Jax took her mother’s hands. “Mom…”
Sorceress Stone shook her head as if she’d made up her mind and then looked over at the Council. “I want to exercise my right as a witch to invoke a legacy power transfer ceremony immediately.”
I glanced over at Alba. I’d never heard of a legacy power transfer ceremony before. Alba shook her head as if to say she’d never heard of it either.
The Great Witches Council members all gasped.
“A power transfer ceremony? But, SaraLynn, that’s unheard of!” cried Poppy.
“Yes, I know,” snapped Sorceress Stone as she wiped away her tears and tried to regain her composure. “But it’s what I want to do. I have the right. She’s my legacy. Now, the ceremony requires ten witches. We have ten witches present. And it requires the power transfer to happen before the end of her eighteenth birthday. We’ve still got a few hours left.”
Jax looked around, confused. “What’s a power transfer ceremony, Mom?”
Poppy put a hand on Jax’s shoulder. “She wants to give you her powers, sweetie.”
“Give me her…” Jax’s eyes widened. “Mom!” Jax’s head shook wildly. “No! You don’t have to do that!”
“JaclynRose, I know I don’t have to, but I want to.”
“But, Mom…” Jax cried.
Sorceress Stone let go of Jax’s hands and straightened her shoulders. “You know how I feel about ‘but Moms,’ JaclynRose. Now, I want to do this. Being a witch hasn’t fulfilled me as I would’ve liked. I have been unable to find happiness in my own life. And now I’ve lost my position here at the Institute. I’ve lived a full life as a witch, but I’ll learn to live a full life as just a woman. I know the one thing you’ve ever wanted is to be a witch. I haven’t been able to give you much during your life, but I can give you this. You gave up something meaningful for me, and now it is my desire to return the favor. My wish for you is that you fulfill your destiny.”
Jax’s shoulders shook as she bawled.
Sorceress Stone put a hand on either side of her daughter’s shoulders. “You are destined for great things, JaclynRose Stone. I know it. I can feel it in my bones. So please, don’t take your powers for granted. Make the most out of your life.”
“Mom, I…”
Sorceress Stone pushed her away then and strode over to the Council. “I’m ready. Let’s begin.”
45
As Holly and I each held one of Jax’s hands, she nibbled on the side of her lip. “Oh, girls. Is this really happening right now? Am I really about to become a witch?”
“It’s happening, Jax. It’s really happening,” said Sweets, hugging herself excitedly.
Jax fell backwards slightly, making Holly and me tighten our grips on her. “But I feel so terrible about taking my mom’s powers. I shouldn’t let her do this. Really, I can’t.”
Alba wagged a finger in the air and looked Jax directly in the eye. “Oh no, you don’t, Shorty. She owes you this. And besides, she wants to do it. For the first time in her life, she’s putting your needs before her own.”
Holly nodded. “Yeah, Jaxie. You have to let her do this for you.”
“But what if I’m not a good witch? What if I get my powers and I don’t know how to make them work, or what if I do something wrong?”
I squeezed Jax’s hand. “Jax, we’ve all made mistakes as witches. We’re entitled to make mistakes. And as far as not knowing how to use your powers, don’t worry about it. You go to the Paranormal Institute for Witches. It’s the perfect place to learn how to use your powers.”
Jax smiled at me and leaned her head on my shoulders. “You’re right. Oh, my gosh. I’m totally freaking out right now.”
“Really? We couldn’t tell,” said Alba, rolling her eyes. “You just need to take it down a notch.”
“Yeah, Jaxie. Relax,” said Holly.
“Relax?” breathed Jax. “How can I relax? I’m about to become a witch! It’s only all I’ve ever wanted for my entire life!”
“Breathe in, Jax,” I commanded, sucking in a deep breath with her. “Now close your eyes and let it out slowly as you count to ten.”
Jax nodded and did as I’d suggested. When she was done, her eyes popped open and she looked at me anxiously. “Nope. Still freaking out.”
From across the arboretum, my brother strode towards us, calling out to Jax. “They’re ready for you, Nugget.”
Jax sucked in a deep breath and then let it all out excitedly. “Eeeee,” she squealed, squeezing our hands tightly to her chest. “Omigosh, omigosh, omigosh.”
“Breathe, Jax.”
“I am breathing!” she cried as her chest rose and fell rapidly.
“Yeah, you’re gonna hyperventilate,” I said, changing my mind. “Maybe you should stop breathing.”
Jax’s head bobbed up and down and her eyes bugged out as she sucked in a big puff of air and kept it dammed up in her chest.
Frowning, Holly grabbed Jax’s face. “Jax. Today’s your birthday. You are eighteen years old, but you’re acting like a little kid. It’s time to put your big girl panties on and do the damn thing.”
Jax let out the breath she’d been holding. “Do the damn thing?”
Sweets giggled.
“Yes. You can do this. You were born to be a witch.”
“I was?”
Holly nodded. “Yes. You were. Repeat after me. ‘I was born to be a witch.’”
Jax giggled. “I was born to be a witch.”
“Say it louder. Like you mean it.”
“I was born to be a witch,” she said, a little more seriously this time.
“Now say it like you believe it. Louder!”
“I was born to be a witch!” she hollered. With that, Jax bounded forward, seemingly more confident and determined.
“Attagirl!” cheered Holly.
Reign squeezed Holly’s shoulder. “Wow! Go Holly. A clairvoyant and a life coach. Who knew?”
Holly giggled and linked arms with Reign. The two of them walked up the aisle towards the stage. Libby and Cinder followed next. Sweets, Alba, and I brought up the rear.
“This is so exciting,” gushed Sweets, clinging to my arm.
“I gotta admit, I’m pretty excited too,” said Alba. “I was beginning to think this day might never come.”
“Same,” I agreed. It was still a bit surreal to think that it was actually going to happen for Jax. But there they were on the stage, the four members of the Great Witches Council, holding hands in a semicircle, waiting for all of us to join in. Libby, Cinder, and Holly took their places first. Alba, Sweets, and I filled in the remaining three holes. In the center of the circle stood Sorceress Stone and Jax. Reign and Brittany Hobbs took front-row seats in the audience.
As Jax stood in the center of the circle, shoulder to shoulder with her mother, her eyes were on me. I did my best to calm her with my mind. I sucked a breath in through my nose and let it out slowly. Jax did as I did and nodded confidently.
“Now, JaclynRose. Face me. Put your hands to mine,” said Sorceress Stone, turning to face Jax. “Our fingertips must be touching at all times during the ceremony.”
Jax looked up at her mother in awe and did as she instructed. I couldn’t help but wonder what was going through her mind in that moment. Was it gratitude? Sadness? Excitement? Fear? I couldn’t tell. Jax’s face wore a mask of somberness that I rarely saw on her. She’d done as Holly had asked and put on her big girl panties. I felt a surge of pride.
On stage, white candles flickered in each corner and along the outer perimeter of the covered wooden rectangle. And with ten sets of linked hands, Gemma Overbrook began the ceremony reverently. “We are gathered here today to call upon the divine spirits to request a legacy power transfer. Spirits of the North and the elemental earth, we call to you. Guide us with your wisdom and noble ways. We invoke you, show us that you are upon us.”
A grumble could be heard around us, and then the earth shook beneath our feet, rattling the stage and
making the candles flicker wildly.
Poppy spoke next. “Spirits of the East and elemental air, we call to you. You are the breath of life and new beginnings. We call to you to provide clarity and mindfulness to the participants before you. We invoke you, show us that you are upon us.”
The wind crept up around us, whipping at the black gowns the Great Witches Council wore and twisting our hair up around our faces. The candles threatened to go out as they danced in the fast-moving air.
“Spirits of the South and elemental fire, we call to you. You are the guardians of the spiritual realm. We ask for your courage and protection as we complete this transfer of power. We invoke you, show us that you are upon us,” called out Elodie.
Lightning flickered in the sky around us. The flames on the candles suddenly grew, doubling in size.
“Spirits of the West and elemental water, you are the key to transformations and rebirth. We call upon you for your gifts of change and transition of power. We invoke you, show us that you are upon us!” called out Daphne.
Rain began to fall, soaking the grass and the flowers around the perimeter of the stage, soaking Reign and Brittany and the empty seats, but refusing to touch the stage.
“Spirit keepers, we welcome your presence and ask that you look upon this legacy power transfer ceremony with kindness and grace as it is presented to you with goodwill and love,” said Gemma.
Poppy closed her eyes. “O great spirit keepers, please know that ten witches sit before you. Ten witches who can vouch for the legitimacy of the claim of legacy status. Ten witches who attest that each of the participants in the power transfer is willing. One to give and one to receive.” Poppy then opened her eyes and looked around the circle. “Witches of the circle, is this true and accurate?”
“It is,” we all answered in unison.
“Great spirit keepers, we further attest that the witch to receive the powers has yet to see sunset on her eighteenth birthday and has yet to possess her own witchly powers through no fault of her own,” said Daphne. She looked at Jax. “Is this true?”
“It is,” said Jax.
“Through the divine witch’s prophecy, it is so requested that SaraLynn Stone pass along her magical witchly powers to her heir, JaclynRose Stone,” added Elodie Goodwitch.
Gemma opened her eyes and looked at Sorceress Stone. “SaraLynn Stone, we ask that you answer the call of the spirit keepers. Is it your will that your daughter JaclynRose Stone is to receive your powers, magical abilities, and witchly prowess?”
Sorceress Stone bowed her head. “It is.”
“JaclynRose Stone, we ask that you answer the call of the spirit keepers. Is it your will to receive the powers, magical abilities, and witchly prowess currently possessed by your mother, SaraLynn Stone?”
Jax did as her mother had done and bowed her head. “It is.”
Then, in unison, the four Great Witch’s chanted, “Spirit keepers, we ask that you release the witchly powers possessed by SaraLynn Stone and pass them to her heir, JaclynRose Stone. Let the binding transfer of power be irrevocable and unbreakable by the will of any outside magical force.”
The members of the Council then closed their eyes, and we listened to the wind blowing around us. It was as if the spirit keepers were speaking to them through nature. After what seemed like an unending silence, they all opened their eyes in unison and stared at Sorceress Stone and Jax.
“By the powers vested in each of us by both the great spirit keepers and our own divine energy, we hereby grant your legacy power transfer request. By the will of you, the spirits, and the good faith of each of the witches before us today, so mote it be!”
A flash of lightning ripped through the sky, tearing the air apart in a blinding flash of light. It struck the stage between the two women, sending electrically charged currents into each of them. Sparks flew where Jax and her mother were connected at the fingertips. Jax’s spiky green hair discharged sparks of electricity, as did Sorceress Stone’s hair. Jax’s body took on a faintly glowing aura. Sorceress Stone seemed to visibly wilt in size and stature.
And then, as if it had never been there, the lightning and the wind disappeared, and all that was left in the middle of the circle was SaraLynn Stone and her daughter.
“Jax?” I said, cautiously breaking the silence. “Are you alright?”
Jax pulled her fingertips away from her mother’s and looked down at them in awe. “They tingle,” she whispered.
I couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across my face. “Jax, that’s what magic feels like.”
“It is?” she asked, looking up at me hopefully.
Her mother nodded. “It is. Happy eighteenth birthday, JaclynRose. I love you.”
Jax threw her arms around her mother and squeezed. “Thanks, Mom. I love you too. Happy Mother’s Day!”
46
A huge bonfire crackled brightly, illuminating the night sky. Lanterns and white Christmas lights were strung from trees, and picnic tables dotted the grassy landscape. Graduates, first-year students, whiz kids, and a few handfuls of family members littered the area, clinging to red Solo cups and laughing away the last few hours of graduation day.
I’d been to a few other parties while attending the Institute, but this was the biggest. I wasn’t sure if it was the warmth of the party atmosphere, or knowing that I was only two days away from completing my first year of witch school, or knowing that I knew I wouldn’t have to deal with Sorceress Stone anymore next year, or if it was simply the realization that my best friend was now officially a witch, but something had me feeling more relaxed and at ease than I’d felt in probably a few years.
A warm breeze caressed my cheeks as Alba and I leaned against the trunk of an old oak tree, watching Holly, Sweets, and Reign trying to teach Jax how to use her magic. While she knew it was there, she hadn’t quite figured out how to make it work for her yet. Only her hands, arms, and fingers tingled with unspent electricity. Her mother had walked away powerless and happy for her daughter. It had been a bittersweet ending, but for once, I felt like SaraLynn Stone might truly become the mother that Jax had always wanted her to be. And maybe it wasn’t an ending after all. Maybe it was just the beginning of their new mother-daughter relationship.
With her back and one foot against the tree trunk, Alba shook her head. “No, no, no. Don’t teach her to do it like that. Ugh,” she groaned as she shoved herself forward. “Don’t listen to these fools, Shorty. I’ll show you how to do it.”
I laughed as I watched them all having fun together, and a sentimental feeling washed over me. I didn’t want the night to end. I didn’t want our time together to end. I wanted to be this happy and contented forever.
“Hey, Mercy Mae,” said a low rumble of a voice behind me.
My breathing stopped for a split second, and then my heart rate picked up in double time. Hugh.
“Hey.” Trying to appear calm, I looked over my shoulder at him.
“Mind if I join you for a minute?”
“Of course I don’t mind. How’ve you been?”
Hugh took Alba’s spot next to me. His woodsy scent was comforting and familiar—like the way the air smelled after rain. Leaning back against the trunk of the tree, he pulled his cowboy hat off and held it down by his side, revealing a tousled mess of sandy blond curls. It looked like he hadn’t had a haircut in a while. I kinda liked it.
“I’ve been alright. Busy with finals.”
I lifted my brow. “Finals? Finals don’t start until tomorrow.”
“I might have schmoozed a few of my teachers into giving them to me early,” he admitted with a half-smile. “I got a summer job lined up, and I promised I’d start beginning of the week. I couldn’t stick around any longer even if I wanted to.”
“Wow, don’t tell Alba and Holly that. They both had plane tickets. Alba would flip if she knew you managed to get your finals done.”
Hugh pretended to zip his mouth shut. “I won’t tell a soul.”
I
smiled at him. He sure was cute. “Thanks.”
“So what are your summer plans?”
I shrugged. “I really don’t have any plans. I figured I’d work at the B&B, help Mom and Reign out. You know, earn my keep a little.”
“Attagirl,” he said, leaning into me to give me a gentle bump with his shoulder.
“How about you? What summer job did you get?”
“Ranch hand. A friend of the family back home had an accident and is laid up for the next six months or so. I said I’d be happy to step in and help the family out.”
I lifted my brows. “Six months?! Hugh! What about school in the fall?”
He shrugged. “To be honest, I don’t know if school is my thing. I miss Sonny and my family. And really, there’s not much here for me.”
I looked down at my Converse sneakers. After all the tromping around on grass over the past week, they were now tinted green. I swallowed hard. “You’ve got me.”
Still leaning against the tree trunk, Hugh rolled sideways so he was resting on one shoulder. He looked directly into my eyes. “Except I don’t have you anymore, now do I?”
My heart stopped beating for a split second. My mouth went dry. I swallowed hard and had to blink a few times to catch myself. “I mean, we’ll always be friends. Won’t we?”
“I have a lot of friends, Mercy Mae.”
My heart dropped into the pit of my stomach. “So you’re saying you don’t need another one?”
He stood up straight then and swatted the air beside him with his hat. “Dammit, Mercy Mae, I don’t need another friend. I need my best girl! I need you!” He dropped his cowboy hat on the ground then, and before I knew what was happening, his calloused hands clamped around my jaw and drew me in so he could plant a mammoth-sized kiss on my lips.
Feeling the familiar warm tenderness of his lips against mine, I slumped into him. The kiss felt good. It felt right. I kissed him back, matching his passion and wishing that the liplock would never end.
The Witch Within Page 34
