Raven and the Rose (8 page)

can direct the magic from within me, through Clara’s athame and into the demons.”

“I was hoping you’d say that. You think like a true McQueen witch. The Book of Whispers

must remain in here, at least until this is over with.” Viola clutched the large book to her bosom.

Rose nodded in agreement and strode over to a large crystal case that contained the althame.

She studied the thick four-sided blade. Swiftly, she opened the case and eased the dagger out of it, carefully studying the sterling silver hilt encrusted with rubies. “I’ll use my power to stun them, if only temporarily. In that timeframe, we must destroy them all and put an end to this once and for all.”

Viola smiled proudly again. “I’m proud of you, Rose.”

Rose kissed the dagger and grinned. “It feels good to be operating at full force, even if it is only temporary. But, save the praises for once we’ve defeated these things,” Rose stated sharply.

“I won’t rest until this task is completed.” She watched as Viola returned the book to its invisible stand. It appeared to be floating in mid-air. She glanced around the semi-dark room while

reconnecting with the power of her ancestors.

When they reached the parlor, they were met with concerned looks.

“Is he still the same?” Dehlia asked with concern in her voice.

Rose simply nodded, unable to answer for fear of releasing a floodgate of tears.

“He’s still alive. So that’s a good sign,” Viola announced to them.

“He’s a demigod,” Walter interjected. “There’s got to be some way we can help pull him out

of this.”

“Demigods eventually die,” Corey added.

Feeling numb, Rose announced, “I prefer we turn this gathering into a witch’s council, so we

can focus on safeguarding the town. Whatever attacked us plays a vital role in what’s been

happening.”

“But, it should be over with, right?” Jasmine asked.

Rose shook her head. “No, it’s only just beginning, because there are several of these things

lurking around town.”

“And we must bring them to our plane. Where we can see them.” Jasmine figured it out

immediately.

“I’ll perform a spell that will bring them into sight. According to the Book of Whispers, we

must destroy them with the athame Clara blessed on her wedding night.” She turned to look at her uncle. “Uncle Corey, all citizens, human and shifter alike, must remain in their homes. That goes for the police force as well. This is out of their hands.”

Corey nodded and picked up his cell. “I’ll get word out to the Leslie and Luke.”

Chapter Six

A
n hour later, they all stood in a circle, holding hands. Rose exhaled as she chanted the spell that would force the shadows to become flesh.
“Omni v’us, tiaoto, mu’cleck.”

They would only have a brief window, an opening before her powers lie dormant again, until

The Heightening. As planned, the streets were completely deserted with exception of the witches.

When the sun set, they paroled the streets. They had only minutes to track and reveal the beast terrorizing Raven’s Falls.

“Now,” Viola commanded.

The winds picked up. Clouds swirled around the sky, temporarily blocking out the blood red

moon. Rose shivered because she knew she needed to utilize her time wisely.

While they stood on the red cobblestone streets, Jesse chanted another spell.

Every witch was armed. Each had their own vital roles to play.

“Behind you!” Jasmine nodded toward a black figure over to the right.

With unearthly moves, it spun around and screeched an unholy sound. Its jaws opened wide

to bare razor sharp teeth.

Raising her hands, summoning all the power she could, Rose aimed to send an electrical bolt

into the creature.

It screeched, hissed, and exploded into dust particles.

When the other demons were revealed, she heard the same multiple sounds. Exerting her

power, she tried not to remember the deadline, but it couldn’t be helped.
Less than forty minutes.

Several more of the creatures snarled and hissed, standing in front of Rose. “
Omni v’us

tiaoto mu’cleck,”
she uttered. More of the creatures surrounded her and now that they were in sight, she no longer needed the spell.

“McQueen Elders, come forth, stand by our sides, and fight,” Viola chanted loudly,

“McQueen Elders, come forth, stand by our side and fight. Elmira, Rose, Simon, Silas, Clara…”

“…Taylor Robert, Mavis, Mabel, Henrietta,” Rose continued the list, calling upon past

McQueen Elders too. The air around her became thick and sticky as one of the creatures turned its vile gaze in her direction. Unaffected by the threat of this demon, she continued her chant.

“McQueen Elders, Ciara, Mavis, Mabel, Henrietta, banish this evil from our midst…” Rose then

levitated several feet off the ground as she felt the energizing vibrations of McQueen magic

flowing through her veins. She raised her blade, the athame.
“Hexum’mu latchche”

The area around her lit up even though it was night

“…Forged from McQueen steel, this blade shall be our salvation. Seek out and find that

which would dare harm us and banish it from whence it came.” Rose held up the athame, and the

demons retreated from their midst. Lightning struck the tip of the blade and flowed in various

directions, to the demons. Howls crackled through the night, as the lightning hit their targets, disintegrating the demons in their midst.

Another shadow, one more hideous stood its ground, peering at her with eyes that tried to

pierce her soul.

“So, you want a challenge,” Rose chided as she aimed her hand at the beast, releasing

several bolts of light.

Each time, the being dodged it.

“Kill it Rose!” Jasmine shrieked. “All the others have been destroyed, this is the strongest of them all.”

When it laughed, she thought she saw fangs, and instead of yellowish eyes, it possessed red

ones. Pain ignited through her skull, bringing Rose to her knees. Howling in agony, Rose could

scarcely see her adversary.

Jasmine and the others rushed to her side, trying to amplify her powers.

“Why isn’t this working?” Jesse grunted as he held up both his hands, emanating his power.

Viola stood beside him, doing the same. “We’re too weak for it,” he grunted.

“Impossible,” Viola stated angrily. “We’ve got to maim it, contain it, banish it. Say the

chant, say it now.”

“Omvlio os, oh sota seh iao.”
The demon’s form wavered several times, but appeared to

grow twice in size.

“Repeat it! Everyone at the same time!” Viola yelled.

“Omvlio os, oh sota seh iao, Omvlio os, oh sota seh iao, Omvlio os, oh sota seh iao,”
The McQueens chanted several times over until finally, the thing disappeared. Everyone collapsed on the ground, drained from the excessive use of their waning powers.

“I’ll be damned glad when this freaking blood moon is over with,” Dehlia gasped as she lay

on her side. “I don’t know how much more of this I can take!”

Rose sat up and panted. “It will be over soon enough.” She couldn’t agree more, but since

Dehlia was a neophyte witch, she lacked patience. It was Rose’s responsibility to instill faith and patience in witches under her protection. The power waning became taxing for everyone. Bile

burned in her throat. Her stomach twisted in horrendous knots and she feared she would vomit.

Looking around, the rest of the McQueen witches appeared to feel the same.

Slowly, everyone stood up and gazed around. “Is it over?” Tobias asked.

“Did that look like a banish to you?” Walter responded. “This is far from over, and it’ll be

back for vengeance.”

“Must be the main one in charge. The power the others held is nothing compared to what

this one has. Its drawing power from somewhere, but from what and who?” Jasmine asked.

“I don’t know, but I have every intention on finding out,” Rose assured them all. Something

else pulled at her attention. Squinting, she glanced around in several directions.
“Storm?”

Viola walked over to her. “Is he contacting you?”

“He’s trying to come back to us.” Rose smiled. “I can feel him. He’s trying to come back!”

she gushed excitedly. “Come on, we have to hurry.”

They returned to the manor where Viola and Rose hurried to the bedchamber. Despair settled

in when she realized she might have made a mistake. “I don’t understand. He’s supposed to be

here.” Careful to not break the protective circle around the bed, she sat on the settee next to the terrace.

“Don’t despair, child.” Viola tried comforting her to no avail. “These things take time. You

never know what it is he might be facing down there.”

“How long do you think it will be?” She looked into Viola’s brown eyes.

The woman shrugged. “Days. Months. Years even. It all depends upon on his situation.”

Rose squeezed her eyes shut, trying to bring the emotions swirling around inside her to a

calmness. She needed to remain level headed, not just for herself and Storm, but for everyone else involved.

Chapter Seven

S
torm blinked several times in relief while gazing into the yellowish blue flames of the fire.

He’d just witnessed Rose and the others uncertainty over the banishment of the last demon and

wished he could be there to guide them to the thing’s power source. Hope ignited inside of him at being released from the Netherworld so he could join them.

“No. This is far from over.”

So, just as relief flooded him, the man’s words stripped him of all happiness. “You just saw

what they did,” Storm challenged him.

“As I said, this isn’t over. Even if they destroy the last demon remaining, there will be more

to take its place. You see, this demon is being controlled by an ancient enemy of the McQueens.”

“Return me and let me help them figure it out.” Storm requested, as he wanted to scream to

Rose that he was safe while aiding them in battle.

“You’ll only be a distraction in your mental condition.”

“But the blood red moon is almost over. Return me while there’s still time,” he demanded.

“First, I’ve something to show you.”

“We’re wasting time,” Storm said on a growl.

“Patience never was your strongest point.” The man grinned and tossed some dirt onto the

fire. “Do you remember your search for Rose?”

“Of course I do.” Storm thought back to the time when he’d searched years for the woman

who was now his mate. A hunger like no other had driven him at the time.

* * *

Years Earlier…

Intrigued, and maybe half obsessed, Storm continued poking about the town until he’d

sensed her and that was just a few days ago. Her overwhelming presence drew him closer than

ever before, but quickly faded when he soared to the right. Out of sheer determination to find her, he’d neglected eating and even drinking.

Frustration swirled through him while circling the cluster of pine trees. He was searching for

the spot around the waterfall that would allow his entry into
her
world. She sure as hell didn’t exist in this one.

Storm’s dreams had started again and for many moons, the enchantress with the brown silky

smooth skin and dark brown eyes slipped into his dreams, enticing him, while capturing his soul.

He’d become convinced that this was his better half, the woman he’d spent his entire life looking for.

With a quick flap of his black wings, he sighed. Gypsy Rose was her name. At least that’s

what she’d told him in the first of many of dreams. For the life of him, he couldn’t determine why the same woman continued making guest appearances in his sleep. The funny thing was, as the

months and the years passed, each dream became more intense.

Soaring on a wind current, he closed his eyes and remembered her faint aroma with a touch

of coconut and cinnamon. Most often, she smelled of earth and fresh rainwater. Her oddly

colored eyes, he knew them to be brown, but the right eye possessed a gray haze around the area that should have been brown. When the light of the moon hit just right, it looked like she had one blue eye.

She had springy, thick coils of hair, descending past her shoulders with strands of gray

streaked throughout. Storm’s chest tightened when he thought of her smile and he opened his

eyes. Without her in his arms, and only in his dreams, caused the ache in his chest to intensify over the years. And it nearly drove him to madness.

Even with his strong tracking skills, he had been unable to find her. He’d searched for her in

nearly every state over the course of many years.

Maybe, she didn’t exist or was somewhere else. He was about to take his search overseas

when a gut instinct told him she was here. Despite his heartache, he’d never give up on seeking her out. He would search until the day he died and he hoped that wouldn’t happen. In a dream,

he’d seen a dark force slowly descending on her. It captured her, strangling the life from her. She was in danger and he needed to be there to help her fight it.

Storm grew tired. As soon as he landed, he shifted into human form and inhaled deeply.

Rose’s scent. She was all around this place, and he was so close, yet so far away. Was she woman or spirit? Perhaps Trickster had been playing him for a fool for the better half of his life.

Wearily, he walked to the riverbank and fell to his knees to splash cool water on his face. He

ignored his grumbling, empty stomach but gulped the crisp, water down, as though it would be

his last drink. Rising to his feet, he studied the cascading waterfall and squinted. Her presence had been stronger when he’d flown around the foaming cascading water but he couldn’t seem to