"Oh cool. I think I have everything under control. Just make sure you both have clothes for opening night. I want it to be spectacular. So go all out." Maritza sipped on her sweet black coffee.
"What will I be doing? Am I supposed to be working?" I asked.
"You will be my date," Graven declared.
"You can also still be my assistant. I am sure there will be some last minute things I need help with throughout the night. An extra set of hands would be amazing," Maritza chimed in. "You did tell Ziona that she would be working at the club. You know that there is a good possibility that she will show her face."
I felt like I swallowed a rock. I knew the day would come again, but I really didn't realize I would potentially have to see her again so soon. I wasn't looking forward to it.
I couldn't wrap my head around what that moment would be like. Would she just saunter in and pretend like we were old friends? Would she try to threaten me again? What if she rescinded her willingness to try Graven's plan?
Graven placed his hand on my back, at my heart center, and I could feel his energy flowing through me, easing my angst. It was amazing the effect he had on me.
"Looks like we will be adding shoe shopping to our to do list." I laughed a little. I figured fake it till you make it.
Before we left the hotel I made a list of what supplies I already had from Gram's stash. Graven and I spent the rest of the day shopping. We bounced all over town going to different markets. The winter cherry was a bit of a challenge until we realized it wasn't a cherry and it also went by the name of Ashwangandha root.
We stopped at a house-ware store and picked up a hot plate and a pot to cook up our brews. We also grabbed a package of mason jars to store the concoctions in for Axel.
Aside from the fact that we were shopping for ingredients to make magic potions of sorts, it felt good to be like normal people out running errands. It was fun, I felt like we were kind of playing house.
It was starting to get late when I reminded Graven that we still needed to make sure that we had clothes for both opening parties. I had a few things that I bought with Maritza that I could maybe mix and match, but I felt like I needed something a little edgier.
We went to the mall and I found a clothing store that had some pretty wild outfits. Graven was happy to look around the store. They had a nice selection of expensive jeans. I just couldn't imagine someone paying over two hundred dollars for a pair of jeans.
The girl that helped me had a real funky style. Her hair was long, but one side was shaved up to her part line. She had a star edged into it and it was dyed hot pink. The septum of her nose was pierced, which personally I thought really distracted you from how pretty she was, but maybe that was what she was going for.
My style or lack there-of was pretty much the opposite of hers. The best part about her was that she didn't wonder why I was in their store. She smiled at me and asked, "Can I help you find anything specific today?"
"I need an outfit that would be great for a night club." I explained to her, "I would like to let my inhibitions go a little and really go for it, but not so much that I won't feel comfortable. Does that make sense?"
"Totally. How about we try a few different things and see how you feel," she said with a giant smile. "My name is Kelly."
"Thanks, Kelly. I am a little nervous. I haven't really ever been to a real night club before."
"Oh, do you like to dance?" Kelly asked and started to sort through the racks grabbing some clothes as we walked toward the fitting rooms.
"Yeah, I guess so. I love music. I will actually be working there, I will be assisting the woman that runs the club."
"Wow that's like super jazzy. Do you think you would rather wear pants or a skirt?"
"I am open to either," I said trying to keep an open mind.
"What kind of shoes will you be wearing?" Kelly asked
"I still have to get shoes, so I guess it depends on what we come up with."
"I can help you with shoes too, we don't have a huge selection, but what we do have will work with almost everything in the store, we make it work that way. We can jazz you up with some jewelry too."
I tried on leather pants, miniskirts, and dresses with deep enough cowls you could see my belly button. It wouldn't be an easy decision. Kelly helped me to pick out three outfits and two pairs of shoes. That way I would be all set for the entire weekend of clubbing. I couldn't wait for Maritza to see what I bought.
I was sure that Graven had seen it all, but I wanted to really blow his mind. I wasn't big on getting all fancied up. It was almost like Halloween for me. If only Jean could have seen me.
I hadn't seen Jean since I left school. She was totally into all the glam of makeup and getting dressed up. I wished I could look her up and invite her to the club, but I couldn't risk letting anyone else I knew get hurt. I didn't know if The Taker had been keeping tabs on me at school, but better they not know whom else I cared about.
Chapter Twenty-One
I WISH I COULD SAY that Graven and I pulled an all-nighter spending time getting to know each other better or that we were up all night because we couldn't keep our hands off of each other. Not to say there weren't a few stolen kisses, but it was a night full of work.
We only had one hot plate so between getting the ingredients and supplies sorted; measured, mixed and brewed it was a lengthy process. The one positive about it was that it made me feel a little closer to Gram. Even though I couldn't see her or talk to her, I felt like she was there in spirit with us, guiding us as we went.
I was never overly interested in what she did, but I always enjoyed the time we spent together when I helped her with her work. If only I knew then what I know now, I would have tried to learn every last drop of knowledge that she had locked inside her.
I fell asleep on the couch while the last batch of tea was brewing, so I wound up having to re-make it. I needed to be the one to prepare the rituals around it if I was going to be the one to drink it. I wouldn't know if it worked unless or until I came face to face with whomever was marked by Grams potion so no instant gratification with that one.
When we woke up we decided to grab coffee and breakfast sandwiches on the go. I didn't even take a shower. All I wanted to do was to get back to Patience's house and be able to help Axel. If we could undo what Phaela had done to him, then maybe we could get them out of town and hidden away until things blew over about Anton's death.
I couldn't help but feel responsible for the danger they were in. Even though the man beat me senseless and left me with more than emotional scars, I wished that his death had not resulted in Ziona and The Taker holding the Story Tellers responsible for providing the knowledge of how to kill a dragon of the Leviath bloodline.
We were on the final stretch of highway before we approached their house when Graven spoke for the first time since we ordered breakfast. "So what do you think? Should we maybe park before we get there and project in to make sure that Phaela isn't there?"
"We could try, the only problem is that Patience can't see astral projections unless she is in her astral body and Phaela put some kind of enchantment on the house that prevented me from entering anywhere in the house but the kitchen." I took a sip of my coffee, since it finally cooled enough to drink.
"Not to mention that if Phaela is there she would see us. I don't know, what if I project alone and pretend to just be touching base. Phaela may be suspicious and wonder why I haven't been there in the past few days. I was there every opportunity I could get when I was locked up."
Graven looked over at me. "I don't love the idea of you going in there alone. We still don't know what Phaela's angle is. She obviously has some interest in you and your abilities, the question is why."
"It's crazy, all these people, including you, have had knowledge about me and who or what I am. It might have been nice for someone to have let me know somewhere along the way. Honestly, I don't give a hoot what she wants. I am and will not be someone's possessi
on. I might be scared of what they can or will do to me, but the truth is that I have something that is more powerful than anything else they have tried to possess. I will have to learn how to strengthen my gifts or my curse enough to not only defend myself, but to defeat their darkness."
Graven nodded his head. "Good for you. That's what I want to hear, but setting aside that truth, there is the truth that right now you are not in control of your abilities and still are not even sure to what extent they are, so let's just continue to be cautious and avoid whatever danger possible."
"I can agree to that." I rubbed the palms of my hands over the tops of my thighs. I could feel my energy spiking and the electrical vibrations tingling on the bottoms of my hands. "So I guess we are just going in there and hoping that Phaela is not there. They gave me the impression that she was living there, but I gather that a lot of what they told me was not altogether true."
Graven pulled off the highway. We did a drive by of their little house first to make sure we approached with caution. Things appeared from the outside of the house to be the same as when we were there two days ago. Graven decided to park far enough out that we could walk up to the house. That way if Phaela was inside or if she came back while we were in the house she wouldn't know right off the bat that we were there. I had only what we needed in my backpack so it was easy to carry.
I stood off to the side of the front door and Graven knocked. That way I wouldn't be the first thing seen if Phaela answered the door. We were prepared to subdue her if needed. We agreed that he would go after Phaela and I would tend immediately to Axel.
He only had to knock once before the door opened slowly. Patience stood in the entranceway holding a shotgun pointed directly at Graven's face. Her hair was less than perfect, which was very out of character. She was dressed, but her makeup was not done and there was no embellishment of barrettes or flowers in her hair.
I stepped up onto the stoop. "Hey," I said and she slowly started to lower the gun without taking her finger off the trigger. "Are you alone?"
"Yes," she answered but her lips barely parted enough to let the word escape.
"Can we come in?" Graven asked permission before assuming she was ok. I had my doubts as to whether or not that gun would have had much of an effect on Graven, but he did show her the respect of asking.
Patience eased her one hand back and pushed the door open further allowing us access to her home.
"Where is Phaela? Has she been here?" I asked her.
"She has been here all right. She knows you are out. She said that she has someone that has access to you and it won't be long before she has what she wants." The circles under Patience's eyes were puffy and dark. Looking more closely at her I could see the red blotches under her eyes and above her top lip from crying.
"Access to me? I don't know anyone really other than Graven and Maritza..." I turned and looked at Graven. He shook his head at me. I could feel his concern rising.
"Don't worry about that now, right now I am safe. I am here with you and here to help Axel. Will Phaela be back soon?"
"No, she said her son was coming back to Santa Fe for a job and they were meeting for lunch. I don't expect her back anytime soon." She leaned her gun up against the wall in the corner of the foyer and shut the door and locked it.
"We brought something that we think will undo what she has done to Axel. It is from one of Gram's books." I pulled my backpack off and set it on the table that separated the two oversized chairs in the living room.
"If this works, we will take you to safety. You cannot stay here any longer. I have family that can help keep you safe," Graven said standing behind me. He was never more than an arm's length away from me.
While Graven explained to Patience that they would be safe at his cousin's home in Hungary, I started to set up everything I would need for the ritual to wake Axel from his inanimate state.
There were several steps that needed to be performed so I could help, but ultimately it needed to be done by his one true love. This certainly was no fairy tale, but I was beginning to see where some of the stories might have originated.
I explained in detail to Patience what we needed to do and showed her everything I brought with us. Graven pulled a chair over next to where Axel was plastered against the wall so that we could reach the top of his head. The directions had four parts to it.
I handed Patience the first step, a blended powder that needed to be sprinkled over the top of his head. She also needed to use her thumb to mark where his third eye would be located on his forehead. After she completed this I handed her the brewed tonic. Somehow she needed to get the tonic into his mouth. She looked at me like I was nuts.
I guess I didn't really think about that fact that he was vertical. "Do you have something we can use as a funnel in the kitchen?" I asked her.
Before she could answer, Graven was already in the kitchen searching for something. He came back with a straw. I looked at him like are you serious?
"What? It will work," he said.
Patience put the straw into the Mason jar and used her thumb to create a seal at the end of the straw. She carefully lifted the straw out and forced the tip into Axel's mouth and let go of her thumb to release the liquid. She repeated this a few times to ensure that enough got in his mouth and hopefully slid down his throat. We were not sure how much he needed to consume and since he was in essence frozen he wasn't swallowing.
The third step was sealed in a slightly larger jar, one that was large enough to fit each of his feet in. This last brew would be used to cleanse his feet and allow the energy and light to flow back into him.
Patience removed his shoes and socks and gently cleaned his feet and let them soak for a minute in the brew that smelled like the forest with a mixture of rose water and pine scenting the air in the room.
I told her that the ritual needed to be closed with true love's kiss. I know it sounded hokey, but none of what had happened in my life over the past month seemed like it could have been real.
"I have no qualms about kissing this man." She pushed the chair directly in front of him. Graven went over and helped her up onto the chair and spotted her so that she didn't fall.
On her tippy toes she reached up and placed her lips on her husband's mouth. The tears fell down her cheeks as her lips lingered on his. "Please come back to me, Axel," she whispered and came back down onto her feet. Graven helped her down off the chair and we all stood there staring at Axel's body, waiting for a sign that it was working.
"How long should this take?" Patience asked.
"I don't know. I am flying half blind here. I only had vague notes in Gram's books to go by. Not to mention that we don't know exactly what Phaela did to him."
Her tears streamed down her cheeks at a slow, but continual pace. Graven grabbed a box of tissues from one of the books shelves and offered them to her.
Just as she was about to pull the first sheet of paper from the box we heard it happen before we could see it. We all turned toward him, it was like someone dropped him from the sky.
He fell to the floor. I don't know if his legs gave out or if they weren't strong enough to hold him up, but he went all the way down. Axel looked up at us as Patience rushed to his side. She knelt down in front of him and wrapped her arms around him before checking to see if he was ok.
He lifted his hands to her face and pulled her back enough to look at her. "My beautiful wife," and kissed her with what seemed like every drop of passion in the world.
"Oh, Axel I have missed you so. Are you ok?" she asked him.
Axel started to get to his feet and helped his wife up as well. "I think so." He touched his body, looking down taking inventory, "Everything seems to be in order. How long did she have me like that?"
"It doesn't matter, you are back with me now. We have to go, we are in grave danger." Patience started to explain.
"Kasha, what are you doing here, love? Who is your friend, is he here to help you with the book shelf?" Ax
el asked.
Graven and I looked at each other. Before we could answer, Patience grabbed him by the arm.
"Axel, this is Kasha's friend Graven. He is going to help us get somewhere where Phaela and The Taker can't hurt us, at least for a while until we figure something out."
"The Taker, what does he have to do with this? Is Phaela working for The Taker?" Axel had missed a lot, maybe that was for the best. It had been at least a month full of a lot of heartache for all of us.
"We can explain everything to you, but we should be going. We can make arrangements once we are on the road," Graven suggested.
"I need to gather a few things and then we can go." Patience hurried out of the room down the hall to where I would assume was their bedroom. I helped Axel to sit on his chair, I couldn't imagine his legs were feeling too good after not being used for a month, especially not at his age.
Graven's phone beeped. He took it out of his pocket and his eyes widened.
"What is it?" I asked.
"We have to go now, Patience!" he called out. "Kaden said that he is on his way and the Bassett brothers told him they have their target. Michael and George are on their way here now."
Patience came running out of her room with a tote bag filled of books.
"Sorry but we are out of time. We have to go-"
As Graven started to say now the door smashed open. It opened with such force that it unhinged at the top of the doorframe. It looked and felt like a battering ram was just used to knock it open.
Two men barged into the house. They looked like they were in their late thirties, their hair was short, but looked like they were both long overdue for a haircut and a shave. They looked like they just walked out of a low-grade biker bar.
They both wore leather vests covered in patches representing different death symbols. The one on the right stood a half an inch taller, he held a hand held cross bow of sorts and his partner pulled a long bladed knife from a harness attached across his breast.
Betrayed: Breaking the Darkness Series Book Two Page 22