covencraft 04 - dry spells (41 page)
Read covencraft 04 - dry spells Online
Authors: margarita gakis
“She knew,” Jade said, referring to Sakkara. “She knew because she made me like this. How?” Another flash of memory arced across her brain. Of the lake, of drowning. Of being held down, under water. Looking up and seeing blue eyes, framed by long dark hair. “She knew because she was there. She held me down. Under the water.”
“To be fair, I doubt Sakkara knew then what my sister intended. She thought she was merely drowning you as payment for what she wanted to receive from my sister.” Seth laughed. “I wish I could have been there when my sister opened that box and found pieces missing.” He sighed. “Oh family. No one is quite like them. You know all their buttons. How easy they are to push.”
Jade felt sick. The wine she’d had burned at her throat, threatening to make a comeback. “Sakkara drowned me. As part of her demon deal.”
“Are you still stuck on that nugget?” Seth scoffed dismissively. “Lucky for you, it all worked out in the end. Here you are. Still alive. Powerful to boot. No doubt because you were subjected to demon magic at such a young age, you imprinted on it. Like a fuzzy baby duckling.”
Jade shook her head, unable to comprehend all of what Seth was saying. “Why would she do that? I was just… I was child.”
“Possum. Clearly she was getting something out of it. Honestly, I don’t know why you’re fixed on that. You already knew you drowned. Someone had to have done it. Now you know it was Sakkara. Now you can move on.”
Bruce toddled into the kitchen, looking out of sorts and confused until he saw Seth and started hissing and spitting.
“Ugh, your horrid familiar. Get a hold of yourself.”
Jade’s wine glass tipped over, the alcohol catching fire as her magic escaped out of her.
“There you go with your magic again. Control. You lack it.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I grow weary of you repeating that. My sister has been trying for decades to noodle out the Osiris box from Medusa. Errand girl after errand boy after errand demon. Each time, she comes up with something new. I have to give her credit, however, for you. A witch who can be in two places at once.” Seth sighed and drank more of his wine. “Pity she never understood it was so simple all along. You just had to
see
Medusa. See her and not the Gorgon.”
Jade rubbed her temples, as if through simple pressure she could make all the pieces fit. “But you helped me.”
“Well, it gave me a reason to see Medusa, didn’t it? I don’t care to admit it, and if you repeat this outside your kitchen, I’ll tear your spine out and use it as a wind chime, but sometimes I do miss Dusa. There’s no one quite like her.” He smirked. “She’s quite talented with those snakes of hers. Our little road trip enabled me to see her again.”
Jade swallowed. “Sakkara, Paris’ mother, drowned me as a child,” she said, the words coming out slow. “Because her demon mistress wanted her to.”
“Gods in heaven and hell, Possum, I know you’re smarter than this.” Seth paused. “Yes!” he shouted, enunciating the word perfectly. “Move along from it.”
“Why?”
Seth downed the rest of his second glass of wine. “These are the games immortals play. When you’ve got thousands of years to occupy, you care nothing for the lifespan of mortals.”
“No, but what was in it for Sakkara?” Jade pressed.
Seth shrugged. “Who cares? Humans are so short lived and fragile. It’s hard to tell why you do what you do.”
Bruce hissed at Seth, his long pink tongue coming out of his jaws and flapping in the wind.
“I don’t make the rules, lizard-thing. I only play by them.”
Jade could hear Sakkara’s words in her mind, recalling more of what she said.
“I’m so sorry. For everything. If I’d known… but you must understand, I thought I was protecting him. That’s what mothers do, isn’t it?”
“She did it for Paris,” Jade murmured. “Somehow, she thought was doing it for him.”
“Maybe,” Seth hedged. “Who cares? It’s done.” He pushed his glass through the barrier once more. “A little more wine, Possum.”
Bruce came forward and nosed at Seth’s glass. He took one sniff and then batted it away with his front leg, sending it across the tile floor. It hit the cupboards and broke into pieces.
“Fine.” Seth’s tone was harsh, brisk. He brushed his hands together. “Between you and Dusa, I cannot stomach any more emotional turmoil.”
Seth disappeared in the filmy, wavy way he had. Bruce spat three more times and then flopped down on the ground, dropping his head in Jade’s lap. He sighed, his tongue lolling out of his mouth as he presented his neck to her. He had a marble patch on his scales, similar to the one on Jade’s neck. She touched it absently, feeling the cool press of stone under her fingers. She guessed they’d both been scarred by the Gorgon. It didn’t worry her nearly as much as the thought of Paris’ mother. She reached out a shaky hand and grabbed the bottle of wine, taking three long gulps of it, feeling the liquid burn all the way down her esophagus.
“Pfffftttt.”
“I know, Bruce.” She pet his forehead and he flapped his Elizabethan collar a couple times, fanning her with air. “She was there that night - at the lake. She…” Jade blinked, not sure if what she pictured in her mind was a memory or just her own educated guess. “She thought she was doing it for him. For Paris.”
“Pfffft.”
Jade smiled at Bruce. “Yeah. He’s not like her. We trust him, don’t we, buddy?” She scratched his head and he preened under her ministrations, his eyes slitting shut, a low purr-like sound coming from his throat. “But why the hell did she think she was doing it for him?”
“Pfffft.”
Jade was left sitting on the floor of her kitchen wondering if ignorance had truly been bliss.
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About the Author
Margarita loves the art, creativity and romanticism of storytelling. Sometimes, however, the act of putting pen to paper proves challenging. She works to develop genuine, relatable characters which grow in the hearts of her readers. From that foundation, the stories flourish into a warm friend.
She enjoys pursuits which blur the lines between the analytical and creative sides of her brain. This includes her day job in electronic data management, where she uses her creativity to solve logical problems, and also her lessons learning to play the cello, where she finds beauty in the structure of music and the instrument. She believes there is a place for both logic and imagination to work together. When they do, the results are magical.
The ‘label’ she identifies most with is ‘storyteller.’ According to Wikipedia, storytelling is the conveying of events in words, and images, often by improvisation or embellishment. It seems to fit pretty well with how she feels about her work.
At
www.margaritagakis.com
you can sign up for her newsletter to get updates on her current work and upcoming releases.
Also by the Author
Ravenwood
(writing as Margaux Gillis)
The night of the full moon….
Still grieving the recent death of her parents, Elinore Reed is called to live with family she’s never met at Ravenwood. A carriage accident leaves her alone, in the forest, on the night of the full moon, where something lurks in the trees.
A bite that will not heal…
After being bitten in the woods, Elinore fears for her sanity. The bite is turning black. She hears things she should not be able to and feels emotions strange and foreign to her. Unnerved by her new surroundings and by the disquieting behavior of her uncle, Hayter, Elinore takes comfort in the companionship she finds at Ravenwood, including her growing affection for Caleb, her cousin by marriage.
A deepening mystery…
Why is the bite on her arm turning black? Why does she dream of the forest, of wolves and of ravens? Why is she compelled by a wolf howling at night? As Elinore struggles to understand life at Ravenwood, what will happen when the truth is revealed?
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