by T J Green
He was right. There were lots of them hanging in the yew and the surrounding trees, and they also glowed with rainbow colours, shaking slightly with power.
Come on, he said, sighing. There’s nothing more we can do here. Let’s try to find her.
They ranged onwards, looking for something that might link Old Haven to where the witch was hiding, but there was nothing.
They passed over swollen streams and rushing rivers, heavy with rainfall. Small waterfalls churned their energy and threw up clouds of moisture, but nothing suggested a witch might be close. They even looked for absences of light that might indicate something was blocking them, but saw nothing.
Alex drew her attention to the moors, well away from White Haven and other small communities. He pointed down to racing shapes, streaking across the ground. Four of them in all, and they seemed to be hunting a small, fleeing creature. The Shifters.
Avery gasped. You’re right! As they dropped lower, she saw how huge and fast they were. They were intent on their quarry, which Avery thought was a fox, and she looked away as they moved around it in a pincer movement. I love foxes! They can’t kill it.
It’s what they do…they’re wolves. But Avery detected a trace of regret in his tone, too—if you could call it a tone in your head.
Not tonight they don’t, she said, annoyed. She hadn’t tried to use her powers on this plane since the last time she spirit walked, but she quickly spelled a charm of protection over the fox, blanketing its scent and draping it in shadow. Then she sent its scent down a false path, causing the wolves to veer in the wrong direction. She smiled gleefully at Alex as the fox ran across the moors to freedom, the wolves now far away.
Avery Hamilton, that was very sneaky, Alex said approvingly.
I know, but I don’t care. It’s not like they’ll starve.
Come on. We’re not getting anywhere here. Let’s go home.
They headed back to White Haven, passing over the roads that branched below them. Alex’s eyes narrowed and he pointed towards dark shapes moving on the road that led directly to the town, a dark mass of grey and black around a swiftly moving car, easy to see against the glow of street lights. I think the Devices are here.
If their auras are anything to go by, they are not happy, Avery said.
They dropped down until they were much closer to the car and tried to see inside. There were three figures; a driver and two others in the back seat, from whom a wave of power and determination emanated.
Avery realised one of the witches in the back seat was turning to look out of the window, as if they detected their presence, and she pulled Alex away. The fun’s about to begin.
***
Avery spent the night at Alex’s. They initially talked about how to deal with the Devices, but then, the world tuned out by the wind and rain, Avery decided that getting naked with Alex was much more fun. The Devices could wait.
She woke in the middle of the night, wondering what the weird noise she heard was. For a few seconds, she lay dazed, trying to analyse the sound, and then turned to Alex, but the bed was empty.
Alarmed, she woke completely, leapt out of bed, and pulled on a t-shirt before heading into the main room where she found Alex slumped on the floor of the kitchen, talking to himself—or someone in his mind. Crap. Avery dropped next to him, debating whether to try and wake him, but that could be dangerous.
The room was dark, other than the leak of light from the street lamps through the blinds. She spelled the lamps on, but the room looked as normal, and she couldn’t detect another presence among them.
She rolled him onto his back and lifted his eyelids. His eyes were white, rolled back into his head, and he continued to whisper words she couldn’t make out. He felt icy cold, his skin was pale, and his fists were clenched. She ran to the sofa and pulled a cushion and a blanket free, and then placed the cushion under his head and draped the rug over him.
Months ago, Nate, one of the witches from St Ives, had warned Alex that his visions may get stronger, and for a while, they had. Their troubles with the Mermaids and the Nephilim seemed to have opened floodgates of receptiveness that had led to headaches and sudden collapses. They had been tied to the witches’ activities in White Haven, and once he’d had a vision of Gabe, the Nephilim, and had been propelled into his head unexpectedly. It had happened a couple of times at work, alarming his staff, and he had passed it off as exhaustion. With Nate’s help he had been able to get them under control, and now they happened only intermittently.
Tonight’s efforts must have triggered them again. Avery hated it when this happened; she was powerless to stop them, or bring him out of them. She sat, frustrated, hoping it would end quickly, when she felt the tingle of magic as Alex’s protective wards around his pub started to vibrate. Someone was trying to break them.
She jumped to her feet, hands raised, and added her own magic to Alex’s spells. For a short time it seemed to be working, and then with a hollow boom, the charms fell and she saw an inky black mass start to twist in the middle of the living area. Someone was using witch-flight, which Avery had tried but struggled to master. She quickly threw up a protective barrier of shimmering white energy, blocking whatever it was from coming closer; they might be in the flat, but it wasn’t over yet. She was tempted to send a blast of fire at it, but she also wanted to know who it was.
The swirl of darkness coalesced into the figure of a tall woman, standing with arms raised, her dark eyes boring into Avery. She was wearing contemporary dress—dark trousers tucked into knee-length leather boots, a shirt, and a long jacket, and she had long, silky auburn hair, framing a pale face. In the instant before she attacked, Avery registered the shock on her face. She hadn’t expected me to be here. Before Avery could do anything, the witch sent a blast of pure energy at her, which would have swept her off her feet if it hadn’t been for her shield that effectively blocked it.
Avery used her shield as a weapon, propelling it forward with a wave of icy air, and sweeping the unknown witch off her feet and sending her crashing against the far wall. Before she could respond, Avery pinned her there, lifting her off the floor so that her legs dangled inches from the ground.
“How dare you enter uninvited!” Avery yelled, both furious and afraid.
“How dare you look for me!” the woman retorted in a husky voice. She managed to lift her hands and sent a wave of power towards Avery with a swiftness that caught Avery unawares, and she flew backwards, hitting the kitchen cabinets painfully. She fell, winded, and only just managed to find her feet and repel another attack, this one a jet of witch-fire that spewed from the woman’s hands across the room. Avery could feel the heat from here, and she managed to deflect it onto a houseplant, which burst into flames.
Alex was still immobile on the ground, and Avery’s heart was banging painfully in her chest. She had to stop this woman, now.
Avery used elemental air to lift the burning plant off the ground and send it spinning across the room back towards the witch, who in turn hurled it against the wall and advanced across the space. Avery advanced too, but rather than strike with magic, she ran full tilt across the room and rugby-tackled the witch. They crashed into the sofa and rolled over it and onto the coffee table, before falling onto the rug on the far side, barely missing the wide stone hearth of the fireplace.
The witch was winded from her unexpected attack, and taking advantage, Avery punched her in the face. The woman’s head flew back in shock, striking the floor, and anger filled her dark eyes. In a sudden display of power, she propelled Avery up until she had her pinned to the ceiling in a vice grip of magic. She held her left arm upwards and tightened her hands as if she was squeezing, and Avery felt her ribs contract. She couldn’t breathe and she felt her vision start to blacken at the edges.
With her right hand, the witch wiped the blood trickling from her lip. She stared up at Avery. “You’ll regret that, bitch.”
Avery couldn’t move or speak; her grip was immense. Shit. Sh
e’s going to kill me.
And then out of her peripheral vision, Avery saw Alex rise to his feet, and a huge fireball hurtled across the room.
It hit the witch before she even knew what was happening, and she was immediately enveloped in flames. In a split second she disappeared, taking the flames with her, and Avery plummeted onto the floor, half hitting the coffee table before she dropped to the ground.
For a few seconds, she couldn’t breathe and she lay winded, trying to see beyond the encroaching blackness. She felt rather than saw Alex come to a skidding halt next to her. “Avery. Thank the Gods, you’re alive.”
“Barely,” she croaked. The blackness started to recede and she saw his anxious face above hers. “I think I’ve broken some ribs. That really bloody hurts.” She gingerly lifted her left hand and felt her side. Even inhaling hurt.
Alex tenderly felt around her head, and then her left side. “How’s your breathing?”
“Painful. Help me sit up.”
He eased a hand around her back and virtually lifted her into a sitting position.
“Ouch, ouch, ouch,” she said with every incremental movement. Once she got her breath back, she squinted at Alex. He looked equally terrible, with dark shadows beneath his eyes. “How are you? I thought you were unconscious.”
“I was. I could feel her mind wrapped around mine like a thick cloud. It was impenetrable, until you did something. You must have caused her to lose concentration. I lay still for a few seconds before I acted, and just tried to summon my power.”
Avery smiled at him and cupped his cheek. “Lucky me. I think she was about to kill me.”
“I would have killed her first. No question.” He leaned forward and kissed her gently. “Should I call Briar?”
“No. Let her rest. I’ll survive ’til morning. What about you?”
“I’ll be fine eventually. I’m just pissed off she caught me unawares. And I need to get my protection spells up again.” He flopped back on the ground, staring up at the ceiling, clutching his stomach. “I feel sick.”
“I’ll make you something,” Avery said, trying to struggle to her feet before giving up. “In a minute.” She looked over at Alex. “She thought you were alone. She was pretty shocked to see me. If I hadn’t been here, I’m not sure what she would have done.”
Alex was silent for a second. “Do you think she’d have killed me?”
“I’m not sure. Maybe. She certainly wants us out of action. First El, and now you.” A horrible thought struck her. “Maybe she’s already attacked Briar and Reuben. I need to call them, it can’t wait.”
Avery stood slowly, wincing with every movement, pulled her phone from her bag where it sat on the kitchen bench, and called Reuben. It rang for a while before he answered. “Avery. It’s four in the morning. This better be good.”
“We were attacked in Alex’s flat. I wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“What!” His tone changed as his brain flipped into gear. “Are you both okay?”
“Yes, just. Are you? Is Briar with you?”
“Yeah, she’s sleeping on the couch. Well, she was.” She could hear him moving about, and he lowered his voice as he said something to Briar. “Yep, nothing happened here.”
Relief swept though Avery. “Good. Is Caspian still there?”
“No, he went home hours ago, but he’ll be back later.”
“Will he?” Avery thought her confusion would never end. “Why?”
“Well, shockingly, he’s been pretty useful.” Reuben sounded annoyed but also pleased, not surprisingly. He’d pretty much vowed to hate Caspian forever after he killed Gil.
Avery came to a decision. “I’ll let you get back to sleep, but we’ll head over in a few hours. This witch means business, and we need to decide what to do.”
“Sure, laters,” Reuben said, yawning before he hung up.
“So, they’re okay?” Alex asked from where he still lay stretched out on the rug.
“Yep. Come on. Let’s get your wards up again.”
He groaned, sat up, looked around at his flat, and frowned. “And maybe clean. You two made quite a mess.”
He was right. The sofa cushions were strewn across the floor, soil was scattered everywhere, and the remains of the burnt plant were smeared across the wall and now lay smoking on the floor. Candles and other objects were either on the floor or in random places, and pictures were hanging askew on the wall. On top of that, the smell of smoke hung on the air.
“Your lovely flat! Sorry,” Avery said, feeling terrible.
He grinned, rose to his feet, and joined her in the kitchen. “All fixable. Well, maybe not the plant. The important thing is that you’re okay.” He frowned. “Why is there a bruise on your chin?”
“Is there?” Avery touched it gently. “I think I smacked it off her elbow when I rugby-tackled her.”
Alex started to laugh. “And there’s blood on your knuckles.”
“I punched her, too.”
“That’s my girl,” he said. And then he frowned. “Is that your blood? Because if she’s got it…”
He didn’t need to explain. Hair and blood were great assets to a witch, and you didn’t want an enemy getting hold of them. They could be used to make a poppet—a small figure of someone that you could spell and manipulate.
“No. I’m pretty sure it’s hers. I spilt her lip.”
“Good. Let’s use it.” He threw her a tissue. “Wipe it up and keep it safe.”
12
The next morning, Avery creaked out of bed; every muscle ached, and her ribs felt like they were on fire. After she’d phoned Sally and explained she wouldn’t be going in to work until later—and asked her to feed her cats—everyone headed to El’s flat. By the time Avery and Alex arrived, Caspian was already there.
The mood in El’s flat was all business. Spell books, history books, and reference books were spread everywhere. Incense hung in the air, and the central heating was turned up high, dispelling the cold gloom that lurked outside the windows. Caspian and Briar were seated at El’s small dining table, deep in discussion, and Reuben was cross-legged on the floor, an open book on his lap, and a cup of coffee steaming at his elbow. Intriguingly, a selection of different shaped Alembic jars stood in a row on the kitchen workbench, each filled with unrecognisable substances. It looked like a chemistry lab.
It was odd seeing Caspian there, dressed in jeans and a t-shirt rather than a suit, and he looked up as they entered, his eyes brushing across Alex before coming to rest on Avery. She met his eyes briefly before she looked at the others, calling, “Hi, guys.”
“Hey Ave, Alex,” Reuben said, twisting to look at them. “You two recovered?”
“Just about.” Alex headed to El’s open kitchen and placed fresh pastries down, closely followed by Avery with a tray of coffees. “Well, maybe not Avery. She’s a bit sore.” He pulled her close and kissed her forehead.
“But I did manage to buy coffees despite feeling battered and bruised,” she explained with a grimace.
Briar groaned in appreciation and joined them at the counter. “You stars. Just what I needed. Can I do anything to help you heal, Avery?”
Avery shook her head. “No, El’s more important. As is coffee. Two lattes, two flat whites, and a moccachino in case someone wanted a chocolate hit, too,” Avery said, pointing them out.
“Mine!” Reuben shouted. He held up his hand expectantly.
Briar turned to him. “You’ve got a coffee!”
“I can have two!” he protested.
“It’s all yours, don’t panic.” She picked it up and took it over to him.
Caspian walked over to join them, smiling smugly. “One for me, too? I am lucky.”
“Well, you’re helping, so why not?” Avery said, trying to avoid his stare.
“And you even get a pastry,” Alex said, archly. “Must be your lucky day.”
Caspian gave him the coolest of smiles. “To be here with all of you fills my heart wi
th joy.”
Briar sighed, exasperated. “Stop it, both of you. We’re actually making good progress, thanks to Caspian.”
Alex adopted a lofty expression. “Good. So is El out of her curse-coma yet?”
“No, but we now know what type of curse it is,” Caspian said. He pointed to the table where the cursed necklace lay on folds of velvet, well out of reach of an accidental touch. “I found some spells which work to reveal the nature of the curse, and through a process of elimination—”
“Endless elimination,” Reuben added with a groan.
Caspian ignored him. “By testing various potions and herbs in the alembic jars, we have found it is an earth-based curse.”
“What does that mean?” Avery asked between sips of coffee.
“Earth elemental magic, bound into the silver, has suffocated El’s mind and bound her magic into Earth and darkness.”
Avery paused, horrified. “That sounds awful. So, her mind is trapped—as if she’s buried alive?”
“Sort of,” Briar said. “If there’s an excess of Earth magic, then we’ll need Air, Fire, and Water to balance it.”
“The witch attacked me last night,” Alex said, thoughtfully. “And I experienced a similar sensation. She suffocated me, and I thought it was with her mind, but after thinking about it, the weight of it suggested an earthiness. I was almost crushed under it.”
“So, our new arrival is an Earth witch,” Caspian said thoughtfully.
Avery frowned. “But she travelled using witch-flight. I thought that was something only an Air witch could do?”
He shrugged. “If she’s been around as long as we think, she’s probably mastered many skills most of us would never achieve in one lifetime.”
“But I’m an Earth witch,” Briar said, offended. “I don’t do things like that!”
Caspian sighed. “We can do as many positive or negative things with our powers as we choose, you know that, Briar. Earth can nurture and create life, or suffocate and bury it. Fire can warm or burn, air can caress or batter like a hurricane, and water can give life or drown it.” He took a sip of coffee and reached for a croissant. “Using Earth magic to curse is also quite inspired at this time of year.”
