“Stop, please.”
Elizabeth froze.
“You’re Elizabeth, right? I was hoping we’d get to spend some time together.”
Her stomach dropped. When people really want to spend time with a seer, it’s usually for a reason. Last time she gave a prophecy, it didn’t go well.
“Thomas,” Sylvia called, and a servant quickly entered the room. He moved her chair next to a couch where she motioned for Elizabeth to sit down. “Please go ask one of the girls to bring in tea for us.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He bowed, eyes black like onyx, and then left the room.
“Sorry.” She turned to Elizabeth. “I heard that they make you uncomfortable.”
She didn’t know what to say and tried to smile instead, because she was too uncomfortable to ask who Thomas was before they sentenced his soul to a dark prison. Taking a deep breath, she looked at a painting on the wall, trying to ignore the awkward silence.
“Elizabeth, do you like the rooms Scarlett put you in?”
“Yes, I do. It’s the nicest I’ve ever been in.”
“Good, glad to hear it. Has Scarlett invited you to join our coven yet?”
“No ma’am, she hasn’t. I do like it here, but as I told her I was recently re-connected with my sister and I’m not in a hurry to leave.”
“Yes, I heard about your connection. Will your sister arrive with the others?”
“No.” The small ache in her chest reappeared. “But hopefully soon.”
“Would she like to stay?”
Elizabeth laughed at the idea. “You’ll have to meet my sister. She loathes dresses, even as a child. My mom finally stopped putting her in them when she’d always tear them on branches and shrubs.”
Ms. Mathison did laugh, which turned into a cough.
Two servant girls entered with tea. One hurried to the woman’s side. “Do I need to get the doctor?”
She waved the girl away. “Nothing hot tea won’t fix.”
“Of course, ma’am.” The servants fixed them both black tea and biscuits or cookies of some sort. It reminded her of the books Elizabeth’s mom read to her as a child of places across the ocean.
They sipped their tea and nibbled on their cookies for several minutes. Elizabeth enjoyed the quiet company. The chaos and stress of traveling on the road with large groups of people pushed her to her limits. Though she couldn’t commit to the coven, this lifestyle appealed to her.
Once Ms. Mathison set down her cup, she turned back to Elizabeth. “Scarlett said you saw her in the battle.”
Elizabeth dabbed her mouth with the cloth napkin. “I did. She fought bravely on the back of a horse.”
The older woman gave a sad smile. “That’s my girl. She was like your sister growing up, climbing trees and making forts.”
“Really?” Elizabeth smiled, unable to see Scarlett that way, who always wore large dresses and perfect hair and makeup.
“She still has scars on her knees that she didn’t want to get rid of.” The woman’s gaze traveled to the window outside. “You saw her survive though, right?”
“I believe so. Did she tell you the rest?”
“Yes.”
“Can I ask you a question, Ms. Mathison?”
She turned from the window to face Elizabeth. “You can ask, but I can’t guarantee an answer.”
“Why will she fight? Not that we don’t desperately need your help, and appreciate it, but I only see that she will fight next to Andre, not why. Your life here seems perfect.” Elizabeth realized how personal that question was and immediately regretted it. “Forget it. You don’t have to answer. It’s too personal.”
The witch remained quiet for some time before answering her. “You’re right, it is personal. But given that my daughter would love your unique powers in our coven, I think you deserve to know.”
Elizabeth gave the woman as much time as she needed to tell her story.
“Our hatred of Lazaro goes back years and it runs deep. While we live here freely and in peace as sisters, it came at a cost. We don’t talk about it, especially in mixed company or with strangers. But you deserve to know why this payment is never paid, and never will be as long as Lazaro sits on his throne of bones.”
Ms. Mathison stared off into space for a moment. To be free of that debt, whatever it may be, was reason even for Scarlett to fight. Wasn’t that what they were all fighting for? Freedom? And it seemed like they would only get it with Lazaro dead.
The witch picked up her tea, took another sip, and set it back with a rattle. “You should ask who Scarlett’s father is.”
That felt way too personal, though Elizabeth did wonder. With no men around except Soultorn servants, did any of the woman have relationships? Since the woman waited, Elizabeth asked, reaching for a sip of tea. “Who’s her father?”
“A magician from Lazaro’s coven. Lazaro used me as a bargaining tool with the Asian covens and in return promised to leave us alone.”
The cup froze in the air, Elizabeth unable to process what that meant. Slowly she lowered the cup as her brain spun around the news. She had a lot of questions to ask, each more personal than the next. But she didn’t get a chance to ask them.
“That is his payment,” Ms. Mathison said. “That each witch in our coven carry one child for him to term. He leaves us alone in peace as his line is strengthened by our power.”
Elizabeth thought she would be sick.
“It is better than most witches get in this world. Our genes make us favorable mothers. His offer, though sick, gives us more than we would get in the outside world.”
“So, Ms. Scarlett is…” In the vision she looked like she was pregnant. How would that happen?
At that moment Scarlett entered the room, not surprised by the conversation.
“You saw me pregnant in your vision, but little did you know I’m currently pregnant with Lazaro’s child. So yes, the baby is mine, but if I must sacrifice my child for the sake of freedom for me and mine, I will do it. I love my sisters and will protect them with my life or my child’s. Though our life appears grand, a bird in a cage, no matter how beautiful the cage, can never be free.”
Chapter Ninety-Nine
They slept in a pile of limbs and bodies, like a pack of wild dogs, Becca thought. She pushed Navina’s elbow out of her face. They had set up shields the previous night and kept Navina between them. Now, as dawn approached and her back full of all sorts of kinks and knots, they needed to get moving.
Once up and ready to go, the three of them tracked through the jungle again. The day was quiet, surprisingly even Navina wasn’t her usual chatty self, as they walked towards an unknown future. Was there salvation at the end? They didn’t know but were risking a lot to find out.
“I did it,” Navina yelled during the middle of the day.
Becca jumped and turned around to face the girl. “What the hell?”
“I did it.” This time she didn’t yell but had just as much enthusiasm. “I found the right spell.”
Spell? Was the girl casting spells this whole time? Becca worried how safe that was, wasting energy and magic.
“What for?” Darion looked more excited about it.
“To keep mosquitoes from biting me.”
Becca began to laugh, a deep belly laugh wrought from days of exhaustion, of living in a jungle, and of dealing with crazy people who worship demons. She laughed and Darion and Navina joined her. Navina danced around laughing and giggling. Becca laughed until her stomach hurt, finally sitting down to dry her eyes and take a drink.
“I think you may have found the most useful spell ever, Navina.” Becca told her.
“You could charge for it, you know.” Darion pulled out his water as well.
“How much?” Her eyes got big with the mention of money. “What would you pay for it?”
“You better give it to us for free for dealing with you,” Becca said.
“Hey…” Navina sounded mock offended.
“If
I was living back in the camp, I would pay you by doing your chores for a week. How about that?” Darion reached for his water as well.
Her shoulders sagged. “I thought you meant real money. Like coins.”
“Five silver coins at least,” Darion said.
She brightened as she counted how many people she could sell to. Becca was happy to see her mind figuring out her big profit.
Darion moved over to sit by Becca. “You know she could hold that spell hostage. We may be willing to give her a lot for that,” he spoke softly as not to disturb Navina’s calculations.
“Maybe, but we hold the water.”
“True.” His face sobered slightly as he turned to her, keeping his voice low. “I’d like you to see if you sense anything around us for me.”
Straightening up she searched around. “What? Did you hear something?”
“No, it’s just…” he hesitated, glancing at Navina. “I only got vague directions. We’re not too far from the road, but we should be there by now. I worry we got off course or maybe missed a turnoff.”
Dammit. She had been so focused on getting away from that last man, she didn’t push him for directions. Or they could have forgotten their morals and stolen his horses or something. She mentally kicked herself for all the things she could have done but didn’t. Standing, she turned in a circle not seeing or sensing anything. A deep set panic started building in her stomach. Were they lost?
“I’m not getting anything,” she told Darion. Navina over the excitement of her new business selling spells, came over as well.
“Push a little harder. There has to at least be animals or other minds around here.”
Gathering her magic, she pushed out beyond Navina and Darion and searched for others. She brushed over a small creature in a nearby tree and several others she didn’t realize were so close. Nothing human though.
As she let out a big breath, she turned to Darion. “Nothing.”
“What are you doing?” Navina asked.
Glancing at Darion, Becca looked for an answer that wouldn’t freak the girl out.
Darion stepped in. “We want to know the best way to get where we’re going. I wanted Becca to search for other humans, so we know we’re on the right path.”
“But she isn’t finding any. So, we’re lost.”
“We’re not lost.” He was quick to reply. “We can follow this road back. But… we’re having a hard time finding Tikal.”
“We’re lost.” Navina plopped down on the ground and stuck her feet out in front of her. She appeared more annoyed than frightened.
“Let’s try combining magic. You can go farther then.” Darion moved next to Navina on the ground.
“How does that work?” Navina asked.
“A spell can combine people’s magic to share.”
“I was taught not to ever do that. If the magician is stronger, they can enslave you.”
“You’re right,” Darion said. “My mother did it with me when I was a child. I’ve only ever done it with Becca since then, and it started when I was helping her learn about her magic.”
“Umpf.” Navina obviously wasn’t sold on it, and Becca didn’t blame her.
But the girl didn’t know Darion or, let’s be honest, love Darion like Becca did. Combining magic like they did gave Becca access to all he had and was, and vice versa. And knowing him, really knowing him, didn’t make her want to take anything, but work together for their common goal.
Combining magic, she was able to push even farther. She felt a large animal of some kind, but nothing human. They had to be there somewhere, but how many miles could her magic push?
“Go ahead, push farther,” Darion said.
She drew in more magic and pushed even farther. She found what she thought was a stream, and felt the consciousness of small creatures, presumably fish, speed past. Her eyes closed she pointed in the direction of the source. “A stream is over there, I think.”
“Anything else?”
She spoke the spell one more time, searching in the direction of the water. The odds were that people would be around there. She was right. Two people fetched water in the stream. They weren’t magicians, leaving their minds so unprotected, but she didn’t have the energy to do more than know they were there.
Blacks dots danced in front of her vision as she tried to open her eyes. “Upstream several miles. People are getting water.” She pinched the bridge of her nose, pushing back a headache.
“Are you okay?” Darion remained next to her.
“Just pushed it a bit too much.”
“At least now we know. We’re on the wrong side of the main road. We’ll follow the river into town.”
Trying to stand brought the world spinning around her, and she sat back down. “You’ll have to give me a minute. That cost me more energy than I thought.”
“Of course.”
Becca ended up laying down on her pack and closing her eyes to block out the sun. Part of her was discouraged at how weak she was. No wonder magicians, and even Stewart and Isabella, favored demons. They helped them be more than they could on their own. A tempting drug for any person.
Caleb tried to push down his frustration of feeling useless. He spent the day with the two girls in the garden and riding horses but felt guilty. They needed to be preparing for war, not looking at pretty flowers and being served lemonade. Nikki seemed to share his frustration.
Scarlett and the other members of the coven were scarce. He would have sworn Elizabeth knew something, but she remained more pensive than usual. The three of them ate their meals alone and the only conversations usually revolved around how Becca, Darion, and Navina were doing. It was over dinner the next day that they finally heard something.
“They are almost here,” Nikki said in between bites of omelet.
“How do you know?” Caleb asked assuming it was something magical.
“Not exactly sure. I can feel my dad sometimes when he’s close. A bond of some sort.”
“Sort of like Elizabeth and Rebecca?”
Nikki shook her head. “Nothing that defined. But since blood’s involved, it’s probably similar to a blood bond.”
He pushed back from the table. “They’ll probably need help setting up camp.”
“They will,” Scarlett said entering the breakfast room with Gail at her side. It was the first they had seen of her since Elizabeth told her of her future.
“I’ll go and help.” Caleb tossed his napkin down and started towards the door. “Can you point me in the direction?”
“We’ll come with you.” Scarlett wore a pink dress with large oversized skirts.
He questioned just how much she could do dressed like that. Magic could do a lot, he reminded himself.
“We can come too,” Elizabeth offered.
“No,” Scarlett said. “Please finish your meal, and we’ll be back soon.”
“Alright,” Nikki agreed. Turning to Elizabeth, she added, “We can go later if you’d like to visit Doc.”
Caleb said goodbye as they left the home. He assumed that Scarlett would drive out to the rebels, but there was an actual carriage waiting for them. Why not ride horses? She obviously could since Elizabeth saw her on top a steed while in battle. He didn’t want to push his luck asking questions, so he entered the carriage and sat across from the two women who seemed trapped in a different era, a different world to the one they lived in. Why and how would they be convinced to join their cause?
They didn’t speak as they traveled across her land. The green field and lush scenery passed by as they went. A large bump bounced the carriage, and Gail reached for Scarlett. Annoyance flitted across her face as she pushed the caring woman’s hands away. He felt like he was missing something going on between them.
They eventually arrived at the site, where the others were in the process of unpacking. Caleb would have assisted the women out of the carriage, but he didn’t want to offend them with his touch. Scarlett had been more than obvious
about their distrust of men.
Andre was the first to greet them, bending low and kissing Scarlett’s hand. “Again, I’m beyond grateful for the refuge you have afforded my people.”
“As long as you understand this arrangement is not indefinite. You need to find a secure home.”
“I’m planning that as we speak, but it is nice to know they are safe while I work with my allies.”
She pursed her lips together, not confirming nor denying whether they were in fact allies. It was a silence which Caleb was sure Andre noticed. Gail escorted Scarlett towards camp.
Caleb walked next to Andre. “How did you guys get here so fast?”
“They were headed in this direction already. And we picked up some extra vehicles to make the trip.” Andre’s tight smile told Caleb he didn’t want to go into detail. Caleb had a feeling the camp was headed in this direction from the moment they left, especially after the confirmation at Richard’s that Scarlett would have a part in the fight.
“Where should I help set up?”
Before he could answer, they ran into Nevada. He was a bit eccentric, but a vital magician in hiding their camp. Caleb never felt at ease around him, but that was mostly due to his power. His ability to transform the visual world with such ease made him a dangerous wizard. Being on the opposite side of him at the last battle proved that too. Nevada’s back was to them while he hollered an order.
“Nevada, I’d like to introduce you to someone.” Andre called him over.
Turning around, they saw Nevada wore a fitted gray suit with a matching hat. Better than the multicolored robe he donned before. His hair was short today and cut close. His eyes looked tired. Maybe this magic exhausted him more than he liked to admit.
He came over, his expression changing from one of determination to a sly smile like he was the prince of Egypt or something.
“Nevada, Ms. Scarlett Mathison. Ms. Scarlett Mathison, Nevada.”
Scarlett extended her hand, and Nevada leaned over to lightly kiss the air above it.
“My pleasure,” Scarlett said.
“No, the pleasure is mine. Your beauty and class are a much welcomed gift in such a… pedestrian time.”
Dark Rising Trilogy Page 67