Sex and the Psychic Witch

by Annette Blair

  “Grow thick soles, why don’t you?”

  “Plus I felt like an ass.”

  “For taking part in the revelry, or for being yourself?”

  “For being the only one who wasn’t enjoying himself.”

  Harmony knocked shoulders with him. “What made you stick with it?”

  “You, being such an angel to my grandson.”

  “Jake’s easy to love.”

  “Not like his Grampa, hey?”

  Breaking waves filled the awkward silence.

  King cleared his throat. “I didn’t mean—”

  “I’m sure you didn’t.”

  “How could I not follow along with Jake beating those drums, the sound of his laughter reaching me at the tail end of the parade?”

  “So what made you come back from Boston?”

  “Reggie practically told me to grow up. Get a life. Get a belief system.”

  “As in, have faith in something ?”

  “Pretty much. Turns out faith is what got her here.”

  “She’s a smart girl, and she didn’t think she needed protecting from all this, huh?”

  “All she wanted was to get back here, and she was coming with or without me.”

  “Maybe you were projecting your own need for emotional protection on her and Jake?”

  King tilted his head and gave her a noncommittal shrug. “Crazier things have happened.”

  “You know, Paxton, you might be growing up. Care to give me a demonstration?”

  Harmony caught the sudden stillness of his body, as if all systems went on alert. The intensity of his gaze in fire-light made her shiver. “What kind of demonstration?” he asked.

  “Stay with me. Hold me by the fire until dawn while I meditate in preparation for the ritual tomorrow. I need to visualize the negativity leaving the castle.”

  King stared into the fire, dealing with some inner struggle of his own, and though she could no longer discern its nature, she knew she was asking for something a great deal more intimate than sex. She understood his self-protective instinct. She’d never felt about anyone the way she felt about him, and before she fell any deeper in love, she needed to know what King Paxton was really made of.

  He stood as if he was leaving, and her hope plummeted, but he put wood on the fire, sat in the sand behind her, and wrapped his arms around her. He nosed her hair aside, let his lips roam from her shoulder to her ear. “You’re naked under this robe, aren’t you?”

  “Mmhmm.”

  “Is this a test?”

  “Mmhmm.”

  “Visualize,” he whispered. “And when you’re ready to sleep, use me as your pillow.”

  Harmony visualized . . . and woke with a start. Use him as her pillow? She’d used him as her mattress.

  King, Aiden, and Morgan were still asleep, but her sisters had left the fire.

  Harmony got up, careful not to wake King, and went inside to prepare the ritual.

  “Harmony, wait,” King called a minute later.

  She stopped. “I thought you’d sleep a little longer.”

  He took her hand and laced their fingers together. “My front got cold.”

  She leaned into him. “First time your front ever wakes up cold.”

  He kissed her neck. “There’s a difference between cold and ready.”

  She pulled his head down and blew into his ear. “I noticed.”

  Inside, Destiny and Storm were setting up the altar.

  “Harmony,” Destiny said. “We were just going to wake you. Is our high priestess ready to lead us?”

  King stopped. “High priestess?”

  Chapter Forty-five

  KING woke Aiden and Morgan and found Reggie and Jake waiting for them inside when they got back.

  The saplings forming the circle each sported a blue balloon, and a bouquet of balloons was tied to the table, er, altar, leg.

  Three gorgeous visions came down the stairs, three kittens walking behind them. Harmony—in a red robe that caressed her breasts, hugged her waist, and flowed to wide points at her hands and bare feet—wore silver sea horses on her earrings, pendant, and toe ring. But on her finger, she still wore the Celtic puzzle ring. Destiny wore butterfly jewelry with her yellow gown, and Storm wore dragon jewelry with her orange gown, each different, and beautiful all three, even the spike-haired rebel. But none were as startlingly radiant as Harmony, the high priestess.

  King didn’t know whether to be scared or turned on.

  “I invite you all to take part. If you wish, take off your shoes and step into the circle of trees.” Harmony spoke in an ordinary tone, which surprised King. “Remember,” she added, “that after I cast the ritual circle, you can’t leave until I close it down.”

  Reggie and Jake joined Destiny and Storm in the circle.

  He, Aiden, and Morgan looked at each other.

  Jake came and grabbed his hand. “Come on, Grampa,” he said, pulling uselessly. “Mama,” Jake called,

  “Grampa’s scared again.” King laughed and let his grandson lead him into the circle, and he felt . . . as if he belonged. The area radiated a kind of peaceful warmth. Or was that Harmony’s smile?

  Morgan shrugged and joined them.

  “If you don’t believe in what we’re doing,” Destiny said, “get out, because anybody who doesn’t help bring peace is feeding strife.”

  Morgan slipped his hands into his pockets. “Want me to go, King?”

  “This isn’t my ceremony,” King said. “I have to respect the girls’ wishes.”

  Morgan chuckled. “You never let anyone tell you what to do, but you’re letting a woman take control?

  You’ve changed, buddy. I guess black magick wins. Or is it sex magick?”

  “You don’t believe in any kind of magick,” Destiny snapped. “But for the record, we work white magick.”

  Morgan scoffed, and Aiden steered him toward the door. “King, I think Morgan needs me more than you do.”

  “That’s probably true,” King said. “Come back later.”

  “You don’t have a ghost of a chance,” Morgan yelled as Aiden shut the door.

  Harmony tied the balloons to Jake’s wrist. “You have an important job. Bright blue is for protection, and we chose you to protect us.”

  Jake beamed.

  God, how he loved that boy, King thought, though he’d never actually said so to Jake or Reggie. He had been scared.

  Harmony stood before the altar to face them. “We’re dressed in the colors of midsummer to honor the sun. Close your eyes and imagine sending roots into the earth like a tree.”

  Jake smiled. “My tree grows balloons instead of leaves.”

  King knew the drill.

  The girls walked the circle: “Three times around, I cleanse the circle with salt,” Storm said as she sprinkled salt while Warlock sat on her shoulder and followed a dangling earring with his eyes.

  “Three times, I cleanse the circle with water.” Destiny sprinkled water from a scallop shell, Caramello hitching a ride on her gown’s train.

  “Three times, I cleanse the circle with incense,” Harmony said, Gingertigger hopping around her skirts to catch its points.

  Jake giggled, and Reggie tried to quiet him.

  “Let him laugh,” Harmony said. “Joy makes the circle stronger.” She and her sisters began to chant:

  “We gather at the tree The root and crown so tall Together we make our call In hope, with a plea for all.”

  After making three full clockwise circles, Harmony stepped to the altar, her sisters behind her.

  “Divine light, enter this sacred sphere. Ban negativity from entering here. Peace and love, grow and adhere.”

  The mother cat jumped on King’s shoulder, and he shouted his surprise.

  “Relax, King,” Harmony said, her breath at his ear and her hand at his back, infusing him with peace.

  “Let her stay. I’m glad she’s j
oining us. She has a powerful protective energy, don’t you Star?” Harmony petted the cat, then she combed her fingers through King’s hair, raising a shiver of awareness between them, before returning to the altar.

  His peacemaker became a dagger-bearing high priestess then, and she wielded her dagger to construct a circle around them. “For a future of peace and love, this circle is cast.” She placed the dagger on the table and lit the corner candles.

  “At the dawn of the solstice sun,

  Ancient elements join as one,

  Air, fire, water, and earth

  East, south, west, and north

  With your strength let peace be won.”

  Gussie’s whimper echoed, weak but rising, the first they had heard from her with Harmony inside the castle.

  Harmony lit four tall candles in the center of the altar. “I light this candle for peace . . . this for protection .

  . . this for positive energy . . . this for harmony.”

  Gussie’s wail gained momentum and volume. The triplets hummed together, and the objects on the altar trembled:

  “Father God, Mother Goddess,

  For this island, aid in our resolve

  All negativity to absolve.

  Free its people, land, and shores,

  Sweep the evil from its doors.

  This is our will; set Paxton Castle free.

  And it harm none, so mote it be.”

  Lightning flashed, and with it, Gussie’s wail grew strong.

  Harmony looked at her sisters, and concern passed between them.

  King’s protective instincts went on alert. He knew from his stint in the parlor car that lightning was Gussie’s ally.

  “Lightning is a powerful energy,” Harmony said. “Gussie is gaining strength, so we have to grow stronger, as well.”

  Chapter Forty-six

  HARMONY hadn’t told King that in fighting such a powerful witch, her psychic and physical energy could be compromised. Yet she’d never felt more alive, more focused or determined, lightning and all.

  Nothing was more important to her than giving King, Reggie, and Jake a safe home.

  She rang the bell three times to halt the storm and evoke good energies, and she turned to face the circle.

  “The storm is forcing an unplanned addition to the ritual.” She handed a sprig of holly to each of them.

  “Holly protects against lightning and negative witchcraft,” she said, arranging holly branches on the altar to form a star.

  “Holly King soon to reign,

  Protect this home from lightning’s bane.

  Oak King, raise your staff;

  Cut lightning’s energy thrice in half.”

  Feeling a bit dizzy, Harmony rang the bell again as Gussie’s fighting wail became otherworldly.

  “Let the Paxton family thrive

  Joyful, calm, free, and alive.

  Peace and love in this home bloom,

  Safe from she who plots its doom.”

  Gussie’s howl radiated fear in the people around her. “Positive thoughts,” Harmony said. “The power of three as one will prevail.”

  She took a red velvet pouch. “Inside, I place angelica, thistle, holly, mistletoe, a hair from Gussie’s brush, and her dolphin brooch.”

  Gussie’s scream became shrill as their royal battle of wills gained momentum.

  “In your mind,” Harmony said, “add to this pouch: Gussie’s cry, Paxton home and family troubles, accidents, worry, hurt, negativity, pain, and sorrow.” She tied the pouch with a red ribbon. “Red heals, protects, and combats evil.” She set the pouch aflame with a red candle and placed it in the cauldron.

  “As smoke rises from the cauldron, so castle negativity rises and dissipates like smoke up a chimney.”

  The timbre of Gussie’s wail changed to distress.

  Destiny and Storm aligned themselves beside Harmony:

  “Augusta Paxton, this spell we cast:

  In this place, your time has passed.

  No more will you fill this air

  With wailing energy to ensnare.

  The vindication you sought for years

  Is freely given by Paxton heirs.

  And it harm none, they set you free.

  This is our will, so mote it be.”

  The lightning reenergized Gussie, so her cry came from beside the circle. The cats arched and hissed as they guarded the perimeters, and Harmony’s energy waned. She rang the bell, grasped the altar for support, and fell into a black pit.

  “Gussie! Enough!” King’s voice reached Harmony as if through a tunnel, and she knew he cradled her. “If you hurt the people I love,” he shouted, “I’ll take the castle down stone by stone and plow it under. I swear I will. Peace, Gussie! It’s time. Harmony, sunshine, wake up.”

  Someone smoothed her hair and stroked her cheek. “Des! Storm!” King shouted. “I can’t wake her!”

  Her sisters clasped her hands, and Harmony accepted the life energy they passed to her. She opened her eyes. “What happened?”

  Storm chuckled. “Gussie sucked you under, and Bomb Diggity, over here, took over the ritual. Pretty touching and resourceful, for a detached hunk with no belief system.”

  “You scared me to death,” King said, pulling her close, his heart beating double time against hers. He captured her gaze. “Harmony, I know you can do this, but do you feel well enough?”

  “You believe in me? But not in witches, psychics, or angels, right?”

  He chuckled. “I figure you have aspects of all three—though, rarely, the angel—but yes, I believe in you.” His loving kiss helped replenish her well of strength, and she leaned on him to stand.

  “I’m ready,” she said. “Hold hands and imagine that Gussie is a spiral of smoke going up the chimney.”

  She took King’s cane and placed it on the altar. “You don’t need the cane for this. We’ll hold you up.”

  The six of them formed an inner circle.

  “Can the purple lady play ring around the rosy with us?” Jake asked.

  Harmony looked around. “Is she here, Jake?”

  “She’s watching us, and she’s sad.”

  “Gussie,” Harmony said. “Lisette sent me to help you find peace.”

  Brahms’s “Lullaby” wafted into the room, while inside the circle, someone hummed. Harmony looked at each of them, all shocked by the sound, all denying the source.

  Had Lisette joined the circle to lend her strength from the beginning? “Jake, is there a girl in the circle wearing a faded gown?”

  Jake nodded. “She cares about Gussie.”

  Harmony nodded toward her sisters. “Now!”

  “With the grace of the angels and elements, we bless you, Augusta ‘Gussie’ Paxton, and free you from the negative forces empowering you, so you may find eternal peace and rest.

  We bless and free you with the power of the God and Goddess!

  We bless and free you with the power of the sun, moon, and stars!

  We bless and free you with the power of the angels!

  We bless and free you with the power of earth, air, fire, water!

  With the grace of the angels and elements, we bless you, Augusta ‘Gussie’ Paxton, and free you from the negative forces empowering you, so you may find eternal peace and rest.”

  Gussie wept quietly.

  “I honestly feel bad for her,” King said, and at his words, his cane flew from the altar, into the air, hit the rafters, and shattered. Debris rained down on them, and the cane’s gold tip bounced at his feet. King picked it up, took a tiny leather box from inside, opened it, and looked up. “The female half of the ring.”

  He took it out and read the band. “What does your half say?”

  “Love eternal,” Harmony whispered.

  King took her hand, removed her half, snapped the two pieces together, and held it for them to see. “The Paxton Celtic lovers’
ring, at last.” He took her hand, again, and Harmony bit her lip against hope as he slipped the coupled ring on her finger. Still holding her hand, he gazed into her eyes. “Love eternal . . .

  when bound we be,” he said, revealing the full engraving, then he bent to kiss her, the most gentle and . . .

  loving . . . kiss imaginable. “Hold that thought,” he said, straightening.

  Harmony trembled inside, while Gussie wept, and the cats stopped hissing.

  “The purple lady is sorry,” Jake said. “She’s gonna go with the girl, so we can have the castle.” Jake hugged King’s legs. “I love you, Grampa. Can we live here forever?”

  “Yes,” King said. “We can. I love you, Jake, and I love you, Reggie.” He drew his daughter close.

  “Welcome home.”

  Gussie’s last, unexpected sob burst like a glass ball into a million echoing shards of . . . joy.

  Then . . . silence. Blessed silence.

  The cats did a psycho-cat dance of joy, backflipping, altar-hopping, and running up pants legs. Jake giggled and went psycho with them.

  Still trembling inside at the implications of the Paxton ring on her finger, Harmony continued the ritual. She broke and shared a warm loaf of honey-drizzled bread among them, leaving a plate on the altar to honor and thank the Goddess.

  She and King kissed between bites. “We still have to give thanks,” she whispered against his lips.

  He winked. “We certainly do.”

  She returned to the altar.

  “God and Goddess, angels fair, Earth, fire, water, and air,Thank you for our bountiful fare Especially for this peace so rare.”

  “Amen,” King said.

  “Des and Storm, extinguish the candles, if you will.”

  Harmony closed her eyes, bowed her head, and raised it. “The circle is open.”

  King winked. “Are we free to move about the cabin?”