by Renee George
“When he died, did you do any kind of ceremony?”
“Yes, I performed the wand breaking ceremony at his funeral. It includes saying a few words and breaking a wand. He’d asked me to do it before he died.”
“What words did you say?”
“It was some Bible verse that Al had requested.” He tucked his chin as if having a “huh” moment. “Come to think of it, Al had never been very religious.”
“You don’t know everything about me,” the ghost of Aloysius said as he appeared, and sat on Olivia’s lap.
“Get off her,” I said, snapping at the spirit. “Now.”
“Go away,” Jared said. And the ghost evaporated.
I looked at Liv. She waved her hand at me in a shooing gesture. “I don’t even want to know.”
“Then I won’t tell you that a lecherous spirit was sitting on your lap, all nestled in your ample bosom.”
Eliza sputtered. “I can’t believe our dear, straight-laced Charlotte just used lecherous and bosom in the same sentence.” Her declaration caused chuckles around the table.
“A Bible verse isn’t a spell though, is it? That wouldn’t have done it, and other than me talking about what a great magician Al was, I didn’t say much else.”
“Which verse?”
“Something about a setting something on my heart—”
Olivia leaned forward. “Set me as a seal upon thine heart. For love is strong as death. Jealousy as cruel as Sheol. The flashes thereof are flashes of fire. Of life. The very flame of Jah.”
“Yes,” Jared said. “That’s the one.”
“Songs of Solomon, chapter eight, verse six.” David frowned. “You might as well have wrapped that binding up in Christmas wrapping and made it a gift.”
“And tied it up nice and tight with a bright red ribbon,” Olivia added.
“In my defense, until yesterday, I had no idea that any of this stuff existed.”
I put my hand on Jared’s clenched fist, and he moved it away from my touch. A Jared-sized hollow pit formed inside me. His small rejection hurt me worse than the pain of yellow fever. But what did I expect? I’d hurt him, too. “How can we fix this?”
“There is too much information to go through when it comes to mages. It’s hard to tell fact from myth. I imagine you-know-who was right about Jared’s kind being near extinct. I found several references to wizard hunting, along with your standard witch burning and drowning practices of the prior centuries. There is a story about a woman by the named of Temperance who used to live, and maybe still does, southwest of here. She is a necromancer, or so I’ve read. The myths say she lives in a place called Vengeance Hollow, and she is supposed to be more than a hundred years old. A crone who never leaves her cabin in the woods. They say she had a daughter, a girl so beautiful that all the men of the town of Blue Eye were in love with her. She had the ability to make dead butterflies live again, a trick that delighted her suitors. But when the teenager rejected one of the town’s leaders, he rallied a mob around him to stone her for being a witch. Shortly after, terrible pox fell on the town, and children began to disappear from the area. Soon after, the parents of these missing children died. Anyone who tried to search for the children never returned. So, they changed the name of the hollow from Temperance to Vengeance and closed it off to any curiosity seekers trying to find it.”
“This sounds a little too Hansel and Gretel for my taste,” I said.
Ray shrugged. “I don’t know if it’s true. But it’s the only lead I have on someone who might also be a mage.”
“Give me the address,” said Jared.
I gave him an exasperated look. “If she exists, she’s dangerous.”
Jared glowered. “I just want this to be over and done with.” I missed his smile so much. Oh, to turn a dial go back in the past two days.
Ray nodded. “The tales say that only small children and those of her own kind can find her. I can give you an approximate location, but you’re going to have to use a magical GPS to actually find her.”
“If she even exists,” I said.
“I’m going,” Jared said. He glanced at me. “With or without you.”
“With me,” I said quickly. “I’m not letting you out of my sight until this over.”
“But after, you'll go. Right?"
I really had hurt him, and it made me sick that he believed I wouldn't stay with him in a heartbeat if it was feasible. I felt a hand on my knee and looked at my sister Eliza, her expression serious for once. I laced my fingers with hers and tried to borrow her strength.
I nodded. “Then we’ll part ways.”
The ride south was painfully silent. I leaned my head against the passenger window and counted trees as they passed by.
“How long are you going to stay mad at me?”
“I’m not mad, Charlotte.”
“I may not have much experience with men, but I have sisters. I know when someone’s upset with me.”
“I’m a man, and I know my own mind and my own heart. To treat my feelings as if I’m a schoolboy with a simple crush is upsetting.”
“I didn’t mean to upset you, but I can’t be with you, Jared. Not long term. I’m Kobal's for at least one hundred years, and when he’s done with me, I’m going to Hell. Hell is a place where no emotions exist. Not love, hate, anger, joy, kindness…” I let the word trail off. “You are kind and sweet and funny,” and super fine to look at, “and I won’t let you shed who you are because you think you love me. Love doesn’t conquer all. Sometimes it devastates. I won’t have your love for me destroy you.” For the first time, I truly understood what Olivia had given up when she left David in 1962 in order to save him. I would make the same sacrifice when the time came. Jared deserved a life with someone who could give him more than dust and broken dreams.
“According to Ray, the old woman should be about thirty miles past Hollister,” Jared said, ignoring my rant. “We should be in the area in about in forty or so minutes.”
“Is that all you have to say? I just told you why we can’t be together.”
“No,” he said. “You just told me you loved me. I’m not going to worry about the rest until we figure out how to separate Al from my soul. Then I will spend the rest of my days convincing you that we belong together.”
I didn’t need any convincing. I knew we belonged together. Or at least I knew I belonged with him. But I wasn’t good for Jared. And I would spend however long it took convincing him he’d be better off without me. "We can't."
Kobal materialized between us, his legs crossed over to my side of the truck cab. “What are you two kids up to today?” He raised a brow at me. “A romantic drive perhaps?”
“No,” I said. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m just checking in on my favorite minion and her new beau.” He turned in the seat and overlapped his hands onto Jared’s shoulder and rested his chin on top. “How are you, new beau? Is that pesky ghost still dampening your spirit?” He laughed, leaned back and threw his hands up. “Get it. Dampening your spirit, because Aloysius’s soul is tied to your soul.” He shook his head. “No? Ah well, not every joke is going to land.”
We passed the sign for Hollister. Kobal sniffed. “Why are you going this way? The lake is back the other way.”
“I am working on getting you your soul. That’s the only thing you need to worry about,” I said before Jared could spill the beans again. The less information Kobal knew concerning our mission, the better.
“Now, Olivia. You’re being rude.” His red eyes lit up like live coals. I felt the air whoosh from my lungs. I opened my mouth to gasp in a breath, but it was as if I’d been placed in a vacuum. I grabbed my throat with on hand and banged on the door with my other. Was this it? Was this the time that Kobal deemed me more a liability than a useful tool? I felt my life ebbing away, and my life did not flash before my eyes. Instead, I saw the life I could have had with Jared had I been born in a different time under different circumstance
s, and I grieved that life as my peripheral vision dimmed.
Jared swerved onto a gravel easement and slammed on the brakes.
He grabbed Kobal’s wrists, his fingers digging into the demon’s flesh. “Let her go!”
I choked as a rush of air flooded into my lungs.
Kobal turned his heated glare to Jared. “Never touch me again, mage.”
Right before Kobal blinked out of the truck cab, I saw the red marks on his wrists, and something in his expression I didn’t think possible--fear.
Jared hopped out of the truck, ran around to the passenger side, and flung the door open. He patted me down my arms and hips as if checking for open wounds.
“I’m fine,” I wheezed, still feeling tightness in my chest from Kobal’s punishment.
“I thought you said you were immortal. Doesn’t that mean you can’t be killed? Because it damn sure seemed to me like you were being killed.”
“I can’t be killed by anything here on earth, but Kobal can take my life anytime he wants. If I can’t hold up my end of the bargain, he’s within his rights.”
“Damn it, Charlotte.” He hugged me to his chest until the seatbelt cut into my waist hard enough that I squirmed. I reached down and undid the belt. When it came loose, he hauled me out of my seat and crushed me again. “Please don’t scare me like that again, honey. I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you.”
“I promise to try my dutiful best not to draw the ire of a demon lord.”
He cupped my face. “If you’re saying you will try not to piss him off, I’m good with that.”
“That’s what I’m saying. As long as you try and do the same. I’d never seen him lose his composure before. What did you do to him?”
“I guess he doesn’t like us mere humans touching his royal demonic self.”
I shook my head. “I guess not.” I knew there had to be more to it. I’d ask Ray when we got back to Branson. I thought about the old crone we were trying to find. She steals children and kills anyone who comes looking for her or for them.
“Wowee,” Aloysius said. “I thought Kobal’s head was going to explode. You guys certainly like to live dangerously.” The ghost was sitting in the passenger seat stroking his mustache.
“What do you want now?” Jared asked.
“Oh, nothing much. I’ve just spent the last year watching and not talking.” He shrugged. “I miss talking. You two are wasting your time.”
“Why in the world would you care?” I untangled myself from Jared’s arms and put my fists on my hips. “It seems to me that the more time we waste, the better your odds of sticking around.”
The magician seemed to contemplate my logic for a few moments, then said, “You’re right, of course. But even if you found the witch or mage or whatever you want to call her, it wouldn’t matter. She knows about as much about Goetia seals as anyone with Internet access. Besides, you’ll never find her. She likes her privacy.”
“Did you find her?” Jared asked. When Aloysius hesitated to answer, Jared demanded, “Tell me.”
“Yes.” He clamped his hands over his mouth. “Hey! No fair.” And with that, he was gone.
I stared at the empty seat. “At least now we know she’s real. All we’ve got to do is a find her. One woman in a five-mile radius. No problem.”
Jared assisted me back into the truck. “I’ve found smaller needles in bigger haystacks, honey. We’ll find her.”
Chapter 10
We turned off South 65 Highway onto West 86 Highway and drove through Blue Eye, the tiny village that supposedly started all the trouble with Temperance. It was a lovely little town with a population of 167. Which meant, you could be through it in a blink. Soon, we were driving north again through the Ozark Hills, following Ray’s GPS coordinates to an unmarked area. I guess the Blue Eye ancestors wanted to make sure Vengeance Hollow impossible to find.
Jared parked the truck off the road, both of us staring out at the vast forested hills. Finally, we got out of the vehicle and did the only thing we could, we started walking.
Jared said, “I’ll let you know if my Spidey senses start tingling.”
“What?”
“You know, from Spiderman, he gets weird vibrations when danger is near.” Jared shook his head. “You don’t know who Spiderman is?”
“I know that spiders scare the bejeezus out of me. Does that count?”
“It does not. I can’t believe you’ve never heard of him. He’s a famous superhero.”
“Oh, well, it’s not like I was dead for all of the twentieth century and most of the twenty-first.”
Jared laughed. “I keep forgetting that.” He jumped a barbed wire fence then held it open for me to crawl through.
I hiked my skirt up around my thighs to keep it from snagging but to no avail. “Tarnation,” I muttered, giving the fabric a yank. The fence tore a hole the size of a watermelon in my pale blue skirt. “I really liked this one. I don’t think there’s any mending it either.”
“I’ll buy you a new one,” Jared said. He withdrew a small knife from his pocket and crouched down next to me when I was untangled from the fence.
“What are you doing?”
“You can’t walk around the woods with your skirt hanging down past your feet. You’ll trip and hurt yourself.”
“Hello. Minion here.”
“How about,” he slid out the blade, “We’ll make better time if I do not have to pick you up every two seconds.”
“Fine,” I huffed. I blushed hotly as he exposed my legs from the knees down which made me feel foolish. After all, he’d seen a lot more of me last night than what was exposed now.
After he finished, Jared stepped back and admired his handiwork. “That’ll do.”
I gathered up the fabric and put it in my bag. “I’ll use it to make a camisole or something.”
“You sew?”
“All my clothes.” I laughed at the look on his face. “Being a minion is not a paying job,” I said. “I do odds and ends for a repair shop in Sanctum, the little town near Olivia and David’s farm. It pays for a bolt or two of fabric when I need it. Besides, I don’t mind making my own clothes. I always know it will fit and I will like the style.”
“You make those boots, too?”
I looked down at my cowgirl boots. “No. They were a gift from Olivia and David.” I slid the toe blade out. “I did modify them though.”
“You are a woman of many talents.”
I fanned myself. “Sir, you are too kind. Now let’s find us a witch in the woods.”
As we breached the thick brush leading into the tree line and brambles pricked at my knees, I cursed myself for not wearing long pants. It cleared off under the canopy of the tall maples and oaks that grew in the area.
“Anything tingling yet?”
Jared looked only mildly frustrated. “Not yet.”
“Well, I’m just along for the ride, so you holler when we get there.”
We walked around for another hour, and I was starting to feel defeated. “Maybe Ray was wrong.” I handed Jared a water bottle I’d brought along.
“What about Al? He wouldn’t have warned us off if we weren’t on the right track.”
I pulled a branch back that was attacking my hair. “Unless you fell victim to one of the classic blunders.”
“You mean I should never get involved in a land war in Asia?” He chuckled as he picked a leaf from the top of my head. “I can’t believe you don’t know Spiderman, but you know Princess Bride.”
“I’m a woman of simple pleasures.” I took the bottle back from him and took my own drink before putting it away. “All right. Let’s look a while longer.”
Jared bowed deeply at the waist, turned his eyes up to me, and said, “As you wish.”
I swear I about had another orgasm right then and there. The look on my face must have pleased him because he wore the smile of a conqueror. Suddenly, he frowned. He turned his head to the left and back again to the
right. He pointed somewhere in between. “This way.”
“What does it feel like?”
“Close as I can tell, it’s like tapping a tuning fork. Sort of like an alternating vibration.” He grinned. “Or I could be having a stroke.”
“Do you smell burnt toast?”
“No.”
“Then it’s probably not a stroke.” Elise, whose morbid fascination by all human ailments had prompted her to use her second chance at life to become a doctor, had disabused me of the notion that stroke victims smelled toast since a stroke could affect any part of the brain, but I still found it reassuring that his senses were intact.
I followed Jared closely through some inhospitable underbrush, occasionally cursing as a stick or prickly thorn cut into me. After the third time, Jared abruptly stopped in front of me. “Crawl up on my back.”
“I’m not letting you carry me.”
“I’m not taking another step until you hop on.”
We had a standoff for about two minutes before I caved in. Mostly because I had chigger bites all over my legs, and I didn’t think I could take any more abuse from the weeds.
I crawled on his back, my skirt up around my hips, and all the rest of me consciously aware of Jared’s muscular arms cradling my thighs. I wanted nothing more than to bury my face in the back of his shirt and inhale his masculine scent. So I did and got a nose full of sweat for my efforts when he stopped to step over a log, sending my face crashing into his spine.
“You okay back there?”
“Yes,” I said, my lips tasting of salt. I tightened my grip around his shoulder and scooted higher on his back, my sensitive bits scraping against his lower back. The sensation sent a twitter of pleasure through me. I wanted to do it again. And again. But there was no good non-sexual explanation for grinding against someone.
I peered around the forest. “How much farther do you think?”
“The sensation is getting stronger. I think we’re close.”
There was a thicket of brambles and loopy vines as if nature had created a wall. “How in the world are we going to get through there?”
