The Eternal Witch (The Coven: Elemental Magic Book 5)

by Chandelle LaVaun

  I reached up and pulled the crystal necklace off my neck, then I slipped it around my soulmate’s head. I tucked the crystal under his shirt then patted his chest. “That’s the Book of Shadows. Keep it safe while I’m gone.”

  He nodded. “Hurry back.”

  I smiled then hurried out the door before I could talk myself out of it. I’d meant what I said about not going anywhere without him, but Myrtle’s argument was far too logical for me to deny. We couldn’t risk someone from the past seeing the Book of Shadows from the future. I had to separate them, and though I loved my Coven-mates, I wasn’t trusting anyone but Tennessee.

  Myrtle was waiting for me outside. She nodded when she saw me and gestured for me to follow her. “She’s leaving town today, so we just caught her.”

  “How far does she live?” I asked, though I wasn’t even sure who she was. I’d only been told this person had the Book of Shadows.

  “Her house burned down weeks ago. I do not know where she lives now.” Myrtle stopped in her tracks and turned to face me. “Can you harden the water so we may walk on it?”

  “Yes.”

  She smiled and led me down to the shore running alongside our pathway. “This will be faster.”

  I nodded and stepped out onto the surface of the water. “Lead the way.”

  Myrtle filled me in on The Coven’s plans for relocating Eden as we crossed over the bay. I wanted badly to tell her how much suffering came from where they’d chosen. I wanted to tell her about Crone Island. I wanted to tell her everything. But I kept silent. I made a checklist in my brain of all the things I wanted to ask her about when I got back to the future. Once this was all over, I was taking a trip down to the Caribbean for some answers.

  Just on the other side of the bay sat a little red barn. It looked beaten up and ready to collapse, but Myrtle led us right to the side door. I wasn’t even inside the door when my magic surged to the surface. Energy thick with old power radiated through the air from inside the barn. There’s a Card in here.

  “Come, child,” Myrtle urged and waved for me to enter.

  I didn’t know why I was nervous. Maybe there was just a lot of pressure on this moment. My heart raced in my chest. I took a deep breath then stepped inside. The barn was empty, except for heaps of hay and a couple horses lying in the corner. Just inside the door, there was a small wooden table with three chairs. Only two of them were empty. The other held a woman in her late fifties, maybe more, with light brown hair that was starting to turn gray. Her skin was tanned and slightly wrinkled, but her brown eyes were sharp and clear. She didn’t have a bonnet on, and her dress was definitely not as modest as the ones Myrtle and I wore.

  The woman stood and held out her left hand. The Roman numeral V was Marked on her skin. I gasped. My eyes widened. The Hierophant. I felt like I was meeting Elvis Presley or something. A legend I wasn’t supposed to be capable of meeting. I wiped my hand on my dress then shook hers.

  She smiled and shook my hand. “I have seen our meeting for years, my child. I cannot tell you how satisfying to see it finally come to pass. Please, sit.”

  My cheeks warmed. It shouldn’t have surprised me that she’d seen visions of me coming. She was the Hierophant; that was her gift. I smiled and sat in the empty seat. “It’s nice to meet you. I wasn’t expecting a Card today.”

  She glanced up at Myrtle and smiled. “I asked Myrtle not to speak of it. I know you’re not here alone. Myrtle has told me of your situation. Though, I dare say I hadn’t expected it. What is your name, child?”

  “Tegan Bishop.”

  She gasped and pressed her hand to her chest. “Bishop? You are a Bishop?”

  I frowned. “Yes… Is that bad?”

  “No, on the contrary, I believe.” She chuckled. “I am Elizabeth Bishop, and I do believe we are related.”

  My eyes widened. This woman, this Coven-member from 1692, was my ancestor. My mind was so totally blown. “What about Bridget Bishop? Was she…was she one of us?”

  Elizabeth’s eyes grew sad. She shook her head. “I do not know what Eden is like three hundred years from now, but here, we live among the Sapiens. Over time, the Sapiens take on our names, though we have yet to figure out the why of it.”

  “I see. Are the other Coven members still in Salem as well?”

  “Yes. We leave this night to find a new home for Eden. Once we do, we send for our civilians. Myrtle, please sit.” Elizabeth patted the empty chair beside her then turned her gaze back to me. “I’d seen myself in this barn speaking with you, so when Myrtle arrived at sunrise, I knew she was there for me. She informed me of witches who had been sent through time by the Seelie Court. Although, she did not say you were part of The Coven. I felt your power before you entered the door. Pray tell me, what is your Mark?”

  I lifted the sleeve on my left arm until my Mark was visible.

  I wasn’t fluent in our ancient language, but I was pretty sure Elizabeth just dropped a nasty string of curse words.

  “High Priestess. And my own blood.” She covered her mouth with her hand and stared at me for a long, long minute before her eyes suddenly widened. “Tell me, daughter of mine, do I dare ask it?”

  There was really only one thing she could be referring to.

  I nodded. “My twin sister, Emersyn, the Empress, is here with me as well.”

  “Myrtle did not tell me,” she whispered and fanned herself.

  “I did not want any others to hear of it,” Myrtle whispered back.

  “Yes, for good reason. It will be a most trying secret to keep.” She rubbed her face with her hands then refocused on me. “I feel your magic is pure. I trust you and your twin shall close the Gap for good?”

  “I promise I will do everything in my power to close it forever.” I leaned forward with my heart in my throat. “I just need to get home first.”

  She pulled something off her lap, something I hadn’t seen sitting there. The Book of Shadows. Elizabeth set it on top of the table and sighed. “I have spent most of my life reading the pages of this book. Even more since my good friend gave in to her darkness and I had to steal the book from her. Yet, in all my time, I have never seen a spell to travel time. Though you are the High Priestess, mayhap there are things only you can see.”

  “I don’t think so.” I pulled the Book over and ran my fingers over the worn leather cover. It didn’t look too much newer than my version. “It is strange to be looking at this here when I have the exact same item at Leyka’s.”

  “Oh, good, you do have it?” Elizabeth leaned forward with sharp eyes. “Did you find anything of use?”

  I shook my head and started flipping through the pages. “I went through it all last night. I am hoping that maybe since yours is three centuries newer…maybe there will be things that are somehow not in mine.”

  I wasn’t even sure what I was looking for.

  “The Seelie Fae are not of this realm. I fear you will need magic not of this realm to get you home.” Elizabeth stood then began pacing in front of the table. “Are Saraphina and Leyka helping?”

  “Yes,” Myrtle said as she sat up straight. “Is that a mistake?”

  Elizabeth waved her hand. “No, no. In fact, I believe they will be of help.”

  I held my hand over the open book and tapped into my magic. Show me time travel. Rainbow mist swirled around my hand and over the book. The pages flipped from the start to the end in the blink of an eye. A cold draft swept over my fingers. That was how the Book told me no. Coldness. Show me portals into other realms. The pages flipped instantly to a page near the front. At first there was nothing, but then black ink appeared on the page.

  My dearest future Aether Witch, I have tried to portal into other realms with no success. I did find, however, that the power in our rare magic is due to our deep connection with this realm. As a result, when we leave this realm, we are weakened to the point of pain.

  My eyes widened. That would’ve been good to know a few days ago. I shook my head and
tried to think. Show me the Seelie Fae. The book flipped to a section in the back. I scanned page after page, but nothing spoke of time travel. There was plenty of other worthy information that I knew I needed to review for another time though. I saw Prince Thorne’s name scribbled in at least a dozen different handwritings. I held those pages together as I focused my magic into my fingers. Mark these pages for me for later. I will ask to see Saraphina.

  I hadn’t forgotten the deal I’d made with Keltie. There was a spell in this Book she needed, that Saffie needed. I’d wanted to help my little fairy friend from the moment I met her. Now, it was an aching desire that refused to be pushed aside. I couldn’t wrap my head around how this witch could still be alive some three hundred years later—unless half-breed Fae live longer than witches?

  “Tegan?”

  I jumped and looked up to find both women staring at me. “Sorry, yes?”

  Elizabeth narrowed her eyes. “You are the Aether Witch?”

  I nodded.

  “Did you go to the Seelie Court for their Earth Stone?”

  “Yes.” I sat up straight and patted my chest. “I have it. Do you think I can use it?”

  “Before our High Priestess turned on us, she’d spoken to me about wishing she had the Earth Stone.” She pursed her lips and walked back over to me. “That can’t be a coincidence.”

  “She would have made notes for herself, to use later.” Myrtle tapped on the book. “You are both High Priestesses, so you should be able to see what she left.”

  My eyes widened. Hope flared in my chest. “What was her name?”

  “Althea Putnam.”

  Putnam. Like Paulina Putnam. I shivered. Focus, Tegan. I pressed my palm to the pages and took a deep breath. Show me Althea Putnam. The pages warmed under my touch then flipped to about three quarters of the way through. The spells were for healing. I frowned. Perhaps she’d put some kind of spell on her own notes to hide it? I would have. Not that I had a reason to. I was about to close the page when I saw a scribble of handwriting tucked into the binding in deep red ink. I held the book up to my face and read silently. Most of it was random nonsense, or at least to my eyes. It appeared Althea was so devious and paranoid that she wrote her notes in abbreviations and code words. It was damn sneaky, and I hated how much I liked that. No one wanted to be compared to her knowing what she did.

  Then I saw it. The one line—the only line—that might matter.

  Only the A.W. can draw portals. But He told me to get the E.S. back. Rumors say PT wants exchange. Have Aurelia seek tunnels.

  “Well, I’ll be damned.”

  “What?” they both asked at the same time and practically dove toward me.

  “I think you may be onto something. Her notes aren’t clear, but I think E.S. refers to the Earth Stone—and she talks about portals.” I closed the book and slid it back across the table. “I’m going to go back to my Book now, see if anything has been added in the last three hundred years. Thank you so much for your help.”

  “You’re welcome. I do not envy your task, though I am confident in your abilities.” She walked over and pulled something out from under her dress, then squeezed it in her palm. “Tell me, do you know who the Hierophant is in your time?”

  “Yes.”

  She nodded then held her hand up. A golden locket dangled from her fingers. The Hierophant’s locket. The one we went on a perilous quest to find because it contained secrets from generations past. She met my gaze and held it. “Tell them…tell them to look inside. Help is in here.”

  I stood, ready to head back to my friends. “Thank you so much.”

  “You may have to try things you don’t want to. I pray you have the strength to try.” Elizabeth took my hands in hers and held tight. “I will leave notes for you, in the Book of Shadows. One day, when we meet again on the other side, I look forward to hearing of your success. Until then…good luck.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  TENNESSEE

  I paused in front of the window and searched for her for about the fiftieth time since she’d left. Maybe more. “How long has it been?”

  “Tennessee, relax. For the love of all that is holy, stop pacing.” Cooper sighed. I must’ve made some kind of face because he rolled his eyes. “Twenty minutes, Romeo.”

  My stomach turned. Ten more minutes and I’m going after her.

  Henley strolled into the room, chewing on her thumbnail. “Have we seen Emersyn or Deacon yet? Do we have any idea where they went?”

  “Oh, I think we all know where they went,” Royce said with a chuckle.

  Cooper groaned. “Dude, no.”

  “No?” Royce leaned back and propped his feet up on the table. He wagged his eyebrows. “They went behind a rock to get a little bolder, if you know what I’m sayin’.”

  I threw my hand over my mouth to hide my laugh. Henley didn’t bother.

  “ROYCE!” Cooper threw the book he was reading right at his face. “That’s not right.”

  Royce picked up an apple and bit into it. “True. That’s more Tennessee’s style these days.”

  I opened my mouth to defend myself just as the front door swung open. Tegan stepped inside, and my breath left me in a rush. When her eyes found mine, her face lit up with a smile that did funny things to my insides. She skipped over to me with a sparkle in her eyes that wasn’t there when she’d left. She had an idea. I knew it. I saw it in her face. I wanted to hear it. But the second she got within reach, I took her face in my hands and pressed my lips to hers.

  She sighed and leaned into my kiss. I meant for it to be a quick hello-I-missed-you kind of thing. But now that I had her, I didn’t want to let her go.

  “Dude. COME ON,” Cooper yelled.

  “See, told you.”

  “Royce, not helping!”

  “I don’t know, Coop,” Henley said. “Get your eyes off them.”

  “It’s burned into my retinas, Henley!” Cooper snapped. “He needs to get his tongue out of my sister’s mouth.”

  I laughed and pulled away from Tegan before Cooper had an aneurism.

  “You have serious issues with PDA, my friend.” Royce took another bite of apple. “We need to get you a girl.”

  “Or a boy.” Henley winked.

  “No. The boys are mine. He gets girls.”

  “So greedy.” Henley laughed. “But that works better for me too. I already have you as competition.”

  Myrtle looked back and forth between us like we’d lost our minds. “Where’s Saffie?”

  “Back room with Leyka.” I looked at Tegan again and pulled her necklace off my head. “What did you figure out?”

  “Give me a few minutes with the Book of Shadows, and I’ll tell you.” She kissed me quick on the lips then moved to sit at the table in front of Royce.

  The Book was already open in her hands before she sat down. The rest of us watched in silence. I stood frozen at the window, afraid if I took one step, I’d start pacing again, and I didn’t want to stress her out. She needed to focus.

  She pressed her palm to the pages of the Book, and her magic spilled out of her in that rainbow mist. The pages flipped on their own to about three quarters of the way back then stopped. Tegan turned the book to the side and leaned forward. Sweat dripped down the side of her face. Her green eyes widened.

  “Is there more there?” Myrtle ran over then stopped short of the table, like she’d forgotten she wasn’t supposed to look at our version of the Book. “Is there more written than what you saw in our Book?”

  “Yes.” Tegan nodded and ran her fingers along the page, up near the binding. “Not from Althea, of course, but from Elizabeth. She left notes for me.”

  Myrtle gasped. “But we only just left her…”

  Tegan shook her head and smiled up at our future Crone. “Time travel is a crazy thing. These notes are from different times. She dated them, even. She’s elaborated on how we may be able to make this work, but she can’t guarantee it.”

  The front
door opened, and Deacon walked through. His energy was dark and heavy. I looked up at his face, and that Devil grin was nowhere in sight. He nodded his head in greeting and moved farther in. Emersyn slid around him, and my heart stopped. Her eyes were red and puffy. Tracks of dried tears stained her face. Fresh ones pooled in her eyes. Her aura was absolutely devastated.

  Tegan stood up, her face ash white. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

  Deacon just looked at the ground and shook his head. A silent Deacon was unnerving.

  “It’s July nineteenth,” Emersyn cried, like we should know what that meant.

  Tegan’s eyes widened. “Oh no. You saw…”

  The hangings. She didn’t say it, but the memory clicked in my brain. July nineteenth was the day the town of Salem hanged five women. And it wouldn’t be the last. My stomach turned.

  Deacon pulled Emersyn into his chest then wrapped his arms around her. His face was bleak, his eyes cold. “Tell me you have an idea to get us the hell out of here. Please. Because I can’t be here and just watch this.”

  Tegan’s gaze dropped to the Book of Shadows sitting open on the table in front of her. She pressed her palm to the pages again and stared down at the words. “I can’t promise this will work…but I think we should try it. What do you say?”

  Cooper stood and walked to the table. “Can it hurt us, if it doesn’t work?”

  Royce jumped up from his chair. “It doesn’t matter. We have to try it anyway.”

  “Agreed,” I said, even though the idea of it hurting one of us scared me to the bone.

  “Then follow me.” Tegan picked up the Book of Shadows, and it transformed back into the crystal necklace in the blink of an eye. She slipped the gold chain around her neck then walked to the front door. She paused. “Myrtle, you three need to stay inside. If this works, I don’t want you caught in the crosshairs. Okay?”

  “We will be safe in here. I will watch through the windows.” Myrtle twisted her hands together. “Good luck. I hope this works.”