Mind Over Magical Matters: Paranormal women's Fiction (Midlife Witchery Book 2)

by Brenda Trim

  Violet paused next to me. “Fiona’s right. Next girl’s night we come here. I love your view.” It was great to see the weight lifted off my best friend’s shoulders. It had nearly killed me when Ben and Bailey had been kidnapped. I couldn’t begin to imagine the toll it had taken on her. And yet, despite all that she’d gone through in the past few days she was still at my side, ready to help defend me and our town.

  “They’re meeting us at the cove,” Camille informed us with a shuffle of her feet. Despite my Grams’ dislike for her, the woman had given me training when I had no one else. “You first Fiona. The stairs are over here.”

  I followed Camille’s finger and took a deep breath before heading down the steep staircase. I hadn’t been to the beach since moving to Pymm’s Pondside. Violet and I used to race each other down this steep incline and spend hours playing in the water and on the sand. It was a vastly different experience being there now. It was freezing and didn’t seem nearly as fun as I recalled.

  Of course, that was in large part due to the cold weather and slippery steps. Not to mention, the fact that I was about to face this mysterious council for the first time and demand they do something to help hunt down whoever was killing in Cottlehill Wilds. Based on my Grams’ grumblings about corrupt assholes and Camille’s insistence they were all powerful, capable magic users I wasn’t sure what to expect.

  The second both my feet hit the sand below the world around me blurred and shifted. The dizzying array of colors that swam around me had my stomach churning. A groan slipped from my mouth and I turned back to brace myself on the rail. My palm hit the wood, but Sebastian wasn’t behind me.

  Forgetting about the way my head still spun, I glanced around frantically for my friends. “Bas! Violet! Aislinn!” My voice seemed to hit a wall where it was absorbed before going anywhere.

  What the fuck was happening? Was the council isolating me from my friends? That would make sense, but Camille wasn’t there, and she was the leader of the group. The air crackled around me and made the hair on my arm stand on end. My long locks had been pulled into a ponytail to keep it out of my face. I could feel the ends frizzing on the back of my neck.

  I’d been through enough to know the knot in my gut meant something bad lurked nearby and I had stepped into a trap. My magic surged forth when I called it. The second the vile female waltzed out of the cliff face a ball of lightning escaped my hand and zipped toward her head.

  Thelvienne tsked me and wagged her finger at the same time she waved a hand and sliced through the spell before it reached her. I growled when my magic fizzled and died before it landed.

  I tossed a couple more to have the same thing happen. With my chest heaving and my mind whirling, I balled my hands and held my magic back. “Congrats. You managed to get the drop on us. But it won’t last.”

  I taunted her hoping to distract her while I searched for the spell keeping my friends outside the bubble she’d created. If I could find it I would be able to blast it away so they could help me.

  “What makes you so special?” The words flew from her mouth along with spittle as she growled at me.

  I smirked at her knowing it would enrage her further. When you got mad you tended to make mistakes. And I needed her to make a whole lot of them if I was going to make it out of this alive.

  “I like to think it’s my shinning personality, but Violet is convinced it’s my thick head of hair.”

  “You think you’re so funny. I can’t believe Sebastian finds you attractive at all. You’re crass and have no class. Look at you. You’re a mess.” She waved her hands up and down while pointing at me.

  I didn’t need to look down to agree with her. I had on jeans that were too tight because I was bloated from the wine we drank the night before. My sweatshirt was tighter than a sausage casing and my hair looked like I’d put my finger in a light socket. All those insecurities that had nearly paralyzed me the night before came rushing back.

  Don’t listen to that perfect prima donna. Bas didn’t give a fig about any of that. He thinks you’re perfect the way you are. Lumps, bumps and all.

  “You might be right, but he doesn’t see it that way.” I didn’t manage to say anything else as she screamed at me and threw a ball of fire at me. I dove to the side and ate a mouthful of sand and still hadn’t managed to avoid being hit.

  Fire slammed into my side and singed my clothes and skin. The agony was blistering and stole my concentration for a second. The flames licked higher and were about to reach my tangled hair by the time I finally pulled my head from my ass and cast a water spell.

  The deluge poured over me and splashed onto Thelvienne’s pristine velvet gown. The blue darkened where the water hit the fabric. It was oddly satisfying to see the Queen lose some of her shine.

  Stop gloating and get to it, Fi! Right. I was rolling to the right before I bothered looking around. When the sand exploded where I had been a moment before, I was grateful for my inner monologue.

  Time to go on the offensive. Surging to my feet, I tossed a bludgeon spell in the direction she had been. A grunt told me I managed to hit her. It wasn’t the scream I had hoped for, but it was something and bought me enough time to check my side.

  Wet warmth trickled down the side that had been burned. My gag reflex punched the back of my throat and I nearly lost my lunch when I caught sight of the burned flesh. It was a blackened mess with red bits of flesh and muscle here and there. And it was bleeding steadily.

  I staggered and threw my hand out and barely caught myself on the rocks behind me before I ended up on the ground again. The air prickled again, and I jumped to the top of the rocks right before Thelvienne’s spell hit the stone and blew it up.

  I watched almost in slow motion as rocks flew toward my face when the dark light hit the stone below my feet. Unsure what to do I leaped at the waves crashing two feet from me. Saltwater hit my side and I was the one screaming as the burn stole my focus.

  The spell I had coiled in my palm fizzled like my burn. I choked and started coughing as I inhaled more than my share of ocean. A hand fisted in my hair and yanked me out of the water.

  “Time to end the distraction you pose. It’s time Sebastian came home with me. Don’t worry, I will put your power to good use and kill my husband with it.”

  My scalp stung and my side hurt. I shoved the discomfort into a box and scrabbled to get my feet under me. The water receded, making it easier to stand up. The Queen still had my ponytail in her hand so I couldn’t get to my full height, but I didn’t let that stop me.

  My magic surged with my slightest urging. Razors. The thought popped into my head and the spell was out before I could censor it. It blasted through the hand I’d grabbed her middle with. It was her turn to scream as blood peppered my face a second later.

  Reaching up, I pried her hand from my hair and tossed her aside. The Queen didn’t go very far. She snagged the tattered side of my sweatshirt, her nails raking through my burned flesh. Forgetting magic for the moment, I balled my hand into a fist and punched her in the side.

  My hand came away bloody and she let go of me. We stood glaring at each other for a second before she narrowed her eyes. She looked as bad as I had to at the moment. Her dress was in tatters with her abdomen and back bleeding from a dozen cuts. Even her hair was no longer the sleek black waterfall but was now a tangled mess.

  The Queen’s fingers sparked, and she threw what looked like a black sparkler at me. I called my magic and threw a spell at her. I wasn’t entirely sure what I conjured and a second later I was on my back after the black energy slammed into my left shoulder.

  All I could hear was my panting and the frantic beating of my heart. I tried to lift my hand and throw another spell, but it never moved. I was vulnerable, so I diverted my energy to covering my body with a protective bubble while I caught my breath. I needed to keep her from landing another blow. I wouldn’t make it if she managed that.

  I managed to turn my head. My breath caught when I
saw her lying there in a heap of blue velvet and blood. One of her legs was bent at a wrong angle and her mouth opened and closed as she tried to catch her breath, but her chest had a gaping hole in the middle of it. The edges charred black.

  I watched the light go out of her intense green eyes. I hadn’t even registered that I killed the Queen when that green light separated from her body and lifted into the air. The wind whipped around me as her power zipped toward me.

  It slammed into my chest, making me gasp. I hadn’t been mistaken before. I had absorbed the Fae’s power and I’d just done it again. Only, I had no idea how I did it. I never meant to. That didn’t matter it was done. And my friends and Grams would never see me the same again.

  The world around me came alive in a rush and I blinked up into familiar deep brown eyes. I tried to get up, but Sebastian pushed my chest down. “Don’t move, you’re hurt badly.”

  “I didn’t mean to,” I blurted.

  Violet fell at my other side and grabbed my hand. “It’s okay. She needed to be taken out. She had evil plans for her realm…”

  “And Bas,” I added, cutting her off. “But I took her power.” I couldn’t hold back anymore. I needed my friends to know. I would rather they hate me now and walk away than in the middle of a crisis.

  “That’s not possible,” Bas said as he looked at me with a furrowed brow.

  My breathing was still erratic, and I hurt all over, but I finally managed to lift to a sitting position. “But it happened. I didn’t mean to. It just happened like it did with the Fae at the portal.”

  Finarr nudged the Queen’s body. It was starting to shrivel up right before our eyes. None of the other Fae bodies did this when they died. “The King will have felt her death. This will no doubt set him off. He will be out for your head, Fiona.”

  Sebastian jumped to his feet and was in Finarr’s face. “Don’t threaten her.”

  Finarr lifted his palms up in the universal sign for ‘woah, calm down’. “It wasn’t a threat from me. You both need to know Vodor will be out for blood after this. I mean he was after her before. Now I’m fairly certain he will come after you eventually.”

  Bas took a step back. I wanted to get up and go to him, but I couldn’t move. Violet wrapped her arm around my shoulders. “We will deal with that, but we need to figure out what is going on with Fiona. I can feel how much more power she has now. We need to know why she is absorbing Fae power.” I leaned into my best friend. I was immensely grateful she didn’t hate me at the moment.

  Aislinn shifted next to Argiess. “I felt a surge right before the spell was shattered, as well.”

  Violet’s mouth turned down at the edges. “I didn’t feel anything. Did you guys?”

  Bas glanced at me for several silent seconds before shaking his head side to side. “I felt her agony, but nothing beyond that.”

  My eyes flew wide. He’d felt my pain? “How did you feel what I was going through?”

  He shared a look with Argiess and Finarr. “I’m not entirely certain. We need to deal with Thelvienne’s death before the King comes after you. Block the connection you have to her now.”

  “I don’t…” My voice trailed off without finishing my thought. The denial about to leave my lips would have been a lie. I had no idea I was connected to the Queen. I quickly cut that thread and enclosed myself in a bubble. Only I wasn’t in it alone. Sebastian, Violet and Aislinn were there as well.

  Violet stood along with Aislinn. They both helped me to my feet. “Now what?” Aislinn asked. “Do you think the King will be confused by all of us being part of her circle?”

  Camille blew out a breath. “We need to get the Queen through the portal before her body poisons the waters here. And, we need to find the council and make sure they aren’t still under some spell.”

  Finarr bent and lifted the mummified corpse from the ground and Sebastian picked me up in his arms and started back to Aislinn’s house where our cars were parked. “I think there’s a good chance the King won’t be able to pinpoint Fiona thanks to her connection to us all,” Finarr postulated.

  “Isidora can help us with next steps after we toss her body through the portal,” Violet said as we reached the top of the staircase.

  “I won’t put you guys in more danger.” I refused to have any of my friends hurt because I couldn’t control my magic.

  “You aren’t in this alone, Fiona. We’re the Backside of Forty and we are in this together,” Aislinn promised.

  “Yeah,” Violet agreed as she held open the door to Bas’s truck. FInarr jumped in the back with Thelvienne. “We’re a coven. One of us is in danger, we all are. Right now, there is nothing you need to do except rest and recover after you open the portal.”

  If only it was that easy. I may have eliminated one threat, but in doing so I put an even bigger target on our backs. My eyes were heavy, and my side hurt like a bitch. I was going to pass out any second now and my friends were in danger. My heart started racing and my finger itched to do something to protect them.

  Sebastian set me on his seat and climbed in beside me. “I will not let that asshole anywhere near you, Fiona. Being the subject of someone’s rage is nothing new to us. Yes, Vodor will be angrier, but Violet is right. You need to heal. We will deal with this soon enough. You will be no good to any of us if you aren’t at your best.”

  “Okay.” I laid my head on his shoulder and shoved all my fears into that little box and locked them up. They were right. I had to heal so I could ensure none of them were hurt in the process.

  Don’t forget you’re a badass now. Your magic reacted as an extension of your mind without much prompting. You’ll be ready for Vodor. I had to be. The lives of those I loved were on the line.

  EXCERPT FROM MAGICAL TWIST BOOK #3

  Ugh! Nastiest thing in the universe. I didn’t want to touch the Thelvienne’s body. It resembled a dragon-sized prune rather than the beautiful woman she used to be. My body was still thrumming with energy as I had yet to integrate all of the Queen’s magic in with my own.

  My heart had yet to settle from Indy 500 levels and my mind was trying to analyze the how’s and why’s of my magic. Unfortunately, I was never able to figure anything out. And it made me feel like Ron Weasley. Never able to recall spells of the theory behind them.

  I went back to wondering why Thelvienne withered like she did. None of the other Fae I’d killed had done that. And the ground was indeed being infected. The ground started sizzling where her blood had splashed. Putrid smelling smoke drifted into the air while the foliage turned brown around the edges.

  “Alright. We’d better get her through the portal. Pymm’s Pondside doesn’t deserve to be poisoned by her.” I bent and choked as bile rose in my throat.

  Aislinn wrinkled her nose. “I love being part of the Backside of Forty, but I think I might draw the line at handling the festering raisin lady.”

  Bas huffed and lifted the Queen as if she didn’t weigh a thing. “I’ve got her. You’d think you hadn’t just killed her or something.” He directed the last part at me. Despite the body he was carrying, heat sizzled between us.

  I hadn’t allowed myself to consider sharing my life with anyone else ever since my husband, Tim died. He was my first love and always would be. I was happy focusing on my work and my kids until I had my magical new beginning six months ago.

  Now, I found myself considering options I could never have even dreamed of. Sebastian was irritable, gruff and didn’t have a romantic bone in his body. But he was also sex walking with muscles on his muscles.

  I shook my head at him as I shoved the distracting thoughts away. “I wasn’t trying to kill her. Hell, I would have run away screaming if I’d known I was going to absorb her energy. I get the feeling that fact is going to bite me in the ass.”

  I saw my grams looking out the window above the sink as we passed into the family cemetery that was on my land. I could see right through her ghostly form to the clock on the wall that told me it was well p
ast midnight. That was why I was exhausted right down to my bones, not because I am a forty-five-year-old hybrid Fae-witch with a bad knee.

  A sound rumbled from Bas’s chest as he walked beside me. “Is that an invitation? I’d love to bite your delectable bits. But we should be concerned Vodor’s anger that his mate was killed.”

  My body heated and my mind shut off as I listed to his deep voice. It made me think of nakedness and compromising positions. Heat filled my cheeks and I spluttered for a response. Sebastian didn’t mince words and usually said what was on his mind, so I wasn’t certain why his comment had me so flustered.

  “You might want to watch it, Bas. She might scald your twig and berries.” Aislinn’s warning was followed by a round of laughter. The sound of my friends’ amusement jolted me and highlighted the reason for my discomfort. Having my friends hear intimate desires made me want to crawl in bed and pull the covers over my head.

  Maybe I really was a prude, but I didn’t want anyone knowing what Bas wanted to do to me. And I most certainly didn’t want anyone knowing how badly I wanted it. Somethings were best left to private moments.

  I hauled the door to the crypt open and looked back at Aislinn. “Can you hold this open? Once we toss her through, I’m going to take a shower.”

  “Got it,” Aislinn said as she placed a hand on the stone panel.

  I walked into the space and looked around at the bones of my ancestors that made the foundation of the portal. Lifting my hands, I chanted the spell to open the portal. An oval hovered in the middle of the room with light surrounding the area. I saw the familiar Fae world of Eidothea through in the center of the oval of light. Seeing a scene of another world in the middle of a crypt where dead people are buried was surreal every time that I encountered it.

  After the dark Fae had forced the portal open and tried to sneak through to Earth, I was glad it was back to only opening when I gave the mental command. The bright green, almost neon really, grass was beautiful, and I could smell the sweet scent of flowers carried on the breeze through the opening.