Jane

by Rose Montague

  “Put this around your neck,” she said, handing me a necklace, pewter, with what looked like a salamander hanging from it. “I will invoke it,” she continued. “Jade, please watch this. All you have to do is to say the key words and pour a little magic into the charm.” It will last about a week and then will need to be re-powered.” Pointing at the salamander she said, “Karma Chameleon” and the little chameleon that I thought was a salamander changed color to a black to match my outfit.

  “Nice,” said Jade. “I can’t sense vamp at all when I look at you, Jane.”

  “Now,” Catherine said pulling a stool out from under one of the tables, “What else do you need my help with?”

  CHAPTER NINE: THE RIGHT PATH

  IT TURNS OUT THERE was a portal near our location called Damp Steinkreis in a forest close to the Baltic Sea. It was a witch-made stone circle portal. The original destination was lost over many centuries but about twenty-five years ago, it was reactivated with a new destination. The Fremont Troll under a bridge in the Fremont area of Seattle was designed to give witches easy access to the American west coast. Holding a red Volkswagen and constructed of steel and concrete it looked like a bridge troll that had plucked the car from the top of the bridge. Some of the rocks in the stone circle being red added to the German connection. Over a period of years witches on both sides of the portal activated it.

  Now when witches travelled to the Fremont troll, they almost appeared as if they were emerging from the car. Catherine took us to the location in the woods and we stood before it. It was similar in appearance to the one we emerged out of in Pack territory just yesterday.

  “I can smell him,” Jade said. “There is nothing else that smells demon like Clive’s scent.”

  “It feels as though there has been a recent activation,” said Catherine. “You might want to consider if he has left any traps for you on the other side before you take the portal as well.”

  Saying that she let Snoggins to the ground, and pointed at the portal. He proceeded to spray one of the red rocks and then explore the circle, sniffing all the while. Hissing and spitting he ran back to Catherine, jumping into her arms.

  “There is danger on the other end,” said Catherine. “I would suggest another route, now you know where he has gone.”

  “He probably left a surprise for us in Seattle,” I said. “Just waiting for us to follow. I bet he has snipers or some of his people eager to put an end to us.”

  “Are there any other portals in that area of the US we can take?” asked Jade.

  “A few, but nothing around here,” Catherine said.

  “How about a universal portal, like Stonehenge?” asked Jade.

  “There is one near Seattle,” Catherine responded. “No universal portals near our location here, though.”

  “Can we not change the destination of this one?” Jade asked.

  “That would take a ton of power,” Catherine said. “We will get the coven together to prepare it for a one time change in destination and with your power you might be able to pull it off. It is called the Maryhill Stonehenge and is a few hundred miles from Seattle, but that is your only choice anywhere in that area.”

  “Let’s do it,” I said. “The longer we wait the further behind we get. We need to pick up his trail quickly. We don’t have ID much less passports to take traditional transportation and even if we get that it will take at least a day or two and then we have to make the trip. I think this would be much faster.”

  “I agree,” said Jade. “Catherine, can you call your coven here? Are enough of them available right now to come and do the required preparations?”

  “Let me make some calls,” she said, digging out her cell phone. “This might be fun.”

  A bunch of naked witches surrounded us musically chanting something in an Ancient language. Catherine led the circle with a tree branch in her hand, going around the stone circle counter-clockwise with us in the center. A pentagram made of yarn marked the center of the stone circle with Jade in the center of that and me just holding her hand.

  Jade had her head up to the sky, eyes open but unfocused, waiting for the go-ahead from Catherine. A few of the witches had tambourines and would occasionally whack themselves on the rear end with them. There was no particular pattern that I could hear. One of the witches cackled occasionally, a high pitched sound that made me think she was quite insane. This only confirmed what I always thought about witches in general, just weird. Fortunately, I was just there for the ride.

  Catherine called out for Jade’s attention and I felt her pull on her power invoking the portal. First in one direction I sensed and then a change to a new destination and in a blink of an eye we arrived in the middle of the Maryhill Stonehenge, both of us lightly staggering with the transition.

  There was a little witch a few steps in front of us. She was probably only three or four years old, and already had a pentagram necklace around her neck, probably attracted to the power release in our arrival.

  “Mommy, Mommy!” she called, and I noticed several other humans walking around the memorial taking notice of us as well. Jade swayed against me, feet still unsteady, and I leaned into her, putting my arm around her waist and preventing her from falling. It must have taken a huge drain on her power and her hair was all frizzy and sticking out from her head. I knew she would be hungry and would need to eat something soon.

  The child’s mom, also a witch, strode over and put her hand protectively on the child’s shoulder. The child meanwhile raised her arm and pointed at Jade, her mouth open in wonder. I knew Jade in witch mode would appear to other witches as a mountain of power, something they would both respect and fear.

  “Don’t point honey,” the mom said to the child. Looking at me she said, “I felt you arrive. Do you need our help?” She addressed this to me because Jade looked like she was about to faint.

  “Please,” I answered. “She needs food. Coffee or chocolate if there is anything nearby.”

  Looking out between the stones I faced was a big river. The concrete Stonehenge was built overlooking the river. There was a road on the other side but no structures in my view.

  “Here, let me help you,” the witch said, coming on the other side of Jade and also supporting her. “There is a little gift shop and they might have something. My name is Caryn,” she added. “This is my daughter Rae.”

  “I’m Janet,” I said. “This is my very tired friend Janice.” I had not thought much about what names we would use and these were the first ones that popped into my head.

  Ignoring the other humans walking around the circle and taking pictures, Caryn led us through the inner circle and down a small slope towards a small structure that was a gift shop. As we drew near, Jade perked up somewhat. I could tell she smelled something she wanted in there. As we entered the door I saw a male witch behind the small counter and that was where Jade’s nose pointed.

  On the counter, I saw two bags of chocolate covered espresso beans right next to the register. Jade untangled herself from us and made the last step and snatched up a bag, ripping the top off and pouring some in her mouth, chomping loudly with a few of the beans falling to the floor. Rae happily started after a few wayward beans, picking them up. Her mom took a step back, just watching. We were the only people in the shop. Looking around, I saw the circle was presented as some type of war memorial, hiding its real purpose as a witch portal.

  “I’m Scott,” said the clerk. “Here to help any arriving witches from around the world.”

  I answered because Jade was still crunching and pouring more beans in her mouth, still spilling some as the little girl was laughing, enjoying the game of chasing the beans. After she gathered a few she offered them to Jade who would stuff those in her mouth as well. I saw a spark of intelligence finally showing up in her eyes.

  “We need to get to Seattle as quickly as possible,” I said. “Is there a bus or shuttle that runs out here?”

  “We are from Seattle,” Caryn said. “
We can give you a ride.”

  I knew that if Jade hadn’t still had her mouth full, she would be whispering. “hand of God” to me. I knew we were on the right path.

  CHAPTER TEN: DON’T FEED THE TROLL

  IT WAS AN OLD beat up two-tone Dodge Monaco but we were not complaining. There was plenty of room in the back seat and Caryn had told us we had a several hour drive before we made it to Seattle. It was a spur of the moment thing for them to come down and Caryn said she just wanted to give Rae a feel for a universal portal as part of her early education as a witch.

  As we drove the radio softly played Somebody Loan Me a Dime.

  “That’s weird,” said Caryn. “The radio in this thing hasn’t worked for years.” She turned knobs and pushed buttons but the song stayed on.

  I looked at Jade. Rae sat between us, handing Jade handfuls of the second bag of chocolate espresso beans. She was attracted to Jade’s power and was having a good time. Jade just shrugged as she crunched. I didn’t think it was her doing.

  The song changed to She Caught the Katy and Caryn asked over her shoulder, “What are your plans in Seattle?”

  Jade swallowed and answered, “We’re on a mission from God.” Then she took another handful of beans from Rae and stuffed them in her mouth.

  I slowly banged my head on the window, thinking okay, why not?

  “We’re chasing the Devil,” I said.

  Rae thought that was pretty funny. Giggling, she asked, “What are you going to do with the Devil when you catch him?”

  “We are going to annihilate him,” I responded and she thought that was pretty funny as well.

  The music stopped and we drove in silence for a while, Caryn not asking anything else about our plans.

  About an hour later we stopped for a break at a small diner. Caryn said they had not eaten and this place was supposed to have some good burgers. I told her we had no money but she had said it was not a problem. The smell of those now gone espresso beans had left me craving some coffee as well and Jade had perked up even more, thinking about a steak most likely.

  It was between the breakfast and dinner hours. Caryn had driven down before daybreak to get an early start on their day. There were only a few customers at the counter or in booths, and we took a booth as well. Rae sat with Jade and I sat on the side with Caryn.

  Caryn and Rae got burgers and Jade ordered two of the breakfast steaks with nothing else and coffee of course. I asked for coffee as well, telling the nice waitress I was not hungry. She was a middle aged human with a pleasant personality, just bursting with energy and friendliness. I was betting she did really well on tips.

  Caryn and Rae were on dessert and I had started on my third cup of coffee when trouble arrived. Jade’s head snapped up. She probably smelled the guns. Her back was to the register but I had a good view as two thugs with ski masks came in with sawn off shotguns. One grabbed our waitress and dragged her to the counter, shotgun under her chin. The other was close behind, shotgun pointed towards the customers.

  “Nobody move!” he shouted.

  This would not do at all, I thought. I liked our waitress and these guys looked high as a kite and dangerous as hell.

  “Take the one on the left,” I told Jade in a whisper, and I was gone.

  My vamp trick came in handy again as I was next to the one holding the waitress in the blink of an eye. I grabbed the shotgun before he even registered my presence and pulled it away and up from our waitress. The shotgun went off, putting a hole in the ceiling, with bits of plaster raining down. With my other hand I had grabbed the robber’s other arm and stretched it out, dislocating his arm from his shoulder. He stumbled back, screaming. I had his shotgun but he was in so much pain he was already turning towards the door they had come in by.

  Jade had left the booth by this time. She faced us with her power rising and her hair sticking out in some sort of static charge. A huge wind came up and threw the other guy through the door back outside, door flying off as well. The guy I disabled followed, tumbling in the air and out the door as well.

  Nobody moved, the silence broken only by the sound of the car starting up outside. I guess they had enough.

  “Time to go,” I said back over my shoulder to Jade and strode towards the now door-less exit.

  “So much for keeping a low profile,” Jade said when we regained our spots in the car and Caryn took off down the road.

  “What the fuck?” Caryn said.

  Rae laughed. I could tell Caryn was pissed. Rae had her back to the action and did not see the brief fight.

  “Janet went poof again, Mommy,” said Rae.

  “Yeah she did,” said Caryn. “Not even possible. What exactly have we gotten ourselves into?”

  “It was a robbery,” Jade told Rae. “Janet doesn’t like bad guys.” Looking towards Caryn she added, “The cops are going to want to talk to us and we probably only have ten or twenty minutes before they put out an alert. It is probably best if we don’t tell you everything. Go a couple of exits down and drop us off. Just tell them we asked for a ride north and after this robbery you let us out on the side of the road.”

  “Witches help witches in trouble,” Caryn said. “However, I have to think about my daughter. This is moving beyond giving you a ride to Seattle.”

  “This exit looks fine,” I said. We were in a pretty underdeveloped area with lots of land. We could always make a run through the countryside if needed.

  Caryn took the exit ramp and let us out at the top. Jade asked her to be vague about where she had dropped us off. That might give us more time. We did not want to be talking to the cops at this point.

  We stood there holding hands for a moment and Jade gave me a brief kiss.

  “You did the right thing,” she said. “That is all I ask.”

  “I liked our waitress. It was good coffee.”

  Jade laughed as we looked around. There was a small structure off the road a few hundred yards to our right. In front was a line of motorcycles.

  “Can you ride one of those things?” Jade asked.

  I knew she could barely drive a car, much less a motorcycle.

  “Been there, done that,” I said.

  “Let’s check it out,” she replied.

  As we drew closer we made out the sign on the front of the building. JJ’s Biker Bar, it said. “Oh, this should be fun.” Jade laughed.

  Inside was a long bar with stools, mostly empty. To the side there were several pool tables with chairs and few tables placed nearby. That is where the biker group was. The bikers were mostly men, middle aged for the most part, with tattoos and beards and the typical leather attire and rugged looks. Two females, I noted. Both had witch markings like Jade. Their heads jerked up when we entered, even faster than the men. They sensed the presence of a powerful witch. I was glad I had my chameleon charm on. It probably wouldn’t be a good thing for a vampire to walk into the bar from broad daylight. Without the charm, I would have given us away.

  Jade led me to the table with the two witches and plopped down across from them. She gave me a nudge towards the nearest pool table. “Janet’s got next,” she said.

  Great, I thought. She remembered the night I took her out and we stopped to play some billiards. Jade had been so drunk she wanted to spar with the pool sticks. I was surprised she remembered.

  They were playing nine-ball, a game I enjoyed. Rose had a billiards table and I loved to play when I was growing up. After I was turned I decided to master the game and spent several months non-stop getting trained by some local experts. Vampires had a lot of time on their hands. For Rose it was chess, for me, it was this. I enjoyed playing and this was a game I could also play by myself. Being better at it than all but a few was also nice.

  I stood next to one of the bikers, a shifter who also watched the game. He introduced himself as Tom. I could tell he was curious about Jade. He probably smelled some shifter buried under the witch mode she was in now. He kept glancing over at her, nervously trying to
figure it out.

  In the meantime, what looked to be the leader of the biker group joined Jade and the other two witches at the table. Jade called me over for introductions. His name was Moses, and the witch girls were called Lady and Lucky. Jade introduced me as her girlfriend. It was kind of nice to be introduced that way. The witch girls told Moses he had better not mess with Jade because she was the most powerful witch they ever saw. All of them were friendly and outgoing, not at all what you might expect from a group of bikers.

  The game ended and it was my turn. The guy that won the previous game was pretty good but still not in my league. He was a big bulk of a man, one of the three shifters in the group. His name was Joseph and he loved to play. They played for small stakes, more for fun and kidding around than anything else and I was able to get one of the other bikers watching to stake me with a ten dollar bill because we had not a dime on us.

  I lost the lag because I wasn’t used to the table but from what I saw, I doubted that would be a problem. He sank the three ball on the break and proceeded to make a really nice bank shot to sink the one and set himself up nicely for the two ball. He didn’t leave himself much of a shot at the four ball and was just barely able to make contact with it.

  I took it slow, getting used to the table and making comfortable shots with nice leaves. The spread of the balls was a good one and I ran the table pretty easily. I had one miss in the second game but my challenger also missed after sinking one ball and I finished it up. I then proceeded to win the lags and ran the table three times in a row. I was having fun and even passed up a few obvious shots to make more difficult ones. I had their attention and they cheered me on, making fun of my challengers just standing there.