by Bo Reid
For the first time, she makes a small indication that she knew we were here, a subtle smirk that only we catch.
“Shit,” Javaraya whispers just before she drops another bomb.
“Tanda, Tanda Morass,” she tells him, extending her hand to greet him as the crowd lets out a collective gasp of shock.
Galiden studies her for a moment before placing his hand into hers. “They really did it,” he whispers as he stares into her dark purple eyes. “Well, I’ll be damned.”
She smiles at him, then glances around at the crowd that is surrounding her. There are only about thirty beings here right now, but it won’t take long before the entire town knows the Morass witch is back. And that she saved Galiden.
She’s good, really fucking good. She showed us her true colors, her true power in the darkened meeting room under the town. She made no false moves, she didn’t pretend to be here for innocent purposes. She laid it all when she needed to. But to do this? To save a town elder in front of so many witnesses, and then to act innocent, like she’s just coming home? She will have these people eating out of the palm of her hand by dinnertime.
She set up the deck, passed out the cards, and kept the best for herself.
She played us, and I have a feeling she’s just getting started.
Tanda
Galiden invites me to have dinner with him at his home sometime, and of course, I accept. Because Galiden is a grumpy bastard who doesn’t invite people to his home for any purpose. Meaning just receiving an invite elevates me to a level not even the Devil has. Mostly because Galiden hates the Devil, not Javaraya specifically but just what he represents. I can’t even fault him for that. I’m not much for following the rules, either.
“What the fuck was that?” Kalayavan asks, gripping my arm and pulling me away from the crowd.
“Just saving lives; it’s what I do,” I reply, my sweet voice laced with honey.
Javaraya snorts his disagreement. “How’s my dog?” he grumbles.
“Last I checked, he was curled up asleep in front of my fireplace with my cat nuzzled close to his side. I don’t think he wants to come home just yet.”
“Witch,” he says like it’s a curse, and I smile.
“That’s me,” I confirm.
“How did you do that?” Kalayavan asks, ignoring the bickering between his boss and me.
“Magic,” I say sarcastically as I wave my hands above my head like a rainbow.
“Dark witches can’t heal,” he deadpans.
“Guess you don’t know everything about dark witches, do you?” I turn and begin to walk down the road towards Main Street as the guys are close to my heels. Javaraya grips my arm, spinning me around and shoving my back against the brick side of the Blood Bank. He gets close to my face, and I smirk when his eyes light up with fire. I can feel his hands heating up my skin, but he can’t get his flame nearly hot enough to harm me.
“What did they do to you?” he growls.
“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” I counter. Moving my hands up slowly, I brace them on his chest.
“If we’re going to work together, we deserve to know,” he grits. Kalayavan moves closer to us.
“Boss, that’s enough. We’re in public,” he hisses, his eyes darting between us and the street, watching for anyone that might see their devil lose his fucking mind.
My hands start to heat up as I press them against his chest, the slight smell of burning fabric tickles my nostrils. Javaraya’s hands further heat up, and I smirk when I see sweat start to coat his brow. Suddenly his hands lose all heat, and he quickly steps back from me. Patting his suit jacket to extinguish the embers.
“Let’s get one thing straight,” I seethe as I step closer to him. “You’re not running this show, I am. It’s my game; I’m merely allowing you to have a piece of it. I don’t have to tell you shit, you haven’t earned a goddamn thing from me,” I hiss.
I turn to continue my walk into town, stopping at the corner of the building and glancing over my shoulder. “And stay the fuck out of my forest.”
Walking away from them, I feel a sharp sting to the center of my chest, but I push past it, not allowing the pain to weaken me. At least not while I’m in public. Not while they’re so close by.
“Quite a show you put on back there,” a deep voice calls from the shadows; when I turn, I see Ernesh as he steps up next to me.
“Just trying to help,” I say.
He chuckles softly. “Not that show, the one where you nearly set the Devil on fire, and not in a good way.”
“Caught that, did you?” I muse.
“Word to the wise, if you plan on continuing your little savior act in public, try not to get yourself all worked up.” He reaches out, and I stand still, rooted in my place as he runs his knuckles softly down my cheek, sending light sparks of electricity over my skin. He lightly grips a strand of my hair, stepping closer to study it. “It gets brighter when you get mad… I wonder if it does the same thing when you feel other… emotions.”
I stand in my place, watching him as he studies me. His eyes roam over my face, down my body, and I watch as he bites his lip. Leaning closer to me, his breath ghosts along the column of my neck as he whispers in my ear.
“If you ever want to test that theory, you know where to find me.” He turns, shoving his hands into the pockets of his dark jeans as he walks down the street whistling before turning the corner and disappearing.
I stare down the street for far too long before shaking my head clear and marching back down the road. I push open the front door to The Crucible, the small bell dinging overhead to let the witches know of my arrival.
“Is it true?” I hear someone ask from across the room. When I turn, there is an older lady decked out in black from head to toe standing on the other side of the counter, staring at me.
“Is what true?” I ask.
“Are you the lost Morass daughter?” she whispers.
“Yes,” I tell her, holding my head high and watching as tears begin to fill her eyes. Confusion takes over my emotions as she comes around the counter. Reaching her hands out, she runs them down my arms gently at first, then she grips me. Pulling me into an embrace, and then I feel her legs give out. I quickly wrap my arms around her to keep her upright as sudden sobs wrack through her and shake her entire body. I can’t hold her up any longer, and we collapse into a pile on the floor. I sit with her, running my hand along her back and trying to soothe her as she wallows in my arms.
I don’t even know this witch, and I think I broke her.
Once all her tears are dry, she wipes her face and sits up; pulling back, she stares at me.
“I’m sorry, Darkling, I just… Well, never in my lifetime did I believe I would see the day that the lost Morass daughter would return home. Oh, my dear girl, just look at you,” she gushes, holding my hands and pulling them to the sides so she can get a proper look at me. “Your mother would be so proud. Your father too. Oh, Darkling, they were such a pair, and just look at you all beauty, power, and darkness. They would be thrilled.”
She stands, pulling me up off the floor with her, and I just silently take her in. “I’m sorry, but who are you?” I ask softly.
She gives me a sad smile. “Name’s Marigold, your mama taught me everything I know about dark magic.”
“Were you part of the coven?” I ask, confused.
“Oh gosh, no, Darkling, I was born into a white witch coven, but they don’t take too kindly on revenge killings.” She shrugs, and I laugh. “So I got the boot, found my way here, and your mama took me under her wing and taught me everything I needed to know to embrace the darkness. And here I am, all because she took a chance on a flailing white witch trying to find her place.”
“Which coven?” I ask. Suddenly, pieces start to fit together.
“The Warren’s,” she grumbles.
“They raised me,” I whisper.
“I know…” she trails off. “They’re good people, they�
�re just not who we are meant to be,” she tells me, and I nod in agreement. “Anyways, you’re here for a reason, what can I do for you, child?” she asks, stepping back and walking around the counter once more.
“Actually, I’m here to help you; it seems you have a barrier issue. Or so I’ve been told.”
She smirks at me, her eyes clouding with darkness. “Oh, Darkling, don’t play your games with me. Don’t think I don’t know you’re the reason I’m having such troubles.”
“I don’t know what you mean,” I argue.
“Sure, you don’t.” She waves her hand, indicating for me to follow her into her back office. I move around the counter and trail behind her. “See this?” she asks, pointing towards a vial filled with a tar-like substance.
“Yes…” I trail off.
“Darkling, that is pure black-magic-laced blood, and there's only one person left in the world that could produce that substance during a spell…” she trails off, but I refuse to say anything. She rolls her eyes. “I knew when I tested the magic used at the barrier that it meant someone of Morass blood locked the barrier and seeing as you’re the last one left alive, I knew it meant you had come home.”
“If you knew, then why didn’t you say anything?” I ask.
“Because whatever you have come back for. For whatever reason you have done the things you have, I’m not getting in the way of a Morass on a mission.”
“Thank you,” I whisper.
“Now, what can I do to help?” she asks seriously.
“Let’s unlock the barrier,” I say, smiling.
“But… why? I mean, you locked it for a reason.”
“It’s served its purpose. I locked it, no one could leave, beings are in a frenzy, and you couldn’t help them. No offense.”
“None taken, I’m no match for Morass blood,” she chuckles, waving me off.
“Now that they know I’m here, they have already seen me save someone of the utmost importance. Now I’m going to save the rest of them by doing what no one else can do, unlocking the front door.”
A smile curves her face. “Darkling, you would lock the gates of Hell and evict the Devil, wouldn’t you?”
“That’s phase two,” I laugh.
Chapter Ten
Javarayan
“We need another council meeting,” I growl as I enter my mansion, my blood feeling as if it’s ready to boil.
“We just had one,” Kalayavan grumbles.
“I really fucking hate her.”
“You really want to fuck her,” he amends, and I glare at him. “Oh, fuck off, you know it’s true. One, you would have to be blind to not want to fuck her just on principle. Two, you said it yourself, you want her, you feel you’re meant to be with her—”
“That was before she stole my fucking dog,” I interrupt. “And tried to burn me alive.”
“Like you’ve never burned someone alive before. Hell, it’s probably like foreplay for you.” He rolls his eyes. “You have tried to burn me alive!” he yells.
“You were getting on my nerves.”
But he’s not completely wrong. I mean, I have burned plenty of people alive before; it’s really not that big of a deal. Plus, I don’t think she could actually burn me alive, but those flames did hurt like hell. Also, it was really fucking hot, like fuck-her-against-a-building hot. That’s the real reason I moved away from her. Not because I didn’t want to see just how much damage her fire could actually do to me, but because the hotter her flames got against my chest, the more I wanted to lift her in my arms and ram my cock into her. I wanted to fuck her against the side of the Blood Bank, in the middle of town, during the daytime while everyone could see. Because I wanted to make her scream my name as I made her cum on my cock, so everyone knew who she belongs to, me. And that’s why I pulled away from her; because I can’t do any of those things.
I sit on one of the large leather sofas that surround my massive living room, thinking about how so much has changed in just a few days. How much damage could she do if we gave her a whole week? A month? Would the town even survive her that long? Would it survive all of us together?
“I think we should offer her a seat at the council table,” Kalayavan says suddenly.
“Are you crazy?” I ask.
“Hear me out, with her bloodline and power I’m betting someone in her coven had a place at the council anyways, therefore she is owed one. It would show a sign of good faith towards the townspeople as well. Think about it, you saw how they reacted when she said who she was, and everyone is still buzzing about her sudden arrival. By keeping her out of the council, we’re setting ourselves up for a fucking mutiny.”
I chew over what he’s saying, and he makes many good points. And he is right, her father and her mother sat on the council before they died. Once the coven was decimated, there was no one else to take their seats, and no other witch has been strong enough to warrant a place. But she is more than enough to own a spot.
“I think it’s a good idea, if for nothing more than to save face with the people. We can’t have them thinking there are sides to choose here, we play for the same team.”
“What if she says no?” Kalavayan asks.
I smirk. “She can’t. She set herself up on this one; the town knows she’s here and that she is strong enough to warrant a place with us. So we make it so she can’t say no.”
“How do we do that?” he asks.
“We offer her the seat in a public format.”
“Hells Hallow territory dinner.”
“With the guest of honor being the last Morass witch.”
Arius
“Taking a stroll?” I ask as I step in line with Tanda and Marigold as they trek out to the town line.
“Just going to try to help Marigold with an opening spell,” she says in a sweet tone and smiles up at me.
“Is that right?” I muse, knowing full well she’s the one that locked the fucking barrier in the first place. I fight back the urge to rub my temples as my blood-hangover headache pounds through my skull.
Her blood — just one fucking taste of her blood, and I was done for. A loopy, fucked-up mess, then when the high wore off, it was like everything was boosted. It was a sensory overload. I could hear birds chirping from ten miles away; I could see with the vision of a hawk. And don’t get me started on the smells. I could pick up every single scent of blood throughout Hells Hallow, but I could only focus on one bloodline.
Hers.
I tracked her without ever leaving my house; I knew how far away she was and in what direction I would need to move to find her. From just one taste of her blood, it poisoned me in the best possible way.
Then it wore off.
My hearing went first, calming back down to my natural state. Not a bad thing, truly the birds were a fucking nightmare. Then my sight, it lessened, and I no longer felt strained by every single detail in the intricate wood carvings in my coffin. But when the smell started to fade, when I began to lose track of her, I nearly lost my mind. I needed to find her. I needed to be close to her. I needed to hold on to the scent of her blood.
So I did an idiotic thing. I followed her scent; even as the ability started to wane. I had to get close to her. Now here I am, by her side, and my natural abilities give me the vision to see every hair on her body as it rises when I brush against her. I can hear her breathing catch in her throat, and the blood rushing through her veins.
And I can smell her. I can smell the blood just under her skin as I chance a glance at her neck. I note there are no visible wounds from my bite. Nothing marking her as mine, and for some reason, that makes my blood boil. I want to mark her; I want to own her.
We make it to the town line, and around her gathers a small group of people. Mostly beings that have previously applied and been approved for permits that allow them to leave the town. A few people are just here for the show. And as I look around the circle, I spot a few other vampires, no doubt here because they smell her too. They know what
rushes under her skin, but they can’t have her.
She’s mine.
“We will do our best to work together to allow the barrier to once again be opened,” Marigold yells to the crowd.
“What happens if we leave town, and it gets locked again before we come back?” one of the bear shifters yells.
“We have no way of knowing if it will happen again, no way of knowing what would happen if you remain on the other side. That is a risk you will take by leaving the town, it has always been a risk,” Marigold informs them. I smirk as I watch Tanda standing here, appearing to be the picture of innocence. No one else realizes she had everything to do with their inability to leave in the first place. They don’t know that she could lock it once again on a whim if the air just happened to blow her in the direction of doing so.
She holds all the cards here but pretends she isn’t even playing the game.
“Miss Morass is here to help; we shall do our best.”
Tanda conjures a blade, placing it to her forearm and shooting me a small smirk over her shoulder as she brings the blade across her skin. Her blood runs down her arm and drips onto the ground — the power vibrating through the very air and causing my hands to shake. I take an involuntary step forward, feeling my fangs pull down from my gums. My hands shake from the restraint of not reaching out to touch her. To grab her arm and place it against my tongue.
“Sit potentia haec vincula, quae sanguinis dimittere in cincinno ostium clauserunt,” (May the power of blood release the lock that binds this door closed.) she chants, placing an electrically charged hand against the barrier. I watch purple sparks of lightning lick up the walls of the barrier and explode across the sky.
“It’s done,” she whispers, and I watch as she brings her forearm to her mouth, making eye contact with me as she licks the blood from her arm. I watch the wound stitch itself closed. The bear shifters and other members with enchanted talismans make their way towards the barrier. When the first one passes through to the other side, and we see him safely, the others quickly take their turns thanking Tanda and then crossing over.
