by Patti Larsen
When I spun to check on my friends, I found everyone on the ground, from werewolves to Dumonts to Galleytrot and Sunny, all staring at me like I scared the hell out of them. Fair enough, since I'd scared myself.
I staggered to my knees, suddenly drained of energy, someone's hand wrapped around my ankle, blocking my magic with just a touch. I shook the contact off, eyes meeting the desperate and terrified gaze of Rosetta. She clutched onto me, refusing to let go, even as I heard Sunny call out for me.
I turned back, jerking my leg free of the horrible little woman, but too late. The Dumont brothers were already up, their power wrapping around Sassafras while Galleytrot roared and threw energy at them. Werewolves piled themselves in the path of his magic, blocking the vampire as well while the Dumonts escaped in a surge of lavender fire.
“No!” I finally tore free of Rosetta, my power surging back, spinning on her in absolute killing rage this time. “What have you done?”
She fell away, gasping for air, clearly spent from the effort it took to muffle my magic.
“I've ruined you,” she whispered. “As I've always wanted to.”
It took all of Sunny's strength to pull me away.
“Galleytrot's gone after them,” she said. “The weres ran the moment their masters fled. We can still track him. But we have to go now.”
She was right. But we couldn't just leave the Chosen here, let them go. I was about to reach for Mom when she arrived in a surge of family magic, staggering out of the cloud of blue energy and almost falling in my arms.
“Where is he?” She straightened, recovering. I'd never seen her travel like that before and I knew why. She felt weak from it, her power reduced. But she was clearly desperate enough to risk it.
“Gone.” The word came out of me in a snarl. “The Dumonts were here.”
Her eyes raked the ground, taking in the Chosen members who huddled, terrified and lost, as if their purpose was gone and they had no idea what to do next. She then took in the destroyed barn, the small fires still burning. I could only guess Rosetta's power kept the fire going, the magical part of it at least. Now that she was almost empty, pushed past her limits, it was only ordinary fire. Mom spun on me as a line of cars rumbled up, headlights shining over us, coven members arriving to help.
“You lost him.” Her voice was deep and throaty. “You let them take him. I knew I should have handled this myself. Syd, do you know what you've done?”
My anger ripped out of me in a wave, my magic surging around me in answer. Mom's shock lit her own rage. We stood there, power rippling, facing off. The part of me who loved her, who trusted her in all things, begged me to stand down but I couldn't, just couldn't.
“Ladies,” Sunny said very low and soft, “we're losing time.”
Mom glared at Sunny. “Stay out of this,” she snapped. “You're not welcome in family business.”
My power slapped Mom, more of a gesture of contempt than attack. She spun back to me, face an irrational mask while my temper cooled to freezing.
“Reality check,” I said. “Get a grip, Mom.”
She shuddered, magic fading even as mine did.
“Sunny is our family, in case you missed it.” Mom flinched, nodded. I glanced around at the gathered coven who stared at us with hurt and fear. “We need to keep it together.”
Mom shuddered for the second time, her expression calming, face settling into coven leader perfect. “Syd,” she said, hoarse and caustic, her voice betraying her, “I won't lose him too.”
“Agreed,” I said. “And we won't, Mom. Galleytrot's gone after them. And if you'll let me finish what I started, I'll join him.”
She didn't get a chance to answer. The huge black dog loped out of the trees and joined us, panting as he collapsed to his haunches.
“I'm sorry,” he said in his rumbling voice, regret reaching me through the earth I stood on, “but I've lost them.” He turned to Mom, red fire dying in his eyes. “He's gone.”
***
Chapter Twenty Six
Mom crumpled a little, but I refused to let the news affect me.
“How?” But I knew already, before Galleytrot said it out loud.
“The same way the Chosen masked his magic before.” A soft whine of complaint escaped my friend. “I'm sorry, Syd.”
It wasn't his fault and I wasn't about to let him think it was. “We'll find him,” I said with far more conviction than I felt.
Mom visibly took a firm grasp on herself, her body vibrating with the effort it took. “Yes,” she said. “We will.”
Sunny had backed away, so much sadness in her face I knew I was losing her. “I'll leave the family to handle this,” she said
I reached for her the same instant Mom did.
“Sunny,” she pulled the undead woman toward her, embracing her, “please forgive me. There has been so much loss and I am weaker than I expected.” Mom pulled away and met my gaze. “I've always thought I could handle anything. I've been proven wrong.”
I hated hearing the failure in her voice. “No,” I said, “you've just reached the place where you need to ask for help.” I hugged both of them before reaching for Galleytrot and giving him a good scratch. “We just have to work together. They can't beat us on our own territory.”
“There's no promise they are still on our territory.” Mom's voice cracked slightly as she watched the coven members come forward to gather up the moaning, limp forms of the Chosen. “They could have taken him away by now.”
I shook my head. “I don't think so. This isn't about Sassy, remember?” Mom nodded slowly.
“You're right, sweetheart.” She looked off into the distance, lost in thought. “They won't stop until they've destroyed us all.”
“I need to return to my clan.” Sunny stepped back. “We may be able to track the werewolves. And the night grows short.” I could feel it when she mentioned it, the coming of dawn, and knew she had to more keenly than I. “The moment the sun sets again I'll have the whole clan searching for them.”
“Thank you, Sunny.” Mom pulled me against her, one arm around my waist as the vampire flickered into shadow and vanished.
“I'm going after them.” I pulled free of her, distancing myself. “If they are still in our territory we have every right to hunt them down.”
Mom was about to answer when I heard a familiar cackle. I spun, rage returned, to face down Rosetta as two of our coven members tried to restrain her. She looked skeletal all of a sudden, face sunken, as if what she'd done had diminished her body as well as her power.
“Your kind will suffer an eternity of damnation.” She wrenched herself free, but didn't try to escape or attack. She spit at my feet, the light of insanity in her eyes all I needed to know. She'd completely cracked. “Fire and ashes will carry you on to the suffering of ages.”
“Listen up, crazy lady.” I closed the gap between us, practically pressing my nose to hers as I got in her space. “If you or any of your little friends come near my family again, you'll be the one with a fire under your ass.” I let my demon out, heard her growl, saw Rosetta first scowl back then flinch. It wasn't until I felt her heart flutter under the pressure of my demon's magic I understood fully what she'd given up using all of her power the way she did. Funny, but I think she came to the same realization at the same moment.
The wail of horror that escaped her made my ears ache, but I refused to pull back, to show even a moment of empathy for her plight. She'd brought it on herself, used up so much of her sorcery, burning out the core of what gave her power to the point where she was empty.
Her power was gone. I could only hope, like Dad was suffering, so would she suffer.
She slumped then, dejected, mind completely shattered. I walked away from her, from the chorus of horrified sighs and cries coming from her people, knowing the Chosen were done once and for all, and they had been their own undoing.
I wished I was in the frame of mind to enjoy the victory.
As the sun crest
ed the horizon, I took Mom's hand. “Meet us at home.” Galleytrot nodded, turning and loping off without a word. I spotted Erica, saw her coming our way, a worried look on her face. But I wasn't in the mood to deal with her or anyone else. “Hang on, Mom.”
Concern mixed with curiosity flickered across her face as I leaned into my demon magic and found the veil.
It was a short trip home, almost instantaneous since I didn't need to stop and check for others. Mom gasped a breath of air as we emerged in the kitchen. I held her up as she wobbled, but recovered quickly.
“You'll have to show me how you did that.” A brief, ghost of a smile drifted over her face as she gently kissed my cheek.
“Sorry,” I said, “you have to be a demon, I think.”
Mom sighed softly. “Just my luck.” Her smile was stronger, if only for a moment. “I'm calling the coven,” she said. “Go get your sister.”
That's how I found myself standing in the pentagram next to Mom, Meira tucked against my legs while she yawned over and over again, the majority of the coven huddled around us. A few were off still dealing with the Chosen while the twins sat with Dad. I was just as happy to have the creepy old ladies out of the way. I wished Celeste was absent too. But she'd come when called, just like always. I could feel the animosity coming from her in waves and wished there was something I could do about her.
Something permanent.
But that wasn't my job. It was Mom's. And she was focused on other things at the moment.
“My coven,” she reached out to each and every one of us, the touch of her magic as strong and gentle as always. I didn’t know how she managed it, even under so much stress. The cracks I'd seen in her normal veneer of strength and calm were only temporary, I guessed. “Our family is once again under attack.”
“The Chosen of the Light are no longer a threat.” Celeste stroked her thick brown braid like it was some kind of pet she adored, empty brown eyes locked on Mom, horse-face unreadable.
“Thanks to my daughter Sydlynn.” Mom stressed my name strongly enough, both with words and with magic, Celeste backed down. “With help from Galleytrot and Sunny, the Chosen will never again be a problem for witches.” She shook her head, sadness taking over. “I wasn't referring to the Chosen, but to the Dumont family and their clear hatred toward this coven.”
A few murmurs. Not like Mom's open announcement was a huge shocker. We were all very well aware of the way the Dumonts felt about us.
Or some of us, anyway. “How dare you malign another coven like that?” Celeste's voice boomed through the basement. “You have no proof of any kind of wrong doing—”
“They attacked Syd twice tonight,” Mom said through clenched teeth, “and kidnapped Sassafras.”
Her words won some gasps. “Miriam, you're certain?” Erica stepped forward, still with the hand wringing going on. I was getting sick of seeing her show of nerves in front of everyone. “They returned?”
I didn't wait for Mom to answer as my mind clicked over and the memory of the Dumont brothers letting the Chosen go, allowing them to pass without a fight, finally came together and made sense. “They were there,” I said with power and the clear memory behind it, “but there's more to it. They were working with the Chosen of the Light.”
Mom's gaze met mine, she as shocked as the rest. “Syd...”
“It's true.” Galleytrot growled low, shaking his huge head. “I witnessed it as Syd did, how the Dumont brothers seemed to treat the Chosen as those not to be harmed and how the same Chosen were unafraid of the Dumonts.”
The bastards. How long had this alliance been going on? My heart stopped beating before pounding back into action. Who was really behind the Chosen? Oh. My. Swearword. Were the Dumonts somehow connected to the creation of the order? Were they part of the conspiracy to kill witches?
My mind boggled while Mom pulled herself together. “Their evil can not continue.” She lifted her head, back to being my proud and powerful mother, but this time full of fire and vengeance. “We must stop them.”
Celeste's power lashed out at Mom as the rest of the coven gasped at her. “You have absolutely no proof.” She snorted in anger. “You stand here, ordering your coven to attack another and claim to follow the laws of the Council? You would taint this entire family with your evil.”
Mom paused. Damn it, Celeste got to her. The only thing besides us, her immediate family, that Mom put first was the coven, and sometimes they came before her own blood. I watched her face twitch, the hopelessness return in increments. I had to do something.
“Miriam,” Erica spoke before I had the chance, “Celeste is right. We can't just go charging into a fight with the Dumonts. The Enforcers would tear us apart.”
A flicker of understanding passed over Celeste's face. All of a sudden her energy shifted. I wouldn't have felt it if I wasn't focused on her when Erica spoke.
Now what was she up to?
“Not likely.” Celeste sniffed. “They've ignored us before, I'm sure they would again. Especially if it was a personal disagreement and didn't involve the whole family.”
Oh, the bitch. She was baiting Mom. No freaking way.
Mom's body twitched. Fish on a line, she was taking the worm. “You're right, Celeste,” Mom said. “This must be done quickly and privately. I will not endanger the family over something that has nothing to do with the coven.”
“But it does.” Erica glared at Celeste. “If you act, it will come back to us, Miriam. There's no way it won't.”
Mom refused to meet her eyes. Erica caught mine, pleading with me.
Come on, Syd. Do something.
But it was unraveling faster than I could think, though I could see the threads of Mom's decisions, her thought process winding out as if from a spool. “There is only one way to ensure the safety of the coven.”
“There is no way.” Erica's anger finally emerged. “The Enforcers will descend on this family and punish every one of us for being part of your plan. You know it, Miriam. This will be the end of the Hayle coven. Are you willing to be the witch, the leader, who destroyed it after all this time?”
I wanted to slap Erica as much as I wanted to hug her. She had no right to talk to Mom like that, but at least she was talking. I still hadn't managed to wrap my mind around what I was going to say.
“Now you're being melodramatic.” Celeste returned her full attention to Mom. I felt her lean on my mother just a little bit, was sure Mom would shake her off and was shocked when she didn't. “I take it back, Miriam. You must act. This cannot go on any longer.”
Her total turn around should have been enough for Mom. She had to hear the manipulative tone in Celeste's voice, figure out the woman was trying to influence her. When Mom met my eyes, I saw she understood completely. But despite the fact it was what Celeste wanted, it was what Mom wanted too.
She turned to Erica, the family magic rising around her. “Erica Plower,” Mom said, “I hereby proclaim my intention to abdicate my position as leader of the Hayle Coven and offer you my place.”
***
Chapter Twenty Seven
Even Celeste looked shocked at that. None of us expected Mom to go that far. Not even me. But there she was, hands outstretched while Erica gaped like she couldn't breathe.
“Miriam,” she choked at last, “what are you doing?”
“The only thing I can do to keep my family safe.” Mom had calmed, real calm this time, not the fake coven leader type I'd grown used to over the years. This was Mom fully entrenched in a choice and happy to have made it, utterly willing to face the consequences. “Now, will you accept leadership?”
It was then I realized she hadn't offered it to me. Probably knew I'd never take it. Or, more likely, that offering it to me wouldn't distance our family far enough from the rest of the coven for her to act. Grim and heart aching, I decided then and there I was behind Mom completely and sent her my support.
Erica had gone so pale I thought she'd pass out. “Miriam, I can't.” Sh
e backed away a pace. “Don't you see this is what the Dumont's want? If we lose you, we lose everything.”
“And yet this is the only way I can act to protect you.” Mom didn't move, remained as she was, the power swirling around her. “You must.”
Erica shook her head. “I won't.”
“I will.” Celeste stepped forward, hands reaching for Mom. “So you can do what you have to.”
Oh no she did not. Mom didn't have to react. The family magic reached out and slammed Celeste into a stack of boxes, the sound of smashing plates and crumpling cardboard loud in the stillness. Mom's face grew cold and angry as Celeste found her feet, her own rage answering.
“The magic of your coven rejects you, Celeste,” Mom said. “Why is that?”
The woman snarled. “How dare you attack one of your own?”
“I didn't.” Mom let the whole coven feel it, how the family magic pulled away from Celeste even now. “Your own connection to the power you swore allegiance to doubts your intentions. What have you done to disturb it so?”
James looked ill, but Celeste drew herself up to her full height, hands jerking on her ponytail. “I am loyal to my family.” Truth rang in her voice. No one could doubt it.
She was loyal to her family. Just not the one the coven thought she meant.
“The Puritys.” The name came out before I could stop it, but from the way she flinched I knew I was right. Still loyal to a dead coven after all these years.
Celeste didn't answer me, but she didn't need to. She faced Mom down with as much self-righteous anger as she could muster. “This coven is clearly out of control.” She looked around at the others, no one saying or doing anything, unable to respond. “You stagger from one disaster to another, putting your whole family in danger.”
“And whose fault is that?” Again with the talking before thinking. I really needed to find a way to chain up my mouth.
Celeste's reaction was another flinch, if a subtle one. “I'm going to the Council,” she pronounced, “to inform them of the travesty of leadership I've observed in this coven and to ask them to finally relieve you, Miriam Hayle, of your power and strip your ill-behaved children from this family once and for all.”
