by Aria Sparke
‘This is a very short visualization session today,’ Cecilia announced. With no explanation or gentle introduction, I had to sink or swim.
Everyone lay on their backs on the padded mats like an ordinary meditation class, so I followed their lead.
‘Last week I had a vision of an attack being planned near Greenday Hotel on Southby Street in south Wicklow,’ Cecilia said. ‘I want everyone to visualize the area and when I call time, we’ll compare notes.’
After Cecilia turned the lights down, I lay in the darkened room listening to the others breathing. Max was lying next to me and each time he inhaled, the back of his throat clicked throwing my concentration. There was no way I could relax and in any case I didn’t know the hotel. When I had grown stiff and bored, Cecilia flicked the lights on. She walked to the whiteboard at the front of the room and turned to the group. ‘Ready?’
Bella raised her hand. ‘I saw two teenage boys, sixteen or seventeen-year-olds, one blond and the other dark-haired.’
‘Thanks, Bella.’ Cecilia scribbled the notes on the board. ‘Anyone else?’
‘In my vision it was raining, and both boys were attacked,’ Max said.
‘Good, thanks,’ Cecilia said.
Max beamed proudly.
‘I also saw a red-haired girl.’
‘Excellent, Max,’ said Cecilia. ‘I visualized her too, hiding behind two parked cars.’
Max stole a glance at me with a self-satisfied expression.
A thin, pale girl with straw-blond hair, who hadn’t said a word when I was introduced to the group, raised her hand and murmured, ‘There were four attackers—Vincent, Samir, Odeta and a new vampire.’
Cecilia seemed stunned. ‘Are you sure, Alice?’
Sickened by her mention of Vincent, I felt an urge to run from the room, especially as I knew they were describing another of his planned attacks. As for the other names, Samir and Odeta, it only meant there were more vampires to worry about.
‘I’m certain. Friday week, early afternoon. They attack from the eastern end of the parking lot.’
‘Great, thanks.’ Cecilia sighed as though worried by the mounting information. ‘Anyone else?’
The other girl in the group raised her hand.
‘Harper?’
‘I don’t know, but my vision was weird. I usually see it in full color, but this time it was faded.’
‘I’m sure it was fine. I receive mine in all shades,’ Cecilia said. ‘What did you see?’
‘What Alice saw, but the vamps were almost transparent. I could see through them and that’s never happened before.’
‘Oh dear, the mighty Harper’s losing it,’ Max said.
Liam groaned at Max. There was obviously no love lost between the boys and Max seemed a pain.
‘Okay, is that all?’ Cecilia asked.
The group was silent.
‘Lily?’
I shrugged at Cecilia self-consciously, not really sure what she expected of me.
‘That’s okay. You’ll get the hang of it,’ she said.
Hang of what?
‘Great work, everyone,’ Cecilia said. ‘So we are in agreement there’ll be a vampire attack Friday night next week at the hotel. I’ll give Alexis the details we’ve gathered, but if anyone visualizes anymore before then let me know immediately. Class is dismissed—except for you, Lily.’
After the others had left the room, Cecilia snapped her fingers so the blinds retracted letting the subdued light outside filter into the room again. ‘Don’t worry if you couldn’t visualize anything. It takes years of practice to do it at will. Elise said when you were younger you usually saw things in your dreams. That’s how most of us began in our childhood.’
Wait, she spoke to my mother? When?
‘Now that you’re eighteen, it will get easier to see. That’s the way witchcraft works.’
‘Do I need to think of someone to trigger the vision?’
‘It helps, but really we’re just catchers and filters of paranormal evil. When I say evil, I mean vampire attacks and murders.’
I narrowed my eyes. ‘Did you see my attack?’
She shook her head. ‘We only see premeditated evil and not all instances of it. Vincent Berisha was probably on the prowl and you were unlucky to encounter him.’
‘So it was probably a random attack?’
‘I’m certain of it.’ Cecilia crouched on the floor and plucked a few sticks of colored chalk from her canvas bag. ‘Okay, now I’m going to show you something I expect will come as a surprise.’ She sat cross-legged before drawing a large yellow circle around herself.
I must have been frowning because she said, ‘Don’t look so worried.’
Cecilia took purple and green chalk and drew a series of words and symbols. After surveying her handiwork for a few moments, she took a candle from the bag and lit it before setting it down within the circle. ‘And this, my dear, is a circle of protection.’
‘Protection from vampires?’
She nodded. ‘This is your first task. Learn and memorize it because your life depends on it.’
Flustered, I realized I hadn’t taken notes.
Cecilia reached into her bag and handed me an old leather-bound book and a small midnight blue bag with stars printed on it. ‘You’ll find chalk and candles in the bag and the spell at the beginning of the book.’
‘Thanks.’ I pointed at her chalk work. ‘It doesn’t seem too difficult.’
She smiled wryly. ‘Yes, it looks simple, but if you make one slight error, it’ll fail. That’s okay in the classroom because you can step out of the circle and begin again. But if time is of the essence and vamps are on your doormat, you won’t get a second chance. The visualizations are important to our dhampirs but this,’ she pointed to the circle, ‘is life or death for us. And without us, the dhampirs are blind.’
At times it was disconcerting because she looked and sounded so much like my mother, but she was aloof making it painful and difficult to be with her alone.
Why hadn’t she reached out to me since Mom’s death? A sudden thought crossed my mind that perhaps she too was suffering and unable to connect. I hoped that was the real reason. With time I might grow to understand and even forgive her, but for now she was just my teacher.
* * *
Later in the evening I sat on my bathroom floor with the green leather-bound book propped open. The circle of protection spell was handwritten in beautiful gray script and someone had painted the symbols in watercolor paint on the cream, textured page. After carefully following the instructions, I surveyed my first circle of protection with pride.
Someone knocked on the door and when I heard Flynn’s voice, I called for him to come inside.
‘Where are you?’ he asked from the bedroom.
‘In here. Come and see what I’ve made.’
Flynn pushed the door open and propped when he saw me sitting on the floor. ‘Wow, your first circle of protection.’
‘You recognize it?’
He nodded. ‘Of course. I feel its power too.’
‘Are you going to test it for me?’ I asked.
Flynn shuddered. ‘Not likely. It’s lethal to dhampirs as well as vampires. If I crossed that outer yellow line, I’d be dead before I tried to take another breath.’
Shocked, I stood up. ‘Oh crap, no one told me how it actually works. I just assumed it was like insect repellent to a bug. How do I cancel it?’
‘Blow out the candle and smudge the yellow circle to break it.’
‘So, is that it? I just need to perfect this circle and learn to visualize and I’m set as a Ruberio witch?’
Flynn burst into laughter. ‘You obviously haven’t looked at the book yet.’
I smudged the chalk and blew out the candle before picking up the book from the floor. After I quickly leafed through the pages, I saw it was packed with spells, and as I browsed their names and descriptions, it dawned on me this was only the beginning.
‘Fro
m what I understand, some of the truly great witches like Cecilia have mastered hundreds of spells. That book’s a beginner’s volume.’
‘You’re joking?’ I sat close to Flynn on the bed feeling his familiar warmth and smelling his spicy aftershave.
‘You can get by with a few spells as long as you perform them perfectly.’
A wave of panic swept over me as I wondered how I was going to fit my future studies in with spell practice.
Flynn stroked my head. ‘Don’t fret.’
I melted with his gentle touch. ‘I’m fine.’
‘Some witches specialize in certain areas, concentrating on what they’re good at. Spells are devoted to different needs and talents such as cloaking, physical attack, mind reading, dreams, shape shifting and healing. Time will tell where your talents lie.’
I nodded as my fear slowly dissolved into anticipation and an eagerness to know who I could become.
Flynn ran his fingers over my cheek and down the side of my throat and then drew me toward him to kiss. ‘I’ve missed us.’
‘Me too,’ I said as our lips met and my thoughts dissolved.
* * *
CHAPTER 24
A Different Eye
By the end of the break, I had attended witchcraft classes faithfully every day. My visualizations were nonexistent, and to my mind I was flunking. Everyone else was piecing together vital details and images of the planned attack, but I couldn’t see a single vampire on the horizon. Although the spells were regarded as kindergarten level by the other witches, I had labored to memorize and perfect only three of them: the circle of protection, a cloaking spell and a simple ward spell to prevent vampires entering my room. I had just begun to learn one to help me resist vampires, but it was complicated and I had failed to master it.
According to Flynn this spell was necessary because vampires could cast a charm offensive known as glamour that rendered humans powerless. He admitted the day we had escaped from the Heavenly Beans cafe he had used his to overwhelm the woman who had acted so adoringly toward him. I really didn’t want to be drooling helplessly at a Berisha male’s feet when he smiled or winked at me. I also warned Flynn that if he ever tried that trick on me, it would be the last time we were together.
I realized I would need to be able to construct a circle of protection at warp speed, so I practiced it every day. The only problem was that the quicker I drew it, the sloppier my drawn symbols became, and I had no way of knowing whether the circle would work if it were defective. Flynn came to the rescue with a strange present the day after I had shown him my first circle.
Puzzled, I untied the string and opened the neat box he’d given me. Inside were piles of brown paper strips. ‘Can you give me a clue?’
‘They’re test strips.’
‘For what purpose?’
‘Once you’ve drawn your circle of protection, put one of them on the yellow line and you’ll know if you’ve drawn it successfully.’
Curious, I took the box into the bathroom where I’d left the chalk and candles with Flynn following me.
I sat cross-legged and drew the circle and symbols carefully before lighting the candle.
‘Okay, take one strip from the box and place it on the yellow line,’ said Flynn grinning.
Cautiously I picked a strip up between my fingernails and placed it on the chalk line. As I withdrew my fingers, the tiny strip of paper popped and flared into flame.
Flynn clapped his hands. ‘Perfect, congratulations.’
‘How does it work?’
‘Promise it won’t gross you out?’
‘Okay.’
‘Each paper strip contains drops of dhampiric blood.’
‘That’s gross.’
‘I suppose, but isn’t it better to know if your circle’s working?’
‘Thanks, Flynn.’
‘Not a problem and plenty more where that came from. It’s kind of fun watching the paper explode. If you glue a stack of them together, you can get a real bang.’
* * *
On Friday, the day of the expected attack, I met Flynn at dinner after a particularly grueling visualization session with Cecilia and the group. I was anxious because he was due to leave with the other dhampirs in the evening to hunt the vampires Cecilia and the other witches had predicted were going to be at the hotel.
‘I’m useless at this visualization stuff. Everyone floated off into their chilled out trances while I lay there listening to my stomach growl and resisting a nose itch.’ I shook my head. ‘It’s not working, Flynn.’
‘Maybe it takes time to perfect. No one’s depending on you, so it’s okay.’
I loved that Flynn always seemed to understand and encourage me. He had driven me to the parking lot of the Greenday Hotel last weekend and I had taken photos of it with my cell phone, but I still couldn’t raise a single vision other than picturing it empty. ‘It’s weird because the day and time is right in my vision and the image of the parking lot is intense, but in my vision it’s deserted.’
‘Have you told Cecilia?’
‘Yes. She said don’t worry like she always does and told me not to try to force it. Thankfully, I wasn’t the only one in the group to have problems.’
‘Really?’
‘Yes, a girl called Harper said her vision was faded and that the vampires seemed transparent. She was bothered because apparently she’s usually the best at visualization in the group. One of the boys was teasing her over it.’
Flynn frowned. ‘Ever thought you may be right?’
Shocked at the thought, I immediately dismissed his idea.
‘Trust yourself, Lily. I do. Remember, you come from a great lineage of witches.’
I reached for his hand and brought his fingers to my lips and kissed them. ‘Tell me you’ll be careful tonight.’
He closed his fingers over mine.
Instantly a wave of imagery flooded my mind causing me to drop his hand and stagger backwards. I needed air.
‘What’s wrong?’
‘Berisha. I had a horrible vision. Oh, no! Three people.’
‘Tell me about it.’ Flynn’s face had drained beyond his usual pale to a translucent tone.
‘There was a room with a coffin. I know it well.’
He seemed shocked. ‘But how?’
‘It’s been in my dreams night after night—since I turned eighteen.’ I gasped for air again.
Flynn shook his head in frustration. ‘You’re describing the normal bedroom of any vampire. Think, Lily, what did you see?’
Tears ran down my cheeks. ‘Three vampires are going to attack a woman, Flynn, but I couldn’t see her face and I don’t know when.’
Flynn looked at me strangely. ‘Stay here. Lock your door. Try to focus on your vision. When I return with the others from the raid in Wicklow, I’ll come back and check on you. Don’t open your door until you hear my voice. Promise? The college is well protected by ward magic that was reinforced this week, so you’ll be fine if you stay put.’
‘Okay. And you’ll be careful too?’
‘Of course,’ Flynn said. ‘We’ve a big group going and we’re well prepared.’
Even though he reassured me, I couldn’t ignore the bad feeling gathering in my heart. Next time they went on a raid I vowed I’d be ready to stand alongside them with my spells mastered.
Once Flynn left, I lay on my bed with the curtains drawn worrying about him and those going to Wicklow with him. I closed my eyes and tried to distract myself by recreating the partial vision I’d seen earlier. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t see anything. Exhausted by the effort, I eventually fell asleep. In my dreams I floated over the Greenday Hotel parking lot and it was empty and quiet. As I slipped deeper into my dreams, I began to fly. Elated with the sensation, I drifted over the nightscape spellbound by the crescent moon hanging in the dark sky, the flickering stars and the golden street lights of Wicklow. My flight took me to the outskirts of town. I was moving faster now and in the distanc
e I saw the lights of Anubis College. But my dreams took me further over the road that led to Flynn’s family home. When I spotted the small lights flickering between dark hills, I slowed. With no control over my body, I let the dream take me to the grounds of his home, up the pink-pebbled drive to the mansion and straight through a brick wall into the living room I had visited before.
It was there I saw him, Vincent Berisha creeping up the stairs. Three vampires remained in the living room—a female and two males. In the corner of my eye, I caught a movement from the floor.
‘Mirela!’ I tried to scream but was voiceless. I tried to slam a door to attract her attention, yet my hand went straight through it. Powerless, I watched as the vampires in the living room hovered over Mirela seemingly relishing her obvious terror. She tried to scream and I yelled at them to leave her alone, but they didn’t hear. In an instant they set upon her taking turns in a frenzy of biting and sucking until her screams died to whimpers and then silence. Within a couple of minutes she lay curled on the floor like an empty white shell.
A howl from upstairs was swiftly followed by a slamming of doors and Vincent Berisha stomping from a room to the landing above.
‘You greedy fools! You couldn’t wait until I’d unearthed him from his stasis and destroyed him. You killed her, so he woke and fled before I could get to him.’ His face contorted with fury and disgust. ‘You idiots, our attack was futile.’
Suddenly I found myself being sucked backwards over the landscape I’d flown over before. When I woke gasping for air, my room was dark. Scrambling from my bed, I rushed into the hall and down the stairs to Alexis’ office but it was closed. According to the clock in the foyer it was almost midnight. Panicking, I tried to think of what I should do. I ran to the dining hall, which was always open for late night tea and coffee. A few students sat around talking. I spotted Bella at the far end of the room and ran toward her.