Born of Aether: An Elemental Origins Novel (Elemental Origins Series Book 4)
Page 21
The yellow light turned white and became so bright the kids faces looked washed out and pasty. Molly got to her feet, clutching the book to her heart. The four of them stood rooted to the spot, Alfie's chest heaved and Dana's chin wobbled. The room grew unbearably warm and filled with the scent of something floral and spicy. Molly felt moisture spring out on her upper lip.
Heavy footsteps echoed up from the box and a shadow blocked out the light.
Chapter 5
"Oh," whispered Dana.
"My," added Teddy.
"God," finished Alfie.
Molly couldn't find her tongue but just then her mind snagged on where she knew the symbol from. It was the Eye of Horus. Her eyes widened and her vision fuzzed to black for second before returning.
The head of a falcon emerged from the box, large and black with a white throat and a yellow hooked beak. The kids frightened faces reflected in it's glossy black eyes, as it bobbed with every ascendant step. The falcon's head was revealed to be a tall headdress on a tanned man with penetrating black eyes. He emerged from the casket on an unseen staircase. A silver spear appeared, gripped in one wide brown hand. The man was bare chested and magnificent. His shoulders grazed the sides of the wooden box as he passed.
Every kids jaw sagged open as the man’s belly button appeared, then his white loincloth, then his thickly muscled legs and bare feet. Gold wrist cuffs encased each wrist and black makeup lined each eye. His square jaw and sharp-nose aimed at Dana, then Alf, then Teddy, and finally Molly, where his unreadable gaze lingered. He stepped up and over the edge of the casket to stand bare foot on the dark hardwood. His eyes found the book in Molly's arms and he stared at the girl like he was considering whether to eat her or not.
"Bastet," his voice filled the room like thunder, filling every corner and making the windowpanes vibrate.
The small black shape of Edgar Catchpole's cat materialized in the doorway. A whispered purr filled the room. Bastet licked her chops and every head turned to watch the small sleek cat with the grey streak on the top of her head pad silently into the room. Her shadow blew up against the wall as lighting flashed through the windows. In the time it took for the kids vision to register sight again, there was no longer a cat, but a woman.
She was as magnificent as the man. Though the small black creature was gone, Bastet still had the same harvest moon coloured eyes, burning like lamps in her regal face. Unlike Horus, she wore no makeup. Molly had a random thought that she probably hadn't had much access to makeup while she was living as Catchpole's pet, and Astarte's before that. How long had she been in feline form? Bastet wore a spare black linen wrap and a small gold hoop in one nostril. She had a thick grey streak of hair in her forelock.
Bastet spoke to Horus in a foreign tongue, but didn't take her eyes from Molly.
Horus answered, gesturing towards Molly with his spear. Molly shrank back, lost her balance and sat down hard on the bed behind her. The springs squeaked like a rusty hinge. Horus thumped the wooden handle against the floor with a crack like a rifle shot. A scream got caught in Dana's throat as though an invisible hand had slapped over her mouth.
Bastet walked up to Molly on bare soles, soundless and smooth, a ghost. She stood before the quaking girl, assessing her with a glittering supernatural gaze.
"Bastet," whispered Molly.
Bastet reached out a hand and snagged the end of a red curl between her fingertips. With a blade that appeared from nowhere, and a movement so fast nothing could be seen but a silver blur, Bastet separated the lock from Molly's head. Molly moaned, deep in the back of her throat.
Bastet spoke old-world Egyptian to Molly in a deep, soothing tone. Molly closed her eyes as the goddess's words washed over her, and understood them.
Bastet's yellow eyes dropped to the book and she held out a hand. Molly didn't hesitate. She released the ancient tome to Bastet. She took a deep breath and took in the heady scent of lotus lilies, vanilla and cinnamon - the gifts and offerings of millions of ancient Egyptian women and mothers seeking pregnancy, healing for sick children, guidance and wisdom.
Bastet took the book from Molly and turned toward Horus, her arm around the red-headed girl. Without another glance at the other kids, Bastet crossed the floor with Molly and joined Horus. He stepped to the side and offered Molly his hand. She took it, and lifted a foot toward the casket.
"Molly, no!" the words tore from Teddy's lips. Sweat gleamed on Teddy's forehead and a million tiny biting fire ants crawled over his skin. She couldn’t leave with them!
Molly paused and turned her head to look at Teddy. "It's okay, Teddy. I'm going home." She stepped over the lip of the casket and descended down the stairs that no one else could see. Her red hair disappeared into the box. Bastet stepped into the casket and followed Molly down, then Horus took his turn. As the back of the falcon headdress sank away, the lid dropped down with a loud bang.
Chapter 6
Dana let out the loudest shriek to ever have torn at her throat. Teddy dashed toward the casket.
"Teddy, don't!" Dana choked as he put a hand out toward the lid.
"Stop!" Alf got there before Teddy did and smacked his hand down on the lid as Teddy tried to lift it. "Are you insane?" Alf splayed his other hand out toward Teddy's chest and the two boys collided. Not much. But enough to push Alf's hand along the rough ancient wood and slip a splinter under his nail. "Ai!" Alf yelled and snatched his hand away. He closed his thumb and finger around the shard and winced as he removed it from his skin. A single drop of blood flew from the wound and every eye saw it.
They sucked all the air out of the room with a collective intake of breath as the droplet fell in slow motion and splattered onto the casket. It was nearly soundless, but it may as well have been an atomic bomb. Alfie's eyes grew round as saucers as he stared at the blood, already turning black and soaking into the porous surface. "No," he hissed. He tilted the cover of the black book away from his chest and recalled the illustration hidden in its depths; of bodies on stakes and blood running down the wooden spikes and soaking into the earth. Alfie's pupils ping-ponged from the place where the blood disappeared into the casket and back to the black book he'd wanted so badly.
Light streaked from under the casket lid for a second time, only this time it was no warm yellow light, it was red and flickered as though it was from the very fires of hell. Heavy footsteps shook the casket, slow, with a menacing slithery bump following each one. The lid groaned and screamed as it began to open.
Teddy and Alfie staggered back from the box, realizing with shock that the box had turned black, and blood had begun to ooze from the seams.
As a desperate scream tore from the back of his throat, Alfie shoved the Romanian text into Teddy's stomach and fled.
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About the Author
A.L. Knorr is a Canadian, but also a citizen of the world as she travels to exotic locations with her laptop in search of inspiration and authenticity for her stories. A love of yoga, mountain biking, nautical history, and flannel sheets, you’ll be as likely to find her sipping a cappuccino in an Italian cafe as you would be to bump into her on a mountain top in British Columbia. At least you know you can always find her online…and she’ll be delighted to connect with you.
To contact:
www.alknorrbooks.com
abby@alknorrbooks.com
Acknowledgments
Thank you to my heavenly Father and His son for the many blessings I’ve received, including the gift of being able to do what I love and do it from anywhere. Thank you to my beta readers for their support and feedback, to my editor Teresa Hull, to my family for their unfaltering belief in me. Thank you to Lora & Virginio Zanella for being my Italian family and giving me a home while living in beautiful Italy. Thank you to the team at Deranged Doctor Design for my awesome covers, and to Nicola Aquino for being ‘persnickety’ while reading my first draft and helping me keep the story consistent. Thank you to my Beta Team for their undying support and feed
back. Thank you to Batya for helping me be as true to the Japanese culture as I could be.