The Witchfinder Wars (18 page)

Boy, did I know it. First with Tommy, then
with the altar. I was well on my way to being kicked out of the
whole family, it looked like. I shook my head. "Evie, you don't
understand. I did something...did some magic...I shouldn't have.
And the Goddess said..."

Her eyes had been narrowed before. Now they
widened in shock as her jaw dropped. "The who? What? The Goddess
only comes to the strongest ones of us all...so few are
granted...few...how...when..."

Evie struggled for a moment more before
regaining control over herself. Her grip had been painful before;
now it was gentle as she led me over to the bed. I was reminded in
an instant of the conversation I had overhead the night before. As
well as the warning from the Goddess.

Be wary of your mother and aunt.

So that was it? I could divine with fire and
talk to our spiritual deity? It didn't seem like this ability was
going to be much help last night. It certainly wasn't helping me
now. I tightened my grip on Evie's hands until she winced.

"Annie, tell me what is wrong."

My panic started to take over, my words
stumbling over each other as I tried to tell her about the fire
divination, the binding spell I put on Tommy, and how I had tried
to reverse it.

She freed a hand and raised it. "No, no.
Tell me what is so wrong the Great Mother would come to you."

I fell silent as I examined her face for the
first time since I had started to talk. It had changed from the
aunt I knew into a stranger. She looked the same, but her eyes held
a new light I wasn't used to seeing in them. They had become the
eyes of a fanatic.

"What was it like? What did She say? I want
to hear everything, every word."

My words slowed on my tongue. I pulled back
from her and took a breath. But I had no choice. There was nowhere
else to turn.

"Beautiful. She...the place...all of it was
stunning."

I started to tell her the rest, when we
heard noises; Ivy was moving around below. She was certainly
someone I didn't want to overhear me and Evie, maybe eavesdrop on
the story I wasn't sure if I even wanted to tell Evie now.

Especially after seeing the look in her
eyes.

The sounds snapped Evie back to earth. She
shook her head, her dark hair flying, and hugged me. "We'll wait
until your mother leaves for work this afternoon. There are things
you need to know about. Especially now we know you are a direct
link."

She clapped her hands together in excitement
and I raised an eyebrow at the movement. So they
had
been
keeping something from me. Something big enough for my mother to
react in anger if she found out about it. Evie's next words
confirmed my suspicions.

"You must promise not to let your Ma know we
talked, though. And don't forget to clean your altar. Sleeping on
it and talking to the Goddess! Who would have thought...?"

Evie's words weren't directed to me as she
seemed to float out the door. I waited until I was sure it was
clear before heading to the bath. I had a sinking feeling she was
hanging around in the hall, just waiting for the chance to pounce.
But I knew she feared Ivy's hysterics as much as I did. She
wouldn't take a chance on getting caught doing something her sister
had specifically told her not to do.

I spent the morning correcting my mistake. I
removed each piece around my altar and cleaned it, threw the burnt
candles away. It was a wonder I hadn't burned the house down with
my little stunt. But my memories of the night before were so clear.
Especially the exhaustion. I'd never felt anything like it
before.

When the small table was bare, I began to
polish the surface until the grain of the wood shone with my
reflection. Pleased and satisfied at last, I moved on to the last
and most important part: focusing my energies back into it. I
rested my hands rested against the surface smoothed by time and my
mind went to work. Images of doing spells there, and those wishes
coming to pass, were at the forefront as I cleared the negativity
off the top of it.

A warmth spread through me and I knew it was
done. My knees popped as I stood to remind me of how hard they had
hit the floor the night before. The groan that escaped came from
somewhere deep me as I hobbled across the hall to the supply
closet.

Cinnamon, one white, one black, tea
lights...

I began to murmur aloud the mental checklist
I'd memorized in childhood. Just when I thought I had everything, I
ended up making another trip to the closet for one more thing. I
sighed before attempting to focus on the good things instead of the
aggravating ones. It had been that kinda morning.

The items were each placed in their assigned
spots until all appeared to be in order.

That's how I liked things. In order. Where
they were supposed to be.

I stepped back and examined the finished
product. A tall white and a single black candle flanked each corner
in the back. One pulled energies in. The other chased all the bad
ones away. Tea lights, red and gold, lined the sides and tiny
pieces of bark from the broken cinnamon sticks scattered across the
shiny surface like small rocks skipping across water. The purpose
of all these items was simple.

Success.

The final item was centered in the back
between the two tall candles. It was nothing more than a dollar
store porcelain figurine, of a slender woman raising her hands. No
color marred the smooth white that defined her features; no cracks
broke the peace lining her expression. This had been my idea, my
vision of the Goddess for as long as I could remember. I think Evie
had gotten it for my first altar. But who can really remember that
far back?

Before, this representation had been enough;
beautiful to me, becoming my model for how I wanted to be when I
grew up. Happy. At peace. Now, I realized how wrong I was. Nothing
had ever been that easy. Peace was never that easy.

When the altar was put back together, I
knelt before the small figurine and bowed my head.

"Great Mother, I know I'm saying this to you
a lot here lately. Please forgive me for my blasphemy. I meant no
harm to this sacred place."

Silence was my only response until I stood
and the distant silver bells returned to my ears. The Goddess I had
talked to last night had returned to chuckle in my ears.

You needed to clean that anyway. It was
getting dusty. Now go to bed, child. The rest is needed, yes, and
much deserved
.

There was no argument from me this time. I
slipped into bed and shut myself off from all the worries and fears
that had plagued me over the past twenty-four hours. Just as I was
about to doze off, the soft ringing of the phone jarred me back
into consciousness.

The sound was easy enough to ignore; the
voice in my thoughts was not.

Pick it up, Annie. Now!

It rang twice more before I gave in. I
grabbed it and said, "Hello?"

Tommy; but it didn't sound like him. His
words sounded odd, forced, as if he were choking on them.

"Anya..."

I leaned forward, pressing the phone closer.
As if by doing so, I could bring him through the phone.

It didn't work. He was still on his side of
town, and I was still on mine.

"Tommy, hun, what's wrong? Is it the
dreams?"

Tommy seemed to take a minute to catch his
breath or compose himself before he answered. "I...I need to see
you tomorrow night. Can you meet me by, uh, down by the pond?"

"Of course. What time?" My mind was
ransacking through the list of excuses I could use for Ivy and
Evie. A part of me was screaming to stay home. The voice that had
become my constant companion was begging me to go.

Just to see him.

"Nine o'clock. Everything will be calm here
and I..."

His voice trailed off and I waited. Whatever
had happened today had been bad enough for him to search me out.
Then I understood.

I have released him. The magic really was
working.

"I'll see you then, okay?"

Tommy agreed and we said our goodbyes. The
phone call hadn't lasted for more than five minutes, but its
importance to me was more than I could say.

His tone told me what I wanted to know. The
spell had worked after all.

Everything was ending.

***

"Annie..."

Evie's voice was softer than before as she
slipped into my room. I had been awake for awhile, listening as my
mother left for work and Evie began to make supper.

I hadn't moved for one simple reason. I
wanted to avoid Evie.

Now, there was no way around it.

I cracked one eye open as she leaned over
me; then I sat up with a groan, making a show of being groggy as I
swung my legs onto the floor. I didn't want to admit the strange
look in her eyes this morning had scared me.

But it had. A lot.

I gasped at the darkness filling the window,
all pretenses of feigning sleep forgotten.

"Evie...by the gods...what time is it?"

"Just after seven."

She laughed as I whipped my head around to
stare at her in amazement. A sudden sharp pain at the base of my
neck reminded me of my nap last night, and I winced as she
continued.

"Now come on. I need to show you
something..."

Just after seven. I must have dozed back off
after Tommy's call and again after Ivy had left for work around
four. It seemed strange to sleep the day through without the
dreams, but I must have needed the rest. I felt a little guilty for
making Evie wait for so long.

I fell in step with my aunt.

She walked out of the house and we moved in
silence as she led me through the field that separated the dry shed
from the house. The small building fit snug amongst the trees that
surrounded it and I was briefly reminded of my visit here yesterday
with Tommy when I'd dropped off the basket of herbs I'd managed to
finish.

Tommy...who is going to say goodbye to me
tomorrow...

The thought threatened to overwhelm me and I
pushed it away as quickly as I could.

"Evie, where are we going?"

I was surprised to hear my voice sounding
almost fearful. She had seemed so excited to hear the story about
the meeting with the Goddess this morning. Now, she hadn't brought
it up once. I was confused.

Confusion was a good thing. It kept my mind
off tomorrow night.

"To the dry shed. I told you I had to show
you something."

The grin she threw me seemed a little off in
the twilight.

Evie's small stocky frame was lit by her
flashlight as we made our way around the building. The kudzu so
famous in the South had conquered the land as well as the back of
the building, and for a moment, I wondered if we were stepping
around the snakes that came with it.

I shuddered at the thought, then she turned
and brushed the thick vines aside to insert a key into the door
hidden there.

"What in the world?" I almost didn't
recognize my own voice as I followed her through the door I had
never noticed before. Not that I spent much time in the backyard
looking for those snakes in the kudzu.

Evie giggled as she flipped on the lights
and shut the door behind her. Inside was a perfect little living
space that was too small to be considered an apartment, but it had
all the essentials. A queen size bed sat against the back wall,
flanked by a single armoire and a small table. The kitchen had a
sink and stove. The living room was furnished with a small couch
and fireplace.

"What in the world is this place?"

I walked around, touching things in
wonderment, and I couldn't help but notice that it looked like a
page from a 1952 issue of
Better Homes and Gardens
.

"Does all this stuff still work?"

It looked like it did. The whole place
looked spotless. But what would I know? I hadn't known this place
existed until now.

"Of course it works. Your grandparents built
it during the bomb shelter craze of the 1950s."

Well, that explained the neon bright
interior.

She plopped down on the couch and patted the
vinyl cushion next to her.

I sat on the edge until I realized it
wouldn't fall in on me. Then I relaxed as she started to speak.

"Annie, there are some things Ivy and I have
been keeping from you."

I'll say. Trying to be good, I just studied
the stones that made up the walls around us as she spoke. There was
a pattern there; I just couldn't find it.

"One of those things is the fact we have
enemies." She held up a rough palm to stop me as my mouth opened.
"No, let me finish."

"Okay." I nodded.

"That's the reason why this place was built
and kept up. It's here in case we need to hide out for a few weeks
until we can escape Manning."

"Escape Manning? Who would we be running
from, Aunt Evie? The townspeople with pitchforks and torches?"

"This is serious, Anya."

She had no idea how serious I was.

"Not the folk of Manning, no. We have other
enemies; all our people fear them. They are very dangerous, child.
A group called the Witchfinder Generals was created in the
seventeenth century to find, capture and destroy witches. Their
first victims were nothing more than spinsters and widows; women
who couldn't defend themselves. But they got lucky; they found a
Chosen One. A true witch."

Her fingers trembled as she untied the
leather band she had worn around her wrist for as long as I could
remember. The only time she removed it was during the rituals, but
then her arms had been hidden by the sleeves of her robes. Evie
held the slender wrist out to me.

I looked at her in puzzlement before taking
hold of it. The skin on the back looked intact. Nothing out of the
ordinary. It wasn't until I turned it over that I gasped.