by Apryl Baker
“Sorry, but the only thing I plan on doing is making sure you all pay for my sister’s death.”
“I really wish you hadn’t said that.” Mr. Simon sighed. “I liked you, Melinda, I truly did. You have so much potential and could have made a wonderful teacher for them.”
Wes’s arms wrapped around me, and I did exactly what my dad taught me to do. I went limp, and he dropped me, not expecting it. I rolled over, and my foot met his crotch. He let out a strangled moan, but before I could do much else, Sebastian grabbed me. His legs wrapped around mine, effectively trapping me, and no matter what I did, his grip never loosened. Mr. Simon simply shook his head.
“It’ll be easier for you if you don’t fight it,” he said. “We’re just going to borrow your magic for a bit.”
“Borrow my magic?” I asked. “How exactly do you expect to do that?”
“The same way we borrowed Sebastian’s cooperation.” Mr. Simon smiled before placing his hand on my forehead. I felt his fingertips start to heat up. “Sebastian gave you coffee on the way over. There was a potion in it to weaken your resistance to our efforts. You were right in the fact witches have a stronger will than humans. I took no chances. That is how important you are to me, Melinda. Now, somnus…sleep.”
My eyes drifted shut despite my efforts to stay awake, and I was out.
Chapter Twenty-Two
~ Jenny ~
May 5, 2013
Just thinking about what I have to do makes me want to curl up and cry. I get dizzy and have to lay down. Knowing what I should do is causing me to stress so much and I just want it to end. Mandy said I should just do it. The others agreed. I don’t know about Sebastian, though. I’m terrified to ask him. What if he says yes, that I should do it? What if he doesn’t love me as much as I love him? I think he does, but I don’t know if I can handle hearing him say he doesn’t love me. It would make this so much easier if he didn’t love me, though.
Even my writing sounds confused. I’m confused. I don’t want to do it, but everything inside of me screams that I have to, that it’s the only way to give Sebastian everything he needs. He needs this sacrifice from me even if he won’t ask for it himself. Mandy told he would never ask that of me because he loves me, but she lies so much.
I wish I had more time to tell everyone how much I love them, especially Melinda, but this needs to happen tonight. It’s the only way. Sebastian needs this. He’s hinted that he needs something from me, so I know it’s true. I just hesitate to give this. It’s wrong. I know it’s wrong. I was taught to believe it will damn my soul, but there is this other force inside of me that’s making me push that little voice aside. It’s overriding everything else.
I already bought the pills from a guy in the park. All I have to do is take them and then go to sleep. I’ll do it tonight when I go to bed so Daddy won’t be worried. If I take them before bed, Dad might find me and rush me to the hospital. I can’t let that happen. I have to die tonight. I have to sacrifice myself. It’s the only way.
My sister is what’s causing me to hurt the most. I only just found Melinda again. We were getting so close, like real sisters. What is this going to do to her? I wanted to talk to her about everything, tell her about the crazy dreams I’ve been having about them all chanting something I can’t understand. Sometimes I think they put a spell on me. Mel might know, but every time I think about talking to her, I get that crazy dizzy feeling and I almost pass out. I just can’t bring myself to do it.
I’m not sure how much more I can take anyway. I love Sebastian, but he’s mean to me. He’s never physically hurt me, but he makes me feel worthless and unworthy of him. I cry all the time anymore because of the things he says to me. He’s as bad as his friends sometimes, but then just like that, he’s a sweetheart again. It’s like there’s a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde version of him. I just want all this to stop. I don’t want to feel anything anymore.
I wrote the note earlier. It’s just a formality, but Wes said it was necessary for my family to feel some kind of closure. I guess he’s right. At least they’ll know I just can’t take all the stress anymore and that it’s not their fault. It’s all me. I don’t want them to hurt any more than they have to and I hope my note conveys how much I love them all.
Chapter Twenty-Three
~ Suicide ~
White. Everywhere I looked, all I saw was white. Snow, I realized. Snow fell all around me, blanketing the ground, hiding the imperfections of the Earth. Beautiful, really. I’d forgotten how enchanting the snow was. Xavier had shown me yesterday how fun it could be. Now, I recognized the beauty and simplicity of the white flakes falling all around me. Did I really hate all of this just hours ago? Seemed impossible.
I stopped at the edge of the lake, the water lapping gently at my toes. I wiggled them and realized I had no shoes on. When did I take them off, and why weren’t my feet cold? Didn’t matter. All that mattered was the beauty around me. I’d never felt closer to the Earth than I did in this moment. The power of Earth flowed through me, and I was a part of it. The frozen ground beneath my feet felt better than the softest carpet. The trees whispered to me. The snow cooled off my hot skin. I was Earth in this moment.
Wind whipped all around me, whistling in the trees. I called Air to me, but it resisted. My eyes narrowed. How dare it? I was master here, and it would obey. Closing my eyes, I concentrated on pulling the struggling Element to me. When it snapped into place around me, I shuddered. It was now mine to control.
The water beckoned. I took several steps until I was knee deep in the lake. Cold. I only knew I was cold because my teeth started to chatter. I rubbed my arms and realized they were bare. I looked down and saw I was wearing a sleeveless black dress. I hadn’t worn that this morning. I’d had on jeans and a sweatshirt. When did I change my clothes?
Did it really matter, though? No. All that mattered was the feel of the magic coursing through me. It felt glorious. I’d never had this much magic running through my veins before. It was dangerous. I knew that, but didn’t care. I could do anything right now. I could cause an earthquake. I could force rain from the clouds above me. Anything I wanted, I could do right now. It was the most awesome feeling. I wanted it, craved it, needed it. This was who I was.
I sank further into the water. It lapped at my chin. If I plunged under the surface of the lake, then I’d be one with the Water Element as well as the Earth and Wind Elements. I could call up a hurricane if I wanted. The possibilities were endless.
An image of Jenny lying cold and dead on a morgue gurney invaded my vision, and my fury roared back. I remembered why I’d come to Falls Church. I’d come to make that little hoard of wannabe witches pay for killing her. So why was I letting myself sink into the water? Why wasn’t I out there making them suffer for what they did to my sister? I only had a little time left since Dad was coming today. I should be dealing with that instead of swimming in the lake.
Instead of getting out, I drifted further out into the lake. No matter how much I wanted to, I couldn’t bring myself to get out of the water. I wanted to, but the water called to me. I had the urge to sink under its surface and just revel in the feel of the energy from the Water Element. I let myself sink further down, the icy depths covering my face completely. I sank to the bottom, not even trying to swim up for air. It felt wonderful. I’d never felt so free, so weightless. Nothing mattered but the power raging through me.
An image of Dad and Gran came to mind. They were standing alone at a cemetery, heartbroken. I frowned. Why were they crying? My eyes wandered to the headstone they were staring at. My frown deepened. My own name stared back at me. Why were they staring at a headstone with my name on it? It made no sense. I took a deep breath and choked a bit. I was drowning. Water filled my lungs, and I couldn’t find the urge to swim to the surface to save myself. This was why they were staring at my tombstone. I drowned. Why didn’t I want to fight? Why couldn’t I find the will to save myself?
Arms wrapped around me, and with
in seconds, we’d burst upward and into the sky. Xavier. He’d found me and pulled me out. My lungs hurt as I coughed, water spewing out of my mouth. When we landed on the embankment, Xavier bent me over and rubbed my back while I coughed up the water. I shifted, turning back toward the water once I could stand. He caught me, refusing to let me go. I heard him whispering things in my ear, but I paid them no heed. I needed to go back to the lake, to feel the power of the Water. I needed it.
We were sky-borne again. I didn’t even scream this time. What was the point? I just needed to bide my time until I could get back to the lake. Xavier had to leave me sometime. I saw Gran’s house come into view, and then Xavier was pounding on the door. He sure could move fast with those wings of his. Gran opened the door, and her face paled. She ushered us into the house and started barking out orders. Xavier carried me to the library where a roaring fire waited. He didn’t blink, just stripped me out of my wet clothes. I knew I should be embarrassed that I was sitting naked on the rug, but I wasn’t. I was past caring at this point. The heat didn’t even register.
A soft, fleecy throw was draped around me. My skin felt so sensitive, I shuddered at the touch of the fleece. I was completely tuned to The Elements, and it affected every thought, every touch, every sense I had. My blood burned with power. It was too much, and I needed to release it soon or I would combust. I knew it without understanding why I knew it, but it was true nonetheless. If Xavier had just left me in the lake, all would have been fine. I could have released the power building within me when I died.
I tried to stand, my intention to run back to the lake, but Xavier’s hands held me down. I struggled and soon found myself stretched out on the floor, Xavier completely covering me. He wouldn’t let me go, and I screamed my frustration. The windows shook with the force of my anger, but he held on. I twisted, bucked beneath him. I needed to go back into the Water. My skin was on fire, and there was no relief except for the water.
My gran sank down on her knees beside me. She rubbed something on my forehead and then started to chant. I paid her no attention, my sole focus on getting free from Xavier’s iron grip. The longer Gran chanted, the less I struggled. I blinked, and my eyes zeroed in on the face above me. Terrified. Why was he so afraid?
“Melinda?” Gran sounded like she whispered my name. “Melinda?”
“What?” I grouched. I could barely hear anyone. It sounded like they were far away.
“Thank God,” Xavier whispered.
“Don’t let her up,” Gran warned. “She’s still under their spell. I can’t break it. Only a Coven leader can break it.”
“CJ’s a Coven Mistress.” Jeff. My head swiveled to see him hovering by the door.
“CJ’s part of the Coven they’re meant to build,” Xavier informed my Gran.
“I’m not the Coven Mistress for my town,” CJ denied. I turned my head farther left and saw her and Ethan standing behind and to the left of Gran.
“You don’t need to lead the members of that Coven,” Xavier bit out. “Only the Coven you are going to build to fight the darkness coming. You have to accept responsibility for it. I didn’t know what part you played in this before, but now I understand. You are the Coven Mistress.”
“I’m not!” CJ shouted. I could tell she was shouting by the violent waving of her hands, but to me she sounded like she was miles away. Why was it so hard to hear anyone?
“If you don’t accept your responsibility, Melinda will die,” Gran told her grimly. “She has consumed the power of The Elements. She’s not meant to hold that much power. It’s eating her alive from the inside. Only a true Coven Mistress, one chosen by the Elements themselves, can harness the power of all of them. She’s only carrying three, and they’re killing her. Are you going to stand there and watch her die?”
CJ closed her eyes, and her shoulders slumped. “No, I won’t let her die. Tell me what to do.”
Gran motioned her over, and CJ took a sitting position beside her. Gran looked at me. “Melinda, can you hear me?”
I nodded. My throat was on fire, and talking had become hard.
“In order for CJ to help you, you need to accept her as your Coven Mistress.”
I frowned. My family were not part of a Coven. We never had been. Why was Gran asking this of me now? She knew how I felt about binding my powers to a Coven.
“Melinda, you’re dying,” Gran whispered. “If you don’t accept her and do it now, you will die!”
That’s what I wanted. I wanted to die. I heard Xavier curse and then tell them about my suspicions about how Jenny died. “They must have used the same spell on her.”
“It’s not a spell.” Gran’s face paled. “It’s a curse.”
“Is there anything we can do?” Xavier sounded desperate.
Something odd happened. CJ stood, her honey colored eyes growing darker until they looked like pools of liquid gold. She extended her right hand, palm down toward me. “Get up,” she ordered Xavier. He started to argue until he saw her eyes. He jumped backward faster than a cat does when firecrackers goes off near it.
“Do you accept me as your Mistress?” She stared into my eyes, and I found myself nodding. Why not? I wasn’t going to be here much longer anyway. She nodded and started to speak.
“Winds of change, water of life
I summon thee.
Mother of all,
bring your power unto me.”
The power that had been consuming me, burning me alive on the inside, left me in a rush of wind. It pushed into CJ, and she staggered under the weight, but she stayed upright. Her eyes glowed, pulsed with an unholy light, but they stayed golden. She took a deep, steadying breath. She shuddered, but remained standing under the weight of the magic flowing through her.
“I call upon the four watchtowers
to guide me this night.
To the guardian of the east,
I ask for your strength.
The guardian of the North,
I ask for your will.
The guardian of the West,
I ask for your stability.
And the guardian of the South,
I ask for your mercy.
Help me save my child in this unholy fight.
Bring her darkness unto me
and forever let it be.”
The fog in my brain cleared, and I blinked rapidly. Noise rushed back, and my entire body shook from cold. CJ started to fall, but Ethan caught her. Jeff glanced at CJ, but rushed to me and covered me with the throw. He put his hands on my head, and I felt a warm, pulsing heat spread from my head to my toes, warming me. So Fire was his Element. As soon as he was done, he stepped away and hurried to where CJ lay on the floor.
Xavier took his place beside me and Gran. He pulled me to him and nearly crushed me in a hug meant to break bones. What was going on? I felt a little fuzzy on the details.
“What happened?” I asked softly. “What’s wrong with CJ?”
“Don’t you remember?” Gran asked, distraught.
“No. What’s wrong with her?”
“You don’t even remember that?” Gran exclaimed. “Sweetheart, you almost died. CJ saved your life.”
“What?” I glanced back over to where CJ lay unconscious on the floor. “I think you need to call Dr. Swanson, Gran. She doesn’t look so good.”
“I already did,” Ethan said, his tone as grim as Dad’s the night he’d told me Jenny died. “If he doesn’t get here soon, I’m not sure it’ll do any good.”
“What happened?” I asked again, looking directly at Xavier this time. “Tell me what happened.”
“I heard you, Melinda. Your feelings were flashing like neon lights on my radar, and when I found you, you’d sunk to the bottom of the lake.” He crushed me to him again before continuing. “I pulled you out of the water, but you kept trying to go back in, so I brought you home, hoping your grandmother might know what’s going on.”
“Melinda, you’d taken three of the five Elements into you at the same time
,” Gran finished the story. “It was a curse that meant to kill you one way or another. If the power didn’t burn you alive, then you were instructed to drown yourself in the lake.”
My eyes widened. Those bloody little…it was the same thing they did to Jenny.
“Why can’t I remember?” I demanded.
“I think the power fried your memory,” Jeff said. “Our bodies aren’t built to withstand that kind of power. Your brain was working to try and survive, so it did what it needed to do. I suspect you’d have lost a lot more of your memories if CJ hadn’t intervened. She’s a true Coven Mistress, chosen by the Elements, and can withstand all their power at once. This is the first time she’s done that, though. It took more out of her than I thought possible.”
Red saved me? I stared at her pale face and felt overwhelmed. I’d been plotting the deaths of all the wannabes, and then someone I barely knew risked her life for mine? Even I understood the irony there. She’d saved me, and now I had a debt to repay. “Will she be okay?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” Ethan growled. “She wasn’t ready for this!”
“Xavier, is there anything you can do to help her?” I asked, staring up into his eyes. They were like rivers of black ice tonight, staring down at me. I shivered, despite the abundance of warmth Jeff had bathed me in.
Xavier nodded and stood. He knelt down beside of CJ and put his hand on her head, much the same as Jeff had me. Murmuring in words of that ancient, beautiful language, he began to glow. It wasn’t a fiery white light or anything like that, but his body seemed to shimmer in the firelight, a soft haze that made him look like he glowed more than anything else. After a moment, he leaned back. “She should be okay now, but she’ll sleep for several hours. You may want to put her to bed until the doctor gets here, though.” Ethan picked her up and carried her upstairs, Jeff on his heels.
