Double-Sided Witch (Covencraft Book 3)

by Margarita Gakis

  “What happened there?”

  She swallowed. “Oh, just… a minor accident. You know how it is.”

  “No, I don’t,” Paris replied, not that easily put off. “Was that last night or this morning?”

  “This morning. Curling iron. It happens. Price of beauty.”

  Paris took in Jade’s ponytail - straight as usual. He wasn’t so certain she didn’t at least own a curling iron, but he was fairly certain if she did own one, she didn’t use it often. She lied so quickly and convincingly. If he hadn’t been looking for anything amiss, he likely wouldn’t have noticed. He wanted to press it, but didn’t think that the middle of Counter-Magic was the right time.

  “If you want a healing spell to help your fingers along, let me know. My mother had a wonderful poultice for burns. I think Dr. Gellar uses it in medlab, actually. Keeps infection rates low.”

  “Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.”

  “Well, I just stopped by to see how you were. I best return to my office.”

  “Heavy hangs the head that wears the crown, hey?”

  “Just so. Please let me know if any more of your spells don’t work, and come by and see if me if you want to try something new.”

  “You bet.”

  Paris wasn’t at all surprised when the day passed and Jade didn’t pop by his office once. She was more likely to text or email if she decided to do any more magic, although he did feel a tad disappointed. By five o’clock, he decided he put off his next errand long enough and took off early to head to the Preserve. The Nature Preserve had a number of entrances for Coven and town members to use - some with pathways for walking or hiking, some with picnic benches and fire pits for cooking. There were even a few small camping areas that could be reserved for those wishing to take a short vacation but not go very far. Jade’s cottage was close to an entrance where Paris knew she and Daniel went running regularly, but the entrance closer to the lake was further away and he used the drive to let his mind wander over work, Jade and the rest of the Coven. Paris remembered to send a quick email to Josef to let him know where he was going and that he would let Counter-Magic know if there was anything of interest.

  Paris turned off the paved road, his car jostling and rolling unevenly on the gravel that led into the Preserve area. The sky was already going dark. He really should have left earlier. This time of year didn’t leave much daylight for being outdoors. Although it was past Winter Solstice and the days were getting longer, it was happening slowly and they were still firmly within winter’s stiff grip. The weather around the Coven was mild compared to other places, for which Paris was grateful. He didn’t think he could stand having to dig his way out of a snow drift every morning in addition to being in the dark.

  The trees were barren, reaching for the twilight sky, casting their arms in long, grey spindles. As he stepped out of the car, his breath plumed out in grey puffs before disappearing into the darkness. He pulled a high powered flashlight out with him and flicked it on, heading toward the pathways. He said a quick spell for his intentions, letting the forest know he was coming and asking it to look after him. The last thing he needed was to trip over a branch or a root and break a leg. Hopefully, Mother Nature was feeling kind and generous despite the cold and would keep him safe. He was glad for his coat and gloves, although he would have done better to bring a hat. His coat collar came up to cover the bottom part of his ears, but the night was sharp and he felt the tips of them growing cold.

  As Paris walked, he turned over the bits of information he knew. Jade was having problems sleeping, having nightmares. Someone stopped her magic, but not his. There were reports coming in from the lake tied to Jade’s magic. He hoped no one in the Coven was foolish enough to try to keep Jade from using magic simply because they were worried about the lake or angry about the new Coven norm. But if that were the case, they’d likely be trying to stop Jade from all magic and not just the spell she’d done last night. Indeed, nothing had interrupted their rune work.

  He was still fairly far out from the lake when he felt it - a brush of magic against his. Like the reports coming in Counter-Magic had said, it did feel like Jade’s magic, but he could also feel why the children would have cried. It was… chaotic and… raw. When Paris first met Jade, her power had been completely untrained, but even then, it hadn’t felt like this. This felt… hurt. Sad. Scared. It made the hair on the back of his neck rise. Paris had never gotten a sense of Jade’s magic like this. He didn’t even know her magic could feel like this. He realized his steps had slowed and he was moving forward at less than half his previous pace. The closer he got, the worse the feeling became. He felt anxious himself - as though the forest had eyes, all of them malevolent and turned his way. A sharp scent caught his attention and he sniffed. Licorice. He’d never smelled that as part of Jade’s magic before. He didn’t know anyone in the Coven with that marker. It was quite distinct. Paris took another deep breath. Licorice and vanilla. Vanilla was quite common among the Coven members. A lot of witches had it as a secondary, tertiary or quaternary scent. But the licorice was unique.

  Another ten minutes in and he felt the deep pull of the lake. While large bodies of water always had some kind of magic in them, the lake’s had been amplified and affected by the tragedy involving Josef’s family. Witches could usually tell if there was a lake, river, or other large body of water close by from the natural pull of the element. But the lake in the Preserve had a stronger current to it now. It dragged at witches, not so much calling their power as tugging and yanking at it sharply. It usually affected those with an affinity for water the most. The less strong a witch’s water magic was, the less they would feel the lake. Paris had been quite surprised when Jade felt the lake from so far out. She was quite poor at water magic with no affinity for it. She was extraordinary with fire, strong in air, and moderately talented in earth. But her water magic was weak.

  Now, though, the pulling, tugging sensation from the lake was mixed up with the feeling of Jade’s magic and Paris was assaulted by it. Jade’s magic overwhelmed him, though she was nowhere near the lake. The smell of licorice grew stronger as he got closer and when he finally cleared the tree line and could actually see the lake, he thought the taste and smell of licorice would be embedded permanently in his soft palette.

  Paris closed his eyes and sent little tendrils of his magic out, searching for the familiar feeling of his mother’s magic, searching for the wards Josef had said she set. Though it had been years, he knew he would recognize it if it were there to be found. He wanted to examine them and see if they had just expired from age or if they had been broken, perhaps on purpose.

  When he did sense his mother’s magic, he sighed. The feel of it was still the same after all these years, so familiar and well known, bringing with it the memory of being safe and comforted. Paris turned his flashlight to the left and followed the faint trace of her magic until he found where she cast the original ward. He reached out to one of the tree trunks, knowing as he did that she would have carved the ward in the bark. He’d seen her cast wards many times and she favored etching them into permanent structures for endurance. The beam of the flashlight danced over the trunk, dipping into the nooks and crannies. He finally found it - the distinctive marks of a ward carved into the bark, the inherent magic keeping it from fading, even after all these years. But covering the ward, blacking out parts of it were dark lines. Paris reached out and touched them. Scorch marks. Not from magic. He didn’t sense any other spell work and working magic on a ward would be dangerous - it would be hard to predict how it would react. No, these marks were done with something meant to destroy the wards, meant to make them fail. Maybe a small blow torch.

  It was definitely deliberate. Though he was sure he’d find more of the same things as he searched, he sent his magic out to find the rest of his mother’s wards. He located three more - one set in each cardinal direction. All of them had been scorched, the magic burned out of them purposefully.

 
His mother’s wards being destroyed would explain the lake feeling stronger, but it didn’t explain why it felt so much like Jade’s magic, unless it was just a residual affect of Paris resetting Coven magic to match Jade’s. Perhaps whatever lingered at the lake was trying to tune itself to Jade, the same way the rest of the Coven was. Maybe that tuning was going badly. Paris wasn’t sure.

  He might need to bring Jade out to the lake. If there were something wrong because of how he reset Coven magic, her magic would be the best to deal with it. Paris would be able to guide her and perhaps help with some spell casting, but Jade would have the best chance at fixing something that was amiss with her own natural resonance. She wasn’t going to be happy about it. He remembered how reluctant she’d been when they’d started approaching the lake the last time they’d been out at the Preserve. Given everything that was going on with her currently, he hated to ask for more, but she could possibly be the quickest and easiest solution.

  Now if Paris could just convince her of that.

  #

  Jade wracked her brain trying to figure a way out. She thought about magic, about lying, about brute force, but she couldn’t come up with anything that would work.

  She was at Booty Yoga and couldn’t escape.

  “Do you have your own mat?”

  The perky woman behind the counter hadn’t stopped smiling since Jade approached the counter. She smiled as she gave Jade the disclaimer form. She smiled as she took payment. She smiled as she offered Jade a newbie pass and now she wore a smile and an expectant expression as she waited for Jade to answer. It was unnatural to be so happy.

  “Uh, no.”

  “No problem! You can use one of our mats. Rental fees are two dollars. Unless you’d like to buy a mat. They are thirty dollars each. But! If you purchase a pass with a mat, that drops down to twenty-five.”

  “I’ll just rent the mat for tonight.”

  “No problem!” she repeated. “But I’ve a feeling you’re going to love it. It’s a great workout.”

  Jade curled her lips in what she hoped was an approximation of a smile. Callie and Henri better already be here. If Jade walked in that yoga room and didn’t see them, she was out. She felt slightly jostled and anxious in the front area, surrounded by women who obviously knew each other. They greeted one another, also smiling, catching up with each other’s days. There were too many people in such a small area for Jade’s liking. She paid for her workout (and her mat rental. Jesus, mat rental. Like they couldn’t let her use it for an hour. She was going to give it back) and then followed the overly perky woman for a quick tour. Finally, Jade was left on her own to head for the yoga room. As she pulled the door back, she was hit with a thick wave of heat that had her eyes crossing. Good lord. She was expected to stay an hour in this room? Was there a medical kit on standby just in case?

  Callie must have been on the lookout for her because she waved Jade over the moment she stepped inside. She and Henri had situated themselves at the front of the room, which was covered in floor to ceiling mirrors. Jade felt her step falter. She had managed to avoid looking in any larger mirrors since her accident the other day. She did her makeup in the morning by using a small compact mirror, only needing to focus on her eyes or her cheeks or her lips - one feature at a time. Jade managed another approximation of a smile, catching sight of herself in the mirror. It definitely looked more like a grimace. She ducked her head low as she made her way up to the obvious spot between Callie and Henri.

  “We saved you a spot,” Callie said. Unlike the woman at the counter, Callie’s smile didn’t make Jade nervous. It was a warm, easy grin that Jade was familiar with and found comforting.

  “Thanks.” Jade spread out her mat and, after checking how Callie and Henri had set themselves up, put her water bottle at the top. “Uh, is it supposed to be this hot?”

  Henri nodded. “Yep. It helps your muscles relax and stretch out. Really good for the poses. It also helps you sweat out all the toxins in your body.”

  “It’s going to be really good for the full mummification of my corpse.” She could already feel sweat breaking out along her hairline and upper lip. She hoped she was wearing enough deodorant. She should have put more on before coming. Thank God she’d just washed these clothes.

  “It’s too moist for that,” Henri said with a sassy grin. Jade had to laugh. He was right.

  “Most people say you get used to it after a couple of classes,” Callie added.

  “Oh. Happiness.” Jade wasn’t sure she wanted to get used to it. She was fully dressed in a sauna. She would sweat like a pig. It would be gross and to top it off, she was paying for it.

  They had a few more minutes of idle chat before their instructor, a tall, willowy brunette, came into the room, introduced herself and asked if there were any newbies. Callie and Henri’s hands shot up like the woman had asked for volunteers at a wine tasting. Jade waved her hand, feeling awkward and on the spot. The brunette, Andrea, walked them through the class etiquette, some quick terminology lessons and then finished off her introductory speech with, “…and if you feel faint you can just lie down. If you do leave the room, gimme some kind of a signal so I know you’re okay, unless you’re rushing out because you’re sick.”

  “Sick?” Jade asked, a niggling suspicion in her brain.

  Andrea nodded solemnly. “Some people vomit the first time due to the heat, but give it a few goes; your body will adjust.”

  Jade turned to Callie, her glare accusing. ‘Vomit?’ she mouthed. Callie gave her a weak smile and a half shoulder shrug. Jade turned to Henri who was obviously avoiding her gaze, staring straight ahead at the mirror. She poked him in the shoulder.

  “Vomit?” she hissed.

  “Oh, don’t be such a baby,” he whispered back. “You’ve stopped a demon and a madman. A little hot yoga isn’t going to kill you.”

  “I’m not afraid it will kill me, I’m afraid it will make me vomit.”

  He shushed Jade, finger coming up to his lip. Her eyes widened. Oh, he did not just shush her. She was about to say something else when Andrea dimmed the lights and instructed them all into the first pose. Jade looked pointedly at Henri and dragged her finger across her throat. He rolled his eyes.

  It went about as well as Jade expected.

  Which is to say, after five minutes she could feel the sweat rolling down her neck, skimming down her spine and sinking into the waistband of her pants. She studiously avoided looking in the mirror but that didn’t keep her from looking at Henri and Callie. Jade imagined she looked like a variant of them - red faced, dripping sweat, face contorted in grimaces as they held poses. Although, she could see how this would give her a killer ass. Her glutes and hamstrings were on fire. At one point, the entire class was holding what the instructor called a chair pose. Gone was the mild mannered persona who introduced herself at the start. Now, Andrea had a sharp tone, hollering that they could squat lower, they would squat lower, and they would hold it.

  Jade glanced over at Henri and saw her squat was lower than his. “I’m winning,” she whispered.

  “It’s not a competition!” he hissed back.

  Jade shrugged, throwing off her balance and she stumbled-stepped, falling to her knees hard. Henri only managed to slightly mute his guffaw and Jade had to laugh at herself along with him. This was ridiculous. She was horrible at yoga.

  At the end of the hour they got to lie down in what was appropriately called ‘corpse pose.’ It was the best pose of the class, in Jade’s opinion. She was soaking wet, her legs were shaking and there was a promise of a cool lemongrass towel in a few minutes. Andrea was leading them through some kind of guided meditation. It was the same sort of thing that Paris wanted her to try, in order to focus her magic. Jade was crap at it. She couldn’t clear her mind, couldn’t focus on her breathing, couldn’t stop being distracted by anything that happened around her. Someone coughed. Someone else shifted. The heater kicked on (again, my God it was hot enough, but that thing kept run
ning).

  After a few minutes, Jade felt like she was doing better. She did feel a little more relaxed. Maybe there was something to all this yoga business. She was tired, hot and she should be hosed down before leaving, but she felt good. She listened to Andrea talk about inhaling and exhaling and instead of dismissing it, Jade tried to do as instructed. She breathed in and out, thought about the oxygen circulating in her body, thought about how heavy her body felt, how tired she felt. It was a good kind of tired. A clean tired. She was drowsy and started to feel like she was drifting. Her body felt like liquid, sinking into the ground. Or maybe the ground was liquid, and she was merging with it, becoming one viscous puddle.

  Andrea’s voice sounded further and further away. Jade could hear her heart beating in her ears, loud and thick. Her breathing slowed down, her breaths got shallow. She was so heavy. She was so tired. She wasn’t so much falling asleep as falling away, drifting from the surface into the depths.

  Like being in water.

  Like drowning.

  A loud crack made everyone in the room gasp and a few people shrieked in surprise. Jade had heard that sound, but not only that, she’d felt it. Something had broken. Something had snapped. She was afraid to open her eyes but knew it would look weird if she didn’t. She cracked open her eyelids, her gaze opening immediately to the area in question.

  The wall of mirrors was broken - spider-like lines of fractures splintering through each pane. Jade cringed internally. She’d done that. She didn’t know how, but she knew it had been her. Or maybe not exactly her. More like… Lily.

  Jade wanted to run, to hide, but she couldn’t move. Any moment now, Callie and Henri would turn to her and say that it was Jade’s magic that had done that. They both knew what her magic felt like, what it smelled like. The room was full of chatter, the calm that had existed only moments before gone, driven away by the cracks in the glass.