I heard gasps from the crowd. Clearly I had made an impression.
Natalia grabbed Nick by the throat and put him up against the wall. If I hadn't moved out of the way he would have stepped right on me. I could smell his fear and so could everyone else.
She whispered to him, “You never said she knew about her powers. Or that she had learned how to control them. We're no match for a strong Electi, especially a leader.”
“I didn't... I didn't know!” He stammered.
A young girl with purple hair stepped in next to Natalia and whispered, “Natalia, not now. People are watching. And she's not even a full blood. Her mother doesn't practice, there's no way she's fully aware.”
Natalia released him slowly and turned to look at the younger girl. “You’re sure about this?”
The girl nodded looking very scared and honest. “I can feel it.”
Natalia dismissed the girl and with a cool smile plastered on her face said, “I think it's time for a little one-on-one, wouldn't you say? A little ex-girlfriend on new girlfriend action? You up for that?”
I stood up slowly, trying to thaw out my stiff muscles while still maintaining a strong look. “Whenever you're ready.”
I had no idea what I was doing and there was an excellent chance that she would kill me. I had to make a quick decision. When I fled from the house I felt weak and terrified. But standing in the face of my possible death I realized that was a lie. I was not weak. I was strong. I just had to find the source of my strength. The same strength that got me out of bed when Nick left, the force that had caused me to start painting once more, it was within me, I just had to tap into it. I could do this, defeat her if I had to. Anything to not let her and her cronies get to the book or Gran.
The crowd scattered quickly, making their way to the edges of the cave. They didn't want to be involved, instead like vultures, they waited in the wings for death to arrive.
I tried to think about my luck, as I had always referred to it, but I realized I needed to start to think about it as my power. I closed my eyes for merely a moment and wiggled my fingers, hoping for something to happen, but nothing came. Instead I found myself flat on my ass as Natalia pushed me over a rock. She walked away laughing, knowing that she could beat me in only moments and she was dragging it out for her own sick pleasure. I stood up and brushed the gravel off of my hands.
She came at me again, but this time when she swung, I dodged it and gave her a good uppercut to the chin. She backed up, outraged.
“Going to actually give this a try, are you? You didn’t try hard enough with Nick did you? What about Ultan, going to actually make an effort with him?” She cackled and a few women from the group joined her laugh. It pushed me over the edge. I took a deep breath and knowing it could be my last, I flew at her. Somehow I missed her jab at my head and I curled my fingers around her neck.
“Don’t talk about things you don’t understand bitch!” I yelled while choking the life out of her. I felt my pentagram burn as I clutched her skin. But then her eyes went black and I felt sad. Sadder than I had ever felt before. Like there was no reason to live. What was I doing here? I backed away from her slowly and tried my best to figure out where I was. There was a girl with flaming red hair, on her knees, coughing loudly. I didn’t understand.
Suddenly out of the corner of my eye I noticed that one of the people in black had beautiful blonde hair, blonde hair that I recognized. It took only a second for me to search around the room and find Ultan's face as well. Seeing the two of them brought back my memory and feelings. Why had I let go of Natalia? She could be dead by now!
As I nodded to my friends, Natalia stood up to face me once more. Now I knew I wasn't completely alone and maybe I wouldn't be killed. The confidence of having my friends with me caused me to propel myself forward and grab onto Natalia's hair, whipping her around as I slammed her to the ground. It must've been the signal for my own people to attack. I felt the power surge through the air before it hit me and, lying flat on the ground, I looked around me to see waves of blue, green and silver flying through the air. It was like watching lightning bolts so close to you. I was frightened but I knew to lie still so no one else would try to attack me. Nick was busy with Ultan and Joy, but not one side seemed to be winning. Nick held a dagger in his hand which seemed to deflect most of their powers off of it. Natalia was still lying on the ground but was slowly starting to get up to attempt to make herself useful to her beloved. And I was still, not knowing what to do, or how to help my friends. I rolled over slightly, watching a particular bolt of light bounce off of the wall and hit one of its own square in the chest. The man was tall and as he fell, it appeared as though he went up in smoke. I had to assume that was the only way to kill them, seize their heart with a bolt of our power.
I sat up immediately and yelled straight to Ultan, “Aim for the heart, it's the only way to kill them.”
When he looked at me his eyes were black like a bear. His one hand looked human, while the other had claws extending from him. He nodded at me as I continued to stand and ran over to where Natalia was crawling on the ground. I saw a rock in the corner and summoned all of my strength to pick it up with both hands and trudged over to her. The streak of magic crossed in front of me and hit Natalia before I had the chance to drop a stone on her head. She fell unconscious and secretly I was happy that I didn't have to kill her. I didn't think I was ready for that yet.
I looked around at the scene and saw many of my own coven, fighting for survival. There was just too many Invidia, and the Electi had walked into their lair. We were outnumbered five to one. Everything seemed to be going wrong. I saw Joy fall to the ground with a gash on her cheek, she was screaming in agony. Whatever type of blade Nick had in his hands, it could clearly hurt my Electi brethren more than anything else. I ran to her side to help her but watching her writhing pain on the stone floor was not saving her from anyone. I stood in a protective stance as Nick continued to fight with Ultan. No one was going to touch her. I wouldn’t let them.
A greasy looking man ran at us and I must've had an adrenaline rush because as he came forward, I dove to the side. When I stood again I was able to punch him square in the face. When my fist connected with his jaw he looked surprised and as he fell to the floor the pain reached his expression. There was blood seeping from his mouth, apparently my right hook was better than I had thought it was, he was even missing a few teeth.
He stood back up and ran at me, blade in hand. I couldn’t think of what else to do but Ultan stepped in front of me and shot a bolt right through his heart. The man was engulfed in the dark smoke, just as the one before him had done. Ultan had just saved my life.
Ultan turned to face me. We were so close I could feel his breath on my face. He nodded to me, smiling slightly, proud of his heroic act. I pushed my hands into the back of his hair and pulled him into me. Our lips connected and my body felt as though fireworks were going off. We may not live through this and there was no way I was going to die without feeling his lips on mine one more time. A level of warmth rushed through my veins when our tongues made contact. When we broke our connection we were both breathless and prepared to fight whatever came next. He held my hand while we turned to face three more assailants.
Suddenly there was a shift in power in the cave, everyone could feel it. My grandmother, dressed in white, slowly walked in lighted by the moonlight and parted the people like the Red Sea, making her way directly to me. None of the Invidia even tried to stop her, clearly she was too strong to defeat and they knew it. Many of them scattered and fled, fearing for their life now that the leader had arrived. The three in front of Ultan and I showed fear in their eyes. After a silent connection between them they ran from the scene, blood still on their hands. Nick even looked afraid but he didn't put his blade down, just held it more tentatively.
She checked on me first, making sure I had no external injuries, at least ones that couldn't be easily healed and then moved on to Nick. His blad
e shook in his hands as she approached him and he began sputtering out curses at her.
She stopped and simply said, “Enough. This is over. It is time for you and your people to move on.”
Nick mustered up his courage. “And if we don't?”
My grandmother sighed heavily. “I'll be forced to kill each of you. Nick, I do not want your blood on my hands. You loved Paige once, I don’t wish to hurt her further by killing you.”
“We'll see about that,” he seethed and turned to leave.
I looked to the spot where Natalia had been lying but she was no longer there. I felt a wave of fear, knowing she was still out there somewhere. I could only hope she would accept her defeat and put her tail between her legs as the rest of her clan had. But as I searched the crowd for her wicked face I saw something out of the corner of my eye. The moonlight reflected something shining in the air. I watched and realized it was a blade flying through the air at a terrifying speed. I could almost hear it slicing through the air. No. No. No. Shrieking I watched as it flew directly into Gran’s heart. I looked up for a moment to see Natalia’s flaming hair disappear into the darkness. She had climbed high in the cave to a secluded area where she would not be seen throwing the dagger. This had been her plan all along.
Ultan reached out and grabbed my grandmother as she fell to the ground. I screamed in utter terror as the blood began to seep out of her chest. I watched as the snow white fabric turned a crimson color. I had never seen so much blood in my life. Blue light shown from her pentagram necklace, but she wasn’t healing. The light began to fade.
“Gran! Gran, you're going to be alright. Someone get us some help!” I yelled to the fellow members of my coven, praying that someone would know what to do.
I heard hurried footsteps behind me. “That soul sucker is gone,” a man said between labored breaths. “I can’t feel her anymore.” No! How could they not have caught her? She had to pay for this!
Gran lie in Ultan's arms, looking frail and old. Her breathing was labored. I held her hand between my own, shaking so bad we both moved. I looked to Ultan for comfort but silent tears fell from his eyes. I knew she couldn’t be saved. A woman approached us and removed the dagger from her chest. She put her hand on my shoulder and whispered, “It was a Devil dagger, it leaks poison into our magic. The poison has already reached her heart, the center of her power. That woman knew what she was doing by throwing it at her heart. I’m sorry Paige, but she will die. There is nothing we or our magic can do.”
I shook the woman off of me and yelled at her, “She can't die! She can't! You understand me? I won't let her die.” My sobs began to overtake my body and I cried out, hoping for a miracle. My grandmother took my hand and put it across her chest. I could feel her struggling to breathe and I knew we were close to the end. There wasn’t much time left for her.
“My child,” she said, “it is your time. You must develop your powers, your friends and the coven will help you.” She breathed deeply for a moment then her eyelids appeared heavy. Once she opened them again she said, “They will come back, protect yourself. I love you dear one.”
“I love you too Gran. I will do everything I can.”
She smiled at me one last time. I watched as she closed her eyes, as if she had drifted off to sleep, but she never opened them again.
I held her hands and wept for my loss. It was my fault that she was dead, if I had only stayed at the coven house none of this would've ever happened. She would still be alive and teaching me how to use my magic, but instead I was alone. And it was entirely my fault.
The Electi members quickly dispersed, though I could hear the crying as it echoed across the cave walls. Joy stood with my assistance as Ultan lifted my grandmother's lifeless body and carried it back to his car.
“I don't even know how she got here, I made her promise to stay in the house and protect the book.” He continued to mumble to himself all the way back to my home, my grandmother's home. We had to call my mom and make arrangements for the funeral, but first we had to come up with a story.
Joy held ice on her cheek as she came up with a plan. She looked drowsy and kept shaking her head, like her vision wasn’t clear. Apparently her gift was mind manipulation, it's what made it so easy for all of the gallery folks to fall in love with her paintings. She promised she never used it on anyone who wasn't already open to her ideas, but this time she would have to falsify a story and convince complete strangers of it. She suggested that we take Gran to the hospital and she would persuade one of the doctors the Gran had been in a car accident and had died. The doctor would write up a report and then we could call my mother and make funeral arrangements. I sat numbly at the kitchen table as she and Ultan discussed their plan. I wanted no part of it. My whole body hurt inside and I felt as though the world would never have any light in it again. I didn't want to go to the hospital with them, but Ultan didn't feel comfortable leaving me alone. Joy suggested that she could handle the procedure herself and asked if I wanted to say goodbye to Gran.
“No,” I said simply and coldly. “And one of you has to call Mom, I can’t… I can’t tell her.” Joy looked at me with sympathy but nodded and left the room.
I hadn’t spoken to my mother since our fight. I couldn’t explain my guilt to her. That the one thing she had attempted to protect me from was what killed Gran. Magic was dangerous, she had been right.
Ultan sat down next to me at the table and attempted to hold my hands but I pulled them away and put them in my lap. I didn't want to be touched.
“It's not your fault you know,” he said kindly.
I looked at him, my eyes puffy and swollen from crying. “It is my fault. I shouldn’t have left the house like that. It was how they found me, isn't it?”
He shook his head. “They can track me since I'm one of them. I should have never gone to the coven house. I unknowingly let them know where it was. I'm sure they've been circling it for weeks, trying to get you coming out one night alone.”
“What do they want from me?”
He shrugged. “Your Gran and I have been trying to figure that out all summer. They wanted you dead we know that, but I don't know why. Your Gran was still the leader, there was no reason to kill you.”
“What do you mean she was still the leader? Who will be the leader now? Not me!” Surely I hadn’t even been accepted into the coven yet. I couldn’t lead them.
He sighed heavily, this conversation was taxing on him, as well as myself. “With her gone you’re the new Electi leader, it's a bloodline thing.”
I pushed myself away from the table. “Me? But I don't even know how to control my powers! I did nothing tonight that required magic. I can't rule the coven Ultan!”
My panic started to choke me and I went over to the sink and dry heaved. Ultan came over and rubbed my back slowly until I calmed down enough that he could turn me towards him. My breathing was returning to normal but my heart still stuck to my chest. I gazed into his beautiful gray eyes. Ultan had come to save me and I knew it wasn’t because he was my protector. He came to save me, the girl. He took my face in his hands and put his forehead to my own. “You're stronger than you think Paige. Can't you see that?”
“I don’t know that I am.”
“You managed on your own tonight. Without magic. You didn’t want Natalia to get to us.”
“I couldn’t.”
“That’s your strength Paige. It’s who you are.”
When Joy came back, she said the hospital had called my mom and she was on her way. I fell, crumpled on the floor and allowed my grief to overtake me. Gran was gone. I couldn’t even grasp it. Ultan got me her blanket from the couch and as I was crushed by the guilt, my body slipped into a terrifying sleep.
7
Natalia
Natalia nursed her wounds in silence. Her internal battle was crashing around in her system and it hurt to have so many emotions inside her at once. Their leader was finally dead, but she had lost many on her own side as well, i
ncluding Ashley, the young girl whom she had called almost a friend. Nonetheless, she and Nick had survived and she needed him to help heal her. She would engage with him shortly in order to eat away some of his life force, which would cause her to heal more quickly. The wound in the back of her head was still open and bleeding and when she touched it, her fingers came away with the sticky red substance. At least it had been red at one time, but as her soul became darker as did her blood and it was now a fluid filled with black metallic flakes. Natalia's victory was intense and many of the Invidia had come to congratulate her. Some were considering nominating her to become an elder, but she knew that the heads of the group would never go for it. She had strict orders to only kill Paige, Aine wasn't part of the original agreement. She was sure that they would be pleased that the Electi leader had perished, but she wasn't happy about Paige's escape, and she knew that they wouldn't be either. She had evaded her grasp twice. She knew her fight with her was not over.
Nick emerged from his lair and approached Natalia carefully. Natalia knew she might be killed for not following the explicit instructions of the elders or she could be celebrated for her victory.
He brushed the hair from her face and put his hands around her own, pulling them away slowly and confidently. “You did what they asked. Why don’t you look pleased?”
Natalia looked deeply into Nick's eyes, she was really starting to fall for this one. This was quite possibly the first time she'd ever felt real feelings in over fifty years. Just because her exterior never changed didn't mean she didn't feel aged on the inside and she contemplated for a moment keeping Nick this way, with her forever. He would never have to know about her other lovers, she would keep him in the dark in order to protect him. Her emotions hurt in her chest and she didn't quite understand how to make sense of them, but she knew she was going to keep Nick around. He had known she wasn't dead when they permitted him to leave unscathed. For when Natalia died, so would Nick. They were connected and only her death would break their bond.
The Salem Shifters: Complete Series Books 1-3 Page 14
