Winter's Fall

by Alessandra Jay

  Bringing the mortal to her bed in another room, the angel whistles a slow and soothing tune right into the mortal’s ears. Unsure of the purpose of the angel’s whistling, I have no choice but to let it go because the angel hears the cars pulling up to Demi’s house. It runs to the other room, where the window to the side of the house is. Again, the binoculars come out and are raised to the angel’s eyes.

  I see Layla run into my arms and it’s wildly bizarre. It’s like deja vu, but even more peculiar. I seem to be the subject of the angel’s mission and it turns my stomach inside out. As it watches our group walk into the house, it sets up a listening device on the windowsill.

  Placing headphones onto its ears and emptying the contents of the backpack; a water bottle, a journal, and it was about to take out what felt like a hard book, but it froze when it heard the phone. Derek just got the message about the demons and the guys agreed to go with him.

  Quickly, the angel frantically begins throwing everything back into the backpack and slings it over its shoulder. I hear my dad’s truck skid out onto the road and the angel jumps out of the window right into flight. Again, it takes everything in me to keep calm and I shut my eyes the whole duration of the trip. When I feel the angel’s feet touch the ground, I open my eyes, wishing I would have just kept them closed.

  Directly in front of me is my cave. The entrance looks dingy and forgotten. It isn't until now that I realize how much I actually do miss it and what a place of refuge it used to be for me. I sadly recognize it will never be the same.

  Especially after losing Charlie here. Not allowing myself to get lost in the mournful memory, I revert my attention back to what the angel is looking at. Only it’s just standing there, looking at the entrance of the cave. Rooted to the spot.

  A stick breaks in the distance and the angel spins around. Across the entire park floor are tall and grotesque demons. These are the Kudu that Evan must have been talking about. There are hundreds.

  The angel retracts a shiny and glorious sword from its back and begins to move forward, towards the hordes of demons. The sounds of guns with silencers echoes through the forest and the angel stops in its tracks. Using its angel speed, it races through the trees close enough to get a good look.

  There, in the middle of a group of dead Kudu, is my dad with a complete look of menace on his face. A rustling noise came from a few feet away when the angels head snaps to see what it is. A hooded figure, watching the guys behind a tree. The angel takes one step towards the one watching when it notices the approach. With a single blink, the person is gone. As the battle begins, the angel flies a good distance away and lands, pacing the floor. It seems stuck. Unable to interfere. All it could do was watch.

  As the sun sets beneath the horizon, and the sky grows dark, the angel assesses the situation. When it’s satisfied that the men are okay, it runs and takes off back towards my sister’s house. Returning to the neighbor’s room, the angel throws itself on the floor and begins crying heavily with its head in its hands. I feel so sad that my eyes close in sympathy.

  Sitting up quickly as I come out of my sleep, I inhale a big, deep breath. I try to readjust the equilibrium in my body as I leave the remnants of the angel’s body in the dream world. Just as quickly, but with slightly less finesse, Evan springs into a sitting position as well.

  “What? What happened? Are you okay?” His deep voice slurs.

  I am unable to make any words come out of my mouth. My heart is still just as crushed as the angel’s was yesterday. All it takes is one tear to fall for a cascade of them to follow.

  “Scarlet? What’s wrong? Are you hurt?” Evan has now completely woken up. And if I wasn't in such a frantic mood, I would have taken more notice of his amusing bed head.

  “Love? Please talk to me. Let me help.” He continues to try to soothe me to a calmer state. When he realizes I can’t stop the tears from falling, he snaps his fingers. In his hands is a steaming cup of tea, and he slowly hands it to me. Evan encourages me to take a sip. When I do, the crying starts to subside.

  “What is that?” I ask in heaving breaths.

  As he runs his fingers through my hair, he explains that it’s the same ingredient Ava uses in the fire room at the Elders’ estate. This is definitely a recipe to memorize for moments like these. Finally, I catch my breath enough to tell Evan about my dream walk and he simply sits there stunned.

  “I can’t believe you dream walked in the past from someone else's perspective. That’s just…ludicrous. We have to go to Eden. ASAP.”

  After he processes everything, it’s as if he has tunnel vision. Snapping and clapping different casts to get us and our group moving quickly and efficiently. Now that everyone knows how serious it is that this angel is following us, it gets a lot more silent in the room.

  It’s not that we’re afraid, because together I'm confident we can be unstoppable. It’s more of an alertness now that it’s confirmed, since we were unaware of the angel’s presence. I have mixed feelings, though.

  I don't feel like the angel is watching us with malicious intent. But I also don't feel entirely safe about the situation, either. As we walk to the elevators, I turn to my best friend, concerned.

  “Mack, are you sure you're going to be okay here? We’ll be back in a few days. The coven will be popping in and out a few times to check on you.” I reassure her for what feels like the fifth time in the last five minutes.

  “Yes, mom. I'm goin’ to be spendin’ my time with Lizzie. I’ll be okay. I know that angel ain't here for me, so it’s y’all that need to be careful.”

  The elevator dings and I leave her with one final hug. I don't want to sound selfish, but at this moment I don't feel so awful about the caster blood in her. I like that I can include her in this world now and keep her safer than she would be in the dorms. With a last wave, the doors close and Evan squeezes my hand.

  “Let’s cast invisibility onto our bodies and sprint to the portal around the corner. The last thing we need is that angel to find out where there is a door to our world. Although, we don't know how long they’ve been trailing us. They may already know. Regardless, let's move cautiously and hopefully we’ll be undetectable to the angel for now.”

  We agree and begin with our casts, leaving through the back of the Village instead of the front, and racing through the alleys to the portal.

  ***

  “Sisters! How we’ve missed you already.” Ava says, as the Elders rush over to Hunter and I, pulling us in for a much needed group hug.

  “We missed you guys, too.” Hunter replies for us both.

  “What I really miss is your baking, Scarlet.” Jade jokes, shoving her elbow into my side.

  “Well then, I'm going to have to bake you guys something.” Making her day, I give her this promise.

  “Yes. Most certainly that. First, though, we must discuss the events from yesterday. We can go to the conference room where I told your father to meet us, Scarlet. He only just arrived and is paying a brief visit to his brother.”

  As Ava begins leading us through the maze of hallways, she continues to tell me about Dimitri's progress. He is almost healed and back with us. With that great news, I feel my heart skip a beat. That is the light in the darkness as of now. Dimitri's recovery is of the utmost concern for all of us. Once he recovers, my pal will be back.

  Before I can get any more emotional about my uncle, we arrive to the enormous double doors that have intimidated me since the first day I saw them. Ava pushes through and everyone files in, filling in the chairs around the massive marble table. Seconds later, my dad walks in completely in high spirits.

  He is so obviously elated about Dimitri and their successful battle against the demons last night. It tears my heart in pieces knowing I'm going to have to crush his happiness with the details of my dream walk. Thankfully, before he can notice the sullen look on my face, Ava begins the meeting.

  “Before we begin, I would like to make a toast to the valiant demon warriors that a
re in this room. Without you defeating those wretched beasts, who knows what havoc they could have wreaked upon New York.” With a graceful flick of her wrist, Ava casts a champagne glass with a single shot of silver liquid for each caster in the room. We lift our glasses and toast to the success.

  “Now, the agenda for this meeting is of the highest concern and significance. We will review what occurred at the park with the Kudu demons first. Then I would like to be updated on Mackenzie’s development. We can conclude with any other concerns or opinions from the group. After this conference, we six Elders must stay to converse about a few things pertaining to the Caster’s Council and our duties to the Caster Realm. That shouldn't take long, either.”

  Ava finishes her introduction and almost continues, but I can’t keep this information inside anymore. Clearing my throat, I speak up before Ava can go on.

  “Actually, there is something else we must discuss. This morning, before I woke up, I had another dream walk. But this one was different.” I begin to tell them, but my dad, cuts me off, concern filling his tone.

  “Different how?” I take a deep breath and explain the situation as best as I can.

  After I relive the dream walk for the second time today, I get a sudden chill down my back, knowing someone’s had their eyes on us for some time now. My dad angrily bangs his fists on the table and, with a growl in his voice, curses the Fallen.

  “So there’s an angel on our tail and someone else spying on the battle?” Hunter repeats for reassurance.

  “I actually saw the person hiding as well. I didn’t think anything of it after Ava said there was a Fallen sighting because I figured it was obvious that they were working for the Dark Coven.” Evan answers with his head in his hands.

  “That’s understandable. You didn’t see the angel there?” Ava comforts my Anima Partem who shakes his head in answer.

  “Very well, it must have been the Fallen because our radar didn’t pick up the angel. It can’t.”

  “We need to find this angel and Fallen. Now!” A few of us jump at his fury and I feel my heart ache, knowing I destroyed his happy morning. I'm grateful when Ava begins assembling a plan because I can feel the tears beginning to form in my eyes.

  “Yes, Rick. That is exactly what must happen. And I think you're the perfect caster for the job. Owen and Oliver will join you to help. Evan can stay here to inform about the occurrences from the park. Stay in touch with any of the Elders.” My dad and the guys are about to leave when I abruptly stand up out of my chair.

  “Wait!” With the anger in my dad’s eyes, I can only imagine what destruction is going to erupt when he locates and clashes with this angel. I can’t let that happen. Evan, noticing my hesitation, stands along with me and takes my hand, encouraging me to go on.

  “I don't know how to explain it, but I didn't feel any harmful intentions from the angel. I don't think they're hunting us.” Slowly sitting back down, I'm almost afraid to look my dad in the eyes.

  “Okay, Scarlet. Thank you for your honesty. Rick, leave the angel unharmed. Bind it as well as you can until one of us can get to your location. The last thing we need is gossip about Fallen angels, especially with all of the Dark Coven attacks lately. Stay invisible to the mortals and the casters that you come by as best as you can.”

  With that, they disappear through the door and go on the hunt for a sad and lonely angel. Something isn't sitting right with me and I can feel my anxiety beginning to rise. Before I get into a dangerous mindset, I suggest that the rest of the meeting be continued in the kitchen, where I can bake all my stress and concerns away.

  Chapter 12

  Abilities

  I have been baking in so many different kitchens lately I'm surprised I don't get confused about where everything is. Moving around this enormous kitchen with familiarity and fluidity, I get so lost in the process of baking I almost forget about the importance of the conference we’re still having. After Evan retells the story of the Kudu attack, I can’t stop the shiver from making its way down my back.

  It’s odd hearing about the events that happened now because I saw it through the angel’s eyes. It’s as if I was there and can confirm the activities in the narrative Evan is relating to the group. I feel unbalanced. Like time was split in two; Evan’s take on the events that unfolded in the park and the same events as I experienced them through the eyes of an angel.

  This time Ava notices my discomfort and snaps her fingers to cast some relaxing ambiance into my body. When I feel it envelop all of my cells, I have to stretch to regain my balance. With a silent thank you, I nod my head towards our head Elder and, with a sweet and understanding smile, she simply nods back.

  “Whoever is summoning these demons is trying to trick us with a new scheme. What you did in the park, taking the fight to the demons instead of waiting for them to attack, is what needed to be done. It was the right strategy to use. Any one of those demons could have seized the opportunity to infiltrate deeper into the mortal world.

  The caster, or whoever is summoning them, is immensely powerful. For that many to be present and have leaders communicating their demands and interacting with you instead of just killing shows this person is not to be messed with. We cannot fall for their traps and we must, from this moment forward, stay on high alert.”

  Ava says this with a slight grimness to the group. All we can do is nod our head in agreement. Surprised that I didn't realize how different this attack was from the others, my heart drops, sensing the growing danger surrounding us. We have got to stop the Dark Coven before the caster realm falls apart.

  “We must move on. Tell me, how is Mack and her mental state? Lizzie has been keeping in touch with me on her progress. I understand that she is excelling in controlling the new power inside of her. I know positivity is crucial in her case, so I’d like to know what we can do to help with that. She cannot enter Eden, but it sounds like she is getting familiar with the Village. Maybe after all of this is over, you can all take a caster vacation and get away to somewhere incredible.”

  I can tell Ava wants to try to find the silver lining in these situations and I don't want to be the one to continue telling her bad news. So I'm more than happy when all I have to say about Mack is that she is finally getting back to herself. With the addition of learning about the caster life.

  “Hunter, let her know that the Elders are proud of her bravery and will be here to support her in any way we can.” As Hunter nods her head, I can tell she’s distracted. Amused, I smirk at the way she’s gazing at my baking mess so intensely. She must really want this dessert.

  Unfortunately for her, I purposely chose a dessert that is tedious and time-consuming to create. Ava did say we have two meetings to get through and I figured they would be so absorbed in the conversation they wouldn't realize how long I’m taking. The only time I make my Neapolitan whoopie pies are when I want a long time to think. But I guess I could speed up the process with casting before Hunter drills holes into my skull from her impatience.

  I already have the vanilla and chocolate batters mixed, so instead of taking my time slicing and preparing strawberries for the third mixture, I instantly find my power and will it to my fingers. As I wave my hand over the bowl of strawberries, each stem and leaf floats out of the berries and falls into the sink.

  With another wave of my hand, the strawberries are diced into minuscule pieces and I add a little sugar to start making it syrupy. I then add some sweetened whipped cream and start folding it together.

  “Drifted into your baking, huh?” Evan’s deep voice soothingly sounds in my head. Feeling my cheeks get hot, I slowly look up, already knowing everyone is watching me.

  “Sorry. What did I miss?” Sheepishly I look over at Evan, and the sly smile on his face is making it hard for me not to laugh at my own obliviousness. Looking down to try to hide my embarrassment, I completely crack up when Hunter loudly breaks the silence.

  “Ugh! You missed nothing! Continue with your task, please.”<
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  Jade and Nova join me in annoying Hunter even more by laughing, but she only rolls her eyes and claps her hands, rushing me again. She’s lucky they don't take long to bake in the oven. With my eyes closed, I picture the chocolate batter neatly inside a piping bag, and I picture the same for the vanilla.

  With a quick snap of my fingers, the bowls lift in the air to float above the standing piping bags. Getting every last drop, the bags seal themselves and lay back down. Both of the baking sheets are ready. As I pipe the mixtures into circles, Ava struggles to stay focused.

  “Scarlet, you sure are a captivating sight when you're in your baking element.” With a blush staining my cheeks, I hurry with the rest of the piping because I seem to have everyone's attention and I know these meetings are important. Shoving them into the oven, I spin around and run the strawberry mixture to the fridge.

  “Okay, where were we? We have about fifteen minutes before we can eat.” With a quick wave of my hand I cast my mess to be cleaned so I can focus more on the meeting.

  “Well, the only other thing we should discuss before ending the first meeting is you, honey. Is going back to Syracuse something you would like to do?” Now that, is a loaded question.

  Of course I want to go back. But I really don't know how Mack feels about going back yet. It turns my stomach even thinking about returning there without Charlie.

  But, if not now, when?

  I can’t keep pushing it back or I may never return. Taking a deep breath, I look her in the eyes.

  “Yes, I would like to return but before I confirm that, I’d like to speak to Mack about it. Maybe this time we won’t take on the coffee shop, too.” I almost forgot about the state of normalcy we would be returning to.