Witch's Promise : The Witching Hour Series Book 4

by Joanna Mazurkiewicz

  I couldn’t reach for my source; my powers were gone. Emily waved her wand and the pressure below my eyelids eased a little. I had no control over my body, as I hung in mid-air fighting with her energy.

  "And I needed more time to make sure that you, my dear, Julia, were ready for all that I planned for you."

  "Ready for what?" I choked, wanting to know why she needed me so much. "You can do whatever you want with me, but just save Kate and my father. They don’t deserve to die."

  She got up, moving her long skinny legs forward. I felt my magic crackling, vibrating on the surface, soaking the heavy air.

  "Many paranormals believe that you’re very special, much more important than royals. You can give me what I want, what I’ve desired all my life. You’re the one who holds the power of immorality."

  Emily had lost her mind. She was delusional. I was no one until Tron came and helped me with basic principles, teaching me a few useful spells. Maybe she had heard rumours from Craig when he was still alive.

  "I'm mortal like everyone else. I can’t turn you into a vampire," I said, amused by her ridiculous statement. Sweat gathered on my forehead as I struggled to stay focused.

  She didn’t like my response and narrowed her pale eyes. "Vampires are like dust; they have to feed to survive. It’s not that kind of immorality I want and need. Tron told me about another witch who had embraced it. He was the one who seeded the idea in my head."

  “You’re pathetic. No one can live forever," I said, laughing. She couldn’t possibly think these rituals would help her to stay young for centuries. I had never heard anything more absurd. "I met your sister at her home in Wales…"

  The witch roared, pressing her long skinny fingers to her skull. Her face stretched, revealing more scars, turning bright red.

  "That life is behind me. I don’t have a sister. I studied dark magic, experimented and killed others to become the person I am today. Tron was going to be next but—"

  For a split second I wondered if the woman in front of me was really Emily Bishop or Elvira. I couldn’t understand why she didn’t want to use her real name. Dark magic changed people. Twisted their minds and shifted the boundaries of what was right and wrong. She wasn't herself anymore, something or someone must have possessed her soul. She wasn't making any sense. Only vampires were immortal.

  When I glanced back at her, she was calm again.

  "I underestimated you, Julia. You were determined to help your friend. I needed to stay motivated and focused. Nathaniel gave me strength. I didn't trust him at first, you see, because of you. Wizards and other witches told me that you two used to be together."

  My throat was so dry that I was struggling to swallow. Nathaniel had been helping her, but maybe she used her magic and he didn’t know what was going on. Even now, at the mercy of the witch, I was fighting with myself, trying to rationalise his betrayal. I had to stop treating him like he didn’t know about her.

  She went silent for several minutes looking around the spacious kitchen, lost in her own thoughts. I was so buggered. There was no one who could help me. I used a magic spell earlier to mask the sounds of my break-in, so even humans wouldn't hear my screams. But I had to keep trying—this crazy bitch was the only living creature who could help Dad.

  Then things in the kitchen began moving around, and I swallowed. Her power swept everything off the breakfast table. Pots, pans, glasses, papers, all smashed on the floor. The witch waved her wand, pinning her pale eyes on me. She moved me down and my body slammed on the bar. The pain didn’t register at first, knocking me out for a second or two. The soft aroma of lavender reached my nostrils and I blinked, registering her standing close. She was so ugly and deformed with greasy blond hair and sullen cheeks.

  "Right, let’s begin," she whispered with a sweet and most creepy smile. For some reason I wasn't scared anymore. I was furious with my own stupidity, trying to play brave. I should have gone to Dannika and she would’ve been in custody by now.

  The wind started whistling, blowing through the kitchen, and all the windows began to open. I tried to move my neck to see what she was doing, but my body was locked in place, muscles tight and unmovable. Emily Bishop wasn't the white witch anymore; now she was Elvira, the head of the coven, and was preparing herself for the final ritual. I waited for pain or something to happen, but the energy was drifting away. Then we heard the noise of a shutting door.

  My pulse picked up and hope spiked my blood. I was lying flat on this bare wooden table, useless and unable to do anything, but someone else was in the house. Maybe I wasn't going to die.

  "It appears that we have company," she muttered. “That's okay; he can stay and watch."

  Then she disappeared from the kitchen. As soon as she left me alone I tried to move, hoping to break the spell. The bitch had woven her magic so deep into my system that it was impossible to do anything except lie there and stare at the ceiling. I heard another voice coming from the living room and considered screaming, but I doubted that her new companion would come to my rescue.

  I heard a laugh, a very familiar one that made my stomach heave. Then all my emotions accumulated into a sinking realisation of crushing pain as Nathaniel walked in. His eyes automatically went to mine and he froze on the spot. His lips parted, knuckles whitened. Shock mixed with disbelief flickered through his face for a split second, before his face became expressionless.

  Pain laced my voice, making it shrill. Agonising grief contorted the muscles of my body when I realised that I was part of my worst nightmare. Nathaniel didn’t move at all, he looked like he was completely frozen on the spot. Then, he exhaled, and his eyes moved around the kitchen.

  "Elvira, why is my ex-girlfriend here?"

  He sounded like he didn’t care, and the tone of his voice flared the dull pain in my numb limbs. I locked my eyes imagining what I could do to him.

  My energy responded to me, accumulating inside, mildly aware of the new movement of energies in the space around us. I wasn't prepared to give up yet, especially now when my ex-boyfriend was here.

  I darted my eyes away back to the ceiling, but I felt his hazel eyes burning through my whole body.

  "Remember the perfect vessel that I mentioned a few times? Well, Julia has always been the one. She’s an extraordinary creature and this ritual that I'm just about to perform is going to make me immortal," she explained with the sweetest voice. Nathaniel was in his best suit and it looked like he had just finished work. I dared him to say anything to me. I was ready to spit in his face.

  I didn’t want to see his reaction to her answer. This wasn't the end. Dad and Kate, they still had a chance.

  "Julia? She can’t be the one. She’s useless with magic. She can’t even cast a simple memory spell, Elvira. Look at her," Nathaniel stated coldly with a gesture that was supposed to prove that I wasn't worth her time. My heart burst, but I kept swallowing my tears. There was no way I was going to cry in front of those two.

  "I don’t think you know her as well as you thought you did, darling. My old teacher believed that she’s gifted, and Tron was one of the strongest elves on earth."

  Nathaniel started laughing, shaking his head.

  "Elvira, I admire your determination and effort, but I think you made a mistake. She’s a half-breed."

  I finally looked back at him then with so much hatred that I wished I could burn him. Nathaniel still kept calling her Elvira. I didn’t understand what his deal was. From the paperwork in his apartment he knew that her real name was Emily Bishop.

  The witch circled around me waving her magic wand softly. My shirt was moving, exposing my stomach. Goosebumps appeared all over my skin. Elvira was standing over me, smiling.

  “You've got to trust me on this, Nathaniel. She knew that Roger was recruiting witches in your factory. She followed him to our last meeting. She isn’t useless," Elvira observed, frowning.

  Nathaniel stood silently on the other side of the table, his hands in his pockets. His eyes darkene
d. Elvira picked up something from the kitchen counter and my heart stopped.

  Twisted images from the park flashed in front of me and my stomach revolted. Elvira had a long kitchen knife in her perfectly manicured hand. All of a sudden, I understood why she had exposed my stomach and the earth opened up beneath me. I didn’t want to end up like the others, in bits, butchered into little pieces.

  Nathaniel paled, his throat moved, and he swallowed, watching his new girlfriend. He obviously still cared about me, but why? Why, when she was just about to slash me open?

  “Let's begin," she whispered. I focused all my energy on getting the hell out of there. I knew that I was strong and could fight her, but so far this spell was unbreakable.

  She lowered the knife and pressed it sharply to my stomach, and she began slicing my skin, not even preparing me for her movement. Pain exploded, and I screamed, covered with cold sweat. I was so screwed.

  CHAPTER 35

  THE BATTLE OF MAGIC.

  "Elvira!"

  She stopped cutting me, but the pain escalated, throwing off my conscious state. It was Nathaniel; he made her stop. I took a slow shuddering breath; tears rolled down my face. Something warm and thick poured down my belly. I didn't need to look to know that it was blood.

  Then I let out a growling sound and a few things happened all at once. Nathaniel disappeared from the spot where he stood a second ago. I felt his scent by me, but then it was gone. Dizziness blurred my vision and I didn't know if I was hallucinating, because then I saw him attacking. His fangs extended, and his arm came around Elvira from behind. She looked like she didn’t know what was happening. Nathaniel sank his fangs into her neck.

  The witch made a howling sound as he began drinking from her greedily. She tried to tear herself away, but he held her in place. She roared, then both of them crashed to the floor. For a long blissful moment, I had my body back. Pain throbbed, deepening with every small movement as the world spun around me. I groaned, and with a wheezing breath, I lifted myself off the table. One shock came after another when Nathaniel began ripping the skin on Elvira’s neck; blood sprayed, covering her cleavage and clothes. Unexpected wind swept me off my feet again and I landed on my butt, seeing white moving dots before my eyes. Blood poured out of my stomach as I tried to summon my own magic.

  The witch screamed, and bright red light burst all around us. My body shook involuntarily. I must have passed out for a moment or so, because when I looked up Elvira was standing next to me. The fresh smell of blood hit my stomach, and the pain was much worse now. I glanced at the bits of her flesh hanging off loosely. I wished he’d bitten through her jugular; she would have been dead by now.

  "So, it looks like the little vamp might still have some feelings for you," Elvira cracked, her voice weak. I moaned, sitting on the floor and clutching my head. I convulsed in throbbing pain, losing my breath.

  "Let me think, what can I change him to… oh, yes, that would be a good idea."

  I opened my eyes, trying to see what she was doing. She pressed the wand to her bloody neck, her eyes furious and glued to Nathaniel. He lay behind me, but I couldn’t see what kind of state he was in.

  My magic was drained away by another source. The streams of light moved from her wand connecting with the damaged skin, repairing it. Then she began circling it around Nathaniel talking loudly in a language that I didn’t recognise, a buzz of energy emanating from her in rippling waves.

  "Look, Julia," she snarled and my head was lifted at an angle where I could see Nathaniel. I screamed when he disappeared in front of my eyes. One moment he lay unconscious on the floor and in the next a small black bat rolled out from his pile of clothes. The creature began making squeaking noises and flew out, moving quickly around the kitchen.

  "Now, let’s get back to business."

  Before I knew it, I was lying back on the breakfast bar. The wound in my stomach throbbed with searing pain. My eyes moved furiously all around me, searching for the small creature. I found him in the corner, clinging to the ceiling. The spell was slowly fading but shock and confusion settled back inside me. Nathaniel tried to save me. I was wrong about him.

  My head swam, the room spun. I couldn't keep my eyes open, but I heard her loud steps all around me, heard her muttering words that didn’t mean anything to me. I kept passing out. Every time I was back in the kitchen the pain in my abdomen escalated, the smell of blood intensified. I kept saying to myself that this was only a dream, an illusion, and I was going to wake up soon.

  At some point I regained consciousness, recognising the white walls and the black bat on the ceiling. Elvira had her back turned to me. I moaned silently, still unable to move. When I tried adjusting my head, the effort brought a surge of pain back, spreading down to my toes.

  My own internal voice pushed me to summon every ounce of power that I could produce. The pain invoked the tingling, my fingers inflamed, but then she turned around.

  Her eyes found mine again.

  "Now, I can’t tell you what I'm about to do won't hurt," she said smiling widely. The colour drained from my face, strong emotions fuelled my power. Suddenly the whole kitchen began to shake, glasses and pans started falling from every space, slamming onto the floor. Emily glanced around, disoriented, and waved her wand. She looked back at me when everything stopped. "There is no point fighting, love. I'm much stronger than you."

  She lifted her magic wand again and began stirring it in the air, round and round like she was drawing invisible circles. Mini Nathaniel squawked and flew to the lamp, my heart pounded against my ribs and nervous fear danced over my neck. The wind began moving things in the kitchen, the light started to flash.

  Elvira walked to the other side while her wand was beside me, passing it and lifting up the tiny hairs on my skin. This felt like she was opening me up, using a red heated metal to burn my bare hands. My heart skipped a couple of beats, and pain blinded me for a moment, leaving flying dots in front of my eyes. I screamed again, begging for her to stop. She made three long lines on each hand. Cold sweat was soaking my clothes. I couldn’t tell if this was just the beginning or if she was done with me.

  "Dear sisters, I give you this vessel filled with power and greatness. Her precious blood will fill your veins. In return I'm asking for immorality…"

  Her voice faded. I closed my eyes thinking about Dad and Kate. I’d disappointed both of them. Even if I could get rid of the agonising pain, I couldn’t fight with her. My injuries would slow me down.

  The blood on my hands started rising, small drops that looked like red hearts in the flashing light. My happiest memories floated back. I was surrounded by everyone in my family, along with my friends: Mum, Dad, Kate, Kelsie and Ella. We were laughing, sitting around the table in my parents’ home.

  Elvira’s voice brought me back to the room. Her words didn’t make much sense and I began hallucinating again. There were other people in the kitchen, unknown, almost translucent faces of women. I couldn't count them, but I guessed there were at least a dozen of them surrounding me. My voice broke the silence. I heard myself begging, telling her to end this. Elvira’s energy pounded, vibrating and thickening the air. Her voice echoed in my head; my skin felt as if it were being pulled away from my body.

  Somewhere in the background I heard a noise, rumbling and crushing. The pain didn’t go away, and the ghosts kept their calm poses. Elvira stopped talking mid-sentence and I felt her drop the connection, freeing me from the invisible ropes.

  My limbs were mine again and, although I could move, I laid there, breathing heavily.

  "What the—"

  I heard a familiar voice and my heart sped up. I turned my head a little to the left and saw Jasper. He stood in the kitchen door, frozen, holding his magic wand in his hand. Elvira looked completely unprepared, dropping something from a flask that she held in her right hand.

  At the same time, I made a split-second decision and rolled off the table, landing flat out on the cold floor, passing out for a
short moment. The next thing I remembered were spells, dozens of multicoloured lights were flying above me. My psycho ex-boyfriend was fighting the witch.

  I crawled away, baring my teeth as hard as I could.

  "I don’t care who you are, but you’re a dead man!" Elvira shrieked so loud that my head felt like it was pinned with a thousand small needles.

  She was fast, much faster and way more skilled than Jasper, but he was strong shielding her spells away. I mildly registered the panic on his face. I sat back down and closed my eyes conjuring magic in every cell, my body trembled in search of the source. If I had any chance of survival, this was the moment. I focused, the light shot away, fracturing into shards of sparkling anger. Invisible claws dug into my open wound, but waves of preheated magic floated back to me. Magic gave me my strength back and, roaring with pain, I lifted myself back to my feet and grabbed the knife on the kitchen counter.

  Elvira wasn't even paying attention to me. Her charms that held me in place were broken. I charged at her, but my knees gave out and instead of stabbing her in the back I went down, and the knife landed in her calf.

  She screamed with fury, losing her concentration. She mouthed something, awakening two ghosts. Ghost or demons, whatever the hell she’d created, flew towards Jasper. He screamed in startled panic, his body hit the floor a second later.

  My energy turned into various shades of wicked vibrations, accumulating whatever power I had left. I heard thunder and lightning clap loudly outside. Elvira’s face went white, then it flexed, showing more scars and deformities.

  "You little half-breed!" she screamed and lifted her wand.

  I had her then, lost and distracted. It was time to fight back, time to show her that I wasn't weak. I heard hissing and squeaking; Nathaniel kept bouncing back and forth flying from wall to wall.

  My magic lashed out with the last bit of strength that was left in me. The air was filled with sweat and blood; my pores opened, and my magic clashed with Elvira’s. The knife that she cut me with was still stuck in her calf, but she seemed immune to pain.