First Destroy All Giant Monsters (The World Wide Witches Research Association) (44 page)

“Who has who?” she asked, tightening her intimate muscles around him.

His eyes drifted shut and the expression of pleasure almost to the point of pain flickered across his face. Drawing breath he opened his eyes, focused on her face, her open lips, her exposed and trembling breasts.

“We have each other,” he whispered and started moving faster. Found the rhythm. Found her.

* * * * *

It was dark and there were already a dozen cars parked alongside the road when Sandy pulled into the small crowded parking lot. People dressed in bright summer dresses or simple jeans and shirts, clustered in small groups sipping coffee and chatting. Karl studied the area. There seemed to be very little drive-by traffic this far out of the city, and nothing about this field to attract attention. Anyone driving past would think it a family picnic, if they thought about it at all. Further away from the road was a broad bank of trees obscuring the remainder of the field. Through the trees he could see the intermittent flicker of torch light.

Sandy climbed out and immediately went to the trunk to dig out boxes of supplies. She handed him a bundle of folding chairs. Amber took blankets and a box of doughnuts from the back seat and headed toward the small gate.

“Are you sure this is a coven meeting?” whispered Karl, giving the doughnuts a pointed look.

“Are you still looking for the naked dancing thing?” Amber juggled blankets and the doughnut box as she struggled with the gate fastening. A skinny teenaged boy ran over to open the gate and relieve her of the pastries.

“No. Yes. Okay, so I’m a guy. I’m allowed to be hopeful. Maybe someone in a Morticia gown?” He wiggled his eyebrows at her. “Something low cut and clingy? No? I guess I still expected a couple of Gandalf types at least.”

“Grow a beard and let your hair get long, Karl. You’re almost there,” Amber looked him up and down critically and winked. “On you it would look good.”

Karl grinned widely, tossing his head just to make her laugh. The white hair was something he was going to have to get used to. Still, he might just let it grow at that. He had the narrow face that would look good with long silver curls. He would look dramatic and interesting. Yes. The girls might dig it. He glanced toward Amber who was still grinning at him.

The beard, of course, was just not him. He grabbed a few folding chairs and took a moment to drag in a breath. He’d woken feeling pretty good, but as night fell he could feel the weight of the web again. The Albany witch must be up to something. They’d have to work fast.

Amber led the way across the field to where Thalia was organizing the fire pit. Three women and a man were arguing as they piled wood near the wide iron half drum that served as the fire container.

Amber dropped her bag near a tree stump and claimed one of the folding chairs Karl carried.

“How many people are you expecting, Thalia?” she asked, breaking the seal on a water bottle and settling into the chair.

“I sent out a general call to the usual Sabbat attendees and to the local solitaries that come to our big festivals. I guess I got about thirty replies,” Thalia tucked folded paper between kindling and sat back on her heels.

“Is everyone up to date with what we’re going to do?” said Amber brightly.

Sandy nodded.

“No one has told me what we’re doing?” muttered Karl.

“I know,” said Amber, resting her hand on his sleeve. “While these guys are creating sacred space, we’re going to talk about it.”

“We have enough people to take it in shifts and enough coffee to keep the Third Armored Division awake for a week,” said Sandy, arranging paper cups on a folding table.

Which made Karl wonder what exactly Sandy’s job was here in Washington.

Amber climbed to her feet.

“Thank you, Sandy. I’ll leave you to set up, if you don’t mind. I have to get Karl ready.”

“We have all the usual ritual items,” Thalia pointed to a heavy wooden chest filled with candles, plates, stone cups, and small white handled knives, “I know people prefer to use their own tools, especially for important workings. But there might be something you will feel comfortable with.”

Amber pulled her fan out of her pocket, flicked it open and smiled. “With this and a safe place to work, I’ll be fine.”

Amber took Karl by the hand and led him towards the trees. The light breeze brought snatches of conversation.

“Is the phase of the moon conducive?” wondered someone.

“… vampires nearby, I didn’t know …” came a worried voice.

“… Isaac Bonnewits recommended …”

“I take it these people haven’t heard your aunt’s theory of simplicity,” said Karl, sinking onto the grass beside Amber and watching people with multiple corded belts, dramatic silver jewelry, and one person wearing a fox tail in what remained of his hair. They reminded him of Gloria’s coven. His heart skipped a beat.

He trusted Amber. Trusted her. There were no similarities between Amber and Gloria.

Yes.

Exactly.

He was safe.

Unless she’d cast a spell to make him feel safe.

He could barely see Amber’s smile in the moonlight. His heart clenched. He wanted to grab her hand and run. Go somewhere safe, quiet, and private. The night air was light and intoxicating. A few hundred yards into the field and no one would find them hiding in the soft grass. He could hold her and caress the skin his hands ached for. Kiss the lips soft as caramel and twice as addictive.

“They’ve heard. It’s a fairly common theory now,” Amber’s mouth twitched as a comment about alignment of stars floated to them. “It’s just that for most practitioners using mysterious tools is too much fun to give up. What’s the point of doing magic if you haven’t got a cauldron, sixteen exotic herbs, a stuffed alligator hanging from the ceiling, and at least one crystal ball?”

Karl refused to be distracted. “Okay. What is it you haven’t told me?”

Amber sighed. “We talked about this earlier today, but we activated the forget spell and there wasn’t any time for you to write it down. Sandy thinks what we’re dealing with are psychic vampires. They can pull the life energy out of people and use it themselves. They’re thieves; vicious, with no sense of right or wrong and I’m going to stop them.”

Karl put an arm around Amber’s shoulders and pulled her down onto the grass. She rested her head on his chest and kissed his hand.

“I need you to survive this,” said Amber softly. “I have to free you and me. I want a life that doesn’t involve that witch bitch and her crew.”

“I’m with you there. I need this to be over, Amber,” Karl whispered. “Considering all the complications magic makes in life, I have to say – I’m not sure once I’m free that I’m going to want to be around it. I’m sorry if it … I’m sorry. I don’t think I can tolerate magic, that is. Aside from you, magic hasn’t brought anything but pain to my life. Look at me.” He held up his faintly trembling hands. “Magic has aged me ‘til just looking at me convinces the police that I couldn’t bruise an angel food cake.”

“And I can’t give up magic,” Amber rubbed her five-strand bracelet. “Once a person makes the commitment, it’s for life.”

“It’s all right, Amber. I know you have to do magic. It is so much a part of you that I can’t imagine you without magic any more than I can imagine you without … without. No. You have to keep it. I trust you not to abuse it.”

Distant chanting rose and Amber watched the fire flicker and catch in the circle. With every word he spoke her heart cracked and ached. Karl loved her. She believed that. But he did not love
all
that she was. She wondered if there were a time when her father believed the same about his feelings for her mother. Surely there had been a time when her father had deserved her mother. And now …

“You know, you could have picked a better time to say this,” said Amber. “It’s … argggh … you’re making me crazy. I want to be a witch. It’s not the power, though hey, impressing the maître d’ and getting the good tables at restaurants does not get old.”

“Listen, Amber …”

Amber pushed herself out of his arms and sat up.

“No, Karl, you’ve got to understand. My mom says I’ve glowed in the dark since birth. It’s taken me a long time to come to terms with what I am and what I can do, and I’m happy with my decision. Right now we have to go and do the spell that, with luck and the benign guidance of the Elementals, is going to set us and a whole lot of people who are never going to meet us free. Afterwards … well, we’ll wait and see if there is going to be an afterwards.” She looked up into his eyes, her own face serious and stern, “I’m going to take you back to your memories of where you were when this all began. To college. To when you were with Gloria.”

“Ah … Gloria, what a surprise.”

Amber rolled her eyes and pointed to the circle.

“Excuse me, I gotta work now.”

Amber rose and stalked across the clearing, leaving Karl lying in the grass. After a moment he came to his feet and followed her across the field.

His love, his presence in her life came at a price. One that she could not bring herself to pay. She had only herself to blame. Eventually he would ask her to give up magic. It was inevitable. Instead of paying attention to her own advice and cautions, she’d let herself drift into his arms. And there it was easy to just live in the moment. Revel in the joy of his passion, his touch. She couldn’t call what they had a relationship. Too much had happened too quickly. In the path that lay ahead was nothing but more pain. From the beginning she’d known his opinion of magic. If she did give up magic for him, how many years would pass before she started to hate him for forcing that choice on her?

His timing sucked.

Tonight’s priest and priestess stood with Thalia to one side of the circle watching her approach. Amber bowed to the man; Kokopelli, he’d told her his magic name was. The priestess’s magical name was Lady Fuzzy Bunny Slippers. Despite this Amber trusted their abilities. She knew both of them from the
World Wide Witches Research Association and Pinochle Club
site.

Smoke was going to want to strangle her for involving them. He’d have to live with the pain. She was the witch.

The coven members watched as Amber and Karl were anointed with oil, sprinkled with sage water. Karl’s skin tingled as he stepped into the circle. He rubbed his arms wondering if what he’d experienced was real or an illusion. The chant rose to the overcast sky and Karl tried to focus on the air around him, trying to feel if the chanting changed anything. He’d read enough, seen enough to admit to himself magic was real. No one said he had to like it.

Karl, no matter how hard he concentrated felt no different, a little lightheaded and vague, but still aware of the brush of fabric against his skin, the firm grip of Amber’s hand. She led him to a blanket spread near the fire and encouraged him to lie down. Sandy followed to the center of the circle, dropping small white leaves on the fire. Karl breathed deeply, recognizing the scent of sage as it billowed up. Amber stood at his feet facing the fire. Again he watched as Amber muttered at the smoke, twisting and shaping it with her hands and will. As the smoke began to glitter and cling she tossed the smoke balls towards the coven members. The smoke hit the invisible barrier just outside the ragged circle of people marking the edge of the circle and splattered, spreading smoke over the sky. Again and again Amber tossed the grey balls until the sky was obscured and the circle was filled with a faint silver glow.

The covener’s chant wavered, then strengthened. From the startled look on some of their faces Karl assumed they’d never seen the smoke spell before. Amber raised her hands, opened her mouth and sang the first ohm. The coveners caught the note and the clearing rang with their combined voices. Amber drew in a deep breath and sang again, then lowered herself to sit cross-legged. She knelt down beside him, taking his hand; then she lay beside him on the blanket, pressing a kiss to his knuckles. He looked across at her face illuminated by the fire.

“Trust me,” she whispered.

“Let’s go.”

* * * * *

Karl blinked at the hazy blue sky, the towering buildings, and wide tree lined streets.

“I almost expected the wolf dreamscape again.”

“Is that where you went to school?” Amber’s lips twitched, holding back a smile, “Did you run with the fun pack?”

“No,” Karl turned in place studying the buildings. “Okay. You said college, here we are. What now?”

“I need to know what happened when you first met Gloria.”

“Gloria – is she involved with this? Silly question.” Karl laughed uneasily, reaching out to stroke Amber’s hair. “Don’t relationship books recommend against giving too much information about old girlfriends?”

Amber slapped his hand away with a grin.

“Quit delaying the inevitable. I don’t know if the memory reset will happen while we’re trancing. Where did you meet her?”

The scene shimmered and changed. They were standing halfway down the stone staircase leading to the college library. Vague colored shapes drifted up and down the stairs, along the footpath. A distant irregular hum came from the street. Karl looked around, his heart beating faster.

“What’re these things? Ghosts?”

“No,” Amber walked a few steps ignoring the hanging colors in the air even when they passed over her. “This just proves that you were preoccupied at the time. You were thinking about something really hard and didn’t see people as people. Just vague things to be walked around.”

“Ah.”

Karl watched the colors dance past him. Suddenly a form solidified, and a young Gloria stood at his side. He jumped back, his hands rising reflexively to ward her off.

“Wow,” said the young Gloria, her eyes glowing with admiration, “you’re … you’re … it’s amazing.”

“Flattery,” said Amber dryly, and Karl flushed.

“It’s not my fault. That’s what she said.”

“That actually does not make sense,” Amber frowned as she mouthed the sentence a few times. “No. That doesn’t make sense at all.”

“Can I help it?” joked Karl. “She was so overwhelmed by meeting me that I rendered her almost incoherent.”