Under A Blood Moon (Elemental Enchanters) (13 page)

“
I imagine since it’s getting closer to your birthday and holidays thinking about her is stronger. At least, it’s like that with me.”

Ava nodded
, but it was something else entirely that made her think about her mom. “I would give anything to talk to her again. I just miss her so much. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t think about her. And I wonder if she would be proud of me. Or would she be disappointed in my choices?” She took a deep breath and pushed the tears back. “Melissa told me I should be over it.”

“What? How dare she
say that?”

“She’s right. It’s been ten years and I still get so upset.”

“Ava, there’s never a time limit on grief.”

“I had a bad dream last night. And Thomas just told them all about it
. I trusted him not to say anything. But he keeps saying they need to know.”

“Why haven’t you talked to them about it?”

Ava shrugged. “I just feel like they won’t understand. And Melissa’s comments clearly proved that. It’s almost like I feel closer to you than them.”

He took her hand in his. It was warm
and comforting, and it jolted her heart awake.

“
Ava, I have to ask something,” he said.

She stiffened. “Okay.”

“Have you only been talking to me because you’ve been having problems with him?”

“It does seem that way
, doesn’t it?”

“A bit.”

“I’m so sorry,” she said. “It’s not like that at all. Everything about me now is just confusing. The only thing that makes sense anymore is you and me, but even that’s getting difficult.” Her lips trembled, but she let the words freely escape. “I’m changing, and there are…” She paused. How could she explain it to him? “Things I have to do now. Things that I’m unsure about and I don’t know what to do. And I’m fearing…” She stopped.
Fearing for my life.

Peter
drew his brows together. His brown eyes were full of concern. “Ava, you’re shaking. What kind of trouble are you in?”

Her
eyes blurred. She didn’t know how to answer that.

“Is there anything I can do?”

“No.”

He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly.
She rested her head on his shoulder, closed her eyes, and relaxed. Except that her heart pounded. Ava resisted the want, the need, the curiosity of having his lips on hers. So many urges she abstained forced tears to the forefront of her eyes. She took a deep breath.

“Ava
.” He paused. “Do you love Thomas?”

She drew back.
“It’s…complicated.”

“Complicated,” he echoed, shaking his head.

Ava wanted to brush her fingers through his thick hair and trace the smooth outline of his face. Feel the small dimple in his right cheek when he smiled. How was she supposed to end her friendship with him? This was ridiculous. She couldn’t do that.

So what if her parents were
Enchanters. Didn’t she have a choice on how to live? Her friends had obviously not taken the oath seriously. Wouldn’t she be safer from Devon if she carried on without using her powers? She couldn’t tell her dad about her feelings. What about Colden? Would he help her? He had no power. Would he resent her for not wanting to be an Enchanter?

“Whoa, what’s that?”

“What?”

Peter pointed to her necklace, and she froze. Ava looked down and silently cursed. She quickly moved the glowing pendant under her sweater. “
It’s nothing.” A few seconds later, she felt her friends’ worry. Would she ever get used to that?

He chuckled, bringing her up short.
“That’s neat. My cousin has a ring that does that. She presses a button, and it lights up.”

She was relieved that he didn’t think anything about the necklace.

“I should go,” she said. “But we can talk tonight.”

“I can call into work if you want.”

“No. Your job is important.”

“I think you’re more important. It’s a measly retail job, Ava. It’s not like I’m going to
stay there forever.” He gave her a lopsided smile.

She would love to spend the entire evening with him, but
she had to go to the cabin and channel with the others. “I just have to do something first. But I’ll see you tonight.”

“Yeah.” He hugged her, and then she left the courtyard.

Ava wasn’t going to class. She wanted to talk to Colden. Would he be there? Would he be upset that Ava came without invitation? Savina had mentioned that they were there for them.

Driving on the same
winding path as three weeks before, and just as nervous, she searched for the mansion. The road was lined with tall arched trees that blocked the sunlight. The lush green colors seemed odd in November. Ava braked at the entrance. A high stone wall surrounded the property with a black iron gate in the center held by two columns. Black raven statues perched atop each column. She let up on the brake and eased through the open gates.

To
her amazement, the mansion was still intact. Her heart thrummed against her chest, and she couldn’t seem to catch her breath. Her necklace warmed, and she grasped it.

Ava
opened the car door. She hesitated a moment, and then got out. A breeze blew, removing some color off the trees. It was colder than it was when she left school. She closed the car, and made her way to the front door, never taking her eyes from it. Not knowing what to say, part of her wished Savina or Colden wouldn’t be home.
Don’t back out now.
She knocked on the door, and waited. Seconds later, it opened. Savina stood with a quizzical look on her pale face.

“
Ava,” she said. “What is bothering you?”

Ava
’s words seem to be stuck in her throat, but her courage returned after a few seconds. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know who else to talk to.”

“Please, come inside.” Savina moved aside to let her in.

Ava remained on the doorstep. “I would’ve come to you earlier, but you vanished.” She raised her voice. “For ten years. I thought you were supposed to be there for us.” She stared into Savina’s green eyes.

“Please,
Ava, come inside. We will talk.” Her voice was firm, yet soft.

She
crossed the threshold, and then followed Savina to the same room as the other night. She stopped in the doorway. Colden was talking to a man who stood by the fireplace with an arm propped on the mantle. Dressed in a black suit, the tall, slim man turned to her. His cropped brown hair looked almost black, as did his small goatee. He had slight laugh lines around his russet eyes, and he looked as if he were in his forties.

“
Ava.” The man beamed. “I am so grateful to meet you finally.” He spoke eloquently in a Southern accent. “Savina has told me much about you. Are you not well?” His expression turned to concern. He reminded her of someone from the late 19
th
century. The only word that came to her mind was dashing.

“I…”
Her words lodged in her throat.

“
Ava, this is Aaron, my companion,” Savina said.

He bowed his head
, and she felt like she needed to curtsy, but didn’t.

“Aaron, could you please give us time alone?”

“Of course. I shall return shortly.” He shook Ava’s hand, and then left.

“What has happened?” Colden asked, still standing by the fireplace.
 

Savina sat
in her Victorian red chair. “She is worried.”

A
va moved to the couch, and suddenly felt very awkward. How could she have behaved like that?

“
I’m very sorry,” she said. “I shouldn’t have erupted like that.”

Savina smiled warmly.
“I understand.” And the look in her eye proved that. “I suspect this hasn’t been very easy for you.”

“How’d you guess?” she asked, rudely, and regretted it. “Sorry.”
Ava could feel their gaze. She twirled her ring around her finger. Why had she come?

“You r
emind me so much of your mother,” Colden said.

She
looked up. “I do?”

“Yes. You
are strong and independent, like her. She was a very determined woman, who could be a little hot tempered at times.” He smiled, and Ava felt her cheeks warm.

“But she was
very kind and loving and loyal,” Savina said. “Your mother loved you so dearly. She did everything she could to protect you.”

She cleared her throat politely.
“Dad told me she was a Water Enchanter.”

“She was. Just like you.”

Ava shook her head. “I’m not like her. I’m not strong. All I can do is breathe underwater.”

“It will come.
You are strong, but you just have to find that strength within.”

“I don’
t see it.” She sighed. “All of this is too much. I don’t belong.”

“Why do you say that?”
Colden asked.

“I’m the only one
whose power is incredibly weak.” She raised her voice. “And I don’t want to kill.”

Savina nodded.
“You are not the only one with these concerns. I can tell you are fighting it, but you do belong here, with your Aureole.”

“Why?”

“Your mother wanted you in this coven. Same one as her, different generation. I made a promise to your mother that you would be in my care if anything ever happened.”

“Y
ou broke that promise.”

Savina’s green eyes
cooled. “We have always been here, watching, and protecting you.”

Colden
held up his hand to her. “We never made our presence known to you in all those years because we did not want to leave a trail for anyone.”

“But
Devon Maunsell knows about us, doesn’t he? I mean, that’s why there are Enchanters spying on us.”

“He has spies because he wants revenge.”

“What would happen if he found out what we are?”

Savina looked to Colden. They were obviously having a private conversation
. After a few seconds, she turned back to Ava. “We suspect he could absorb all your powers for his own.”

“
But we are still investigating it,” Colden quickly added. “If we capture the spies, we can get them to tell us where Devon is. If we kill them, they cannot go back to him.”

Ava drew a ragged breath. “I don’t want this.
”

“You swore an oath,” Savina said.

“I know. I just didn’t think all this would be happening so soon. I just want to live a normal life. I don’t want to have to live in fear.”

She
gave her a tolerant look. “No one does, Ava.”

“
How many encounters have you had where you nearly died?” Colden asked.

She met his black eyes.
“How could you know about them?”

“
We know everything that’s happened to you. Savina saved you when you had pneumonia. She healed Melissa’s stomach virus, Jeremy’s tuberculosis. When Gillian contracted a lung disease, Thomas’ss cancer, and Lance’s severe fever, she saved them. If it had not been for her, none of you would be alive.”

Ava
’s mind raced. They had been protecting her. How else would they have known of these incidences? “You…saved us?” she asked.

“I did,
Ava. But you all healed each other as well. You stayed with each other throughout those dark times. You almost never left their bedsides and they reciprocated.”

Ava nodded. “I remember.”

“But we are not telling you this so you will think you owe us. You do not by any means. We are telling you this to emphasize the strength of this Aureole. It is based on a bond that protects us. We are loyal and devoted to each other. You and your friends have been there for each other all of these years.”

Guilt landed on Ava.
“I guess I just never saw it that way.”

“
All of you are young and naïve. When you come back to practice, you will learn more of your loyalty and appreciate it more. We are a strong Aureole, but you must understand its meaning.”

“I understand a lot more now,”
she said. Ava had experienced circumstances with the others that brought them closer together. She realized she had belonged to the Aureole all along, but why were her friends acting so hostile lately? Fear, probably. They just showed it differently than her. And how strange was it that they all almost died. “Do we know what caused us to become so ill?”

Savina pressed her lips together
and exchanged a look with Colden. “There are theories.”

“Like what? Were our powers too much for our bodies?” But then Ava thought of Corbin spreading illnesses. “Was it
one of Corbin’s men?”

“You should not be concerned.”

“What do you mean? Who was it?”

“They are dead,” she said with finality in her voice.

Ava wanted to know more, but it was obvious that Savina wasn’t going to explain. Why wouldn’t she tell her?

“
How do you feel now?” Colden asked.

“
Better. I just didn’t think I could talk to my dad about it. He doesn’t seem to understand a lot.”

“He
comprehends more than you think. Talk to him.”

She would if it didn’t turn into an argument lately. “I still don’t feel like I’m ready to start…killing.”

“I know,” Savina said. “It is never an easy thing. I was like you. I never wanted to hurt a soul. But to stop those who could hurt the ones I love, I will.”

That
made sense. To keep her loved ones safe, including herself, she would have to do this. Sacrifices would have to be made. She took a deep breath. “How exactly do we use our abilities? I mean, h-how do I kill someone?” She was still uneasy. Every time she said it, her stomach jumbled into knots.

“You are water.
How can someone die by water?”

“Drowning?” Ava blurted.

“That’s one way. When you want to drown someone, you imagine it. It will come to you naturally. You will find that you can do many things. You control Water, Ava.”

Ava thought about moving the water in the glass. Could she really do that with larger bodies of water? “What about Melissa? She turn
s invisible.”

“Melissa
can produce poison—that’s one of her several abilities.”

“Produce poison?
”

“
Yes. It will take time for you all to learn everything that you can do.”

“How exactly do we
practice?”

“You
will work with each other, using your abilities,” Savina said.

“What if we get hurt?”

“You’re able to sustain many injuries, but if anything is too severe, you can always come to me. Right now, I want all of you to learn to focus and your strengths. This Friday we will meet and train.”

Ava let the information soak in.
“Do you know of anyone actually spying on us?”

“No one that we have noticed yet.”

“I-I think this boy at school is an Enchanter.”

Colden furrowed his eyebrows.

Savina’s face turned grim. “What makes you think this?”

“These kids went missing and came back to join his gang or whatever. They are completely different now.
And I think he can make people faint.”

“
That’s quite an accusation,” Savina said. “If this boy was an Enchanter, and I’m assuming you believe he’s made Ephemerals into Enchanters, they would not be at school. They would be training to fight.”

Ava felt her cheeks warm. Now she really felt like an idiot. Her friends were right all along. “Oh.
”

He
clasped his hands in front of him. “You are not as worried as before. Have we helped?”

“Yes.
”

“I am glad.”

Ava got to her feet, knowing she needed to leave. “Thank you.”

“Anytime
,” he said.

Savina stood, and
held Ava at arm’s length. “Any time you need us for anything, we are here. As well as Aaron. Do not be afraid of the information we have given you. Learn from it.”

She
nodded, turned for the door, but stopped. “Is—is it okay to have friends outside the circle?”

“
What sort of friends?” Colden asked.

“
Ephemerals.”

Ava sensed hesitation from Savina. “
I don’t think right now is such a good idea. If an Enchanter sees you with them, he or she could use them against you. We do not want to risk their lives.”

“Of course.”

“Come along, Dear. It is getting late, and your father must be worried.” Savina lead her out of the room.

Ava stopped short.
Aaron appeared just outside.

He tipped his head like a proper gentleman, and smiled warmly.
“It was so nice to meet you, Ava.”

“You, too
.”

A
va walked out into the dark night, and wondered what time it was. She slid behind the cold wheel of her car, and started the engine. Her body shivered from the cold, but then it warmed. She could get used to that.

There were
several missed calls from Thomas, Melissa, and her dad. Being at Savina’s seemed like it was ages since she had been at school. She called her dad and told him she’d been at the library. Ava wasn’t sure why she lied, but because his powers had decreased, he couldn’t tell.