by Renee Lake
“Your birthday fast approaches and I am hopeful that I shall hear from you that you are on task. I will be arriving the morning of your birthday at the inn in your town; Sabine and your father will be joining me as well. I hope the present I have gotten you is acceptable, since you never mention my other gifts I had to guess at it. Send a missive to me letting me know if you are planning to fulfill your destiny. I will come as soon as Bendis drinks the tea. Love, your grandma.”
Daniela finish the last letter and gathered everything up and went to her room. She furiously scribbled a note to her grandma on the horse stationary and shoved it in an envelope, addressing it properly. Taking the box she stashed it under the bed, her heart pounding a mile a minute, when she came out she almost ran into Anatolia.
“I need you to send a letter for me to the inn,” Daniela said, breathlessly.
“So it is to begin.” Anatolia nodded, “I will take this myself. Do you need me to call my mother?” She gingerly touched the envelope and placed it in a pocket of her dark skirt.
“No need, she has already accepted the invitation to Daniela’s 18th birthday party we are holding tomorrow evening,” Stasi said, stepping out from the shadows.
“You want me to kill a Goddess with all those girls and their parents here?” Daniela wished she could say she was shocked but part of her enjoyed the thought of all the stuck up prisses at her private girls’ school being around when she killed someone. She had been very happy to graduate and was hoping to convince her mom to send her to college, she wanted to be a writer.
“It’s as good a time as any.” Stasi shrugged.
“Okay, I better ask cook to teach me to brew my own tea.”
Chapter 24
“Everything is lovely!” Daniela cried coming out of her room the following evening, it was almost dusk so her mother looked almost completely corporeal.
Daniela hoped she didn’t look as nervous as she sounded. She had been pampered and scrubbed, polished and made up, her hair tweaked and her form shoved into a whale bone corset and was now ready to greet her guests.
“I am glad you like it.” Stasi kissed her cheek as she led her onto the patio where half a dozen white clothed tables and chairs had been set up, a dozen girls and their parents were chattering in and around, like the buzzing of bees. Lanterns hung from everywhere like floating lights against the pale blue, purple and red streaked sky.
There was talk of school, boys and fashion, it all made Daniela’s head hurt a little. Each girl was dressed in her finest afternoon tea wear, complete with boots and parasols.
Each table had pitchers of ice tea and crochet covered tea pots, delicate china saucers and cups with hand painted forget me nots, dainty forks, pale blue cloth napkins and beautiful name cards of each and every guest.
Several of Anatolia’s staff members carried trays filled with petit fours, cucumber and egg sandwiches, scones and fruit covered in chocolate. At each table were dishes filled with lemon curd, clotted cream, honey and butter.
“You spent too much money on this,” Daniela whispered as she began to greet her guests.
“It’s your 18th birthday, you should have seen the party your grandma threw me.” Stasi grinned and walked off to speak with some of the parents.
“Oh, this is to die for!” Adella Hopkins took Daniela’s hand, gushing over it, “I wish my 18th birthday had been this glamorous. Mother just had a small dinner party, this is better! And so unique to do it at this time of day, no one will forget it.” She was a wispy blonde, all teeth and a bit annoying, but Adella was part of her little clique of friends from school so she had to play nice, she was also the local pastor’s daughter.
“Your birthday was fun; there were boys, and boys don’t come to tea parties,” Daniela conceded.
“This is the social event of the summer. Anyone who didn’t get an invite will be an outcast this season, your mother and Lady Anatolia have outdone themselves,” Mercy Gilliard said around a mouthful of pastry. She had black hair, her mother was from Russia, as big around as she was tall with a perfect face. Daniela liked her better than the others.
There were many rumors surrounding Daniela’s living arrangement; that her mother and Anatolia were lovers, but the official statement was that Stasi was a military wife and they were living with her maiden aunt.
“Are you still planning to try and attend college after the summer?” Sarah Ann Aston, as pale as snow and hair a matching shade, came over to them, her voice soft and breathless.
“Yes, you know that Sarah.” Daniela eyed her mother and reached up to tap her nose, their signal for, “HELP GET ME OUT OF HERE.”
“Ridiculous, I have already had three proposals, I just have to choose one,” Sarah Ann stated.
“Well, that’s you Sarah Ann, our Dani wants to go to school, my parents are demanding I go to work as soon as the summer ends. I’ve put in a few ads to become a governess.” Mercy grabbed a sandwich as a tray went by.
“Well maybe Thomas Rowe will propose to you Mercy,” Adella said, speaking of a boy they all knew. Daniela was glad her collar was high so no one could see the blush on her neck at the mention of the Rowe boy. A few years before she and Thomas had been quite close, sneaking around getting drunk on anything she could pilfer from her mother’s liquor cabinet and kissing in the dark. That was until her mother had begun locking the cabinet and Thomas Rowe had been sent to a boarding school. He had just recently returned and was sniffing around Mercy a bit.
“That lump? I would rather marry one of the coal miners,” Mercy laughed. “What about you Adella, what are your plans?”
“I don’t want to get married, but I don’t want a job or to go to school either; my great-aunt recommended joining a convent.” Adella smiled, none of them were surprised. Adella was the most pious girl they knew, always organizing charity events, working at the soup kitchens and sitting front row during her father’s sermons.
Daniela caught her mother’s eye again and Stasi began to make her way over to her daughter, she knew Daniela was different than the girls at her school, she didn’t enjoy the same chatter they did and lately hadn’t been able to shelve her snide or mean comments.
“Who is that!?” Sarah Ann exclaimed pointing a finger. All four girls turned to look, coming onto the patio was the Goddess Bendis, in her maiden form she didn’t appear more than a year or two older than Daniela.
“That’s my cousin, on my father’s side,” Daniela said quickly.
“If she’s staying for the summer, perhaps Sarah Ann should visit her grandparents in London instead of staying here, that girl is serious competition.” Mercy grinned.
“She’s not staying the summer. Please excuse me.” Daniela broke away from her friends and went to her mom, gripping her elbow tightly, “she’s here.”
Stasi paled and turned around, Bendis was almost upon them. They both smiled and bowed their heads under the weight of the Goddess’ stare.
“Thank you so much for coming” Stasi greeted her.
“Thank you for inviting me. I haven’t been to a birthday party in centuries.” Bendis nodded.
“Please, come sit, have some tea and refreshments.” Daniela was surprised her voice was as strong and steady as it was, her knees felt weak. They led her to a table where Anatolia was sitting.
“Mother,” Anatolia greeted, coolly.
“Anatolia, I had forgotten you would be here, maybe I should have appeared as my mother persona,” Bendis giggled.
“It is always unnerving to see you so much younger than me, especially when you act the age you look, but I expected nothing else.” Anatolia sipped her tea, it was a beautiful golden color and smelled divine.
“That smells wonderful, pour me a cup,” Bendis commanded.
“I’m afraid this was the last of it,” Anatolia told her, Bendis’s young face pouted.
“Let me make you another pot of that specific blend!” Daniela offered, like an eager pup.
“If you wouldn’t mind
. I know it’s your birthday, I did bring a present and left it with all the other stacked in the foyer,” Bendis beamed.
“You want that exact blend? We make it ourselves,” Daniela said proudly.
“Yes, it’s such a lovely shade, reminds me of sunshine.”
“I’ll be right back.” Daniela squeezed her mother’s hand and then quickly went into the house.
“Dani.” A whispered hiss came from one of the drawing rooms. Daniela stopped, frustrated, but it was Adella’s voice. Daniela ducked in and saw her friend was looking out the window, a serious expression on her face.
“What’s going on? Why are you hiding in here?”
“Your cousin is a demon, I see her true face.” Adella turned, pale and shaking.
“That’s nonsense, you’re letting your dad’s sermons get to you again.” Daniela tried to calm her down…she didn’t need her making a scene.
“It’s not…I can see her true face….she is evil…caused the death and suffering of many…” Adella went back to the window, eyes focused on Bendis. Daniela was hidden from the window, but she could see the Goddess. With large eyes and a sick stomach she watched as Bendis turned and seemed to stare right at Adella, that’s when the screaming started.
Adella began to shake, scratching her eyes, Daniela grabbed her, trying to keep her hands away from her face. She yelled for a maid as her friend thrashed on the floor, wailing, her eyes ruined masses in their sockets. Daniela grabbed a blanket off the chair and tried to staunch the blood flow, rocking her friend.
“Give her to me, Daniela.”
Daniela saw Anatolia, “what happened?”
“She shouldn’t have voiced her fears out loud. You better hurry and make that tea before my mother decides this was too much excitement and leaves. I will take care of Adella and her parents.” Anatolia sounded resigned and sad, “This one was special, but humans cannot look upon the true faces of a God.”
Daniela hated leaving her friend, she was scared now and shivering she darted off to the kitchen, hoping Adella would be alright. She went back into the pantry to get the ingredients and begin brewing.
Anatolia had known that her mother would want whatever she was drinking, it was in her nature, especially if it was beautiful and smelled good, so while Anatolia had gotten a Darjeeling white tea with chamomile and rose hips, they were replacing the Darjeeling with the golden flower that her grandma had sent her. The two teas looked and smelled very similar, it had taken them all night to figure it out. They couldn’t just brew it straight, the strange gold flowers had made the tea smell and taste a little like rust.
Daniela steeped the tea, watching it carefully so it was just as gold as the cup Anatolia had. When it was done she carefully took the pot outside and poured the Goddess a cup of tea. Her eyes darted around, she saw Adella and her parents were gone and her knees wobbled, she took a deep breath and tried to calm down. It wouldn’t do for Bendis to see hate or terror on her face.
“Would you like cream or sugar, perhaps honey?” Stasi asked, she was sitting across from Bendis.
“I don’t care to sweeten or change tea, what’s the point?” Bendis sipped her tea.
There was a tightness in her chest Daniela wasn’t used to. She sat next to her mother and reached under the table for her hand, butterflies in her stomach making her feel nauseated and clammy.
“It’s wonderful,” Bendis practically purred.
“I am glad you like it,” Stasi said, mouth dry.
“What are you going to do now, Daniela?” the Goddess asked, drinking more. Stasi nudged her daughter, Daniela was just staring at Bendis’s mouth.
“Oh, I want to attend school.”
“Noble goal, only another two years until you can see your grandma and father again; school will give you a diversion. I am sorry it has to be this way.” Bendis had a tinge of regret in her eyes.
“You could always change that,” Anatolia commented, coming up behind her mother. She nodded at Daniela and then sat down.
“No, once I declare something it is law.” Bendis finished her cup and held it out for more, shaking, Daniela poured it.
“I’ve spoken to others and you could change it if you wanted to,” Anatolia argued.
“Anatolia, I do not want to get into this now. Let’s just enjoy this lovely party. I wish Nea could be here to see you turn 18, Daniela.” Bendis drank again and licked her lips.
Bendis was not facing the manor’s extensive grounds, so she didn’t see what Daniela and Stasi saw. It was a good thing too, anxious excitement coursed through Daniela, she opened her mouth and said, “she is here to see me turn 18.”
Frowning the Goddess spun around in her chair, rage filling her features, her cheeks turning pink as she saw Nea, Sabine, Mihail and Ruxandra approaching. She stood up quickly, her chair hit the ground causing several conversations to stop, eyes swiveled to the young woman who seemed furious and then to what she was staring at.
“What’s going on?” Sarah Ann came to Daniela’s side, and gripped her arm, “and where is Adella?”
“Is there something wrong with your cousin? Is she sick?” Mercy appeared behind Sarah as Bendis took a few steps towards Nea, quaking from head to toe.
“Adella went home, she didn’t feel well…” Daniela murmured, eyes focused on her grandma and father.
“Who are those people?” Mercy’s eyes were wide, this was more excitement then they normally had.
“Some of my family,” Daniela answered. She glanced at her mom, as if to say, ‘what now?’
“Why didn’t Adella tell us she was leaving?” Sarah Ann seemed less interested in the commotion than she was the disappearance of their fourth.
“I don’t know. You can go check on her if you want.” Daniela’s mind was thinking as fast as it could. If Bendis could make Adella blind, who knew what she would do to her other friends?
“Are those, foxes?” Sarah Ann asked, startled, Bendis foxes, Petru and Gina had appeared by their mistress’s side, growling and larger than Daniela remembered them.
“I think we should leave…” Mercy mumbled, she caught on the fastest and something didn’t seem right.
“You may be right, Dani, come with us,” Sarah Ann said, she was gripping Mercy’s arm now.
“You girls should go back to your parents,” Stasi said. “Anatolia?”
“Do not be concerned about your friends and the other party guests, I will handle it,” Anatolia whispered getting up. She would use her magic so no one remembered any other worldly things and only that the party ended splendidly.
“Ring the house as soon as you can!” Mercy called as Antolia began leading both girls away.
“Nea, you should not be here. In fact you cannot be here! How dare you defy me? I have put up with a lot from you over the years because your family is special to me, but this!” Bendis yelled, striding towards her Strega. She didn’t even notice that her ankle shook a bit at her first step away from the table, or that her skin had a fine layer of sweat, though the Goddess could not possibly be warm.
“I am not defying you. I am here to tell you I have broken the Bathory curse,” Nea spoke quietly as the Goddess stood in front of her.
“What? Impossible, I would have felt it,” Bendis swayed on her feet suddenly.
“I think, Hecate, you are feeling it,” Sabine scoffed, enjoying the panicked expression in the Goddess’ eyes.
“We know you cast the curse on my family, have known for some time now.” Nea felt sadness, she didn’t hate this Goddess, Bendis had made her what she was, given her many great gifts, but this was the only way to save her family.
“I didn’t think breaking a curse I cast would make me feel sick,” Bendis swallowed, a nauseating feeling crawling up her throat. She fell to the ground, on her knees, head drooping. Her beloved foxes made sad yipping noises, trying to comfort her.
“It isn’t. When I said I broke the Bathory curse I meant my granddaughter did.” Nea met Daniela’s eyes.
“The tea.” Bendis moaned in understanding, “You have poisoned me?”
“Yes, the only way to end the curse is for you to die,” Nea explained.
“No! There has to be another way. Anatolia!” Bendis screamed for her daughter.
“There isn’t, you know that. I have spent centuries looking.”
“I will not die, I am a Goddess.” Her words were weak, but she still had access to her magic, she would go out fighting those who sought to destroy her. Unleashing her magic she drew the crossroads of death to her and allowed her foxes to take on their true forms. They became huge beasts and where once there was two now there were four. Black and smokey with red eyes, teeth that snapped white and sharp, in the mist that was their faces. They growled at everyone.
“Attack,” the Goddess whispered, retching into the grass.
The spirit foxes attacked, one went for the party guests behind Bendis and three went forward.
Stasi cringed as she heard one of the neighbors begin to scream as her soul was ripped from her body and eaten by the fox. Stasi advanced on it, baiting the creature to come at her instead of the remaining guests who Anatolia was desperately trying to evacuate.
Instead the demon fox went for Daniela. Stasi grabbed Daniela as one of the foxes leapt at her, she dematerialized right as it tried to bite, appearing a few feet farther away.
“How long is it going to take for her to die?” Mihail asked, dodging the beasts and using his magic to thwart them as best he could. He assumed the animals would go when the Goddess did.
“I have no idea, the sooner the better,” Sabine grinned, she had a large sword and while it didn’t seem to hurt the devil fox she was fighting, it took a few moments for the animal to regain shape after being hit by it.
Nea was preparing to advance to the fox hunting Stasi and Daniela when Ruxandra cried out for help. Nea rushed over to her as one of the animals got the upper hand and sank fangs into her leg. Once it attached nothing Ruxandra could do would stop it, it worried her leg, causing the flesh to begin turning a sickly shade of green.