by Martha Woods
Morgan and Kristian were going to have the biggest temper tantrums after they found out what Veronica had begun. They would have to learn to live with it.
Calla stood before Tessa for a moment. The witch was a few inches taller than Tessa. It looked strange to see the taller woman drop to her knees before the shorter, dark haired Tessa. She held out a hand toward Veronica, palm open.
“I know you have a blade strapped to your body somewhere. I can’t rip my own skin open,” she said.
Veronica yanked a small knife from a sheath in her boot and placed it in Calla’s hand. She didn’t think twice about it. The witch was not going to attack them. She just knew it.
Calla drew the sharp edge of the knife across her palm. The smell of blood filled the air. Calla’s blood smelled different. It was sweet and spicy all at once. Was that what Tessa had tasted like? This rare treat tempted Veronica’s hunger, but she held her hands at her side. Calla flexed her fingers and the blood welled into her palm. For a long moment, she simply stared at the pool of blood. Then her lips began to move. She said the words of the oath over the blood and Veronica could see the magic swirling inside it.
“Take of me, for I am a part of you,” Calla said. “I am your shield, your tool. I am your faithful servant.”
She helf her palm up to Tessa. There was a whiteness to Tessa’s face that said she wasn’t quite ready for this, but it was their only option. Veronica wanted to scream at her, ask her if she wanted to save this witch’s life at all. Eventually, Tessa took the blade from Calla and drew it across her own palm.
The smell of blood filled the air, intoxicating. Veronica bit her lip to fight against the hunger that welled up inside of her. She watched as Tessa’s hand met with Calla’s, their blood mingling. The magic sang through their blood. It ignited the oath, filling the room with a soft wind that blew out of nowhere. Both of the witches’ eyes opened wider.
Calla shrunk in on herself, the wound in her hand healing from the magic that they’d just shared. Tessa stared at her own palm, the wound now gone. Just then, the door burst open. Kristian and Morgan appeared in the door. Kristian’s eyes took in Calla heaped on the floor and Tessa’s wrists clutched tightly in Veronica’s grip. His lips formed a thin line.
“Before you yell at us, listen,” Veronica said, her voice calm and steady.
“You are in no place to be telling me what to do,” Kristian growled, stepping toward her.
Before Morgan could move, Veronica closed the space between her and her brother. She looked into his face, nearly as tall as he was.
“This is no longer a time when men are in control simply for being men,” Veronica told her brother. “I made a decision that spared this witch’s life, yet kept us safe. Do not think to come in here and berate me for being strong and compassionate.”
“What did you do?” Morgan asked.
She turned to face him. “Calla is now in Tessa’s possession. She has taken a blood oath to serve Tessa, her high priestess for the rest of her life.” She looked to her brother. “Calla never wanted to take part in Deidre’s plan. This way, she is not punished for the other’s woman’s aspirations and we know for sure that she never will raise a hand against us again.”
“You aren’t going to have me cleaning toilets, are you?” Calla grumbled on the floor. “Or feeding your boyfriend at all hours?”
Tessa shook her head. “I don’t want a slave. You’re free to do whatever you like here with us. Veronica even offered you her room.”
“What?” Kristian snapped.
“I think it’s about time that I moved out, big brother. I might be about two hundred years overdue. I promise that I won’t go far.” She reached for Morgan’s hand. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tessa smile. She’d been up in their relationship since the beginning. Of course she was happy to be finally getting what she wanted out of them.
“I don’t think I’ve seen you smoke once since you’ve gotten here,” Tessa pointed out.
It dawned on Veronica that she had lost her pack of cigarillos somewhere along the line. They were possibly in a bathroom in California. Or, they could be in a ditch somewhere east of there with the hunk of metal that had been the Shelby. But, she hadn’t wanted one since then, either.
“I guess you’re right,” she responded. “I traded cigarettes for killing witches.”
Tessa laughed. Kristian had a look of worry weighing his brows, but Tessa pulled him into her arms. His arm instinctively wrapped around her, a wall against the world.
* * *
Calla led Tessa to her suitcase. Veronica followed, hands in her pockets, pretending not to be interested. The witch dug around in her belongings before coming up with a cloth bound book. It looked old and worn with age. When she cracked it open, Veronica could see the years of handwritten words on the pages. The handwriting would change every so often.
“This is my family’s grimoire. It is how we keep track of our blood lines, our tales, and the such,” Calla said as she flipped through the pages. She was clearly searching for something in particular. “There we are.”
She turned the book around and handed it to Tessa. Veronica peered over her shoulder to read it. Written across the page in a slanted cursive writing was a prophecy.
There will be a child, not born of love but of a night of magic. She shall be of two Clans, the Firehaven brought back into the flame. It is her blood that shall bring the Calder to a power never seen before. With this power they will rule over the world with fire and brimstone.
“I don’t like the sound of this,” Veronica said. She rubbed her hand over her face, thinking back to how she’d once asked Tessa to leave for her brother’s sake. Why couldn’t she have done that?
Because, Veronica told herself, then she’d already be in the hands of the Calder. Then they’d all be screwed.
“With my blood?” Tessa’s voice cracked. The book shook in her hands. She looked like she was about two seconds from throwing it across the room.
Calla nodded. “I think they mean to sacrifice you. By killing you they claim a power greater than has ever been seen before.”
“Were the Calder to get their hands on a power like that then they would be unstoppable,” Veronica said. “As it is, they’re already natural born killers. We must keep you away from them, not only for my brother’s sake, but for the world’s sake.”
“Fire and brimstone definitely does not sound good,” Tessa attempted to make light of what she’d just learned. Veronica laid a comforting hand on her shoulder.
“Fire and brimstone?” Veronica mused aloud. “Where is that pesky demon when you need her? Are the Calder born from demons? Will Tessa’s blood give them the full power of a demon in hell?”
Calla’s face turned as white as a sheet. It was one thing to have a lesser demon bouncing around in a teenager’s body, but to have a full demon walking the streets of any city felt terrifying.
“I do not know if they were ever demons. What we’ve been able to surmise, the Calder were the product of women creating pacts with demons and devils for power. I think that Tessa’s sacrifice will tear a hole in the veil so that they can claim the full power of that pact all at once.”
“So you’re saying that this...gift comes from a dark place?” Tessa asked, staring down at the book in her hands. “You’re telling me that my ability to read minds came from a demon pact?”
“My power came from the same place as yours,” Calla reminded her. “At this point, it no longer matters where the power once came from. Now, it is about what you do with your power. I have chosen to use mine for the better of my people. At least, I had. Now, I use it to protect you.”
Tessa nodded. “Would you mind if I borrowed your grimoire?”
Calla hesitated before nodding.
Tessa turned to leave, but hesitated in the doorway. She looked up to Veronica. Her eyes were so full of emotions that Veronica couldn’t pick out a single one. She hugged the grimoire close to her chest.
<
br /> “I think it’s high time that I become something that they fear.” Veronica could hear Tessa swallow hard after she spoke. “I’ve forced this… part of myself down for so long that I’m afraid I’ll never find it, but I will. I will for you, for Kristian. For him I’d destroy myself.”
Veronica felt the weight of her words and it left a heaviness in her own heart. She hoped to the stars and back that it wouldn’t have to come to that, but the heaviness warned her that it just might.
“You’re not that bad of a person,” Calla called out to Tessa. “I was worried that your Calder lineage would have festered inside of you; that you’d be rotten. Instead, I’m… I’m happy that I pledged my life to you.”
Tessa smiled and despite her tight lips, Veronica could see the hope in Tessa’s eyes.
* * *
Kristian was extremely uneasy about Veronica moving out at first. Then, when she told him that she’d only be moving to one of the lower suites, for now, he calmed down. He worried for her. He was her big brother and while he hadn’t always been able to take care of her, he tried to. He would just have to deal when she visited the Valley house every once in awhile.
Calla slept in Veronica’s room. It wasn’t as awkward as she thought it would be. Calla spent much of active time during the day, leaving junk food bags around the house and DVD cases in piles near the TV. Veronica suspected that Charley was to blame for a good deal of the mess since Tessa was nearly nocturnal with Kristian while she studied Calla’s grimoire, but it made the place feel more like a home.
It made it easier to ignore the dark cloud looming in their future. There were high stakes on all sides and while they had new help and a budding super witch under their roof, there was no promise that they’d all make it out of this alive...or undead.
Morgan took her by the hand, dragging her up to the roof. The last time that she’d been there had been to yell at Ally. She hadn’t know about Ally’s relationship with Ryan. She had lost her lover to the witches and Veronica had only thought of her brother. Now, Morgan held her hand as they stood on the edge of the building. There was another building, a leap away.
Both she and Kristian suddenly had so much to lose. The Calder had threatened them all of their undead lives, but there had never been a threat like this before. If the Calder were able to get their hands on Tessa, then there would be an even greater danger ahead of them. Not only that, but she believed that it would destroy a part of her brother like Serena had. She couldn’t afford to put Kristian at risk like that. She hadn’t been there to prevent Serena from happening and she couldn’t keep him away from Tessa now.
They had to keep Tessa safe at all costs.
He looked to her and smiled. It was the dangerous, predatory smile that she loved. It meant that the hunt was on. She would catch herself a Calder witch tonight. The whole flock should fear her for this was her family and she would protect it at all costs.
Clash Of The Covens
(Book Three of the Calder Witches Series)
Martha Woods
© 2017 Martha Woods
All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
* * *
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Part One
Things weren’t going well for Calla, to say the least. Granted, things could have been worse. Considering she could have been left to rot on that iron table… Well, it made being forced to serve Tessa all the more bearable. Her eyes flickered over to Tessa as she sat on the couch across from her. Calla had no ill-will toward her. In fact, she was doing what she thought she had been all along—protecting her so that the power didn’t fall into the hands of the Calder.
He was the problem. Her attention drew to the vampire sitting next to Tessa on the couch. Kristian had zero trust in Calla, treating her more like a criminal than someone who was protecting his love. After what Deidre had dragged Calla into, she didn’t blame him. It was just annoying. He assigned her a babysitter until she could prove that she was to be trusted. She would have figured a blood oath would have been enough to prove her innocence, but apparently, she was wrong.
“It feels so weird to be able to just sit around,” Tessa stated, breaking the thick silence that hung over the apartment, the only sound coming from the television that no one was paying attention to.
“Don’t get used to it,” Kristian sighed, running a hair through Tessa’s thick black hair. “Who knows when we will have to move again.”
He’s a bucket of sunshine, isn’t he? Calla thought, knowing Tessa would be able to hear it. It earned her a glare from Tessa. Tessa turned her attention back to Kristian, placing a hand on his leg in a comforting manner. “That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t enjoy the downtime.”
“I suppose you’re right,” he admitted. He gazed at her a few long moments before his lips pulled into a small smile. “Let’s go out for a bit. Enjoy the city while we’re here.”
Tessa nodded excitedly. After Deidre’s stunt, they had all been cooped up in their apartments, all too on edge to go out. Calla was brimming with jealousy as she watched them head for the door, chatting quietly to themselves as they put on their coats and slip outside. When the door closed, there was nothing but silence.
Calla let out a long sigh. Great. Now she was just left here with her glorified babysitter. She looked over to Jared. He was sat in the corner of the room in an off-white armchair, his eyes fixated on Calla. He radiated an intense aura. Calla bet he had a hair-triggered temper. With his strong, broad form, he certainly wasn’t someone you would want on the other team. His build reminded her of a Roman gladiator, stocky with a wide chest and biceps as big as her head. As she studied him, Calla had to admit to herself how handsome he was.
Typically, she refrained from such personal thoughts. Being around mind-reading witches all her life made her cautious to ever indulge in deeper thinking past first impressions. Looking at him then, even from several paces away, Calla could make out the fine details of his bone structure. Impossibly high cheekbones, chiseled jawline, and a pin-straight nose that widened slightly at the nostrils. His lips were plush with a perfect curve to his cupid’s bow. The most striking, and peculiar thing had to be his eyes. The cocoa skinned man, with a shaved head and neatly trimmed facial hair had stunning, pale blue eyes. Calla had never seen someone of his complexion with such light eyes. She wondered if he were mixed in some way, or maybe had a mutated gene. His eyes were insanely intimidating with the contrast between his skin and eyes being so stark.
Jared’s eyes narrowed at her as she stared. Tuning into his thoughts, Calla wasn’t surprised to find the same loop that he was always thinking when she was around. Stop trying to read my mind, stop trying to read my mind, he chanted mentally. She wondered if he did it around Tessa too. With her still trying to gain control over her ability, she couldn’t tune out thoughts like Calla could. Even just listening to Jared’s thoughts for a few minutes was grating. She didn’t like that he was blocking her out so blatantly. Trying to stir a reaction, Calla called over, “Your goatee is stupid.”
It was childish, but it was enough for his brows to knit together and jaw to set in place in frustration. Calla could sense his thoughts fading from the chant for a moment, his annoyance bubbling to the surface before quickly being replaced with that mind-numbing chant.
“You’re going to degrade your intelligence with such dull thoughts,” Calla chastised.
There was no response, Jared just glaring at her.
“I don’t bite,” she cooed. “Unlike you.”
Her joke wasn’t appreciated, Jared’s eyes staying intense and his expressions stoic.
Letting out a loud, frustrated breath, Calla pulled herself to her feet. There was nothing to do there but watch television, and Calla hardly indulged in human programming. Without anything to do, she headed to the bedroom she was staying in. Would it be appropriate to call it her own? Glancing behind her, seeing Jared follow her down the hall, she corrected her previous notion. Their room. Kristian’s lack of trust ran deep within him, not allowing her hardly any privacy.
Once inside the room, she stepped over to the bathroom attached to it. Turning back once again, Jared was standing just a foot away from the bathroom door. “I’m going to shower. You’re welcome to watch me, but it’ll cost you,” Calla tried to joke.
Jared simply turned on a heel and walked to his bed on the other side of the room. Calla pushed the door shut, shaking her head. Who had they gotten to watch her? A golem? Turning on the hot water, steam slowly began to fill the air as she stripped herself of her clothes. She freed her springy, vivid auburn curls from the ponytail she had contained them in. Stepping into the hot shower, Calla let out a sigh. At least she had a moment alone in there, not being watched and constantly judged.
It didn’t take long for her to remember why she didn’t exactly prefer solitude. Her own thoughts attacked her as the last few weeks replayed like a movie in her head. Deidre coming to her, asking for her help for a mission that was “most important”. She had so easily filled Calla’s head with the notion of Tessa needing to be brought back to the clan. That she was involved with a family of vampires that could so easily be targeted and tracked by the Calder. If only Calla would have known Deidre was the Calder. The shame and guilt of it all weighed heavily on the young witch’s mind. She hadn’t seen her sisters in weeks, and Calla wasn’t sure if she would ever be able to face them again. Deidre had tricked her, and she switched her alliance to Tessa without consulting the clan. They would hate her.