Witch's Awakening

by Neely Powell

  Right now, Delia was talking in a low, angry voice to Aiden. She kept glaring at Sarah while Aiden touched her arm, obviously trying to calm her. Fiona joined them and sat down, turning to her father for comfort. How did that come so naturally for her sister? Brenna never felt that easy around their mother and father.

  “What are you thinking?” Jake leaned close to her.

  She sighed and allowed herself to brace herself against his warmth. Despite the close confines of this room, she felt chilled, especially recalling what Fiona said.

  “I’m wondering who the traitor is,” Brenna whispered.

  “So you believe Fiona?”

  “She would never lie, especially about something like that.” However, her sister begged Brenna and Jake not to say anything to anyone else, to allow her time to think about what happened. Brenna had promised with reluctance, but she knew this had to be confronted.

  “Do you think she’ll tell your mother and father?”

  Brenna shrugged. “We’ll see.”

  Brian appeared in the doorway, looking about as haggard as Brenna felt. There had been little time for sleep since the weekend. Jake stepped out into the hallway to talk with his deputy.

  When they came back inside, Brian told everyone, “Siren’s Call is locked up and has a deputy stationed outside.”

  “That makes me feel better,” Brenna said with sarcasm. “I’m sure the Woman in White will quake in her ghostly shoes.”

  Brian’s tired green eyes flashed in anger. “Hey, it’s all we can do at this point. Your magical solutions haven’t been working too well.”

  Instantly contrite, Brenna said, “I’m sorry, Brian.”

  “Whatever.” He crossed the room to his mother. Diane broke away from the others to wrap Brian in her arms.

  “We’re waiting to hear from the surgeon,” Eva Grace told him.

  Jake stepped up and squeezed Brenna’s shoulder. “It’s no big deal,” he reassured her in a quiet voice. “Brian knows everyone is exhausted, and he’s really worried about his grandmother. He knows you didn’t mean anything.” His ability to sense her thoughts was both comforting and disconcerting for Brenna.

  He signaled for everyone’s attention. “Brian just told me that the deputies found the shard of glass that most likely injured Doris. It was from a glass candle holder, very thick and too sharp to just have been broken.”

  Brian shook his head. “I can’t explain it, but it looked to me as if it had been made into a weapon to do just what it did—stab someone.”

  “There are just too many things we can’t explain.” Brenna turned to Fiona, willing her sister to bring up Celia’s warning. They needed to fit the pieces of the puzzle together.

  Jake made another announcement. “I also got a fax about Sandy Murphy late this afternoon. The coroner said she died of a massive coronary.”

  “She was only twenty years old!” Eva Grace protested. “Young and healthy. She ran marathons.”

  “I know,” Jake said. “I called the coroner and he said he wouldn’t admit it in court, but if he had to guess, he’d say she was scared to death.”

  “Is that even possible?” Brenna asked.

  “I’m just telling you what the report said. I’m frustrated and wish like hell Garth was here. He was better at dealing with supernatural problems than I’ll ever be.”

  Eva Grace sagged back in her chair. “I don’t think he would have a clue what to do about this.” She looked around the room. “The Woman in White has visited my shop twice. Killed one person and injured another. She’s after me.”

  Aunt Estelle took her niece’s hand. “Remember, we think what killed Sandy was a demon.”

  “But the Woman was in front of us tonight,” Eva Grace insisted. “She tried to kill Doris.”

  Delia left Aiden’s side and went to Eva Grace as well. “The Woman is breaking her pattern.”

  Brenna nodded in agreement with her mother. “This is the second time she has appeared without taking a tribute. Nowhere in any of the history that we’ve found is there record of her manifesting to Connellys like this. Surely that means something.”

  “Maybe she’s taunting us,” Lauren said from the doorway. Brenna’s beautiful cousin stood arm in arm with Maggie. Only then did Brenna realize these two members of the coven had been missing from the waiting room. She hadn’t seen Maggie since the ambulance arrived at the shop for Doris.

  Tears were streaming down Maggie’s face. The tight bun of auburn hair she had sported earlier was loose and fell around her shoulders. She looked more like herself, but even more frightened than usual.

  “What if the Woman comes after my baby?” She referred to her four-year-old daughter. “I’m not sure I understand what happened tonight. My husband wants me to go away and take her with me.”

  Sarah stood. “That’s nonsense, Maggie.”

  “But he doesn’t understand any of this.”

  “Hogwash,” Frances told her with spirit. “Your husband’s family has lived in Mourne County for at least a century. He knows very well what’s going on. He understood what he was taking on when he married a Connelly witch. Good god, he has a touch of fae himself, from his great-grandfather’s side.”

  “That’s right,” Aunt Diane said. “I talked with him myself about our family and our troubles when you two became engaged, Maggie. Since your mother doesn’t have magic, I knew I needed to explain this to him.”

  “But the curse seemed so far away then,” Maggie said, sobbing. “I didn’t know until I had a baby of my own how awful it could be.”

  “None of us knew until now how we would feel about it.” Lauren’s face was pale against her auburn hair. “I never thought I could die until tonight.”

  “But you didn’t,” Sarah pointed out. “We fought off the Woman.”

  “You fought off something,” Aiden put in. “Are we sure it was the Woman?”

  “We saw her.” Brenna frowned at her father. “Didn’t we all see her?”

  “Yes,” Delia said. “But was it her or a clever disguise?”

  Sarah insisted, “Whatever it was that confronted us tonight, what really matters is that we drove it away.”

  Delia cocked one slender eyebrow at her mother. “For now.”

  Brenna looked back for her sister. Fiona sat rigid in a chair, her face pale, her arms clasped around herself. “Don’t you need to say something?”

  Fiona shook her head. “Not now.”

  “Yes, now,” Brenna urged her. “Tell everyone.”

  “What’s wrong?” Sarah demanded. “What’s happened to Fiona?” The coven leader went to her youngest granddaughter, grasped her chin and studied the young woman’s face. “Are you hurt?”

  Fiona could never lie to Sarah. “Aunt Celia came to me.”

  The blood drained from Sarah’s face. “Celia? You’re sure?”

  “Very sure.” Fiona looked around the room in misery. “She said…” Her voice broke. “Aunt Celia gave me a warning.”

  “About what?” Sarah pressed.

  Brenna sat down beside her sister, hoping to give her strength. “Go on. Tell it all.”

  “She said there’s a traitor in the coven.”

  Immediate protests flew around the room. Frances took a step forward in anger. Maggie sobbed even harder. Brenna couldn’t look at her relatives. This was too awful.

  Sarah stumbled and might have fallen if Jake hadn’t caught her. He sat her down in a chair. Marcus knelt at her side. Sarah turned her face into her husband’s shoulder and wept.

  Brenna was stunned. Losing control like this was not like Sarah. The events of the last few weeks were having even more impact on her than Brenna feared.

  “My Celia,” Sarah said. “My dear, dear Celia.”

  The expressions of everyone in the room mirrored Brenna’s feelings of shock. Several moments passed with only the sound of Sarah’s quiet cries.

  Sarah worked to regain control, pulling away from Marcus and looking around at all o
f them. “I always hoped Celia would speak to one of us. She died so young.”

  Delia spoke up. “We need to know exactly what Celia said about the coven, Fiona. Tell it just as it happened.”

  Fiona hesitated, swallowed hard and then closed her eyes. “It was after the circle was broken, while we were watching Doris. I was standing back a little. You know I don’t like seeing blood.”

  “Nothing to be ashamed of,” Frances said. “What happened to Doris was frightening.”

  Fiona gripped Brenna’s hand. “I blocked everything out except what we were doing so I could concentrate on the spell. It wasn’t very hard. Not many spirits have spoken to me since Sandy was killed.” She looked troubled. “I can’t find several of the town’s prominent ghosts. It’s like they’ve gone into hiding.”

  “But you saw Celia,” Brenna prompted. “When?”

  “You and Eva Grace were helping Doris. I was freaked out by the blood. A voice whispered close to my ear and startled me. At first I didn’t know what she said. Then Aunt Celia appeared in front of me.”

  Rubbing her face, Fiona sighed. “I was shocked to see her. I’ve never talked to Aunt Celia before.” She looked at Eva Grace. “I would have told you.”

  “I know that.” Eva Grace looked sad, as she always did when reminded of the mother who died when she was a baby. “Tell us exactly what Mother told you tonight.”

  “It’s was pretty straightforward. She was in front of me and she said, ‘Beware of the traitor.’ Then she disappeared. By the time I came back to myself, I was backed into the corner behind the counter, and Brenna and Jake were talking to me.”

  “Did she say who the traitor was?” Brenna asked.

  “There is no traitor.” Sarah’s voice had regained her normal authority. “We’re family, and we’ve never had anyone betray us.” To Fiona she said, “Celia didn’t specifically say the traitor was in the coven, did she?”

  Fiona looked confused. “She warned me against a traitor. I assumed it was a traitor in the coven.”

  “But maybe that’s not what she meant.” Sarah rose. “Maybe she was talking about someone outside our circle.”

  Her gaze landed on Jake. His eyes widened.

  Brenna jumped to his defense without pause. “Now wait a minute—”

  “Jake was Garth’s best friend,” Eva Grace broke in. “He wouldn’t do anything to hurt us.”

  “Maybe not intentionally,” Sarah retorted, still staring hard at Jake. “Look at the happenings all over town. People who have never been violent have done things completely against their natures. Perhaps our friend here is infected.”

  Jake was speechless.

  Brenna sputtered a protest. “That’s not possible. The night in the diner when the werewolf came out, Jake had to fight his own change. He fought and won. That’s the kind of strength he has. He wouldn’t give in to a demon and betray us without a tremendous battle.”

  She realized Jake’s victory over the evil that night was when her feelings for him had begun to soften. He was good inside, she felt. Truly good. But he shocked her with his next words.

  “None of us can be sure of what we’re capable of.” He looked at Sarah, a mixture of guilt and pain in his face. “I know from experience in my own life that control isn’t always possible.”

  Smug now, Sarah looked to the rest of the group for support. Brenna was infuriated with her grandmother for planting this seed of doubt about Jake. Why was Sarah doing this?

  Aid came from an unlikely source.

  “This is insanity,” Delia said.

  “Utter nonsense,” Aiden agreed. “There was no demon inside Jake tonight. He did nothing that showed the slightest hint of betrayal.”

  Brenna took Jake’s hand, threading her fingers through his. “Of course Jake did nothing to hurt us. But look at us, turning on each other, casting blame on someone who has been a friend. Maybe the demon is infecting us all.”

  Aiden appeared thoughtful. “Brenna could be right. As far as the spirit who spoke to Fiona, it’s possible the demon took Celia’s form to spread dissension in our ranks.”

  Fiona paled and Eva Grace put an arm around her.

  “How can we tell what’s the work of a demon and what’s not?” Brenna voice held a plea.

  “There’s no simple answer.”

  Delia turned to Sarah. “You’re grasping at straws to explain why this happened to Doris tonight. The simple fact is we should not have done that restorative spell at all. You made a mistake. We were wrong to go along with you.”

  Sarah protested and Frances stepped to her side. “Sarah was simply trying to do something positive. Eva Grace has lost so much. Who can blame Sarah for wanting to put her shop back together?”

  “But who knows what dark magic we set free,” Delia mused.

  “That’s not possible,” Sarah insisted. “We’re a family of witches who have stood together through good and bad times. We let no evil in. Why, in our history, any hint of black magic has met with banishment.”

  Brenna disagreed. “Maybe Willow was right. Maybe we’re losing control of our powers and of the town.”

  As usual, Fiona defended her grandmother. “That’s not true. If not for Connellys, who knows what would have happened to this town in the past.”

  “What’s happening now?” Brenna demanded. “We all saw the Woman in White at the store tonight, and she’s never appeared anywhere but on Connelly land near the falls. Why has that changed?”

  “Because we were all assembled there?” Eva Grace offered.

  “We’ve assembled often in the past week.” Brenna studied her family. “Why wouldn’t she take us while we’re at the home place?”

  “Our protections are too strong there,” Sarah insisted. “It was the Woman who came tonight to the shop. You all knew it was the Woman in White. We know it’s time for her. It was inevitable.”

  This blind acceptance made Brenna crazy. “Yet we were able to repel her with magic. Has that ever happened before?”

  Sarah exchanged a glance with Frances. “Well, no, but—”

  Brenna opened her mouth to reply when a dark-haired man wearing surgical scrubs entered the room.

  “Are you all the family of Doris Barton?”

  “Yes.” Sarah stepped forward.

  “I’m Dr. Hargrave. She made it through the surgery. I was able to repair her carotid artery. Fortunately it was just nicked. She’s very strong, but the next twenty-four hours will be critical.”

  “Thanks be to the goddess,” Sarah murmured. A chorus of voices echoed her relief.

  The doctor surveyed the group. “Which one of you is the empath?”

  Eva Grace nodded. For the first time, Brenna saw how weak her cousin was.

  Dr. Hargrave hurried over and placed his fingers on Eva Grace’s wrist. “Whatever you’re doing for Doris, you need to stop. She’s in a deep sleep and her vitals are stable. She’ll be all right for the next few hours.”

  Relaxing and letting out a deep breath, Eva Grace reached for her purse and pulled out a tea ball. “Could someone get me some hot water?”

  “Of course, dear.” Estelle hurried to coffee maker in the room where a pot of water simmered.

  “Is it ginseng?” Dr. Hargrave asked.

  Eva Grace nodded. “It should help me feel better until I can rest.”

  “It’s very effective.”

  When Eva Grace gave the doctor a questioning look, he smiled at her.

  “My grandfather is a Cherokee healer, and their methods are very similar to yours in that good health relies on harmony with man, animal and plants.”

  Brenna was pleased to hear this coming from a surgeon. It wasn’t often men and women of science accepted the ancient remedies her family practiced.

  Frances handed Eva Grace a paper cup and the young woman dropped the tea ball into it. The scent of ginseng wafted up and Eva Grace drew it in.

  Brenna decided she liked the doctor. “Do you use any of your grandfather’s met
hods?”

  “I have an herb garden.” His grin was wry. “Actually, my gardener maintains a beautiful patch of herbs for me. I don’t use them much, but my grandfather is still sought out for healing and medicinal help. Like me, my father has a medical degree and he uses some of the herbs for minor illnesses. I use them mostly because I enjoy cooking.”

  The doctor checked Eva Grace’s pulse again.

  “I’m feeling better already,” she said.

  He appeared pleased. “You saved Doris’s life. She could have suffered a major loss of blood if you hadn’t intervened.”

  “You’re sure she’ll be okay?” Diane asked, teary-eyed. “She’s my mother, and this is her grandson.” She gestured to Brian.

  Dr. Hargrave rose. “You can both come back with me to see her for a few minutes. Then you all should go home. No other visitors tonight.”

  Diane and Brian followed him out of the room.

  The rest of the coven looked at one another. Before Brenna could speak, Sarah held up a hand. “Let’s have no more talk of traitors tonight.” She turned to Jake. “I’m sorry I accused you. I don’t want to believe the traitor could be one of my family. Most likely Aiden is correct, and it was the demon who spoke to Fiona instead of Celia. After all, she’s never come to us before. Why would she now?”

  Brenna could think of many reasons why a family ghost might want to help them in their hour of need. Most of all, however, she was glad Sarah had set to rest any question of Jake being the traitor.

  His expression somber, Jake took Sarah’s outstretched hand. “I understand. It was natural that you think it might be me.”

  “But it wasn’t.” Brenna shot a resentful glance at Sarah. She turned to the others. “What do we do now? Are we just going to wait around for someone else to be hurt or killed?”

  “Please keep it down,” a nurse admonished from the doorway. “I believe the doctor said you should leave.”

  Aunt Estelle hung back to wait for Diane and Brian, but the rest of them headed out to the parking lot. It took great effort for Brenna to hold onto her temper.