by Gemma Jace
LUNA WOKE BEFORE THE sun came up. She dressed herself in a pair of blue jeans, a long sleeve blue button-up shirt, and Rusty’s hat to hide her hair. She didn’t want to draw any unnecessary attention, especially now that Cleo the psychopath was looking for her. She took the purple gown that Cleo dressed her in and threw it into the fireplace and watched the delicate material melt away. Strangely, seeing the gown burn gave her a sense of freedom. She would never allow anyone to take that away from her ever again. She would find the wiccans and gain the power she needed to protect herself and her friends.
CHAPTER 10
LUNA, RIVER, AND RUSTY said their goodbyes to Miss Mary, Emma, and Jimma. Miss Mary already had a carriage packed with a driver waiting for her to board by the time Luna had woken that morning. The two white horses were saddled and waiting as well. After securing their bags to the saddles, River insisted that Luna ride with him. He swung himself onto the horse before pulling her up to ride behind him. Rusty clumsily pulled himself onto the other saddled horse and they rode east, through the woods, toward the shore. The carriage went west. Luna waved, hoping that she would see them again one day.
When they arrived at the ocean, River pointed to a massive clipper ship with pale blue sails anchored in the bay. There was a man in a rowboat rowing from the ship toward the shore.
“There it is. That’s my uncle’s ship.”
“It’s beautiful,” Luna said.
“Look, there’s a smaller boat coming to shore,” Rusty said.
They jumped down from the horses and ran to the pier to meet the boat. The man waved and shouted River’s name.
“Uncle Max!” River shouted back, waving wildly.
River’s uncle finally made it to the dock, jumping out of the boat to give River a hug. He was light brown with curly black hair, looking an awful lot like an older River. He wore all black leather with a short sword tethered to his side. Luna couldn’t help but to view him as a handsome pirate.
“Where are your things? Are your friends coming with us?” Max asked, nodding to Luna and Rusty with a smile.
“Yes. This is my friend Luna and my friend Rusty.” River turned and went to the horses to retrieve their things.
“Going home, I see,” Max said to Luna.
Luna paused for a moment, not understanding. Max waited for her answer, although he never really asked a question.
“I...,” Luna began.
“She sure is, Uncle,” River answered for her, throwing the bags into the boat. He flashed a bright smile.
“Well then, let’s get a move on. I want to make it to the island by sunrise tomorrow.”
Just one more day and Luna could find the cure for her botched attempt at the cure. She watched Max and River as they finished loading the boat, still wondering about the statement Uncle Max had made. He wasn’t a big man, but something about him seemed large and intimidating.
Luna was the first to climb the ladder onto the ship. Two deckhands, dressed in all black like their captain, grabbed her by the arms and hoisted her up onto the deck before pulling River and Rusty onto the ship next. The last to board was Max. As soon as his feet hit the deck, he began calling out orders to the crew. The men scrambled to do the captain’s bidding, and soon the ship’s sails caught the wind, slicing through the dark blue waters, on its way to the Eastern Islands.
THE NAME TURQUOISE Bay came from the color of the crystal-clear waters off the white sandy shores. A constant breeze swayed the hundreds of palm trees on land, attempting to cool the humid hot air. Luna took off her long sleeve shirt and tied it around her hips. Soon, she took off Rusty’s newsboy hat, allowing the wind to blow through her pale curls as she stood on deck looking out from the side of the ship. The yellow-orange glow of the morning sun rose from behind the island, casting a magical glow over the green hills. As they came closer, Luna could make out terracotta-colored buildings. It was the city she had heard so much about.
When the ship sailed as close as it dared, the buildings were in full view, rising high into the air. The crew dropped anchor and lowered the rowboat into the water for Max, Rusty, River, and her. Two members of the crew accompanied them, at the behest of their captain, to help carry their luggage along the beach and to the home of Uncle Max.
The island city put Luna in the mind of Castleberry, only everyone here dressed in brightly colored sundresses, shorts, and sandals. The people there didn’t seem to be in much of a hurry, and everyone smiled and spoke to them as they passed by.
Once they reached Uncle Max’s house, Luna surmised why everyone throughout town smiled and greeted them so warmly. The house was the biggest and tallest, as far as the eye could see, in the sprawling island city. The golden gate that surrounded the property opened into a courtyard full of red flowers and green ivy and bushes. Stone walkways circled throughout, leading past the beautiful flowers before finally converging at a fountain in the middle of the yard. Small palmetto trees lined the last stretch of the walkway leading to the house.
Standing in the doorway waiting for them to arrive was a short, thin, elderly man dressed in all white. His hair was white and curly, and his eyes were dark and bright. He smiled as they approached.
“Welcome home, Master Max.”
“Thank you, Sonny. We have more guests than we thought. Have the girls ready two more rooms for them,” Max said.
Sonny nodded and welcomed everyone else before leaving them.
The two deckhands sat the bags they were carrying down beside the door. They bid them farewell and headed back to the ship to get the others and bring them to shore.
THE ROOM WAS SPACIOUS and brightly painted orange, with a balcony looking out over the courtyard. The brick mantle fireplace on the wall across from the balcony was empty and clean, as if never used. The simple crystal chandelier hung low over the four-poster bed, casting a soft light over the daffodil bedspread as the sun’s rays streamed through the window.
The pretty copper-colored girl opened the door to the bathroom and informed Luna that she had drawn her a bath. The girl bent over the tub, putting her hand in to check the temperature. With her other hand, she caught a strand of her long brown waist-length hair from toppling into the water.
“Thank you,” Luna said. It had been a long trip to the island, and she really needed to get cleaned up.
The girl bowed to Luna before exiting the room. Luna wasted no time shedding her clothing and sliding into the warm bubbles that awaited her. She quickly scrubbed herself clean with the soap and shampoo that was there. Once she felt clean enough, she relaxed back in the tub, closed her eyes, and breathed in the lavender aroma of the water.
After the long relaxing soak, Luna found a red flowered sundress laid out on the bed and a pair of brown leather sandals, waiting for her to put on. She put the colorful knee length dress on, which fit almost perfectly, and the sandals. She combed her still damp hair and sprayed some perfume on, which was sitting on the dresser. She hadn’t remembered seeing it there before. The fragrance was like the ripened blackberries that grew wild in the fields back in Green Brook. A wave of nostalgia washed over her. She missed the green fields she and River used to walk through for hours on end, only stopping to pick blackberries and eating them until their hands and tongues were dyed dark purple. The blackberries fields were gone, but at least she still had River. They would have to find new places to explore and new exotic berries to eat. And now they had Rusty to come along as well. She smiled to herself, thinking of her two friends.
Luna opened the door to leave. Standing there with his fist in the air ready to knock was Uncle Max. He had changed into clean clothes, although he was still wearing black from head to toe. Cleaned up with his hair combed to the side, Max looked a lot younger than he did the day they first met. He seemed more at ease and happy being back home.
“Oh, hello Uncle Max,” she said stepping backward.
“I see you found the perfume I sent you. It suits you.”
“Thank you. It remi
nds me of home.” She ran a hand over the torso of the smooth sundress. “Thank you for the dress.”
“I can’t take credit for the outfit. My nephew went to the market and bought it for you.”
“He did?” She glanced down at the brightly colored dress. It seemed even more beautiful now that she knew River had picked it out just for her.
“Yeah. He’s a good kid,” he bragged. “Anyway, I came to tell you it’s time for dinner.”
Dinner? Was it that late already? She felt as if they only just arrived. She must have been in the tub a lot longer than she realized. She followed Max down to the dining room where dinner had already been set up on the long polished mahogany table. Placed around the table were white china plates and shiny polished silverware on white linen napkins. Rusty and River were already sitting at the table dressed in flowered button up shirts with light blue shorts and sandals. It didn’t take them long to blend in.
“Have a seat and help yourself,” Max motioned to a chair.
As Luna walked over to take her seat next to Rusty, River nodded at her, approving how the dress that he picked out looked on her. She stopped and curtsied to him before taking a seat, drawing a giggle from him.
“You smell nice,” Rusty said.
“Thank you. It’s blackberry perfume. Uncle Max gave it to me.”
“It reminds me of home,” River said.
“Me too,” Luna replied, piling her plate with fresh exotic diced fruits, which tasted amazing, but still not as good as blackberries.
ONCE THEY FINISHED dinner, the pretty copper-colored girl busied herself clearing the table. Max invited Luna, River, and Rusty to accompany him for a stroll through town. Luna was excited to see the rest of the warm terracotta town and hurried back to her room and gathered her bookbag. She emptied her clothing, putting them in the dresser, leaving only the book. After what had happened in Coastal City, her trust level had taken an even bigger hit. If something went wrong, she would leave with the clothes on her back and her book. She slung the bag over her shoulder and hurried outside where the guys were waiting for her.
They walked through the town, taking in the sights and meeting new people. Luna couldn’t help but notice how gracious people were to her on the island. Ladies gave her hugs, and the men bowed to her. She had never felt more welcome anywhere. It was so strange that no one cared about her cursed skin at all. Max graciously introduced her and the others as his family from the mainland. Several of the ladies even complimented her on the perfume she wore. She explained to them it was blackberry scented, but they didn’t seem to know what a blackberry was. Max told her that blackberries didn’t grow on the island. Only the islanders that had visited the mainland knew what they were, which were very few. He said people who lived there had very little need or desire to leave the island, and she could understand why. Why leave such beauty?
Right outside of town was a white colonial style house with a wrap-around porch on both the second and the first level. It was beautiful, though oddly placed on a tropical island full of color. A long gravel road lined with tall palm trees led to the house. Giant pink flowering vines hung from massive pots staggered between four white pillars that held up the second-floor porch.
“Who lives here?” Luna asked as they approached the ten-foot double wood doors.
Max turned and looked at her with a grin on his face. “You’ll see,” he said, grabbing the bronze door knocker and slamming it against the wood several times.
Before the echo of the last knock stopped reverberating in Luna’s ears, the door swung open. Luna couldn’t believe her eyes. Standing there in the door was a young lady dressed in a white sundress... and she herself was white, with pale yellow hair. She had the curse of Cain.
Luna took a step back and silently gasped. There was nothing that could have prepared her for the beautiful, tall, slender girl standing in front of her. She was sure she was the only person in the world with the curse of Cain. She thought back at the day she met Max on the pier. He had asked her if she was going home. He must have thought she was coming to the island to be with this girl. Now she understood the reason no one seemed to mind her appearance there.
The young lady stepped out onto the porch, mouth agape, gawking at Luna. “Where did you come from?” she asked Luna in a young high-pitched voice.
“I’m... I’m from a town called Green Brook.”
“Oh my God. I thought there weren’t any more of us left but me,” the girl said and gave Luna a hug.
“Luna, meet Stella. Stella, meet Luna,” Max introduced.
Stella let go of Luna and turned her attention to Max, “Hello Max.”
“Hello Stella.”
Stella then turned her attention to River and Rusty, who were just as surprised to see another Cain girl as Luna was. “Hello,” she said with a keen eye on Rusty.
“Hi,” River said.
“Hello Miss,” Rusty said.
Stella smiled at Rusty, seeming to like his politeness.
“Stella, this is my nephew River and his friend Rusty.”
“Please, won’t you all come in? Where are my manners?” She shook her head. The gentle breeze caught her long straight hair, glistening like candied wheat in the sunlight. Luna found herself wondering if her own hair sparkled like that.
She asked them to have a seat at a long, polished wood table near an enormous brick fireplace painted stark white, like the walls. The floors in the house were the same dark polished wood as the table that creaked a little as they walked through. Stella called out to someone, and a short, dark gray-haired lady scurried into the room carrying a silver tray with a glass pitcher of lemonade and five glasses.
“I heard voices and went straight to get some refreshments,” the old lady said, setting the tray on the table and pouring them each a glass. She smiled brightly at Luna, setting the glass in front of her even more carefully than the others. “Welcome home,” she whispered and scurried back out of the room.
Luna watched the woman as she left the room, wondering what she meant. And why did Stella tell her she was afraid she was the last one left? She needed answers.
“What did you mean you thought you were the last one left? Are there other Cain people?” she asked Stella.
Stella looked at her quizzically. “Didn’t you know we were here? Isn’t that why you came to the island?”
Luna paused, still not sure what to tell Stella about her trip there. She wasn’t sure if she should tell her she was looking for a coven of wiccan. She had heard that there were still some places where they tried to kill people for practicing what they called witchcraft.
“She came here with me to live with my Uncle Max,” River said.
“She did?” Uncle Max asked, raising his eyebrows. “I thought she came here to find Stella.”
“She came here to find people,” Rusty said, taking a sip of his lemonade.
Stella’s gaze lingered on Rusty for a moment. She smiled at him. “Tell me more about these people.”
“People like herself.”
“Herself?” Stella grinned.
“Yeah. Special people,” River said.
Luna shot a warning glance at River to keep his blabber mouth shut, but he didn’t pay any attention...as usual.
“Wiccans,” he blurted out.
Stella had no surprise on her face. She looked at Luna, “You’ve found us... or should I say, you’ve found me.” There was a sorrow in her voice as the words trailed from her mouth.
She explained to them she had come to the island from a small town on the mainland in search of the Crescent Coven, but when she arrived, there was only the elderly housekeeper there to greet her. The last wiccan of the coven had died some years ago, leaving only the house for any Crescent who came searching for their kin.
“That’s why I brought you here. I thought you came to the island to find this place,” Max said.
“I came to find a coven of wiccans I was told about... and to live with you and Rive
r once I got the wiccans to help me with the cure.” She smiled at Max and shrugged.
Max turned his gaze to Rusty, no doubt wondering if he would live with him too, but before he had the chance to ask, Stella spoke.
“You must stay here with me. This is where you belong, Luna. We must work together to find our kin and rebuild the coven.”
Luna paused. How could she tell Stella that she was not one of her kin? That she was only there to reverse what she had done to herself? How could she tell her she would remain the last of her coven?
“Crescents have to stick together,” Stella said. “That’s why I will be happy to help you with this cure. Every wiccan book that has been in our coven over the years is here. I’m sure we can find whatever it is you need in them. What are you trying to cure?”
“Well... I’m trying to cure myself.”
“What’s the matter?”
“I’m not actually a Crescent wiccan.”
“Sure you are. All of us have the same look, and somehow or another, we all end up here... together. Now, enough of that talk. Tell me what’s wrong with you.”
“I made a mistake with a spell trying to cure my cursed skin and turned myself like this.” She rubbed her hand over her forearm.
Stella said nothing for a moment, staring at Luna with a furrowed brow. “You mean to tell me you weren’t born this way?”
“No, I wasn’t. In fact, I was born with brown skin and dark hair. I turned white on my face only, when I was very young. I was trying to restore myself when the spell went horribly wrong.”
Luna reached in her backpack and took out the spell book and slid it across the table to Stella.
Stella took the book, rubbing her fingers over it as if it were fine silk. “This is an ancient wiccan grimoire. These were all destroyed. Or so we thought.”
Luna ignored Stella’s ogling over the book, “The first spell I did on Rusty worked, no problem.”