by Marta Szemik
In their rush to be the first into the basement, Mira and Xander got stuck in the doorway. The door frame cracked.
“If you two break this house again, you’ll regret it,” Hannah threatened.
The siblings looked at each other.
“Rock, paper, scissors,” Mira called.
They threw their fists out at the same time.
“Ha!” Mira covered Xander’s “rock” fist with her flat “paper” hand.
Frowning, Xander let her go ahead.
Hannah had returned her concentration to the pot. “Our journey to the hill looks safe, but we will travel separately. That’s odd.” She frowned, then tightened her lips and stared into the steaming liquid. She pulled out her hand. “Now, do you have something of Sarah’s?”
“Here.” Mira handed her three strands of Sarah’s hair.
“And William?” Hannah looked at Xander.
Xander passed her a few strands of William’s hair.
“I taught you well, but I won’t ask how you got these.” Hannah smiled. She inhaled, then released the breath in a long, steady stream to scatter the steam over the cauldron, unveiling a swirling, clear broth. Hannah threw the strands into the liquid, scooped a fistful of dirt from beside the fire, and added that into the mixture. Next in went bottled herbs, petrified spiders, and dried moths. She used a big wooden spoon to stir the contents into the simmering, bubbling liquid. Each fizz released a different aroma that carried a distinct prediction.
Mira and Xander shuffled their feet with excitement; they liked it when she brewed her magic—something they couldn’t do. Generations of witches’ blood flowed in her veins, but they’d been foundlings, taken in by the childless Hannah and Castall, and had powers more physical in nature.
After the first few swirls, Hannah drew a dagger from a pocket in her dress, placed the sharp edge in her left palm, and closed it tight. The siblings bit their lip. Hannah pulled the dagger slowly from her closed left palm. Burgundy drops dripped into the pot, each one releasing a different sound as it struck the hot concoction, her blood the main ingredient to conjure pictures.
Hannah stirred the pot again.
“What do you see? Is Sarah with William?” Mira hunched over the steaming pot.
“Are they together?” Xander added. “Can you soften their spell?”
“It’s . . . it’s complicated, and odd,” Hannah said. “Everything is backward.”
“Oh . . .” She shook her head in surprise. “I don’t have to remove the spell. It’s gone.”
“What?” The siblings spoke together.
“How could it not be there?” Mira asked.
“It’s been removed,” Hannah said.
“By whom?” they asked.
Hannah drew a deep breath. “I’m not sure,” she finally said, then picked up one of the jars she’d emptied into the pot and sniffed its interior. “They’re fresh. Could it be a disintegrating spell? No, hardly anyone uses that these days. If a spell was cast, it was done for a reason.” She turned abruptly to face both kids. “Who else is in the hill?”
“Ekim, Atram, Willow, and Alex,” Mira answered then bit her lip, looking from Xander to her mother.
“Who’s Alex?” Hannah asked.
“She’s a witch we rescued from the dungeon. She helped us escape. Sarah saw her help us in her vision,” Xander explained.
They read the concern in her eyes, in her trembling hands and quivering lips.
“She’s harmless, Ma,” Mira said quietly, but her voice shook. “There’s no mark on her.”
“No mark?”
“None. We checked,” said Xander.
“It’s impossible for a witch not to have a mark,” Hannah said.
“She was cursed, and the mark hasn’t been decided yet,” Xander said, his voice tremulous. “Just like it hadn’t for us until the time came.”
When Ma and Pop had found them at the tender age of eighteen months, Mira and Xander were already powerful. It took patience and devotion to keep their hearts on the good side until it was time for their markings. The memory of being left alone, then living between two worlds still haunted them; they’d promised each other: where life took one, the other would follow.
“Not for witches. Our marks are there at birth, because it’s in our blood. It’s an ancient curse from the dark ages, to punish females. We have no choice. A witch cannot be cursed not to have one. Are you sure you didn’t see one?”
“Yes, Ma,” they replied together.
Hannah turned back to the pot, murmuring an incantation as she plucked and added a strand of her hair to the mix. “She cannot hide from me this way,” she declared, stirring the contents before blowing the rising steam away again.
A new image appeared.
“Everything is backward. They’re walking backward, talking backward. Look!” She pointed, and the siblings leaned closer. “Now she’s walking on the ceiling, upside down . . . Alex’s backward is exaggerated.” Perplexed, Hannah continued staring at the liquid. “Wait! William and Sarah are no longer backward!” She frowned. “Alex is still backward.”
“A backward Alex?” Xander asked, “What does this mean?”
Sudden realization drained Hannah’s face of blood. “It’s not Alex,” she gasped. “It’s Xela!” The fire under the pot flared, and they had to lean back from the heat and step away as the pot’s contents began bubbling over. Hannah’s face went slack. “Of course—Alex spelled backward is Xela!”
“Xela!” Mira’s hand flew up to cover her mouth.
“Aseret’s Xela?” Xander asked in disbelief, the shade on his face paled with green.
Hannah nodded grimly. “Yes, Xela, the witch who’s been trying to rule all witches.”
“But, Ma, you know Xela; we know Xela; everyone knows Xela, even all the vampires. This is not her!” Mira hurled her forefinger toward the image in the liquid.
Xander leaned against the back wall. “I can’t believe this is happening again.” He fisted his palms.
“It is her, under Aseret’s finery spell. I should have known. He changed her so she could get close to Sarah and William. They’re in danger!”
She sprang to her feet.
“Run, Mira; run, Xander! Warn them before it’s too late!” The house shook, vibrating her command.
And they were gone.
###
Two Equals
Book Three
Return to main table of contents
Two Equals Table of Contents
Book 3: Chapter 1-5
Book 3: Chapter 6-10
Book 3: Chapter 11-15
Book 3: Chapter 16-17
Two Equals Bonus Material
Chapter 1
He should have killed her.
I couldn’t understand why Xander thought the witch ought to live—not after she’d stolen my body in her scheme to destroy both the human and vampire races. The memory of her theft four years ago still sent chills down my spine. She’d almost killed me.
After my soul had been switched with hers, I’d never felt the same. My body responded to emotions in unexpected jolts and shivers. I’d want to cry, but tears wouldn’t flow until a day later. Delayed laughter at a joke escaped my throat when I was alone. Tardy reactions to the life I was supposed to enjoy tortured me. Xela was the only one who could explain why I’d changed. Part of me had never returned to my body, and I wanted to know why.
Today, I waited on the porch, counting the minutes. Every day, after my children’s training, my friend and one-time protector Xander went out into the woods to see the witch. He’d kept it a secret for almost four years, and rightly so, as now that I knew about her, I was determined to find their hideout.
I sat on the front steps with my eyes closed and welcomed the cooler morning breeze. With spring ending, the summer heat wave loomed, ready to blast the Amazon and dry up its burgeoning rivers. Four minutes since Xander left, I thought, tapping out the seconds with my wiggling fingers. My right knee
bobbed, and the heel of my sole thumped on the deck, sending dull wooden echoes through the clearing. The force under my hand on the knee couldn’t stop the nervous habit.
My strategy to follow him without taking food and hygene supplies had to work. I hadn’t asked him about Xela nor mentioned his trips and made sure he overheard I had plans with William. This time, I would succeed and find the witch’s hideout. Xander wouldn’t catch me the way he had on the two occasions I’d tried before. I should have known better than to extradite information from him. Anything could alert a shapeshifter.
Was Xander afraid I’d kill her? Why did he want her alive?
Woody musk fused around me and I opened my eyes.
“He’s going to catch you,” my husband, William, warned stepping out of the house. He must have put the twins to bed quicker than I expected. William handed me a glass of water.
“It’s been a week since I followed him last.” I took a sip of water.
“And you think that will make him less suspicious?”
“I’ll be careful.” The breeze cooled my fingers around the glass.
He raised his brows. “You’re trying to outsmart a shapeshifter.”
“You think I can’t?” I retorted.
“I’m not getting involved in your quarrels, but he’s still your best friend. He trusts your promise.”
I hadn’t told William I’d crossed my fingers behind my back when I made the promise to my best friend after my first failed attempt. Childish, yes; unwarranted, no. How could he believe I would stop searching for the witch? Didn’t he know me? She tried to steal my life. My only option was revenge, after gaining answers I sought.
“He’s hiding a witch who wanted to kill me,” I reminded him, eager to justify my betrayal.
“He must have a reason.” William sat in the wicker chair behind me and leaned forward, cradling his glass in his hands. “Come on, Sarah, it’s Xander. He’d never hurt you.” He sipped from his glass. “And I don’t like you getting too close to her. It’s as if you’re still drawn to her.”
I didn’t realize my fingers had tightened around my glass until it shattered. The slit in my palm reminded me of the blood I’d lost when in Xela’s body. She’d cut her chest to let her soul escape and push mine away. My spirit had taken over her empty host. I never felt I’d gotten my full self back when Eric, the evil-bender, bent the witch back to her own body, returning mine to me.
William entered the cabin and came back seconds later. “Just be careful, Sarah, please,” he said as he bandaged a slit that would heal in minutes.
“I will.” I kissed him. “I’ll say goodnight to the kids, then go.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
William began to sweep up the broken glass, and I rose and went inside. In their room, I inhaled the lavender soap aroma that wrapped my children’s bodies like a blanket. It soothed my soul. I’d never forget the mixture that my own and William’s scents conjured when mingled with their natural honey and lemon smell. Both children slept with their mouths slightly open, exhausted from their daily training. The tricks Xander and Mira, demonic shapeshifter siblings, taught them got more difficult to master each day.
I often wondered whether we were pushing the twins beyond what three-year-olds should be able to do. I’d find them sleeping in the middle of the hall; up in the trees, their limbs dangling off supporting branches; even in the emerald pond, floating on their backs. Crystal and Ayer weren’t regular twins. We didn’t have a name for what they were. Another mystery I’d lost sleep over at night.
The kids were developing abilities beyond my understanding. Mira and Eric taught the twins the defence moves when they weren’t gathering the lingering souls from the hereafter. They’d promised me that once it was time, I would be reunited with my mom and my aunt before they passed on. I hadn’t seen their ghosts since they’d helped me after Xela stole my body.
I looked at my watch. Xander had a ten minute lead, and it was time to follow him through the forest. His daily ritual of bringing food to the witch was as predictable as the sunrise and sunset. He’d leave right after the training, and in the evening when the twins went to sleep. Twice a day, my best friend split his duties between watching over me (which I no longer needed) and uselessly talking to the witch.
Did Xela trick him the way she had tricked me? Part of me didn’t like the jealousy swirling though my body. After all, I had William and the twins. I was happy—happier than I’d ever imagined—raising my children, preparing them for a future I knew would be nothing short of difficult.
Should I listen to William and leave Xander and the witch alone? Perhaps, but I was drawn to Xela more than I wanted to admit. The connection between us after our soul switch lingered in my bones.
I missed the adventure, too, and longed for the day we could finally be rid of the warlock. We had no doubt the battle would be fiercer than the one in the underworld against hundreds of seekers. But Aseret had last attempted to attack over a year ago. His efforts to locate us were futile. Each time he tried, Eric would twirl his finger and magically tie Aseret back to the underworld. The warlock could send seekers to capture us again, but they had no chance against us. Their fears weakened them, and William could wring their necks before they even blinked their orange eyes. We were safe, but I didn’t want to feel such strong security. I knew as soon as we relaxed our guard, Aseret would step in.
Xander’s tracks on the forest floor were difficult to follow, but I eventually closed on him, remaining far enough behind that he wouldn’t detect my presence. Xander in a wolf form slowed his jog and shifted back to human. He must be nearing the place where Xela was held captive. The sun covered with stray clouds hung high enough not to affect my sight. I inhaled his aroma of a wet dog and shivered at the stench.
He froze and scanned the forest. Was he hunting?
I stopped when my best friend disappeared. Crap! Did he sense me? I ducked behind a bush. My ears perked up, sensitive as a hare’s. His footfalls were soundless and I peeked through the branches. Xander wasn’t there.
I rose and followed his scent, letting my nose find the way. Xander leaped in front of me and I jumped back, startled.
“What are you doing?” Xander stood with his hands on his hips, brow furrowed. He was controlling his anger; green shade hadn’t infused his face yet.
“You’re sneaking off to see her again,” I accused, holding my chin higher, but shame for breaking my promise made my cheeks burn. The contained revenge for the witch brewing inside me rushed through my body.
“First, I’m not sneaking. Second, it’s not your business, Sarah.” Xander squared his shoulders.
“She tried to kill me.” I widened my eyes for emphasis, and crossed my arms at my chest.
“It wasn’t her.”
“What?” I blurted as resentment burned in my veins. How could he dare defend her? “Then who? Why are you keeping her locked away? She should be dead.”
“You assume too much, Sarah.” Xander strained to sound calm.
“She stole my body and pretended William, my other half, belonged to her!” The echo of my voice flowed through the woods.
“Like I said, she’s no longer your business,” Xander said stubbornly.
“Xander,” I said, my tone now more reasonable, “I just want to understand. We’re friends.”
He relaxed as well. “No one can understand, because I don’t understand.”
His answer wasn’t satisfying. “Then let me help you figure out whatever you’re trying to figure out,” I pleaded.
He shook his head, the door closing again. “It’s not a good time. Go home, Sarah; be with William, be with the kids.”
I lowered my head.
“You don’t want to be with them?” he asked.
I looked at him. “No, it’s not that.”
“Then what is it?”
“I miss you, and Mira.”
“We’re still around.”
“Not the way you used to
be.” I bit my lip; my complaint sounded so childish. “You used to care more. You had my back.”
Xander sighed. “We still care, but at that time you didn’t know who you were. You needed our protection. Now you can hold your own and William can take care of you. I thought William was everything you’d wanted.”
“He was, and he is.” I cleared my throat. “It’s just a little hard to get used to all the changes so quickly. I mean, I’m married!”
“Mr. Perfect isn’t Mr. Perfect?” He chuckled.
“Stop it!” I showed my fangs. “You know he is, but I’m having a difficult time adjusting. Everyone cares about me so much. I’d always had only you and Mira and now, I have a family. A real family.”
“They always cared. You just didn’t know it.”
“And my children are trying to explore their demonic side.” I threw my arms up.
“You’re not telling me something. I know when you lie.” Smirking, Xander leaned against a tree. It was as if he’d turned the tables around on me and now I was beginning to amuse him.
“Well, it’s complicated for me, too.” I shuddered. How could I tell him the witch he’s been hiding was still connected to me and it felt like she hadn’t returned my entire soul to my body?
“Fine, then why is it so difficult for you to accept the children’s training?”
“Because I don’t understand their demonic side,” I exclaimed. “I know how to be human and a vampire, but the demons . . .”
“First off, they’re not demonic.” He rolled his eyes. “Besides, you know us.”
“You’re shapeshifters.”
He raised his brows. “We’re a little more than that, aren’t we?”
“Yes,” I admitted. “And that’s what I want to understand. What would make a strong shapeshifter like you want to keep the enemy alive?”
“There are things in this world you still don’t understand.”
His dismissal angered me. “Bull! You’re keeping a shield between us.”
