Awakening Fate (The Chronicles of Elizabeth Fairbairn Book 4)

by Cheryllynn Dyess

  “Yeah, it is.” Sari laughed.

  He turned serious and looked to the woman, “Do you think Elizabeth is growing with the idea of me being here?”

  Sari shrugged slightly, “She seems to be opening up to it. I think with all she went through there was a lot for her to work through.”

  “I can understand that. Guess I was hoping that once she knew the truth, she’d gravitate more towards me.” He looked at the house, then to ground and he kicked the grass around. “I miss her,” his words barely a whisper but Sari heard him.

  “Me too. Now, let’s go inside.”

  Once inside Wesley found the other women making sandwiches. “Come on and make yourself something,” Raina called to the elf.

  He smiled and waved a hand, “Nah, I’m good. I should get going. I have some training to do at home.”

  Elizabeth glanced over at him but said nothing, it was Reba who spoke up, “I didn’t see a car outside. How’d you get here?”

  Looking down at his feet, he ran his hand through his hair, “Well, the woods.”

  “The woods?” Sari asked.

  Elizabeth giggled, she knew. “What’s so funny?” Raina asked.

  Looking up at her aunt from across the table, Elizabeth swallowed her food quickly to reply, “He’s an elf, guys.” She gave them a knowing look, but no one caught on, “he shifts into a panther,” she rolled her eyes, “he literally strolled through the woods.” The women all made ‘O’s’ with their mouths. Shaking her head, “Ya’d think y’all would’ve noticed when he came up that he was straightening his shirt.”

  “What? Wait. Huh?” Raina asked very confused.

  Nearly choking on her tea, Sari spoke up, “Oh well that does make sense,” she looked to her sisters, “when he shifts, he needs clothes on the other end of that shift. I noticed a bag at the forest line the other day. It had his initials and kind of put two and two together… but didn't think about it today.”

  Wesley nodded as his embarrassment heated up his cheeks, “Ladies. I must say my goodbye’s and get home.” He turned towards the green room to leave out the back.

  Quickly Elizabeth stood, “Let me walk you out.” He stopped and waited but didn’t turn to look. Elizabeth walked up behind him and gave him a little nudge, they walked out together. Once outside she grabbed his hand and intertwined her fingers with his. He glanced down but said nothing in fear of making it uncomfortable for her. He wanted this more than anything and would not rush her nor question when she was ready.

  “Mother would like you to come to the house for dinner this Sunday,” his words were soft as they slowly walked to the wood line.

  Inwardly, Elizabeth smiled but outwardly she kept a straight face. She had wanted to get closer to him but had to be sure it was her heart that wanted it and not the pull of the magic. After their training today, Elizabeth realized she was ready to move forward. It may have only been a few weeks, but Elizabeth had discovered that the bond she thought she had with Devlon was magickly induced and covered in deceit and she wanted… no needed something real. From the day she first met Wesley, it had been an instant attraction. He wanted the same things as her. He was what she needed.

  Waving a hand in front of her face, Wesley asked, “Hey. Anyone in there?”

  Startled she looked up at him, “Sorry. My mind was miles away.”

  “I could tell. Soooo, dinner?”

  She thought a moment more then looked up at him smiling, “I’d love that.”

  He took a chance and bent down and softly kissed her forehead. His lips lingering just a bit longer than he anticipated but very happy that she wanted him again.

  Sari and her sisters watched the young couple leave. Turning to them she said before sipping on her drink, "I do hope they figure things out."

  "Well," Raina said with raised brows and a slight nod of her head, "if anyone can reach her, it'll be that young man right there. He comes from a good family and has a good head sittin' on them shoulders. It's her I worry about." She got lost in her thoughts with those last words. Reba looked between her two sisters and wondered to herself if her niece would ever find her place in the world she now knows.

  CHAPTER 5

  Elizabeth watched Wesley enter the woods and heard him shift as it happened. Moments later she could hear the soft footprints and then she could see the black panther as it peeped around the tree with its tail swishing back and forth playfully. The young witch could only smile at her shifter elf. Giving a slight nod, the panther took off into the woods. She stood there for many minutes afterwards lost in her thoughts when suddenly her phone buzzed in her back pocket. Pulling it out, the caller was unknown. Swiping the screen, she answered, “Hello.”

  “Hello. Miss me?” The voice was perfectly recognizable and completely unexpected. The doctors said he’d never speak again and yet here he is speaking in his own voice to her now.

  “Oh, maybe… maybe not. I didn’t think I’d hear from you anytime, ever!” Elizabeth replied with sarcasm, she turned and walked to the house. As she entered the green room, she saw her mother working with some of the plants. Motioning to her, Sari came over and Elizabeth put the phone on speaker before sitting it on the table.

  She heard him chuckle on the other end, “I could never stay away forever.”

  “You came home?”

  A long pause, then he replied, “Don’t miss me too much while I’m gone. I’ll be home soon enough though. Put some flowers on dad’s grave for me.” Sari’s only reaction was to cover her mouth with her hands, both of them. Her face paled and she sat as she listened to her son on the phone.

  “Grave? Who said we buried him?” Elizabeth motioned to her mother to get her aunts. Sari quickly left the room and whispered to her sisters to come in silently. With all four women gathered around, Jeremy continued, unknowingly speaking to them all.

  “Don’t play with me! I know you did.”

  “Are you sure?” Elizabeth was taunting him, Sari couldn’t figure out why. Her son was dangerous, and she had no desire to deal with him anytime soon, but her daughter was just as dangerous, and that scared her even more.

  They could hear tapping in the background, the phone being muffled then a hand being removed. “I’ll call back. You better have buried our father. We should have a grave to go to.”

  “Your father was an evil man. My father died long ago. I’ll be waiting for your call.” Elizabeth pressed the red X to disconnect the call.

  The women all sat just staring at the phone for a while. It was Raina who spoke up, “I know some witches in the area of the hospital he went to. I’ll reach out to them and see what they can find out for us.” She turned to leave and headed to the den where her cell phone sat. She grabbed it up and searched her contacts for a coven near the hospital where her nephew was supposed to be. She headed back to the green room with the phone to her ear.

  Sari looked at her daughter, sad and ashamed that her daughters time as a witch was riddled with madness, “I’m so sorry.”

  Elizabeth shook her head, “You did what you felt was right. At this moment, my concern is getting things in order. Raina, can you let us know as soon as you get any information. Reba, I’m going to need you to help me with something.” Reba and her niece started to leave the green room.

  “What about me?” Sari asked.

  Knowing her mother needed something to keep her busy Elizabeth had to think fast, “What would you say to reaching out the fairies again? They have a grapevine for gossip like no others. Maybe they know something.” Her mother nodded, thankful for a task.

  As soon as Elizabeth had the other women all tasked with ways to discover what Jeremy was up to and how he had a voice to speak with again, she turned to her phone and sent a message to Sara. Not sure what’s up but Jeremy just called. Be alert. Next, she messaged Wesley, have you made it home? I need to talk. Call me ASAP.

  Moments later two notifications came in on her phone, Sara and Devlon. She rolled her eyes instantly when
she saw his name pop up. All she could think is why in the world would he message her now, didn’t she have enough to deal with. Swiping up on her phone, Elizabeth tapped the messages button. Sara’s reply was simple, no worries, I’ll keep an eye out. Thanks. Devlon’s response was empty on the main screen, so she tapped it to open it up. Inside there was a message a few lines down. Don’t ever feel too comfy with that elf having my magic. Soon, I’ll come back for what is mine. That includes you. Elizabeth’s heart began to race. Was he seriously threatening her? Did he think that because Edom gave him something, he was truly meant to have it? She thought for a bit and wasn’t going to reply but impulses took over and she began to tap out her message. Dearest Devlon, not sure if you’ve noticed but your leader is dead. Your cohort MIA. Your amulet and items have been given away to your arch nemesis. Oh, and Petre approves! Leave me alone. Last warning. She knew he’d be furious, but she’d much rather deal with the devil she knows than the ones she can’t find.

  Just as she went to hit send, her phone rang. Wesley. Tapping the accept button, she heard him talking to someone in the background. “Um, hello.”

  “Sorry about that. Mother was saying she had a vision and that the coven should be on their guards. Does this have anything to do with what you messaged me for?”

  A long sigh escaped her lips before she replied, “Most likely.” Elizabeth gave Wesley a full update and they made a plan to meet up the next day for lunch at the cafe. She wanted to see Jewel and see what the fairies knew. Once the plans were set, she hung up and decided she needed a long hot shower to release some of this tension building up in her shoulders.

  “Mom, aunts…” She called out to the other women in the house. Nothing. It was all quiet. A little too quiet for her liking. The hairs on the back on her neck stood on end and her senses heightened. Something was wrong. She slowly made her way through the downstairs and found no one there. No sign they were still home. In the den, she went to the window and pulled back the curtain just enough to look out. Her body relaxed a little when she saw all three outside talking to someone in the driveway. Thinking everything was okay, she went upstairs to her room to shower. She needed a break and life wasn’t giving it to her. She also had a new set of classes that had just started and more schoolwork than she thought she would be capable of completing on time.

  While in the shower, Elizabeth thought back over the last few months of her life. Things in her life were chaotic and even with the most recent threats of Jeremy and Devlon she actually felt more at peace than she had in quite some time. Her mind was jumping all over the place between magic, men, school, and her family. She was only eighteen and at the moment her soul felt around forty.

  CHAPTER 6

  The next morning Elizabeth came downstairs to find her aunts and mom already in the kitchen. “Good morning,” she called out to them.

  Everyone turned slowly and looked at her. She just looked back and forth unsure of what was going on. “Did you read your messages yet this morning?” her mom asked.

  She twisted her mouth while digging her phone out of her back pocket, “Nope. I haven’t even looked at it to tell you the truth.”

  “Sit and read them. Then we need to talk,” Reba instructed her as she handed her a cup of coffee. “You’ll likely need to flavor that up if you want, its black.”

  Elizabeth glanced down at the cup then back to the women all staring at her. “Oh okay, then…” She took the cup and sat at the table to check her phone. Once she was seated, she looked at the phone, twenty messages. She rolled her eyes again. Couldn’t she have just one day where things were normal, whatever that meant anymore?

  Wesley, have to postpone lunch. Something came up. Text more later. Love you.

  Sara, he called me. It was weird and creepy. Like we were dating still but creepier. Text me back.

  Sara, OMG, He is texting now. I’ll screenshot the messages. Fourteen screenshots came up on the screen of messages Jeremy sent her. They went from kindness to threatening in minutes. He was telling her he loved her while also threatening her life. Telling her that if she doesn’t tell him what I’m doing that he will make her feel pain worse than him getting burnt.

  Devlon, your brother sure knows how to make himself look good, doesn’t he? Seems like you have a problem on your hands and only I can help with that. He then sent a screenshot of a message the two shared, it read that Jeremy would be home soon and have revenge for his father’s death. Devlon asked him about his magic and he replied they’d use Devlon’s magic and his brain.

  Clicking back on Sara’s message she quickly tapped out a reply. Come to the house today, let’s talk. I can assure you, we won’t let anything happen to you. See you around noon.

  To Wesley’s message she replied, That’s fine. Sara is having some issues, so she is coming over. She started to type love, then deleted it. She did this three times before she merely put, you too.

  Taking a sip of her coffee, she felt the eyes of the women watching her. She slowly glanced up and over at all three. “Yes.”

  “Want to let us know what is going on?” Sari asked quickly.

  Elizabeth laughed, put her cup and phone down and looked at them all. “Devlon thinks he can get his items back. Jeremy thinks his brains and Devlon’s magic will defeat us and he is threatening Sara. Wesley has some important thing to take care of… and my coffee got cold while I read all those messages.”

  “It’s not funny!” Raina snipped as she grabbed her niece’s cup and topped it off.

  “I have to laugh at some point. This is maddening and I am about ready to throw my hands up in the air and give in, but the last time I tried to do that I had to kill my father!” Frustrated and fed up, Elizabeth stormed from the room and went to the green room. She had a project due in one of her college classes and figured that the distraction would be good till Sara arrived.

  Hours later, Elizabeth was surrounded by books and herbs as she put her finishing touches on a poultice she was making for the project. After several tries, she felt the combination and amounts were perfect. It even smelled good. As she wrote in her final notes for the project, she heard a light tap at the door.

  Turning back to see who it was, she found Sara lingering in the doorway. “Hey. Come on in.” She got up to give the girl a hug. She embraced her and squeezed tightly. You could feel the tension fall off of Sara.

  “Thanks,” Sara said nervously. Elizabeth could tell she was on edge and for a good reason. Jeremy was nothing to take lightly. “I just never thought he’d bother me again. Why? Why now?”

  Elizabeth shook his head, “Well you know what happened! He has no more magic and has to find ways to get what he wants. Here,” she handed her friend her phone, “take a look at the conversation I had with Devlon.”

  Sara thumbed through the messages then looked at Elizabeth, “This doesn’t make me feel better.”

  “I didn’t give it to you to feel better. I gave it to you to be aware. But don’t worry. I have a little something to help you stay safe. Do you still have that pendant I gave you in school?”

  Sara thought for a bit, “yeah, it’s in my purse.”

  “Get it.”

  “Okay, let me go to the car and get it, be right back.”

  Elizabeth set out a few things in a circle and waited for Sara to return with the stone. Placing it in the middle, Elizabeth began charging the stone for protection against evil and danger. Once she was done invoking all the elements, she requested the goddess protect her friend. Handing it back to Sara, Elizabeth said, “This should help with the Jeremy issue. You can block him on your phone, but I’d really love to use you as a go-between. We can feed you information we want him to have so we can stay one step ahead. Would you be willing to do that?”

  Taking a deep breath, she looked at her friend then realized the other women had stepped into the doorway eagerly waiting for an answer. They had discussed this as an option earlier and knew that even though Sara wasn’t a witch, she had a signi
ficant influence on Jeremy. Looking back and forth among the faces, she finally nodded and said, “yeah. I can do that. We need to get this all settled, and he is just one more step to doing it.”

  Elizabeth stood and hugged her friend again, whispering in her ear, “Thank you. I’m so sorry he is doing this, but your help is immeasurable!” Holding her at an arm’s length she spoke a little louder, “You may not have magic, but you are strong. We can show you a few tricks to keep him at bay as well, that is if you’d like.” Elizabeth raised a brow at the last words.

  Smiling, Sara spoke, “I’d love all the help I can get. What do I need to do?” The five women spent the next two hours going over some basic protection methods Sara could invoke without the use of magic. She would be able to ward her apartment, car, and even her workplace.

  “Okay, here is the pendant. Wear it always. These are the herbs and this,” she held up a piece of paper, “is the instructions for each place. Make sure you say the words exactly as they are written, or it won’t work. And… if you have any questions, call me!” Elizabeth said sternly.

  “Okay,” Sara said hesitantly.

  “Actually, we’ll take care of the car ourselves,” Raina spoke up, motioning to her sisters they gathered a few things then went outside.

  “Want to watch?” Elizabeth asked with a sparkle in her eye. Smiling, Sara nodded. “Come on. We’ll watch from the window then. They’ll never know. Put that on.” She pointed to the pendant, “and DON’T take it off!”

  “Okay.”

  Pulling Sara by the arm, Elizabeth took her to the living room. She crawled up on the couch and leaned on the back facing the window. Patting the seat next to her she said, “Come on. They’re getting started.”

  CHAPTER 7

  Sara had never seen a protection spell being activated. Her face told the story of her awe and astonishment. Her eyes light up and her mouth formed an O each time the women did anything. Elizabeth leaned back and watched the wonder pass over her friends face. She had forgotten the fascination people had with magic and had forgotten the joy of it. She vowed to herself right then and there that she would start enjoying her magic again like she did nearly a year ago.