A Late Summer Bloom (24 page)

“I told you. It was a gift.”

Giselle ripped her own pendant from her neck.

“No!” Cecily shrieked.

Desiree looked at Giselle. “As long as you possess that pendant, your
father can’t get near you. Get rid of it.
You too, Cecily.”

Giselle threw her pendant to Desiree, approaching her mother as she insisted.
“Give it to me.”

“Never.
This pendant has protected us from evil.”

Giselle got closer. “You must trust that I know what I am doing and
that my intention is to help us all.” With those words she yanked the pendant
that hung around Cecily’s neck. Pulling it hard until it snapped, she threw it against
the wall, cracking it.

Cecily wailed. “No! Give it back. You must give it back! It protects
us!”

“No it doesn’t protect us—it controls us,” Giselle shouted.

Desiree shook her head in disgust. “How did he ever get close enough to
you, a royal, no less, to get that around your neck? You should have known,
Cecily.”

Cecily rubbed her hand over her bare neck, looking from Desiree to Giselle.
“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying that Jacques has tried to get to Giselle, but he’s also tried
to be near you. His feelings for you run deep, Cecily. He loved you. He loves you
still.”

“How do you know this?”

Desiree’s eyes watered. Her voice softened at the recollection of
Jacques words. “He revisits the cavern every year on Giselle’s birthday. He
professes his love for the both of you. He speaks aloud into the air, in the
hopes that his words would come to you in echoes on a warm summer breeze.”

As her tone changed, she warned Cecily. “Zacharias is a very powerful warlock,
second in command to
Natas
. He possesses the soul of
Jacques’ twin, who fell victim to
Natas
’ power of
persuasion hundreds of years ago. With the help of that pendant, he was able to
trick you into believing he was Jacques and reveal himself as evil. He knew you
would immediately shun Giselle. It’s what he wanted, so in twenty years, when her
powers come of age, you would deliver her into his fold.
Unknowing.
Unprotected.
Wearing the evil pendant you provided.”

Julien looked at Giselle. “I guess that explains your vision, My Queen.
You did see an evil warlock embrace your mother. Only it wasn’t your father.”

Giselle sighed. “Question is? What do we do now?”

Julien walked over to where Cecily’s cracked pendant lay. Bending over
to retrieve it, he called out to Percy. “Hey—” He threw it to him. “Think you
can fix it?”

Chapter Thirty-Five

The sun was beginning to sink in the sky and a chilly wind blew across
the grounds of Cottonwood Landing. A low rumble of thunder could be heard in
the distance. Giselle watched from the window of the grand library as the
members of the coven scattered across the estate. Her nerves gave way to a
rising panic, causing her to pace.

“You are making me crazy, Little Witch. Stand still for a minute and
tell me what you’re thinking.” Julien leaned his shoulder against the open
doorway.

“I’m thinking, well, more like hoping, that I don’t get us all killed.”
Maybe I should go alone
.

“Doubt is the only enemy here. You are a witch to the tenth power. I’ve
seen what you can do.”

“I wish I could remember it. What if I freeze up and I can’t—”

Julien pushed off the wall, closing the door behind him. He approached
her and held her by the shoulders. “Look at me. Do I look scared? I don’t doubt
you. Not for a second. You protected us from an army of warlocks. You healed
me. I have never known of such power before. You are the real thing, Giselle.”

“Am I?”

“I just said so.”

“No—for you, I mean. Am I the real thing for you?”

He looked away. “You
wanna
have the talk now?
In a few hours, we will be fighting for our lives. I cannot—”

“You can’t or won’t?” She quipped.

He pulled away from her and went to the window.

She watched him scan the grounds while she waited for a response.

He turned to gaze at her. “I truly love you, Giselle, but we cannot be
together. You know of your responsibility to this coven. You must marry within
the royal families in order to keep your bloodline strong. It’s impossible for
us to stay together. I am sorry. It’s what must be done. The fate of a race is
at stake.”

“So, when this is over, you will leave?”

His mouth tilted to the side when he sauntered closer. “Yes. I will go
and do what needs to be done. I will free my sister’s soul. And when she flies
up through the mist of freedom, I will think of your sweet, smiling face, and your
beautiful eyes looking on as she ascends heaven’s stairway.”

He picked up her hand and placed it over his heart. “And my heart will
beat with joy. And because of a little witch, it will beat with the memory of a
great love. A love I’ve never known until now.”

Swallowing hard, she shook her head no. “I want to go back to the
cavern. I don’t want obligations and rules. I want a life with you, on Beaumont
Plantation. I—” She stopped short, her tears falling furiously at the thought
of letting him go. But deep down, she knew she had to. As he tipped up her chin
and kissed her, he whispered.
“Me, too, Little Witch.
Me, too.”

****

Just outside the library door, Percy stood with his hand hovering over
the doorknob. Desiree and Simon looked on. Desiree huffed, putting her hands on
her hips. “Well? Are you going to spy on them all night or are you going to go
in there and tell them the truth?”

Simon narrowed his eyes at Desiree.
“Truth?
What truth?”

Percy pressed his ear to the door and whispered. “
Shh
.
Now is not the time. It can be useful later on. Besides, I think they are too
busy saying good-bye. Let’s leave them in peace.”

Chapter Thirty-Six

In the distance, lightning fizzed and thunder rumbled its low warning.
Cecily
Jareau
moved forward, her feet sweeping
through the dead, crackling brush. Trudging toward her fate, holding her head
high, she fought the rising tide of panic bubbling up to the surface. Pushing
it down into her stomach, burying it deep, she moved with purpose. Facing
Zacharias with total awareness, no longer carrying the ineptness that once was
her flaw, she looked to set things right.

Fighting the evil she once thought she’d never have to face, Cecily
grew into a woman in these last hours. All her life, feeling like a girl, fifty-six-year-old
Cecily finally embraced her adulthood, her witch-hood and her high-ranking
royal status. She would not allow herself to be made a fool of. She would stand
with her coven, be proud of her heritage, and fight for her daughter. And she
would fight until the last breath left her body.

As she continued forward, the smell of decomposition grew strong, the
rancid smell of rotting flesh flaring her nostrils. The thought of holding such
evil in her arms made the bile rise up into her throat, threatening to choke
her. The pendant was made to look untouched, but the spell had indeed been
broken. The smell was proof of that. Squelching her fear, Cecily looked around.
She knew they were there, the travelers, hidden in the trees, in the brush, in
the sky. Unnoticed and surrounding her with protection, Cecily moved forward.

The travelers had gathered at Cottonwood Landing. Many came from far
and wide, but they were still few in number. And Jacques
LaFeoure
was among them. He was here in the woods, not far from her. She felt his
presence as she straightened her spine and smoothed her hair. No longer was she
a young, vibrant witch, with a sparkling smile and hope in her eyes. She felt
withered, old, used up. Jacques would still be a handsome, viral man who would
look at her with pity. But after this was over, she would apologize, move on
and grasp what little happiness life might offer.

Just up ahead she saw him. Zacharias. He stepped from the trees, his
eyes narrowing, searching for Giselle. Watching him wait for her up ahead, she
stopped to gather her strength. Cecily pretended not to notice the utter
decimation around her. She smiled, even though the putrid smells permeating the
air churned her stomach. There was a warlock near, a hungry one.

Closer still, she watched Zacharias tilt his head in a questioning
stare, then noticed his jaw tighten, his teeth clench.

“Where is Giselle? I told you to bring her tonight. I must hold her in
a protective circle until the time is right. It is then, and only then, I can
remove her curse. Did you not listen to me?”

“Yes. I listened. The royals thought it best to bring her themselves.”

“I told you specifically
you
must bring her to me.
Alone.
Why involve the royals?”

Cecily pursed her lips. “Zacharias—why does a watcher say my daughter
has a pure aura?”

She caught him glance at her pendant, not wanting to linger without
raising her suspicion. If he did, he would have noticed the way it was
carefully pieced together. He smiled and took a step back. “Oh, Cecily, after
all these years, you choose now to doubt my word? What purpose would I have
with Giselle, other than to be with you?
To make you happy?
I cannot bring you both into my coven while Giselle wears the stain of
Natas
. Besides, watchers no longer roam our earth. They
were obliterated hundreds of moons ago. Maybe this so-called watcher is the
untruthful one.”

Cecily shook her head. “No, this man bears the eye. His name is that of
an original. And he says Giselle’s aura is clean.”

He stepped closer to her. “Oh, I believe the stain will seep through.
And once it does, I cannot help you. If she is not expelled of the darkness at
the time of the crescent moon, I’m afraid she will rot in the pit.” Zacharias
reached out, grabbing her arm, pulling her to him. Cecily gagged at the feel of
his slime-coated skin. His fingers felt scaly and slick to the touch as he
manhandled her. “Are you not anxious to proceed?”

She tried pulling away when she felt him latch onto the necklace. With
widening eyes, he held her in place, his seamless plan disintegrating before
him.

“All these years I had you under my spell. Hours before I am to capture
a witch to the tenth power, you break my trust?”

His once velvety unwavering voice began to change. A deeper, raspy
croak could be heard just underneath the surface of the smoothness of his voice,
until it was replaced by the evil cackle of a demonic species. Zacharias’ eyes
glazed over, his ire transforming the once handsome human appearance. “You
think to trick me?” He held tight, his fingers lengthening.

Cecily was now face to face with her worst nightmare, an evil warlock.
But she would not falter. If it meant dying for her kind, she would lay down
her life. The warlock’s fangs filled his mouth, cracking through the gums,
distorting its face. The cheekbones moved to accommodate the giant incisors
while he laughed. His was a high-pitched, throaty sound, sending chills up her
spine. The reality of her proximity to pure evil hit her with such force, she
screamed out. And it was his eyes that nearly sent Cecily to her grave. The red,
beady, piercing eyes penetrated through her conscious mind making her fight for
a breath.

A noise caused the warlock to look around.

“Have you brought company, Cecily? Perhaps the royals know of your
stupidity after all? Maybe I underestimated these last nineteen years. Your
kind has slowly been integrating with the humans, haven’t they?” He laughed
mockingly.
“The stupid humans!
Now, there’s a race
that will surely get you killed, and yet your kind protect them as a mother
bear protects her cubs. Why? For what reason do you do it?”

Another noise came, from another direction, this time causing him to
retreat, releasing her arm. Taking a fighting stance, Zacharias carefully
observed his surroundings.

Cecily would’ve given anything to see his expression when he turned
back around and she wasn’t there. She watched him swivel one way, then the
other, confusion evident in his actions.

“You pathetic creature,” she snarled. “You never did ask my true
calling.”

Cecily watched him, frozen in place, slowly lift his head and look up.

Levitating in the air, mere feet from him, she spat.
“You didn’t underestimate them.
You
underestimated
me—
and I hope your death is long and painful.” She smiled when a
perfectly round fireball erupted from her palm. Throwing it at the warlock, it
whizzed past his head.

Zacharias craned his neck, quickly moving his head out of the way of
the flaming weapon. “You missed.”

Cecily smiled as she looked behind him. “I was supposed to.”