by Casey Lane
How odd, the moment I saw her I could see what her gift was. Something had happened to me out in the forest. I could feel the difference in my abilities. Control was mine now, shaky but there. I was whole. New.
Grandma Lida’s gift so amazed me, I blurted it out without thinking.
“You can make toys that heal?” I said.
What a wondrous gift for any witch. Yet she'd never used it after figuring out she had it. Not once to cure a single child or even a child at heart.
I just didn’t get her. “What’s wrong with you?”
She refused to acknowledge what I knew was true.
“You’re leaving?” she asked.
“Yes,” I said. “I have everything I need.”
She said nothing else, so I figured we were done. I picked up one of my suitcases. Steinar grabbed the other. When we got to the door, however, I knew I couldn’t leave without asking.
“Grandma, what is it? What did I ever do to you?”
Her eyes glittered, with tears or suppressed rage, I couldn’t tell which.
“My Felicity could always have had another child if she’d wanted,” Lida said. “I only had one daughter.”
I had stolen that from her the day my mother forfeited her life for mine.
I sighed. “I’m sorry for your loss. But it was my loss, too.”
As was never having a grandmother to love me, or one I was allowed to love back.
“Let’s go, Saige.”
We left my grandmother’s house hand in hand.
“What is a war witch anyway?” I asked Steinar.
“One born into times of great need.”
“And her gifts?”
“Legendary,” he said.
I looked forward to the battle.
About the Author
Aileen Harkwood is a Readers’ Crown finalist for Best Paranormal Romance and author of the Breens Mist Witches Series, including Spell Touched, The Last Wedding at Drayhome, and The Christmas Spell. Her upcoming urban fantasy novel, Wayward Moon, is scheduled to release this year at part of the Charmed Legacy Dark Fae Hollows shared world series.
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Sign up for her newsletter and receive a free book at https://www.instafreebie.com/free/M3LAZ. She also enjoys hearing from readers at [email protected].
Embracing the Witch
Milda Harris
Embracing the Witch © 2017 Milda Harris
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All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
Embracing the Witch
A witch who only wants to be normal. A man sworn to protect her. The vampire who vows to kill them both.
Seraphine likes things to be by the book. That’s why she’s an accountant. Numbers are logical. Then she has a dream. It’s one of those dreams. A warning.
Seraphine fights to ignore her gut instincts because it doesn’t fit into her nice and normal life. Hours later, a man named Cade shows up on her doorstep. He’s there to save her from being killed by a vampire. She has no intention of believing him. Vampires don’t exist. He knows she’s dead wrong.
Chapter One
The man standing in front of me looked like a vampire. I would have sworn he actually was one except that any rational person knew that they didn’t really exist. Plus, I only pegged him at about thirty years old. He wasn’t ancient at all. Still, I stared at him in a bit of awe.
Did he know he looked like a vampire? His dark hair was impeccably styled and his suit looked like it was made for him. What really struck me, though, was his pale skin. We lived in California and it looked like he never went out in the daylight. I smirked. That was ironic since I was pretty pale, myself. I was always stuck inside at work, so I never saw the sun either.
“Did you hear me? I’m from the IRS.”
So, he was always busy at work too. Paleness explained. Another part of my brain kicked in at the same time as I thought this and I blinked at him. I hadn’t heard him before. I’d been too stuck on the fact that he looked like a vampire. As the letters IRS sank in, though, my heart plummeted. This was not good.
My thoughts scattered as I tried to figure out what to do. I normally prided myself on being very logical. In this situation, though, I wanted to think that this whole thing was some kind of a scam and the IRS really didn’t want to audit us, but I knew it wasn’t. He was telling the truth. I could tell. I had a weird sixth sense and I always knew when people were lying. He most definitely wasn’t. The problem was that I hadn’t known he was coming.
I had to think quickly. My boss had already left for the day. He had a habit of leaving me with all of the work and he almost always checked out early. He lived in Orange County and wanted to beat the traffic home. Usually I didn’t mind. It made the office quiet and I had to do my accounting work anyway. In this case, though, it was bad. This man from the IRS obviously expected us to be ready to see him. I had nothing prepared. Wait. Maybe it was a mistake?
“What’s this about?” I asked hopefully.
“The audit.”
Cold shot through my veins. I tried to keep my face blank. Inside, my brain was racing. I was extremely organized. I should be able to handle an audit. I just hadn’t had time to prepare. I’d also never done one. This was my first job out of college. Had my boss prepared for it and forgotten to tell me? My heart sank. I really doubted it. I would have been the one doing all of the work.
Still, I could do this. I’d gotten my dream job and people said it would be impossible to get a job in accounting on a television show. It wasn’t. This was not impossible either. I just had to call my boss and find out what was going on. First, though, I needed to get rid of this man.
I forced a smile onto my face and looked into his eyes. They were dark and unwavering. He simply stared at me. I was just another audit to him.
I decided to be honest. “I didn’t know you were coming.”
The man frowned. He didn’t say anything. I felt sweat forming at my temples. I tried to rationally calm myself down. What was the worst thing he could do? Actually, I really didn’t want to think about the answer to that question. The IRS was pretty scary.
“Take my business card.”
I tried not to sigh with relief as he handed me his card. Our fingers brushed for a brief moment and fear shot through me. The situation was suddenly very real. This was really, really bad. You couldn’t prepare for an audit in one day. Besides, I had other work to get done too. I still had timesheets to process so that the employees would get paid on time. That usually took the whole day. I didn’t have time to deal with this too.
I looked at the business card that was now in my hands so that I didn’t have to look at him. It simply said his name – Athan Delano. It also stated that he was from the IRS and gave his contact information. I barely glanced at it. Instead, I looked up at him and found him staring at me.
I had to say something. “Mr. Delano, I’m very sorry, but I didn’t know you were coming today. My boss…had a bit of an emergency, so…”
My voice faded out. I wasn’t very good at lying, which was probably a side effect of my own sixth sense. Regardless, it was better if I stopped talking right there.
He stared at me a moment longer, making me nervous. �
��I’ll be back tomorrow.”
“I’ll talk to my boss. Maybe we can reschedule?”
He didn’t smile. “I’ll be back tomorrow. Same time.”
I nodded. Inside, my stomach was sinking. I was never going home from work. I tried not to completely freak out and did my best to remain looking composed.
“What is your name?”
I didn’t really want to tell him my name, but he was from the IRS so I didn’t think I had a choice. “Sera, er, Seraphine Winters.”
He finally smiled ever so slightly. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Seraphine.”
I nodded, a smile still on my face, but there was a ball of dread in the pit of my stomach. Then he turned and left the room. I wanted to collapse on my desk. Instead, I took a deep breath. I just had to think about this rationally. First thing I had to do was call my boss. I reached for the phone.
“Who was that?” The post producer walked in.
I dropped the phone and sat up straighter. Edison was extremely good looking. He had a chiseled jaw that models would kill for along with bright blonde hair and blue eyes that popped. He should have been an actor and not stuck behind the scenes in an office, but he said he had no interest. He loved post production and he was working in his dream job. I was glad for that because I’ll admit, I looked forward to him coming into the accounting office. Today, though, I had to force myself to smile at him.
“He looks like a vampire, right?” I managed to say.
Edison smiled back. “I was just going to ask you if his name was Nosferatu.”
“It’s Dracula, actually,” I couldn’t help but joke back.
Edison raised his eyebrows. “Seriously?”
I actually laughed. “No.”
“Alright, should I start guessing the name of every vampire on television or in the movies?” Edison asked.
“That would be a long list.”
Edison nodded. “Well, I’m pretty well versed in horror. I think I could do it.”
“You’ll never guess it,” I said.
“Oh, come on. One of these has to be it. There’s Barnabas from Dark Shadows.”
I shook my head.
He kept guessing. “It’s not Angel or Spike, right? From Buffy the Vampire Slayer?”
“Does he look like either one of those?”
“No, but hey, it’s his mom that named him. Is it Bill?”
“From True Blood?” I asked.
“Hey, it’s a valid guess.”
I shook my head. “Nope.”
“Okay. I know. Is it Lestat? Or Louis?”
I frowned trying to think of where those names were from. “Interview with a Vampire?”
“Yup. So?”
I smiled. “Still a no.”
“Alright back to TV. Is it Stefan or Damon Salvatore?”
Now I raised my eyebrows at him. “From The Vampire Diaries? You’ve watched that?”
Edison shrugged his shoulders. “I plead the fifth. More importantly, am I right?”
“No, but his name actually does sound kind of Italian.”
Edison threw up his hands. “Okay, I give up. What is it?”
“Fine,” I showed him the card.
He looked at it and all humor left his face. “Oh man. He’s from the IRS? That’s worse than a vampire.”
I sighed. “I know. Although, you could say they suck the life out of you in a different way.”
“Not fun.”
I shook my head. “Nope.”
Edison was quiet for a moment as he looked at me.
“What’s wrong?” I asked. “You’re not the one who has to deal with the IRS.”
“No. I don’t, but uh, what happened to the necklace you always wear?”
“Huh?” I reached for my neck. “Oh. I didn’t lose it, but I am having a run of bad luck. It broke yesterday. It’s in a drawer at home. I have to get the chain replaced. It’s no big deal, though.”
“But your mom left you that, right? You should get it fixed.”
“I will. This IRS thing, though,” I sighed. “That’s kind of my big priority at the moment.”
Edison nodded slowly. “Yeah. And, uh, well…I actually came in here because a few of us are going out after we wrap tonight and I…”
I hadn’t thought it was possible, but now I felt even worse. “I can’t.”
Edison nodded slowly. “I kind of figured when I saw that card, but are you sure? Not even for one drink?”
“Sorry,” I said. “Believe me, I’ll want a glass of wine after today, but I just don’t think I’m ever going home.”
“No worries. I get it. Post production has nights like those too. Do you want me to stay and keep you company?”
“No. I’d feel really bad. I will be doing never ending work. Go out and have fun.”
Edison nodded.
I didn’t think I could say anything else. Having Edison ask me out for a drink was a big deal even if it was a work thing with a bunch of other people. I couldn’t believe I had to turn him down, but there was no way I could go.
Edison turned to leave, but then looked back. “Good luck with the IRS.”
I tried to smile. “Thanks.”
“And if it helps, next time we all go out, the first round is on me.”
Did that mean there would be a next time? My stomach did a happy flip. I tried to act casual, though. “It helps.”
“Great,” Edison smiled and walked out of the office.
I stared after him for a moment. Maybe I’d get another chance to go out with Edison. Then I looked at the stack of work in front of me and at Athan Delano’s card. Reality sunk in. Yeah. Maybe I could go out after work when the show had wrapped completely and I was out of a job. I was never going to finish everything.
I opened my bottom desk drawer and reached in to grab a notepad. I was probably going to have to take notes on all of the things I had to get done before Mr. Delano came back tomorrow. I picked up the phone again to call my boss. First things first, I had to find out what was going on.
I felt oddly detached from my body. Had work actually killed me? No. I vividly remembered making it home and drinking half a bottle of wine. Was I drunker than I’d thought? No. My brain actually felt clear and this felt different.
I looked around. It was still the middle of the night and I wasn’t at home or in bed. I wasn’t at work either. I blinked, trying to orient myself. My surroundings looked familiar yet out of place. I definitely remembered going to sleep in my own bed. I’d been stressed out and exhausted. When had I left my apartment? Why couldn’t I remember doing it?
I tried to squash the panic that threatened to overtake me. I had to be logical. Where was I? I scanned the room, trying to take in the details. An entranceway. I was turned toward the front door. A grandfather clock stood off to my left. As I looked at it, it started chiming the hour. I counted. One. Two. Three. It was three o’clock in the morning.
As I counted, I realized I’d done so many times before. I knew that clock. It had always been taller than me as a child and I’d studied it from a different vantage point, but it was definitely the same clock. The chimes had always fascinated me. I’d loved numbers back then too and counting the chimes at the hour had been something I’d looked forward to. I’d even made up a game. If I was there in front of the clock at just the right time, I could climb into it and make my way to another land. I’d spent many a day pretending the scenario out and having adventures as a result.
My brain clicked. I knew where I was. Somehow, I’d gotten to my grandmother’s house in San Diego. I stared at the clock. It had been a long time since I’d thought about those childhood days. I looked away from it and down the hallway. It wasn’t the time to reminisce. I shouldn’t be here. None of this made sense.
How did I even get to San Diego? I tried to think. I replayed the previous day in my mind. The tax man had come to call. Edison had finally asked me out for a drink and I’d had to refuse. My boss was an idiot who’d forgotten all about
his appointment with the IRS. We were screwed. I hadn’t gotten home from work until well beyond anyone’s normal workday. I’d needed wine to fall asleep and not dream about work. I went to bed. My bed was in Los Angeles. Now, I was here in San Diego.
It was over a two-hour drive to my grandmother’s. I hadn’t somehow sleep driven, had I? I tried to remember. There was nothing. Had I blacked out from the wine? I hadn’t drunk that much. Was I dreaming? No. This felt real. I was here.
The house was still. That at least made sense since it was the middle of the night. My grandmother must have been asleep. I wasn’t sure what I should do. I didn’t want to scare her. Should I just go? But where? I turned back to the door. If I’d managed to drive here, I’d have to drive back home. But how had I gotten inside then? I moved toward the door anyway.
Then I happened to look down and was surprised to find that I was still dressed in the nightgown I had put on for bed. I blinked down at my bare toes. I should have been cold. My grandmother didn’t like to use the heater and even November in California had a chill to the air. Still, I couldn’t feel the frosty air.
What was going on? I turned back around. I suddenly felt a strange sense of urgency and it was pulling me toward the living room. Dread formed in the pit of my stomach. I’d felt this way once before. That had not turned out well.
I walked down the hallway toward the living room anyway. Something was pulling me there. I listened to the call. I almost had to. As I entered the room, my gaze was immediately drawn to an old book on the side table next to my grandmother’s chair. I walked closer, trying to get a better look at it.
Before I could, movement distracted me and my eyes met my grandmother’s. She had walked into the living room from the kitchen. There was something wrong.