GhostTruth

by Vera Sparks

  “We could use everyone,” my father jumped in diplomatically. “This won’t be easy. Her power is growing every day.”

  “Is she still my Mom?” Maria asked quietly.

  “Yes, I believe so. She’s still in there,” my father answered.

  “So, how do we help her?” Maria’s mouth pulled into a grim line.

  “Well, first, we need to know where her power is coming from. Where the link is to the demon that your brother drew power from. Was there an object in the ritual that your brother did, something he infused the power in?” my father asked cautiously.

  “I don’t know, I wasn’t there. But she’s always wearing this old pendant now. She never had it before,” Maria offered after a moment of contemplation.

  “Good, that’s good. That’s most likely the link then,” my father nodded as he eyed our small group carefully. “We need to take away her power. If we can do that, we should be able to return her back to herself. Destroy the pendant and free her from the demon’s grip.”

  Otis snorted in agreement from his place on the couch, and Alex and Percy were giving the pig strange looks. Right, Percy hadn’t even met the pig yet.

  “I’m still coming to terms with the fact demons are real,” I murmured. The idea of them was mind blowing. What did they even look like? Did that mean angels were a thing? Was Christianity right or wrong?

  “They are, and they’re nasty things better left alone and not meddled with,” my father stated blatantly.

  No one else seemed too fussed about the idea of demons. Maybe they were a known thing to supes. What else didn’t I know then?

  “Her power is growing, much stronger than I initially thought, so we’ll have to be extra careful. See if we can do this with precision and utmost care. If she’s still in there, maybe we can trick her with you, Maria. You can try to remove her pendant without her knowing. We’ll be your backup,” my father suggested.

  “You think she’d fall for that?” Maria scoffed. “She’s not her normal self, she’s different, and untrusting, as Ivy saw. I doubt I could get that close.”

  “Then we take it by force. I should be able to match her in power, but I’ll need you all on standby if things get rough,” he said the words carefully, as if he didn’t want to scare us off.

  “Can’t you call in another Warlock?” Percy asked, clearly unnerved at the thought of a being as powerful as a Warlock.

  “There aren’t any in the area right now, and this needs to be dealt with now, quietly, if possible,” my father said. “Going off the map, she’s holed up in an abandoned warehouse down by the water. This is good, it’s away from the public and we can keep it under wraps easier.”

  “What about my brother?” Maria blurted. “He may still be with her.”

  “We’ll deal with him if needed,” my father said, and the cool tone he spoke with made me shiver. Did he mean kill him? Surely not.

  “Please, they’re the only family I have,” Maria pleaded as she looked around at us all with desperate eyes. “Please don’t hurt them.”

  “We’ll do our best to not bring harm to them, but we must also think of the greater population,” my father’s firm, level tone was logical but unsettling. He was right though. One life sacrificed for the many was what we’d have to consider.

  “What’s the best way to do this then?” Alex stepped forward, his tailored suit a stark contrast against the rest of us, all dressed quite casually. Probably not the brightest idea if we were walking into a fight.

  “Well, we get there, I ward the area to keep any humans away, we go in, we do what we can to remove the pendant from her without harming her and destroy it,” my father stated.

  “That’s more of a generalized plan than a full plan,” Alex muttered.

  “Well, that’s all I’ve got right now,” my father growled as he refrained from puffing up.

  “Can’t Ivy just do her jumping thing and take the pendant while being invisible?” Percy asked.

  We all turned to him before all eyes fell on me.

  It was a good idea, I’d give him that. Although it made me the sole hope of this mission. Great, just what I wanted.

  “I can try, but she burned me at the restaurant, her magic can harm me,” I reminded everyone.

  “Then it’s back to the drawing board,” Alex stated firmly.

  “No, it’s not. I can still try, it’s worth a shot,” I said, earning me a displeased look from the vampire. I could handle myself, thank you very much. I was somewhat warmed by his need to protect me, but that meant putting everyone else in danger. I’d rather try it first. Even if the thought scared me and made me shudder.

  “Then it’s settled. Although I’m not a fan of putting my own daughter at risk, it’s a safer option for us all,” my father said with a defeated sigh. It was obvious he wasn’t too keen on the idea either, but it was the best one by far. “Otis, I need you to stay here.”

  Otis snorted and stood, stomping one little foot down defiantly.

  “I know, but I need you here. You know why,” my father said pointedly. I could only imagine the small pig arguing mentally with him.

  Otis sighed and sat back down, accepting his instructions.

  “I take it we’ll be using two cars?” Percy said, pointedly glancing at Alex after staring at the pig curiously.

  “Of course. Although we could all squeeze into mine to be honest,” my father said thoughtfully.

  “Two cars,” Alex stated firmly.

  I rolled my eyes at the tension between the vampire and werewolf. Just what we needed right now.

  “I’ll take the girls,” Percy said before anyone could say a word.

  Alex scowled but kept his mouth shut. It was just a drive, surely he didn’t think anything would happen. We’d need to have a good talk after all this.

  Percy pulled up at the edge of the warehouse area, with my father’s sedan pulling up beside us. Our silent car ride had only been filled with some minimal talk about Otis.

  The eerie buildings towered around us, the moon reflecting off the water to our left. I stepped out into the cool night air, taking in the soft sounds of the water rippling against the concrete edge of the warehouse block. A few streetlights were all that illuminated the area, and most of the warehouses were cast in shadows.

  I stood back with Maria as my father began a warding spell, his hands glowing green as he waved them around in a set pattern. The green flecks of light shot across the area and arced over the warehouses as he performed the warding spell.

  “This is so cool,” Percy murmured as he joined us. Sure, seeing my father’s magic was intriguing, but I was more concerned with what was to come. Could I pull this off? Stealing the pendant from Monica?

  Alex stepped up beside me, and I could feel his tense annoyance radiating off of him. I knew he wanted to talk to me, ask me why Percy was with me.

  Percy, for the better part, was oblivious to our new relationship, assuming we were still just awkward around each other since my ‘death’ and Alex’s feelings for me. Therefore, he was being a downright nuisance, enjoying the taunting he did to Alex.

  “Has Alex seen your magic in action?” Percy asked cooly as he shot Alex a cocky smirk.

  “Yes, he helped me learn some other spells,” I said quickly before Alex could bite back.

  This seemed to snuff out Percy’s spark as his smirk dropped. He’d thought he was special by helping me today.

  If only he knew.

  “Do you think you can do this? Steal the pendant?” Maria asked as she rubbed her arms, her cardigan doing little against the cool night air. Either that or she was unsettled by this. It was hard to know for sure. Probably both.

  “I’ll try,” I said. It was all I could do. There was no way of knowing how this would play out.

  “Be careful,” Alex murmured, his cool breath brushing my cheek. Percy glowered at this.

  “Of course.”

  My father finished his spell with a flick of his hands,
a final spark of green light zipping straight up into the night sky.

  “It’ll keep any humans away for the next few hours,” he stated.

  “How?” I asked curiously.

  “It gives them a feeling of dread and fear the closer they get to the warding. If they reach the edge of it, they are literally knocked down to their knees in debilitating fear. It wears off after a few hours.”

  Great, that sounded like fun. I hoped no poor bastard dared to come here.

  “It’s the last one that she’s holed up in,” my father stated as he looked down the row of warehouses.

  I shuddered at the eerie silence here, the only sound was the water lapping at the edge of the warehouse bays. No insects, no traffic sounds in the distance. Just utter silence.

  It was too quiet.

  “Everything is staying away from this place already, you can feel the dark magic here,” Alex said quietly.

  I frowned and realized that that was the strange sensation I was feeling. I imagined my barrier constructing itself around me, protecting me from the dark magic in the air here. I needed to stay safe here. Especially once we confronted Monica. I couldn’t let her touch me again.

  My father let out a deep breath as he readied himself, tugging his coat tighter around him as he gave us all a nod of confirmation.

  Time to do this.

  He led the way, with the two supes behind him, spaced quite far apart, and Maria and I touching shoulders as we walked. I could see the concerned lines in her face and the distress in her eyes as she wrapped her arms around herself. A cool breeze was coming in off the water, and I could see all those living around us shiver. All but Alex and I.

  “There’s another one here,” Percy growled as we passed the second warehouse. Three more until we reached the last one.

  My father drew up short as a man stepped out from the shadows of the third warehouse, his cargo pants and tight grey shirt catching my eye. But it was his bronze skin and short dark hair that gave him away.

  “Shaun Priben,” my father stated as he held his head high.

  Maria muttered as she pushed through to plant herself beside my father.

  “Maria,” Shaun ignored my father, obviously dismissing him for just a mere mortal. Little did he know my father was probably much more powerful than he was. At least, that was what I believed, him being a Warlock and all.

  “Shaun,” Maria acknowledged her brother with no more than a flick of her head as she clenched her fists.

  “Why are you here?” Shaun asked, his voice ringing out in the silence.

  “I’m here to see my mother,” Maria said stubbornly.

  “And them?” he cocked his head as he peered past her at us.

  “Protection,” she stated with a shrug of her shoulders.

  “No, we both know you’re lying,” he said as his mouth pulled back into a knowing smirk. His dark eyes were shadowed from this distance, but I could feel the electricity of power in the air.

  “You made her a monster,” Maria growled.

  “I gave us our mother back,” he snapped.

  “No, you turned her into something dark and twisted,” Maria shook her head.

  “She’s our mother. She has her mind and memories back now,” Shaun gave her a bewildered look.

  “But she’s not her,” Maria argued.

  “She is, sure, she’s a bit different, but she’s Mom again. You should be grateful, not going off and betraying us like that. You put her in danger when you took her to that dinner with your wretched friend!” Shaun snarled.

  I could see the anger rising off of Percy as he shifted uncomfortably. Werewolves, always up for a fight.

  Alex cast a careful glance back at me, as if questioning what we were all going to do.

  “I needed to know I wasn’t going crazy, that someone else could see that Mom wasn’t herself. That she is dark and twisted,” Maria said.

  “So now what? You’ve come to do what, exactly? Kill her? Or make her a pathetic old woman again who can barely remember her own children?!” he spat.

  “I’ve come to free my mother from the dark magic that she’s caught up in. To stop the deaths going on,” Maria said, surprisingly calm.

  “Accidents, Maria. What Mom is, she can’t control the power she has. She just needs us, both of us, to help her, to show her how to control herself,” Shaun pleaded.

  “How long before she’s too far gone, and she turns on us, Shaun?” Maria said softly.

  “She wouldn’t ever do that!” he said.

  “You made a deal with a demon, Shaun, that’s dark and dangerous. You can’t predict what will happen to your mother, using a demon’s power like that,” my father spoke up.

  “Keep your mouth shut!” Shaun snapped as he raised his hand. A small spark of yellow shot out towards my father, but he waved it off easily, the spark fading into nothing.

  “Don’t!” Maria turned her head to my father. “This is between us.”

  “Really, you want to take me on alone, do you?” Shaun asked, still giving my father a curious look, as if he was trying to discern exactly what he was.

  “This doesn’t need to involve them,” Maria said carefully.

  Shaun smirked, a smile that twisted into a snarl as he flung a shot of yellow energy at her.

  Maria cursed and deflected it with a spark of purple light, and Alex grabbed my arm as he flitted us both to the edge of the second warehouse building to take cover.

  My father and Percy joined us quickly as the two witches hurled energy at each other.

  “Can’t you just stop him?!” Percy growled at my father.

  “I could, but this is a family matter. Maria has asked us to stay out of it,” my father said calmly, as if this was just another day for him. For all I knew, it was. I didn’t know a thing about what he did for work or before he’d found me.

  Purple and yellow flashed all around and I focused on Maria, wishing desperately I could help her as she cast spell after spell at her brother. They were evenly matched, and I couldn’t see it ending anytime soon.

  And we still had Monica to deal with.

  Shaun shouted something and my father swore as he leaped up, but he wasn’t fast enough. Shaun shot a twisted yellow pulse of energy tinged with black and red at Maria. She attempted to deflect it, but the magic tore through her own and wrapped around her, encasing her in red muddy haze.

  “Shit!” my father ran out from our protected position as Maria shrieked and collapsed.

  Her body contorted and twisted, her limbs cracking as she wailed.

  Fear coursed through me at the horrifying sight as my father rushed to her aid.

  It happened quickly, Maria leaped up and spun around, her eyes glowing red as she launched at my father. He shielded himself, and she bounced off his white barrier as she shrieked and pounded against it with her fists.

  I ran out, utterly bewildered as to her sudden change and wanting to help both her and my father.

  Alex was hot on my heels, and I caught a yellow flash out of the corner of my eye.

  “Protego!” I shouted as I raised my hand towards Alex. The yellow magic bounced off the blue barrier I’d cast up around him. It looked like my lessons with Percy had paid off.

  My father dropped his barrier and quickly placed a glowing blue hand on Maria’s forehead before she landed a heavy blow.

  She fell to the ground instantly and my father raised his hands up, the eerie green glow making me freeze.

  Shaun cried out, and I turned to see vines and plants wrapping around him, dragging him to the ground as they snaked across his chest and constricted him.

  I continued forward and threw myself down beside Maria, flustered as I withheld from touching her out of fear of making whatever was wrong with her worse.

  “She’s unconscious, he cursed her with black magic,” my father’s voice was dark. Utterly pissed.

  “She’s hurt, broken bones by the looks,” Alex said as he knelt down beside me and inspected
her already bruising arms. I caught his tender look he gave me before focusing back on Maria. He was grateful for my intervening with Shaun’s magic, for protecting him.

  “I’m not of much use against black magic it seems, I’m not fast or magical like the rest of you, but I can get her to the nearest hospital,” Percy offered as he joined us, his disappointment in his inability to assist us evident in his face. But the concern for Maria outweighed it.

  “Her injuries aren’t life threatening, and I’ve lifted the curse. Take her to Saint Peter’s, they specialize in supes there,” my father stated as he stared hard at Shaun.

  “What about him?” Percy asked as he flicked his head at Maria’s brother, who was completely covered in vines and plants, only his nose and eyes visible. His eyes were flicking around in terror, and I knew what he was thinking. He was wondering if my father would just punish him now, kill him. It wouldn’t be hard, all he’d have to do was finish cocooning him in vines. How they’d even burst through the concrete was beyond me, but I was learning to not question magic.

  “He’s not going anywhere, the Council can deal with him later,” my father growled.

  Percy didn’t push any further as he carefully slid his arms under Maria’s fragile frame. She groaned weakly as he lifted her up in his arms, and I bit my lip as he headed off briskly to his truck.

  “He’ll take care of her, she’ll be okay,” my father said softly as he spotted the distress and fear on my face. “Her injuries aren’t life threatening, and Saint Peter’s has many witches who specialize in promoting healing and using potions and spells to mend broken bones. She’ll be fine.”

  “Will the Council kill Shaun?” I asked quietly as I looked over at the cocooned man. Not a shred of sympathy could be mustered for him, not after what he did to Maria.

  “I don’t know, quite possibly,” my father said bluntly. “Punishment for black magic is usually severe.”

  I nodded and swallowed as I pulled myself to my feet.

  Percy’s truck had disappeared, and I hoped Maria got the care she needed.

  I’d stop her Mom and make sure she was herself once more. I’d make sure no harm came to her.