by Dinia Steel
"Come into my arms child! There's no need to stand on formality with us," The Lady's voice rang with the sound of chimes.
Her heart filled with joy, Reggie went into the Lady's opened arms.
James could hear and feel Reggie's happiness. When he reached the bottom of the stairs and approached Reggie and her great aunt, he slowed his pace to give them a little more time with each other. When the Lady's gaze met his, he stopped and bowed his head, showing respect for her.
When the rest of the Keepers reached the spot where Reggie and James stood, they too stopped and bowed their heads.
"Welcome Keepers. The time has once again come when your torches must be held high to hold back the darkness that threatens to overcome the light once more. So it's been since the beginning of time. Come, walk with me and let's discuss the task ahead of us."
Leo halted in his tracks.
The Lady smiled at him. "Yes, Leo. I said ‘us’ as I shall be joining you."
They all walked together with the Keepers surrounding the Lady. They found themselves relaxing as they hadn't been able to since before the attack on the house. They laughed and enjoyed just being together. They were thankful for being under the influence of the Lady of the Lake.
"James, do you have another spare room?" The Lady asked quietly.
A huge grin broke out on Reggie's face. "You're coming to visit us? In the flesh?"
Nodding her head she replied, "Yes, my dear, I am. I shall need to be there because this fight will have to take place in the exact same spot where Jill was killed." The Lady's smile faded, but then she brightened. "Sekhmet shall be joining us as well. She too, will be in her human form. And I am quite sure I can round up a few more friends that might be of help to us in the battle."
They walked along the crystal lake’s shore line for a little longer until they knew it was time to bid the Lady, the Cave, and Sekhmet farewell for a period of time.
As they exited the cave they were once again surrounded by the blue mist, then they were back in the library.
~o0o~
Not even two hours later, they heard the crunching of gravel on the driveway to the house.
Reggie and James recognized who it was at the same time.
Reggie became so excited, she literally ran to open the door.
Standing there was a very tall woman who looked to be in her mid forties. Her hair was a light natural brown worn loose and fell below her shoulders. Her eyes were a dark blue James had heard referred to as Celtic Blue. She was statuesque; one might even say full bodied. Dressed in a black Armani women's pants suit. It didn't look as though it'd been "traveled" in at all. It looked like she may have just gotten it from the cleaners it was so pristine.
Reggie threw her arms around her great aunt. "Aunt Myrtle! How wonderful to finally meet you!"
"There, there child. Don't knock me down," Aunt Myrtle chided. "May I come in the house, please?"
"Reggie, come on. Let's get your aunt in the house and then we will have introductions all the way around," It was then when James saw another woman standing below the steps, on the walkway waiting to be noticed. He didn't hear anything from her in his mind. He stared at this other woman - I know I've seen her somewhere before. Then it hit him - it was in the desert with Reggie."Sekhmet?" he questioned looking from Myrtle to Reggie and the back to the woman standing on the walkway.
Reggie put her hand to her mouth in shock.
Myrtle just grinned.
Sekhmet smiled back. "Yes, I am She. The one you call Sekhmet. Am I welcomed as well?" she asked with a very mischievous air about her.
"Of course you are!" Reggie and James both responded at the same time.
"Please, come in. May we help you with your bags?" James spoke quickly trying to remember his manners.
"Yes, thank you," Sekhmet responded. "However, if you'd call me Elaine while I'm in this body, I'd appreciate it."
"Yes, of course Elaine. Welcome to our home."
~o0o~
Chapter 65
Once they were inside and seated around the large dining room table, Reggie introduced everyone. "This is the Lady of the Lake, and also my Great Aunt Myrtle Adams," then Reggie paused. "And this is Elaine...” Reggie hesitated once again with the question hanging in the air as to what Elaine's family name should be.
Smiling a very toothy smile, Elaine added, "Cole." She nodded to the table full of people.
"And these are our fellow Keepers, Josephine and Leo Jordan, Suzanne Young, and Harry Jones-Franklin. James is adopting Harry, legally." This was news to everyone except Harry, Reggie and James, of course.
Myrtle and Sekhmet nodded at each of those being introduced.
There were smiles and knowing nods from the other members of our group. Josephine reached over to Harry and gripped his shoulder, as she piped in, "I guess we need to get underway discussing our plan—"
She was interrupted by Myrtle, "No Josephine, there is one more coming in a physical form that we'll need for this coming fight.”
Reggie and James gasped together as they read the name of the powerful Native American Navajo Goddess, Spider Woman, before Myrtle even said it.
"Yes, Spider Woman or Grandmother of Hopi, Navajo and Zuni legends, who is the creator of mankind etc.” Myrtle confirmed. “Who better to join in an important battle of Light vs Darkness on Native American lands? She is called Kokyangwuti.”
Then as if by design, the doorbell rang.
Harry stood to answer the door but was stopped by Myrtle’s hand. "Reggie needs to answer this time."
Reggie looked at James and he nodded, so she stood up and left the library to answer the door. When she came back into the room she was preceded by an very old looking Native American woman with grey hair pulled into a tight bun at the nape of her neck. She was in the classic dress of the native women of the South West; a floor length tiered skirt paired with a contrasting long sleeved tunic top, cinched at the waist with a belt of silver links. Around her throat she wore a triple strand of turquoise chunks and matching earrings. Her back was hunched giving her the appearance of many long, hard years. Her face looked creased from many hours in the desert sun and years of living. She was the embodiment of a grandmother, or great grandmother.
"Keepers, this is Grandmother Kokyan," Reggie introduced her.
Myrtle and Elaine both stood and greeted Kokyan, smiling as they hugged her warmly..
"It's been too long Myrtle, Elaine." Kokyan's voice had that raspy quality that many older people get as they age. She touched each of their foreheads as she spoke. They released each other and sat back down, leaving Kokyan standing next to Reggie.
James stood and motioned for her to sit where he’d been sitting.
Reggie moved over giving him room to once again to sit next to her.
"So we have some planning to do?" Kokyan asked.
While James stared at her, he noticed she'd transformed into a much younger woman, one who looked to be in her mid-forties. She smiled at him and they all got down to business. Being around goddesses could really mess with someone’s head.
He found out later, that when a goddess took on human form, humans saw them differently from time to time. Their appearance would depend upon how a person saw them in their own minds. James decided he really like the grandmother shape. She then stayed in that form for him from then on.
Several hours later, the Keepers of the Flame and those newly added laid out their plans for taking on the Die Zauberei.
~o0o~
Veronica was busy making her own plans. She figured the Franklin dreck wouldn’t be sitting still doing nothing, but they were far better equipped than she first believed. She'd been trying for days to find a way past the invisible dome like barrier that now surrounded the Franklin compound.
It was impossible.
They were still vulnerable physically and if this was the only way she could take them out, then so be it.
However, what Veronica and her ilk always failed
to grasp was that the physical body was just a vehicle through which life was expressed on the physical plain. Neither did Veronica realize just how ancient all of the Keepers were and how powerful they had really become since Regina had been restored to her true place. She also failed to realize the amount of power the Keepers were capable of tapping into as well as just who and what their allies were.
Nothing meant anything to Veronica beside her own wealth, comfort, and power. She cared nothing for the others who would be risking their physical lives as well as their souls in the coming confrontation with the Keepers. She did know she would have to be present for the next step toward gaining ultimate power for herself and the Die Zauberei. This was all that was in her mind...
What was in it for her.
~o0o~
Chapter 66
Every Wednesday, Reggie went with Joyce to the co-op for supplies. This routine trip was noted by Veronica's spies and reported to her. This was something she'd been waiting for.
A small chink in the Franklin armor.
Joyce was driving them home in the Range Rover after they'd finished their shopping. She was telling Reggie some of the funny things she remembered happening on the reservation when she was a child.
Suddenly, the world seemed to crash and spin around and over.
Supplies were scattered all over the asphalt and into the barrel ditches along the sides of the road. The top of the Range Rover was pushed in just a tiny bit, but the side which had been struck, was caved in almost to the drivers side.
When Joyce regained consciousness from the force of the impact, she couldn't find Reggie in the passenger seat and she panicked. "Reggie! Reggie! Oh, my God! Reggie, where are you?" Joyce heard a moaning coming from the back seat. She turned and to her very great surprise saw Reggie half sitting half lying on it, but still alive.
Wait…How did Reggie get back there?
The vehicle that ran into the Range Rover hadn't fared as well. It's engine was pushed almost to the backs of the front seats. The driver was bent over the steering wheel with his head resting on the dashboard… with blood splattered everywhere.
All this was observable to Joyce once her mind cleared a little more. She reached for and found the handle to open the driver’s side door. She opened it and climbed out swaying a little as she stood. Just a little shock, she thought. She found the driver’s side back door easy to open.
By this time, Reggie had managed to get herself up into a full sitting position and held her head in her hands.
Joyce reached for Reggie's shoulder and squeezed asking, "Reggie? Are you okay? Are you injured?"
Reggie gazed at Joyce, her eyes were clear and there didn't appear to be any physical damage done to her either.
"I have to ask you Reggie, how did you get in the back seat?"
"I honestly don't know. I think I felt the first part of the impact and then you were calling my name and opening the door," Reggie replied with wonder in her voice.
Sirens could be heard in the distance as both Reggie and Joyce walked slowly around the overturned Range Rover.
Joyce was shaking her head. How had they survived at all?
Hearing this question from Joyce's mind Reggie answered her, "James wanted this vehicle to be very safe and had additional supports placed into its framework. He must have thought something like this would happen eventually."
Shaking her head, Joyce smiled and laughed nervously. "I, for one, am glad right now that James tries to think of everything."
"Well, James didn't think of that on his own." Josephine's voice came from behind them. "I foresaw the possibility. They tried to burn the house down, with us in it after all. It made sense for them to try other means."
"And, that's why we're staying with ya'll until this whole mess is resolved,” Leo added. “We're so much stronger as a group."
The next thing that Reggie felt was James’ mind and then his physical presence in the form of his arms wrapping around her from behind, his body pressed against hers.
Even Myrtle, Elaine, Harry and Suzanne were there. The whole Franklin clan, so to speak.
From the other side of the other vehicle, the elderly voice of Kokyangwuti spoke, “This is not one of the People, but a Gora. One of the Enemy you can be sure. He smells of the dark," She made a sign, spoke a couple of words and spat on the ground.
Soon the area contained more vehicles than this strip of road ever should have seen at one time.
Police Chief David Williams and Harvey Brown arrived together, followed by other emergency vehicles, EMTs and the fire department.
Reggie counted the vehicles asking, "How did they get here so quickly? Am I in shock or something? They couldn't have gotten here so soon."
Joyce nodded indicating she’d been wondering the same thing.
James smiled and answered nuzzling Reggie's hair, "I'm always with you Reggie. I always know how you're feeling. When I felt the impact, I called the Chief."
Reggie turned in James’ arms and smiled up at him. "I know that," She raised up on her toes and kiss her lover’s lips gently. "Thank you."
"Yes! Thank you James, but why aren't we hurt? And just how the hell did Reggie wind up in the back seat?" Joyce asked.
From somewhere around the two cars involved in the crash came the strong contralto voice of Elaine/Sekhmet. "That was my doing."
All eyes looked for and found Elaine/Sekhmet.
She reached into the air, pulled a smoking cigar from it and replied, "What's the use in having a useless goddess around?"
David Williams came up beside Elaine. "The Fire Chief is going to have a fit if you don't step away from the vehicles, just in case there is gasoline present."
Elaine turned to the Reservation Police Chief. The cigar vanished from her hand as she extended it to the Chief. "Hello! I'm Elaine Cole."
The color momentarily drained from David's face and he stood there with his mouth open.
James walked up to the pair and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Elaine is here with Reggie's Great Aunt Myrtle and a friend of theirs for a visit with the intention of helping us get rid of some unpleasant elements." James motioned for them to come up, so he could introduce them to the Police Chief.
David seemed to immediately know who Spider Woman was and reverently bowed his head. He had no idea who the other two women were.
James quickly and quietly explained everything to him.
David’s mouth still hung open. His dark eyes were huge and his eyebrows practically reached his hair line.
~o0o~
Much later, after all the other cars had cleared away and all of the supplies which were salvageable were placed into the other vehicles belonging to the Franklin clan, the tow trucks hauled the two wrecked cars away.
David was still there with Harvey Brown. He called to James that he would take Harvey back to the station house to get a start on the mound of paperwork that this ‘accident’ would require. "I'll be coming right over for some of my daughter’s good coffee," he warned, as he and Harvey left.
Joyce smiled and waved at her father as she climbed into the SUV belonging to Josephine and Leo.
By the time her father got to the Franklin compound, the coffee was brewed and the supplies were put away.
~o0o~
Chapter 67
Austin Butler and Katie Logan were called by Veronica's secretary to come out to Veronica's house. Neither one of them were happy about it.
"It can't be good. I think we should just drain our bank accounts and hop on the first jet out of town," Katie suggested while trembling as tears streamed down her face.
Austin took her in his arms and rubbed her back. "They would just find us anyway Katie and it would be even worse then." He pulled away gently until he could get her to look up at him. "You know I'm right."
Katie sniffled and wiped her face with the sleeve of her blouse. "Yeah, I know." She stepped away, grabbed a paper towel and blew her nose. "We knew what we were getting
ourselves into when we joined Veronica. Let's just get this the hell over with." She picked up her purse and car keys and they left their house, got into the car and drove to Veronica's home.
~o0o~
The sound of glass shattering and objects hitting the walls reverberated throughout the house. The house staff cringed in the kitchen waiting for the wreckage to stop. They all knew what happened when the Mistress, as they had been instructed to refer to Veronica as, didn't get her way. She would ring for them when she was done and ready for the debris to be cleared.
The bell rang, then the butler and housekeeper ascended the stairs with empty buckets and brooms in hand to sweep up the broken bits and pieces.
Veronica was beside herself. Once again the Franklin dreck had evaded her plans. She was surrounded by fools and imbeciles. Her thoughts were chaotic. How can I get this under control again? What do I need? I need something special. Something spectacular to get things back in hand. But what? What?
Veronica needed to find some special help for what was coming. The final confrontation with the Franklin dreck. She pulled all of her old books from the shelves. She was hunting for the perfect incantation for attracting a demon with a specific skill set. This would be the tricky part. These things had to be worded in just the right way or they would turn on you in a nano second.
At last, in the very last book, she found the perfect reference for the exact skill set she searched for. It wasn't obscure, but that wouldn't matter. The effect would be exactly what was needed. She would invoke the Morrigan from Celtic Mythology.
She needed supplies. She would have her secretary call Austin and Katie and have them round up what was needed. Yes. This was what would be necessary. They at least, always came through for her.
~o0o~
"James," Josephine called loudly as she stumbled into the kitchen with Leo hurrying being her.
James looked up. He saw a blur running through Josephine's mind, but not clear enough to understand just exactly what it was. "What is it, Josephine?"
