.” Leah nodded, a puzzled smile flitting across her face as she realized she had no idea how old Mika was. “I can’t think of a better way to top off one of the most delicious meals I have ever eaten.”
Her beautiful smile took in both. They beamed, basking in her praise.
“We definitely should do this more often. She loved it,” Richie whispered to the priest as they carried the dishes into the kitchen. “What else can you cook?”
“Oh, so you think you can learn a few tricks from the old o
ne, eh?” Mika grinned at the boy.
##
Even though it was cold outside, they decided to bundle up and walk to the diner. Richie called Isaac and Mary, and they met with them along the way. Mika was glad the two children had joined them. It gave her an opportunity to devote her attention to the gorgeous woman on her arm.
They dropped back, letting the children run ahead of them.
“Did you have a good morning?” Mika asked.
“I did. I got several ideas from the magazines you brought me. Obviously, I slept, too. Thank you, again, for lunch.”
“I finished reading the book,” Mika declared. “Are you up to filling in the blanks for me tonight?”
“Of course, darling.” Leah hugged her arm tighter and leaned her head on Mika’s shoulder. She was delighted that she wanted her version of the story instead of jumping to the conclusion that she was the only one to blame.
“Will I need to spend the night tonight?” Mika asked gently. “If so, I need to pick up clean clothes.”
Leah thought about the deaths of innocent people and her forced marriage to the king. “Please,” she whispered.
##
Richie spent the night with Isaac and Mary, so they had the house to themselves. The priest was exhausted from sleeping on the sofa the night before, but she was happy to stay with Leah.
Mika carried in firewood and stoked the fire. By the time Leah carried in a tray with two cups of hot buttered rum, the study was cozy and inviting.
Mika sat on the sofa, and Leah took her usual place beside her, leaning against her. “Where would you like me to start?” she asked, sipping her drink.
“As I understand it,” Mika spoke slowly, “your mother, Jezebel, traded your virginity for a position in King Joram’s palace.”
“Yes,” Leah responded. “When I became with child, she insisted that Jorum marry me. Which he gladly did. I’ve always been exceedingly beautiful.”
