Lonely Souls (14 page)

I pulled on the heavy solid mahogany door, feeling the breeze on my skin as the air inside escaped. Looking around I was in complete awe. Meredith’s work was breathtaking. Vines were intertwined on the pews with roses, greenery, and ribbons swaying from the slightest movement. The ceiling had a beautiful canopy created out of lush green salal leaves and dangling white lilies. It was as if a mystical forest had been brought inside these four walls. Between the beauty of everything living that surrounded me and the fragrance of the greenery, I was overwhelmed. A strange comfort slowly built inside of me. This was the coven I grew up in, and I shouldn’t be so quick to judge and turn off everything that I had come to learn and love about these traditions.

“Thanks, Logan. I guess I’d better go meet with the other poor souls like me before our big moment,” I said smiling.

He leaned over and kissed me on my cheek causing a complete stir of emotions. His lips were so tender and soft. I quickly looked up at him, and saw him smiling at me waiting for a reaction. Before my mind caught up with my body, I landed a kiss back on his cheek and my lips lingered.

“I think they’re waiting for you,” he whispered. His deep blue eyes were twinkling as if I’d just answered something for him. “Keep your eyes open, just in case.”

Completely confused and mortified with myself, I turned around and found my way to the group that was waiting for me. I didn’t mean to lead him on, but there was something so easy about being with him. The awkwardness kept drifting away with every moment spent with him. It was almost like before.

“Hey, Triss, I’ll be sitting right over here if you need anything,” Logan hollered through the crowd that was now starting to enter the room.

I refused to make eye contact with him. This was not part of my plan. I needed to focus on my mom. In fact, this was her fault for thinking he should ever stay with us. I never would have thought about having him live at the house.

I was huddled with the group of us who were about to go up to the front of the room, hearing all the last-minute instructions. I briefly found myself feeling like I was up for Miss Universe or something. It made me chuckle. Hopefully, they weren’t expecting much out of me besides some of our traditional chants. I glanced over the audience and saw Logan. He was looking directly at me, his gaze burning through me. It sent a shiver up my spine.

Delibes’s “Flower Duet” from
Lakmé
started rolling through the speakers, and a smile came to my lips immediately. My only hope was that I wouldn’t start laughing. It was like a sign from my mom. Whenever I heard this song, I’d immediately think back to the movie
Meet the Parents
. It’s a beautiful song, but the memory of my mom and I rolling around in laughter to that movie puts it in a different category. Every wedding we go to seems to have this song. I looked around at everyone and they were all so completely serious. I looked out into the audience at Logan and saw he had a grin as well. I wondered why. And then once he did the ‘I’m watching you’ movement with his fingers, I knew what his grin was covering. We were totally from the same plane, and I did the gesture right back at him.

As the song trailed away, I followed the line up to the front of the room. We all had our own arrangement and set of candles to light. We were asked to pick flowers that were important to us. At the time I was asked to choose the flowers I wanted, my mom was still here. I certainly would have chosen differently now.

I looked down the line of us up on the platform and saw Kyle with daffodils, which were associated with respect. I tried to hide my grin. He always had an issue with that. I wondered if everyone actually learned the meaning or just picked flowers randomly. Leslie, who was next to me, had all chrysanthemums—almost every color imaginable. It kind of fit her personality. She was pretty scattered and happy-go-lucky. My arrangement was filled with ferns, roses, and flax, which represented fascination, fate, love, honor, faith, and protection. Maybe it actually had more meaning now than before.

Most of the elders were sitting in the front pew, but I didn’t see Brenda or Frank. The priestess was in the center of us all. I was just patiently waiting to light my candles, so I didn’t daydream the whole experience away.

“This is a very important first step in our world. As adults, these witches have made a choice. A choice that will be with them for the rest of their lives. To some, this might be the biggest commitment they’ll ever make or be faced with. For others, this might be one of the very small decisions they are faced with in their lives to come. No one can ever predict where life will take them. It is our job now to take each of these witches by the hand and help guide them wherever it is that life asks them to go.” The priestess paused, turning around, signaling us to light our candles.

We were all kneeling, and I was thankful I was at least closer to the arrangements this way. I grabbed the lighter and began lighting the candles, hoping this would end soon. The heat from the lighter started to sting my thumb, but I did my best to hurry on with lighting all the wicks. The flames gently swayed as I congratulated myself on lighting them all so quickly. I looked into the crowd and saw Aunt Vieta and Ellsy looking back at me very proud. I’m sure just as my mom would have been. I smiled at them both and whispered, “Love you.” They both blew kisses back to me, and I was relieved I didn’t skip this ceremony after all.

The priestess began walking down the line, bowl in hand, as she leaned over snipping a lock of hair from each of us. Every year when I saw this done, I always got the willies, and it didn’t seem like it was any better being on this side of things. She finally got to me. I leaned over the flower arrangement and she quickly cut not more than a centimeter, releasing it into the bowl. She turned back to face the coven and dropped a mixture of lavender, lemon, and other essential oils in the bowl, reciting the initiation chant. This was what would allow me into our library, and the excitement was building. My aunt was cupping her hands to her mouth in pride. I knew she was probably just as conflicted as I was. It was hard to completely let go of the sadness this day held. The priestess turned back to us and smiled before beginning again.

“The flames that you see here signify the spiritual energy that each of these witches has burning inside of them. The passion and resolve to do the right thing in this world and the next will continue to stay lit inside of them with all of your support. Our community is small in size but large in love. Let’s remember to always make time for our new members. Just as the flames dance in many directions so will these young peoples’ lives, and we must always be encouraging and—”

She stopped, looking straight back to the entrance to the room. I followed her stare to find a sight I never expected to see.

Chapter 14

The wooden doors flung open like they were as light as cardboard. They smacked against the wall and bounced back, scaring the crowd and myself. All the flames on our candles extinguished, and the air turned frigid. The doors slammed shut, and the lights went dark. The fear began building deep inside of me, but then it turned to anger, with my gut snarling and churning. This had to be directed at me.

The lights came back on as quickly as they were turned off. A shudder went through me. Standing in each corner was someone dressed in a red cloak, their faces covered completely by a hood. I had never seen anything like it. I quickly scanned the crowd and saw that Logan’s spot on the pew was empty. Panic spread through me. Was he involved in this? Aunt Vieta and Ellsy were whispering to one another nervously. I looked at the others next to me, and they were trembling. Why wasn’t I?

An apparition appeared in the center of the room hovering in the aisle. A gasp echoed through the crowd as it became apparent to everyone that this wasn’t something any of us had faced before. My eyes darted around the room looking for Logan, and I still didn’t see any trace of him.

The apparition wasn’t all that dissimilar to the one that I was faced with at the floral shop. I could see through this one as well, but something did seem a little different than the entity at the floral shop.

The being took in a deep, hollow breath and swung his arm around, instructing the red-cloaked figures to step forward. In a flash, each of the beings raised their wands and pointed at the crowd who gasped. They had to be black sorcerers.

A deep voice came from the back of the room as the doors were flung open for a second time, leaving Logan in the doorway glaring. The figures, still pointing their wands at the crowd, turned their head to see the new participant.

“Are you looking for this?” Logan commanded, he was holding something up that I couldn’t see.

The cloaked beings pointed their wands at the ceiling and began torching the beautiful flower arrangements that had been hung from the rafters. The crowd started screaming as pieces of the flaming flowers began floating down from the ceiling.

“
Deleo de anima
,” the chant began from the black magicians.

“You cowards! Answer me!” Logan snapped, throwing the object he had been holding onto the ground toward the ghostly image.

My eyes watched the metal tumble to its landing spot under the being, and I could see that it was glowing with a red only hot metal could do.

“You!” A shrill scream echoed through the room from the being. The witches stopped casting their spells, and the apparition started flying toward Logan. A scream shot out of me, stopping the being only inches from Logan.

It slowly turned around to find where the scream came from, and I stood up to make its task easier.

“It’s me you want! Leave him alone!” I shouted.

My aunt gasped.

The apparition shot toward me, stopping short, hovering right in front of me. I looked at Leslie and whispered, “Run!”

Leslie darted, with the rest of the honorees following quickly behind. I didn’t know what was about to go down, but I didn’t want anyone else hurt.

“You don’t need to do this,” the priestess whispered. “Give them what they want.”

“They want me, and I’m not giving in quite so easily,” I stared at her coldly before returning my gaze at the hovering being. Apparently, the coven wasn’t nearly as supportive as I thought.

She stepped away from us, leaving me to wonder what was really going on here.

“We want you to follow in the footsteps of your mother,” a whisper met me from the ghostly being.

“And what does that actually mean?” I was seething with anger.

Logan was making his way up the aisle. His eyes were as cold as steel glaring at anything that dared to look his way.

“If you come with us, I’ll let you find out,” the spineless creature croaked.

“Triss, now’s not the time,” Logan hissed. He was standing beside me. “This isn’t a joke.”

“I’m not taking it as such, but I certainly am not going to be taken easily.” I turned briefly to Logan confused by his reaction.

Just days ago we were in the woods practicing a way to protect myself, and now he wants me to give in? It didn’t make sense. Nothing did. What side was he on? Please let him not be involved in this.

The red-cloaked beings came to stand behind the apparition, and they ceremoniously took off their hoods. Their gaze moved up to meet mine and every single set of eyes looking back at me were fiery red. I was looking at human witches with blazing red eyes, and I had never seen anything like it. I didn’t think it was possible.

“Whatever it is you’re planning is a waste. Our covenstead is protected. I placed a protection spell on it. Nothing inside of it can be touched. Go ahead and try.” I prayed silently that what Logan had taught me would actually work.

I looked down at my pinky and was thankful it was still silver. Lame clue or not, I’d take it as a positive.

The red-cloaked men began chanting, and I knew it was directed at me. I looked over at Logan. His eyes were full of rage, and I wasn’t sure if it was directed at me or at the black magicians. I had no idea what they were saying, but I was guessing it was a curse of some form.

“
Imperium in Mentem. Imperium in Mentem. Imperium in Mentem,”
their voices were low and vicious.

I began feeling lightheaded and glanced over at Logan whose eyes were fully focused on the men in front of me. I searched the crowd and saw my aunt gripping Ellsy in fear. If everyone would stand up against these intruders, there would be no issue. We could chase them out of here, whoever they were. Unless I’m completely misguided, it seems like there has to be at least one hundred coven members in the audience. Why aren’t they doing anything?

“Triss,” Logan’s voice was somber, “go to your aunt.”

He wouldn’t look at me.

“No. It’s me they want. You shouldn’t be involved.”

“Triss, none of us have time for your stubbornness at the moment,” he growled.

The chanting was still quietly being sung, and my dizziness was only getting worse. I hoped there wasn’t a connection.

“I—” I started, but Logan interrupted.

“Now!” he barked.

My aunt stood up and held out her arms. The entire pew cleared way leaving Ellsy and my aunt waiting for me. I didn’t want to let my gaze off of Logan, so I spun around and began backing up toward my aunt. The cloaked figures turned and watched me the entire way. The apparition, however, was still facing Logan. I felt my aunt wrap her arms around me, but I wouldn’t dislodge my stare from Logan. If anything happened to him, I would never forgive myself.

”
Exuro Anima Aeternus
,” Logan shouted, as his wand pointed at the apparition.

The entire room gasped as the words left Logan’s lips, and the apparition turned to a ball of fire and vanished with a loud explosion.

Anima, anima; what is that? My mind was not functioning the way it normally did. Everything seemed so hazy. I knew I just learned the meaning for anima. Finally, I remembered that was the word for soul. What’s he doing? The dread was spreading through me. He was using black magic, and it was my fault. My head was pounding, and the guys dressed in red were looking more and more distant.