by P. C. Cast
“What if we get stuck? Either over in Z’s world or in Nyx’s Realm?” Kevin asked.
Sgiach explained. “If you remain in your sister’s world your days will eventually run out. Your life will be half lived. You will die. And as the living do not belong in Nyx’s Realm, if you remain there, you will be unable to eat or drink and you will waste away until you die.”
“Okay, so, we need to get over there, warn Zoey, and then return here,” said Stark.
Kevin said nothing.
Sgiach’s brows rose expectantly as she studied him, but when he remained silent she sighed and gestured to the Seol ne Gigh. “All right then, come to the stone.”
Kevin began to walk forward and then hesitated. “Can we take our backpacks?”
“You could take a car with you, should you drive it into this room and your sacrifice be accepted,” said Sgiach.
Stark and Kevin exchanged looks, hefted their backpacks, and approached the stone.
“Stark must lie on yon stone. Young Warrior Kevin, sit beside him,” Seoras instructed as he walked to the head of the huge rock.
Kevin cracked his knuckles and did as he was told, perching on the side of the stone as Stark laid down across it.
“Now, two things need to happen at once,” said Sgiach. “Kevin, you must call spirit to you as Seoras cuts Stark. Concentrate on your love—that is of the utmost importance. Do not let any negative thoughts enter your mind. You are calling the Black Bull, the embodiment of Light and love and all that is good—and goodness does not flourish where there are dark thoughts.”
Kevin nodded. “I understand. I can do that.”
“Excellent. Then, if spirit comes and Stark’s sacrifice is great enough, the bull will accept it and grant you passage to Nyx’s Realm.”
“How will we know if we’ve done everything right?” Stark asked.
“It willnae be hard to know. A great bull, black as the deepest depths of yon ocean, will rise,” said Seoras as he unsheathed the dirk at his waist. “Roll up yer sleeve, laddie.”
Stark rolled up the sleeve of his shirt and then pressed his hands so tightly against the stone that his knuckles went white.
“Now, I’ll cut yer arm—here, just below the shoulder.” Seoras touched the tip of the razor-edged knife to Stark’s right shoulder.
“Okay. Got it. Um, is it normal that this rock is warm and … pulsing ?”
There was a smile in the queen’s voice when she told Seoras, “So, my love, if you had any doubt left that certainly clears it up.”
“What does that mean?” Kevin asked.
“It means he’s definitely a MacUallis. Only one of that blood can feel the living Seat of the Soul.”
Stark’s lips quirked up in a crooked grin that looked pretty damn cocky for a guy who was ready to be carved up by an ancient vampyre Warrior. “I like that I’m part of your clan, my queen.”
Seoras smacked Stark’s shoulder with the flat edge of the dirk. “Naw wain, yer not of the queen’s clan. I’m the MacUallis Chieftain. You belong to me.”
Stark swallowed. “Oh. Shit.”
“Aye,” agreed Seoras. “Now stop yer blathering and let me concentrate. I have to be carvin’ into yer flesh—and need to see what I’m doin’.”
And then the old Warrior pressed the tip of the dirk to the top of Stark’s bicep, just below his shoulder, and closed his eyes.
“Hey, uh, Chieftain. I thought you said you needed to see to cut me,” Stark whispered.
Seoras seemed not to hear, but the queen answered for him. “He’s looking with his third eye, Stark. Ready yourself. When it begins my Warrior will cut you fast and deep. You must not move. Your blood will fill the grooves, and that will call the bull.” She looked at Kevin. “When he makes his first cut, you must begin to summon spirit.”
“Do you have a purple candle I can light?”
“You sit on the Seat of the Soul. You need no candle to call spirit,” she told him. “Ready yourself. It begins.”
With his eyes closed, Seoras cut into Stark’s arm. Stark grunted at the first slash but didn’t move and didn’t make another sound. Except for his ragged breathing, he might have been napping.
Kevin only watched for an instant, but that instant was astounding. Seoras’s hand moved so quickly it blurred. It seemed to Kevin that the Warrior was creating a pattern of blood and flesh, but he couldn’t tell what it was, and he realized he had no time to decipher it. He, too, closed his eyes.
Kevin breathed deeply, centering himself as he called aloud. “Spirit, I ask that you come to me. I need you today like I’ve never needed you before.”
The element to which he was most firmly connected responded immediately. Kevin felt it swirl around him, rustling his hair and playing against his skin. He smiled as it filled him with a sense of rightness that was better than power—it filled him with joy. Kevin followed that joy to his heart, which opened, allowing memories of Aphrodite to rush unhindered through his veins and into his mind.
He remembered Aphrodite’s laugh and how it changed as she fell in love with him and became more open—more real. He thought about her eyes and how they were much more than beautiful—they reflected her soul and the wondrous wealth of love that had waited there, dormant, until she’d allowed him to release it.
Kevin thought about how it had felt to hold her in his arms. She had been gorgeous and sexy—more beautiful than any woman he’d ever known—but the sensation that he remembered most wasn’t about lust or need. What he remembered was that holding Aphrodite had felt like coming home.
The scent of Stark’s blood hit him then—thick and warm. Kevin ignored it and imagined that he was holding out his hand, and that Aphrodite was taking it, one last time, and twining her fingers with his and smiling up at him with that expression on her beautiful face that told him she trusted him, she believed in him, she loved him.
A roar filled the room and Kevin’s eyes opened—only he wasn’t in the queen’s throne room anymore. He and Stark, who was sitting beside him, his right arm completely scarlet with blood that poured down the side of his body with every beat of his heart, were in total darkness. There was no stone—they sat on nothing. They were nowhere.
Panic pecked at Kevin’s mind, but Stark met his gaze and said, “Don’t lose it. Hold onto spirit. Whatever you’re doing is working!”
Kevin nodded shakily and concentrated. “Spirit, stay with me. Help me find her again. Help me call Aphrodite.”
The moment he said her name the world changed. From beneath them something enormous and dark surged up, lifting them with it. It was warm and solid, and the instant it touched him, Kevin’s panic disappeared.
“It’s him.” Stark’s voice was filled with the same wonder Kevin felt. “We’re riding the Black Bull.”
And they were. From the inky darkness a shape formed before them—twin horns, impossibly big and sharp, framed a massive head. Kevin could see one of the beast’s eyes, and as he gazed into it joy crested over him, filling him so fully that he had to shout with happiness.
Kevin’s jubilant cry echoed Stark’s victory shout as the beast carried them up and up and up until finally Kevin began to see a wall of green. There was an explosion of light, and then he and Stark were tumbling from the bull’s back, landing on a hard-packed patch of ground. As soon as Kevin got to his feet, he whirled around, hoping to get a glimpse of the incredible creature that had granted them passage. All he saw was the bull’s velvet hip, wide as the back of a whale. Within his mind a deep, compassionate voice said, Remember to hold on to love, young Kevin. Love, always love … And then he was gone, and Kevin was staring at nothing.
Stark nudged his back. “Um, Kev …”
Kevin turned and his breath rushed from his body. Before them was an unending grove. It reminded Kevin of the forest across from Sgiach’s castle. In the very front
of the wall of trees there was a special tree, like the one he’d glimpsed on Skye, two trees irrevocably entwined. From their verdant branches dangled hundreds, maybe thousands of strips of cloth that shimmered magickally in the soft, silver moonlight.
And then Kevin could think no more of bulls or trees or the magick of the Goddess’s realm because walking toward him, weaving her way through the grove, was Aphrodite.
7
Zoey
I pressed my hands against the cold stone wall of the grotto and felt it—a terrible sense of rage and restlessness. I quickly pulled my palms away and turned to Stevie Rae, who stood beside me. Wiping my hand on my jeans to rid myself of the awful sensation, I said, “She’s still in there. No doubt about it.”
“Is it real gross?” Stevie Rae whispered.
“Yeah, and she’s pissed,” I said. “Time has definitely not mellowed her.”
“At least one positive is that she’s still in there,” said Stark. He joined my circle and me after he positioned the Sons of Erebus Warriors so that half of them were standing above Neferet’s grotto, and the others—along with Darius and Rephaim—were spaced in a crescent moon shape on the wide lawn in front of the wall.
Aphrodite hurried up from the parking lot with Kacie following close behind her like a very cute little puppy—if puppies could invoke water and fire. “All right, partial Nerd Herd, let’s get this spell cast. Now.”
“What’s up?” I asked, not liking the nervous way she kept glancing at the road.
“I don’t know, but I have a finger-down-my-spine crawly feeling and Ice Cream Shoes has been in my pocket since we got here.”
Kacie peered around nervously. “It feels wrong here. Like when you’re downtown late and have to park in a really empty, really dark underground garage.”
Aphrodite brushed back her hair and nodded. “That’s a pretty accurate description. It could be because of batshit crazy over there.” She pointed at the wall entombing Neferet behind me. “Or it could be because another creepy vamp is lurking around, but either way, I don’t like it.”
Damien joined us, carrying the bag that held our candles and spellwork implements. “And either way, what we’re doing will help. Humans can hang around here all day and pretend like Neferet is their next messiah. What we really don’t need is what Zoey described happening in that other world—hate-filled vampyres looking to support Neferet because they crave power.”
My ponytail dusted my back as I hiked my shoulders. “Well, in this case I think it’s more like old vampyres who are being super nosy, but I hear ya,” I said. “And once this spell is cast, if the European High Council wants information about Neferet, or about our House of Night, they’ll have to come to me to get it.”
Stevie Rae asked, “Z, have you thought about givin’ ’em a call? I mean, it’s not like we’re hidin’ anything. We’re just including humans ’cause, you know, when you actually get to know someone who’s different than you, that’s when you realize we’re all a lot more alike than not.”
“That’s a good idea, Stevie Rae. I doubt that they’ll admit if they did send someone over here to spy, but I’ll call and issue an invite for them to come for Imbolc next month. If the weather cooperates, I thought we’d hold a community gathering on campus and invite humans too.”
Damien spoke as he began pulling prayer candles in the five elemental colors from his bag. “You should give Sister Angela a call.”
“I’ll bet Street Cats would come—and bring kitties too,” said Stevie Rae.
Kacie sighed so loudly we all looked at her.
“Sorry. I just wish a cat would choose me.”
“Hey, give it time. Z and I still share Nala. I’ll bet Nal wouldn’t mind it if you gave her some lovins.”
I grinned at Stevie Rae. “Better warn Ice Cream Shoes about that face-sneezing thing she does.”
My bestie gave me an exaggerated wink and said, “Let’s not tell her.”
“Here,” Damien handed me a purple candle. “I don’t mean to be bossy, but less talk and more spell casting is in order.”
“Right,” I said. “Okay, let’s take our places.”
Stark kissed me quickly. “I’ll be just outside the circle with Darius and Rephaim.”
“Thanks.” He started to turn away and I said, “Hey!” He looked over his shoulder at me. “I love you.”
He grinned that cocky, one-sided smile I adored. “I know.”
“Bow Boy’s ego is even bigger than his—” Aphrodite began, but I quickly talked over her.
“Kacie, do you have any questions before we start?”
She was holding her blue candle and looking a lot younger than she had when she’d invoked the aid of water earlier. “Um, I don’t think so. Stevie Rae told me that I need to listen to what you say, especially about setting our intention. Then I just hold that intention in my mind and also think of fire and water.”
I nodded and smiled encouragingly. “That’s right. And remember, you’re not alone. We’re all here holding the same intention and calling in our elements. You’ll probably see visible proof when the circle is set, which is something unique to our circles because I have an affinity for all five elements—and that’s a good thing.”
“It’s real cool,” added Stevie Rae.
“Yeah, don’t let it intimidate you,” said Damien. “I’ll be right across the circle from you. If you get distracted by anything that happens, just look at me. I’ll breathe with you and that will help you ground and focus.”
“Okay. Thanks. I think I’ll be okay.”
“Ice Cream Shoes, I know you will. How could you not be? You’re wearing this season’s glittery Jimmy Choo sneakers and making me super jelly,” said Aphrodite.
“They’re last season’s. I got ’em on sale at the Nordstrom in Chicago before I transferred.” Kacie’s step seemed lighter in those sparkly sneakers as she moved to the westernmost side of our circle where water would be called.
Aphrodite let out a long-suffering sigh. “Why the hell can’t Tulsa get a Nordstrom? It’s inhumane. Seriously.”
“Let’s set our intention,” I said.
“Getting Nordstrom to T-Town is my intention, but I’ll put it on the back burner for a sec.” Aphrodite took the red fire candle from Damien and went to the southernmost part of the circle.
I’d started to move to the center—the position of spirit—but stopped and mentally smacked my forehead. “Crap! I forgot to tell you to bring salt.”
“Z, that’s Spellwork 101,” said Damien a little smugly. “Repel and protect spells need salt. I’ve got your back.”
“You’re the best,” I told him as he tossed me a big velvet bag filled with salt. Then I moved to the center of our circle and pulled from my pocket a long strand of sweetgrass that Grandma Redbird had collected from the Tallgrass Prairie and dried and braided herself. I tied it around my wrist before I looked to the north, in the direction of Twenty-First Street, and asked Stevie Rae, “Do you have the smudge stick?”
“Easy peasy light and breezy,” she said as she held up a tightly tied clump of dried white sage.
“Okay, good. We’re ready.” I glanced outside our circle and Stark nodded. Knowing he was there, watching and guarding, allowed me to focus on the spell. It was almost three in the morning, so there shouldn’t be any human gawkers around, but over the past year Neferet’s grotto had become a weird human tourist destination—and some of those humans liked to scare themselves with middle-of-the-night visits to her tomb.
I really wished they’d stick to checking out the Philbrook Museum and a nice dinner at the nearby Wild Fork.
I shook my head. Forget all of that. Stark will handle it. Concentrate on setting your circle’s intention.
“Tonight, we come here with one clear intention—to set a repel spell to keep any vampyre from getting too close to
this tomb that holds a being who chose to embrace Darkness.” As I spoke I turned slowly, making eye contact with each of the other four members of my circle. “As I open the circle and begin the spell, I want you to concentrate on the fact that what we do here is in the name of love and Light. None of us have ulterior motives. We only wish to keep our world safe and the balance of good and evil intact. Circle! Set your intention!”
I strode to the east, where Damien was holding a yellow prayer candle and a box of extra-long wooden matches. I stopped before him, took the match he offered me, and struck it against the box, saying, “Air is the first element we call tonight. It surrounds us and fills us. Sustains us and is with us from the moment we’re born, until the moment we return to the Goddess. It is the element of thought and communication and storytelling. Come to me, air!” I touched the lighted match to the candle and, as the flame lit, it flickered in a breeze that surrounded only Damien. We shared a smile before I turned to my right and walked deosil to the south where Aphrodite held a red candle representing fire. She was positioned directly in front of the wall that enclosed Neferet’s grotto.
She, too, had a match and box ready. I lit the match while I invoked, “Fire is our second element. It warms our homes and from it we draw light and strength. It is the element of courage and willpower, as well as energy and confidence. Come to me, fire!” I barely had to touch the match to the red candle’s wick and it burst into flame. Aphrodite flinched and shook back her hair to protect it from the intense blaze.
Our eyes met, and Aphrodite murmured, “Ice Cream Shoes is doing her thing.”
“She sure is,” I whispered in return.
From the south I walked to the west, where Kacie held out her blue water candle in one hand and balanced a long match and the striking box in her other. “You’re doing great,” I told her as I took the match and called water to our circle. “Water is our third element. It is present in our body as blood, tears, and milk. It cleanses and revives. It is the element of emotions, healing, and fertility. Come to me, water!” Even before the candle lit, Kacie and I were surrounded by the scents and sounds of the ocean. And then, just before I turned to head north, I heard her gasp.
