Crossroads

by Nicole Coverdale

  “You’re my mother?” The girl asked, stumbling backward, and staring at Josslyn with wide eyes. “B-but my mother is dead!”

  “That might have been what they told you, but I assure you, I am very much alive,” Josslyn said, stepping forward. “And I’ve been looking everywhere for you! What’s your name, kid? I’m Josslyn.”

  The girl regarded her warily. “Please, don’t ever call me kid. I’m Josi.”

  Josslyn grinned, biting her lip. Yup. This is my kid alright.

  “Hmm. Looks like we’re keeping the tradition alive, Joss,” Jasmine whispered in her ear. “It’s another J. Gram would be proud.”

  “Jasmine!”

  “What? I’m just—”

  Josi stared at them, looking from one woman to the other. Was it true? she wondered. Was this really her mother? She shook her head. It didn’t matter, she didn’t have time for this. She had to find her sisters!

  “I don’t have time for this,” she said, picking her bag off from the ground and hurrying down the sidewalk. “I have to find my sisters. I haven’t seen them all day! I’m worried about them.”

  “You mean your foster sisters?”

  “No. My real sisters!” Josi cried, glancing over her shoulder at the woman named Josslyn. Her mother. “I’m from a set of triplets. Shouldn’t you know that if you’re my mother?”

  “I… I had triplets?” Josslyn stumbled, tripping on the sidewalk as she followed Josi, shaken by the information. Holy crap! I have three daughters? How was that even possible? She hadn’t been that big during pregnancy, had she?

  “I didn’t know, Josi,” she whispered, quickly gathering her thoughts, as she hurried after her daughter. “I was in prison when I was pregnant, I didn’t even have an ultrasound while I was there! And when I gave birth…” She hiccupped, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by the fact that she hadn’t been able to see any of her children. “They put me under. I never got to see you. Any of you.”

  “Prison, huh?” Josi asked, glancing at Josslyn over her shoulder. “What did you do? Kill somebody?”

  “No!”

  Jasmine giggled from next to her. “Josslyn, she’s spunky!” she cried, elbowing her sister. “She’s just like you! And you have two more daughters! Can you believe you have three children?”

  “No! No, I can’t!” Josslyn cried, rubbing her temple. “Man! I’m getting a headache.” Then she froze. “Wait. Jasmine. The sacrifices! He has them, doesn’t he?”

  “Who has them?” Josi asked, glancing between them. “Do you know where my sisters are?” she asked, glancing at Jasmine. “And who are you? And…” She jabbed a finger at Jorja. “Who are you? And what was that thing you did back there? You threw ice from your fingers! Just what the hell is going on here?”

  “What’s going on, is that you come from a very unique family,” Jasmine said, smiling at Josi. “Hi, Josi. I’m Jasmine, your aunt, and we come from a line of witches. Witches with magical powers, and your Mom here has the ability to manipulate water in any shape or form. Which means, she can make icicles.”

  “That’s so cool! What do you do?”

  “I move things with my mind.”

  Josi stared at her. “Wait. You can manipulate water?” she asked, glancing at Josslyn. “And you can move things with your mind?” she asked, eyeing Jasmine.

  “That’s right.”

  “But that’s not possible! Magic isn’t real!”

  “Oh. It’s as real alright. Just as real as you and me.”

  “And my sisters?”

  “They’re more than likely with your father,” Josslyn said. “A very, very bad man.”

  “He wants to sacrifice them? Why?”

  “For his wedding.” Josslyn glanced over at Jorja. “And you. You still haven’t answered the question. Just who are you?”

  “I did answer the question.”

  “No. You told me your name, and that you’re the girls caseworker. It still doesn’t answer who you are and why you attacked us back there!”

  “And how you got such a cool power!” Jasmine cried. “Are you a witch too?”

  “Yes,” Jorja said, the tattoo of the J gleaming brightly on the side of her neck. Jasmine and Jorja glanced at one another.

  “She has the J,” Jasmine said.

  “Does that mean what I think it does?” Josslyn asked.

  “Looks like we have another sister,” Jasmine said, sighing. “Dang! This family is good with their secrets, aren’t they?” She glanced over her shoulder. “Ah, Joss. We have a problem.”

  “Besides the problems we already have?” Josslyn asked, regarding Jorja. “How the hell are you my sister? I already have three!”

  “Joss!”

  “What?” Josslyn snapped, whipping around to glare at Jasmine. “What is it?”

  “It’s Josi,” Jasmine said, pointing to the empty spot where Josi had just been standing. “She’s gone.”

  “Let me go!” Jami cried, struggling against the ropes around her wrists and ankles. She lowered her eyes, staring down at the flames far below her, then glanced at the girl next to her “Jessi, are you okay?”

  “No!” Jessi cried, tears streaming down her cheeks as she struggled against her restraints. “I am not okay, Jami! Why did that man take us? And did you see his face? It was so weird looking! What’s going on?”

  “What’s going on, is that you’re sacrifices,” Talia said, walking into the room and stopping in front of the girls. “For the dark ceremony.”

  “The dark ceremony?” Jessi asked, staring at her. “What’s that?”

  “My wedding,” Elijah said, frowning, as he stepped up next to Talia. “We’re missing one.”

  “Josi,” Jami said. “She escaped!”

  “The girl proved to be quite evasive,” the lizard demon behind him said. “And then the witches came.”

  “But there’s only two of them!”

  “Not true, my lord, there’s another. Another chosen one.”

  “What?” Elijah’s eyes widened. “But that’s not possible! They…” He trailed off, his eyes widening. “Gary.”

  “Yes. She’s his daughter.”

  “Which means, she has true darkness inside of her,” Elijah said, grinning as he glanced over at Talia. “You know what this means, right?”

  “That she hasn’t forged a bond with the sisters yet,” Talia said, her eyes locking with Elijah’s. “And that she’s new to the craft.”

  “Which means, she has a choice to make.”

  “Good or evil.”

  “Precisely.”

  “What do you want us to do, Sir?”

  “Nothing,” Elijah said. “We can’t interfere with her choice. The choice has to be hers.”

  “But, she’ll ruin the ceremony!”

  “I would never let that happen,” Elijah said. “Come on. We have a wedding to prepare for.”

  “And us?” Jami asked, lifting her head. “What are you going to do with us?”

  “Well, we’re going to sacrifice you of course,” Elijah said, glancing above him as the sun and moon drew closer to one another. “And now, you’re just down to hours, ladies. Soon, you’ll both be dead.”

  “Josslyn! Where are we going?” Jasmine asked, hurrying after her sister as they entered the house. “Shouldn’t we be out looking for Josi?”

  “Soon,” Josslyn said, stomping up the steps. “Right now, I want answers! Answers to how the hell we have another freaking sister!”

  “A sister, who’s right behind you,” Jorja said, entering the house behind them, staring around the Victorian styled house, and she let out a whistle. “Whoo! Nice digs!”

  “It is a nice house, isn’t it?” Josslyn asked, glancing over her shoulder at Jorja. “How long have you known my daughters?”

  “Not long,” Jorja said, stopping to glance at the pictures hanging on the wall. “I was just assigned to them.” She picked up a picture of Josslyn, Julie, and Jade, staring down at their smiling faces. “Are these my sis
ters too?”

  “Yes,” Jasmine said, leaning over her shoulder and pointing. “That’s Jade. And that’s Julie.”

  “Where are they now?”

  “Jade’s up in heaven, dealing with her issues, and Julie’s in the underworld. About to marry a demon.”

  “What!”

  “Welcome to our world, Jorja,” Jasmine said, looping her arm through Jorja’s. “Life is anything but dull around here.”

  “But what about you?” Jorja asked. “Why aren’t you in the picture?”

  “Because that was taken long before I knew I even had sisters.”

  “Wait. What?” Jorja skidded to a stop. “You didn’t grow up with them?”

  Jasmine shook her head. “Nope. I grew up in the foster system.”

  “Wow. And I thought I had it rough,” Jorja muttered, as they hurried up the stairs after Josslyn. “Where are we going?”

  “I’m guessing to the attic,” Jasmine said, as they reached the top of the stairs. “You’ll have to excuse Josslyn. She’s kind of a bit of a whirlwind.”

  “What the hell?”

  “Joss!” Jasmine turned, sprinting into the attic, and sliding to a stop. “What’s wrong?”

  “The book! It’s changed again!” Josslyn cried, holding up the book and showing it to them. “Look! It’s got five J’s now, but one of them is faded.” She pointed. “I’m guessing the faded one is Julie.”

  “Whoa! That’s so cool!” Jorja cried, glancing over her shoulder. “You have a book of spells?”

  “It’s been passed down from generation to generation,” Josslyn said, flipping to the back of the book. “And look! There’s a section about Jorja now!” She skimmed through the paragraph. “Jorja Bennett, is the youngest of five. The youngest of the Morgan sisters, she is the product of Gary and Jillian. The half-sister to Josslyn, Jade, Julie, and Jasmine. Gifted with the power of sound, she has the ability to manipulate sound in various ways.”

  “But how?” Jasmine asked, reading over Josslyn’s shoulder. “Mom was dead! How did the baby even survive?”

  “Because the doctors worked hard to make sure she stayed alive,” a voice said from behind them.

  A cold breeze whipped through the room, and the three women raised their heads. Their eyes widening when they spotted a woman standing in front of them. “Mom?”

  “Hello, Josslyn. Jasmine.” Jillian Morgan smiled, her transparent body glowing from where she was standing in the middle of the room. “Hello, Jorja.”

  Jorja’s mouth dropped open. “You’re… my Mom?”

  “I am.”

  “H-how is this even possible?”

  “Welcome to the world of magic,” Jasmine said, grinning at Jorja’s shocked expression. “Mom, what happened?” she asked, turning her attention back to her mother. “After you died, that is?”

  “A lot,” Jillian said, sighing, as she thought back to that day. “It was really an out of body experience. Dying like that…” She shuddered. “It was horrible, and you finding me…” she trailed off, pain filling he voice. “I never wanted that Josslyn. I am so sorry.”

  “Mom. What happened?”

  “I was rushed to the hospital,” Jillian said. “I was already dead, there was nothing they could do for me, but Jorja…” She closed her eyes. “Thankfully, blood was still circulating in my body, so they had time. They rushed me into the ER, and performed an emergency c-section. I was only six months along! The odds of her surviving were minimal at best. I’d already lost one baby. I was not losing another!”

  “You’d lost one baby?”

  “You had a twin, Josslyn,” Jillian said, raising her head to stare across the room at her daughter. “A baby, who died during childbirth.”

  “I—” Josslyn gasped. “I think I need to sit down,” she said, lowering herself into the chair behind her, shaken. She’d had a sister? A twin? What the hell? “Mom! Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I couldn’t. It was too painful,” Jillian said. “Anyways, after they performed the c-section, you were in the hospital for a very long time,” she said, her eyes locking with Jorja’s. “And we had to hide you. If the God’s ever found out you were Gary’s baby…”

  “They would take her away from you,” Jasmines said, finishing her mother’s sentence. “Just like what happened to me, with Milo.”

  “Yes.”

  “So how did you hide her from the Gods?”

  “I hid her,” Juliette Morgan said, whipping into the room. She held her hands out, blowing a kiss their way. “Hello, Girls!”

  “Gram?” Josslyn sighed, rubbing her fingers against her temples. “You know, you all are giving me a headache!”

  “Y-you’re my grandmother?” Jorja asked, lowering herself into the other chair. “Whoa. This… this is unreal!”

  “Hello, Jorja,” Juliette Morgan sent a smile her granddaughter’s way. “I’m sorry you had to meet us like this. I know it’s sudden, but you have to understand, there really wasn’t another way.”

  “How did you hide me from the Gods?”

  “With a simple cloaking spell,” Juliette said. “I cloaked the entire maternity wing of the hospital, and told the Gods you had died during the c-section. You were three months premature. The odds of you surviving were minimal anyways.”

  “And then what?”

  “The doctors worked their asses off to keep you alive,” Juliette said. “You had so many surgeries, and my heart. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. You were so small, and every time your heart stopped, my heart nearly stopped. You’re my granddaughter! I did not want anything happening to you! Then a miracle happened. You started getting better. Stronger, and soon I had a decision to make. A very, hard decision to make.”

  “To bring me home or give me away?”

  “Precisely.” Juliette raised a hand, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye. “It was the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make, but I found a nice couple who agreed to take you in. The adoption was pretty quick, and under the radar. Again, so the Gods would never find out. I do hope they treated you well.”

  “They did,” Jorja said, smiling. “They were the best Mom and Dad I could ask for. Thank you.”

  “Of course!” Juliette cried. “And now, you’re finally home, Jorja, and you have a choice to make.”

  “What choice is that?”

  “To take your place with your sisters, committing to good magic, or crossing over to the dark side.”

  “What!” Josslyn’s eyes widened. “It’s a choice?”

  “It’s always a choice.”

  “But we…”

  “You chose your path, when you committed yourself to helping people, Josslyn,” Jillian said. “As did Jade, Julie, and Jasmine.”

  “But, if that’s true, how can Julie cross over to the dark side?”

  “Anyone can be manipulated, my dear,” Juliette said, linking hands with her daughter. “And now, we must go. We mustn’t interfere in Jorja’s choice. No one can. Only she can choose her path. Goodbye, darlings!” And they disappeared in a flash of light.

  “Crazy world we live in, huh, Jorja?” Jasmine asked, elbowing her, relieved she wasn’t the odd sister out anymore. “What do you say? Do you want to help us save Julie?”

  “And save my daughters?” Josslyn asked, slamming the book shut. “Stupid Elijah. He thinks he can take my daughters and I won’t fight for them. He has another thing coming!”

  “What the hell.” Jorja glanced between her two sisters, still reeling from what she’d just witnessed. “I’ve come this far, haven’t I? And I’m always up for a good fight. What about you?”

  “Hell yeah!” Jasmine and Josslyn cried in unison. “To the underworld we go!”

  “Come on! Come on! Dammitt, let me out of this damned thing!” Jade pounded on the door, growling. “Dammit, I said, let me out!”

  “Jade. I told you. It’s no use.”

  “I know, but I still want to try!” Jade snapped, glaring at Sky on the
opposite side of the wall. Wincing as a sharp pain shot through her hand. She winced, clutching her hand, and bowed her head. “Dammitt, this shouldn’t be happening! I’m a good witch, and I’m strong! I should be able to find a way out of this freaking thing!”

  “You can’t, Jade, because we don’t want you to leave,” her Grandmother said “Even after all the terrible decisions you’ve made, we still love you.”

  “I haven’t made terrible decisions,” Jade said, arguing with her Grandmother.

  “Don’t try to reason with the thoughts, Jade,” Sky said, breaking into her thoughts. “They’ll just break you faster.”

  “You haven’t?” Sean asked, appearing before her. “But what about me? You married me, didn’t you? Even after discovering what a selfish prick I was. You took my beatings. You took my insults. Let me belittle you. Whose fault was that?”

  “Mine,” Jade whispered, tears filling her eyes. “It was mine, okay! It was my fault I married you! It was my fault I stayed with you! It was my fault! All my fault!”

  “There you go,” her grandmother said, grinning devilishly. “That’s it, Jade. Take the blame.”

  “Jade! Try to block the voices out!” Sky shouted. “Don’t let them break you!”

  “It’s too late,” Jade whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks, as she fell to the floor. Flames lit up around her, hovering close, and she raised her head. Listening to the voices around her. Julie’s voice breaking through the muddle of voices surrounding her.

  “I was a good person, Jade,” Julie whispered. “If I hadn’t been leaving to meet you for lunch, I would have never been hit by that car. It’s because of you I’ve turned to the dark side.”

  “No! Julie!”

  “Jade! You have to fight it!”

  “I can’t!” Jade shouted. “It’s too much, Sky! I can’t fight it!”

  “Yes, you can!” Sky reached his hand forward, grimacing, as he plunged his arm through the wall. Crying out as the flames scorched his arm.

  “Sky!” Jade jumped back, staring at his hand as it plunged through the wall. “What are you doing? You’re going to hurt yourself!”