Everwish: The Primati Witches Book One

by Amelia Oz

  "My mother," replied Mahari calmly. "Records were falsified to allow me an escape to America." Everyone sat back, considering her words, and I was glad when Pagatios were lowered to the table. Daria leaned forward.

  "If you lie, you and your cubs here will die a slow and painful death. There are ways to confirm the validity of a Fire Queen. If you fail the test, the consequences will leave you praying for a quick death," Daria said, grinning with excitement. Mahari quirked a thin eyebrow and relaxed further into her chair.

  "Give me your test."

  Tess made some motions with her hands, and the flame in the center of the table turned bright blue. It crept across the stone table towards us. I was on the verge of tipping my chair back to run when Mahari stretched out her hand. The flame raced into her palm and up her arm. It turned bright red and danced along her bare skin in joyful waves before flowing back to the center of the table, where it once again became a normal flame.

  "Plot twist. It looks like she's telling the truth. She and her little slatterns are Fire Witches. Royal heirs to be exact. Otherwise the Council fire would have burned them to ash," Daria explained.

  "Slatterns? Is that like sluts?" asked Mira suspiciously

  "Silence!" shrieked Daria. "This is a formal Council meeting. Visitors are not allowed!"

  "I think it's like a seventeenth century term for prostitute," I stage whispered.

  "Seventeenth century? How old is this boujee bitch, anyway?" Midora asked.

  Daria sprang from the table. Her bracelets glowed and she shook them as if they burned. With a glare that promised retribution, she sank once more in her chair. Mahari cleared her throat.

  "You were about to vote on which coven my Granddaughter belongs to?" she prompted.

  "No, we were not. She has no magic and therefore is not eligible," Daria grated. The other three leaders looked at one another.

  "With a Fire Queen here we can now vote to a majority on which element house Stella belongs to, regardless of whether she can demonstrate magical ability," Clara said. Bromely nodded at her side.

  "There is no need to vote. She is claimed by the Fire covens," Mahari said.

  "Also—I can prove that Stella has magic," my Romany grandmother declared coolly. All eyes trained on me—yet I was just as stumped by her claim as everyone else.

  Midora and Mira were suddenly behind me. They scraped back my chair as I clung with fingertips to the edge of the table. A hot wind pulled me from my seat and sent me skyward. I heard gasps and protests, but it was too late.

  My ascent was inelegant. I crashed against the side of the tower, banging my elbow and hip. And then I was above the tower, suspended. My body was flipped and I saw fire. It did not burn or hurt, but fear stole my ability to scream. I blinked and could see the small figures below around the table. All but Daria had risen to their feet with wands raised. I saw Mahari lower her arms and I was suddenly falling.

  Gravity was a fierce thing. Within seconds, I dropped yards down the tower. The image of a parachute entered my mind, and I imagined it opening with a whoosh. I still fell—but at a much slower rate. I twisted without thought and landed in a crouch on the table top, red flames from the center fire moving to engulf me before they tapered down and I stood, unscathed.

  Wonder replaced the urge to attack my kin for nearly killing me. The faces around the table reflected that same incredulity. Had I really done that? Stopped myself from falling to my death?

  "Our own Stella holds magic," Mahari said simply. "You just witnessed her mastery of air and fire. She holds magick."

  "Impossible. You helped her. Someone helped her!" Daria screeched. Marcella and Flynn examined me with a great deal of interest. One by one the witches shook their heads at Daria.

  Babak held out his hand, but I ignored his aid, jumping down to the floor. Midora and Mira quickly moved back. Smelling smoke, I patted my hips before tearing off my jacket. My lovely suit was scorched, burnt holes visible. I twisted my hair out of the way and met the gaze of each witch in turn. Shit was about to get real.

  Chapter 31

  The Empress

  Stella

  uess what?" Before I could answer my own question, a cracking boom sounded from above with vibrations that shook the tower. Screams erupted from the Hall.

  Chittering noises grew in volume from overhead. Dark shapes with glossy red eyes scurried along the top of the open tower and slithered down the walls towards us. Midora screamed, pointing upwards while Daria eyed the newcomers with an eerie smile. What was wrong with her? Tess appeared frozen but Mahari swiftly pulled me aside.

  "Mercury demons! Water witches are vulnerable to them. I can transfer no more than two additional people at a time. Survive, and I will return for you," my grandmother thundered, grabbing Midora and Mira's hands with one of hers while reaching towards a torch flame with the other. Mahari's eyes seared into mine, and her voice lingered as all three disappeared into flames. "I did not abandon you as a baby. I gave you a better future."

  Babak pointed his large feather at the walls and a white light burst forth, meeting its targets with shrieks of pain. The sharp scent of ozone and sulfur swept through the tower.

  Bromely and Flynn tried to pry the door open as they screamed warnings to those outside. One of the creatures landed in the room behind Clara. Her pink Pagatio burst into life with writhing red shadows and, raising her arms, she turned to face the interloper. An invisible force shoved the demon back where it struck the wall. Pinned in place, it screamed when the water trickling down the walls flowed over its writhing shape, swallowing it completely. Encased in water, I could see its mouth gape open, revealing double rows of serrated silver teeth. It wasn’t drowning, though. It writhed in fury, attempting to free itself.

  A second demon slammed near the first as Clara began to gather more of the grotesque creatures with her power. I pushed out my hands experimentally, trying to make air move, send fireballs—anything that might help. Nothing happened. An odd sense of vertigo made the tower swim around me.

  "Mercury demons are only vulnerable in heat. I can’t drown them but I can keep them pinned. We could have used your grandmother’s fire. Hide, Stella," Clara yelled. She was keeping the creatures clear of me while watching her own back. I was a distraction, making her vulnerable. Clara waved her hand and water from the wall was sent across the room in a fine mist that forced more otherworldly shrieks from the frightening creatures.

  "Will you stop with the fucking water, Clara!" Daria screamed, a murderous rage burning from the single eye visible beneath her dripping hair. She alone of the witches appeared soaked.

  Marcella appeared, pointing to her left before she decapitated one of the demons with nothing but her fingernails. I tried not to vomit as red dust burst from its ragged neck. Following where she’d pointed, I shoved beneath the Council table. The space was shallow due to the large pedestal it rested upon, and so I braced my back against it, prepared to kick any threat that came near. An unholy scream pierced the hazy air. Eyes watering, I peered from beneath the table just as the entire tower room spun like a carnival ride.

  Daria cursed as she slammed into a line of demons. Bracing my feet against the floor, I pressed myself against the table pedestal as legs flew past my hiding spot. The massive force soon became too much. I flipped out from beneath the table and landed on the rug. In an instant, the room stopped spinning. The tableau awaiting me as I rose to my feet was nightmarish.

  The Witch Queens and their Firsts were frozen in place, as were dozens of beasts in various poses of chaos. The creatures appeared partially human, but for their misshapen, muscular builds, red eyes, and strange skin. They ranged in color from smoky grey to a pale cream that matched the stone walls. Chameleons? Mahari had called them mercury demons.

  I heard a cry behind me and twisted. Tess swayed on unsteady feet. She held out her hand, palm up. "Come with me, Stella. There is a traitor in this room, and they've broken enchantments pr
otecting this hallowed place.” I backed away on wobbly legs.

  "We can't just leave everyone!" I howled, staring at an unmoving demon petrified into a crouch at my feet. His glistening ruby eyes slowly blinked. Suspended red dust created an amber haze. Did I hear the scrape of metal?

  "Tess, are you holding everyone in place?" She must be incredibly powerful.

  "Yes. But I can’t keep this up for much longer. Now, Stella! The enchantment is weakening," she called in strained tones.

  Growls echoed from the top of the tower. A new wave of dark creatures crept in dripping shadows. High above, a small white shape appeared against the inky night. At first I thought it the moon, but then the moon never dipped and glided like this. More than one creature failed to swipe it from the air with lunging talons. As I stared up in astonishment, white wings soared in looping circles down the tower. Bird's red-orange beak bent towards me and then his bird's form exploded just before landing. The arctic tern was replaced by a Nordic God. The man, clothed in head-to-toe black, straightened, shaking out his limbs. He took in the tower's inhabitants before he locked relieved eyes on me.

  "Hello, niece," the tall blonde man said with a nod.

  "Hillary wants you to call her," was the only thing I could think to say.

  "The scaly stalker?" he queried with a frown.

  "She's rather nice," I mumbled, offended for Hillary.

  "Taurus! Enough with the family reunion. We have a crisis going on," Tess cried. I gasped, my chest suddenly tight and burning.

  “Why are you allowing her to breath this polluting air?” Taurus demanded of Tess. The look she cast him was filthy. The man held his palm in front of my face and pain spasmed from my chest and throat. I turned and retched red liquid.

  "Stella! Take my hand. I can't hold them any longer." Tess’s lips were white with strain. The taste of ozone met the back of my sore throat. Tess pleaded once more.

  "I assure you, Stella—once we are gone, these demons will slink back to their pits. They are only on this plane for you. Once we escape the others will be safe."

  "So, if I go with you, the rest of the castle, Amanda, Alaric, King Murad—everyone—will be okay?" I asked. Her nod was firm.

  "I can guarantee the demons will leave once you are no longer here to capture." Tess's brow glistened, as did her upper lip. It must be taking an enormous sum of power to keep everyone immobile. The man who'd once been Bird the artic tern, but Tess called Taurus, spoke.

  "Something is off here, sister. What have you done?"

  The flame in the center of the table popped, the fire rushing forth several feet in the air. Mahari stood on the table, a pouch grasped in one hand. She took in the room and beckoned to me.

  I glanced between Tess, Mahari, and Taurus. The best decision was one that kept others safe. Mahari was untrustworthy, her motives questionable. I reached for Tess.

  Just as she took my arm, Taurus leapt forward. "The Stone of Mercy, Stella," was the last thing I heard him say.

  * * *

  We reappeared in a large room with narrow panes of stained-glass windows and an altar. It didn’t seem like a house of worship, though. A single sofa in green velvet faced the altar. Tess released her grip and walked towards it, leaving me to trail behind.

  “Did that really happen, Tess? Oh, my God, we have to go back and help. We have to warn Alaric and Murad.” Dizzy, I swayed and fought back nausea.

  On closer inspection, the platform was just a wood table that held an enormous book. Behind the table was a magnificent mural that filled an entire wall. At its center was an enormous golden tree. I approached it slowly, noticing that the image was really a mosaic of tiny squares of gold and painted tile. Spotlights in the ceiling caused the gold to emit an otherworldly glow while the rest of the room lay in shadow.

  "What is this place?" I stood at her side, gazing between the golden tree and Tess.

  Her lips curved into a soft smile. "I haven't seen my brother in human form for well over a century. I wonder why Taurus chose now to appear? And how is it that he seemed to know you? Have you been keeping secrets, Stella?"

  Seriously? Our friends and family were fighting demons back in that tower. I checked my phone and groaned in frustration at the black screen.

  "Where is your phone, Tess? We need to call reinforcements and return. What will happen if the mercury demons become unfrozen before our friends do? It was Daria who let them in, wasn’t it? How will they protect themselves?" She stared at me blandly for a long moment and then stroked the open book with trailing fingertips.

  "We’re at my home in Scotland. This is my private chapel, built from druid stone and bespelled so that no one can enter without my permission. Can you guess why?" she prodded. Really?

  I shrugged, impatient. She contemplated the mural with an inscrutable smile. Eager to humor her so we could move on, I stepped closer to the mural to read the scripted writing it held. Nestled among the tree’s branches were names, dates, and locations. When I recognized my own name, three quarters of the way down, comprehension dawned. I stumbled back several paces to view it as a whole.

  "It's a genealogical chart,” I whispered. My family tree to be precise. There were my mother and father's names. I searched the top and saw Lila's name next to Charles Samuel Avery. Comprehension punched like a fist into my solar plexus. What were the odds that this name matched my grandfather's full name? It hadn’t been on Thomas’s version.

  "Impossible," I murmured.

  "Oh, you noticed Sam's name? It is the same man, by the way. Lila gives off quite a thump. Her love just lifts the men in her life right up, although I suspect Sam is close to the end of his very long life. Look at what happened to Murad on the field—her desire to save him by giving him her light was enough to make him into an entirely new species—a murderous creature she found abhorrent.

  "Somehow, Lila imbued Sam with enough of her life-force during their brief time together to keep him alive over three hundred years," Tess explained bitterly.

  My Sam was Lila's American husband? Rapid connections checked off in my mind. Both doctors. Both had resided in Virginia. If this was true, poor Sam had witnessed his entire family die for fifteen generations. Who could live with that kind of suffering?

  "You know, just when I think the man will finally die of old age, he seems to grow twenty years younger. He's done remarkably well under the radar so to speak, looking over all of you ducks. Caring about you only to see you all die—oh, so young and tragically," Tess pondered aloud, a sharp bitterness to her sly smile. I've been a complete idiot. And, if true, Sam's life was a version of hell.

  "Don't tell me it was all about a curse," I said slowly. "It was you who sent the mercury demons to the tower," I accused, fury melting the ice in my veins. The woman who’d pretended to be my friend tilted her head like a curious raven. Tess threw out her palm, and I was thrown upwards, pinned against the wall by a powerful gust of air. My legs were free, and I kicked out into empty space. My hips and outstretched arms were held immobile, but clarity came at last. She would kill me. No one would be left to care for Sam or warn the others.

  The wind curled around me and I was flung down across the table, its edge catching my side with such force that sharp pain bloomed beneath my ribs. The book slid to the floor and then I was airborne, thrown from side to side before being slammed back into the wall so hard my head bounced. She stood beneath me, triumphant, then backed away as if to better view her handiwork. She was so strong. I had no control over my power. Or did I? I'd caused Thomas to appear by just thinking about him. I’d survived a fall within the tower. Focus, Stella.

  I drew in a deep breath, ignoring stabs of pain as I did so, and opened my mind. I imagined Alaric, Murad, Clare, Amanda, and Jing and then pushed a visual of what I was seeing here in the empty chapel. I tried to convey the room, Tess before me, and the word "Scotland." I thought of poor Sam and of Lila, frail and locked within her mind. I would never get to
tell her the truth. Never ask Sam the questions I wanted to.

  Tess stood in the center of room. Her hair blew in every direction, ebony sheets of it dancing in the magicked wind. Her blue eyes were lit from within as madness emanated from her. It was as if the porcelain perfection of her had imploded, revealing her true form.

  "I don't know how you did that little trick in the tower. Your mother held a weak control over air, but your power seems to include an affinity for fire as well. I can't risk you growing any stronger." Her face twisted into a snarl.

  "You've forced me to move too quickly. It's sloppy. Why couldn't you just fulfill the enchantment and die," she screamed at me.

  "You—with your appalling taste in fashion and ungrateful attitude! You are the embodiment of Lila and it is wasted on you. All those years I had to watch as he loved her. Not me!" She thumped her chest with a fist.

  "Have you ever heard of an Everwish, Stella? There truly is a curse, although I can't deny I haven't helped it along from time to time. Precious Lila with adoration of all that was good—I saw him first!" She choked out a gasp that became a crazed wail. I winced at the terrible sound. She stalked closer, her black Pagatio raised as it winked sapphire with power.

  "You have no idea. Murad was beautiful and so…alive. He was there, holding Alaric when we arrived to take Isabeau to the sky. The world was new to us, and our human bodies strange. I locked eyes with Murad but then Lila stopped to comfort Alaric. Once Murad laid eyes on Lila, he was lost to me," she cried.

  The pressure pressing me against the wall was intense but I was able to lift my knees enough to slide my feet flat against the wall. Was this about some twisted sibling rivalry?

  "I hate her! I loathe her!" Tess screamed. The table rose to slam against the wall and windows in brutal strikes, sending showers of glass and wood splinters to swirl dangerously inside the room with the powerful force of wind that Tess commanded. A shadow passed beyond a window.