Song of the Ancients (Ancient Magic Book 1) (41 page)

"You won't ever be the same Samantha," he said. "But remember, Nuin killed my mother and grandmother, and ate from them, for God's sake. That psychopath actually wanted to raise a demon. He invited a demon in, and it used him for its own purposes…as it would have used you. Dark magic is addictive, and using it sickens the user, gives him a false sense of power, infallibility." He closed his eyes for a moment. "Believe me, I know. Luckily, the two of you stopped him before he could cause even more harm."

The sharp pang of guilt under my breastbone retreated some-what. I would always wish I could have done more. Sinclair had told me he had a penance to pay, and he certainly paid in full. My hands shook when I thought about him. I let go of Nicholas and buried them in my lap. I too would pay my penance, in my own way and in my own time. I wiped my cheek on my sleeve.

Nicholas squeezed my damp forearm. "He was very brave, and very wise. At the end, he made the right choice. I shall treasure the memory of him. He did what few have the strength of character to do."

I cried again, this time without shame.

Standing Bear had asked and received permission for all of us to attend a crossing over ceremony for Sinclair. Even Kamaria attended, her fractured shoulder in a sling. The police had issued an assault warrant out for Lilith, who had pushed Kamaria off the balcony. But she had disappeared. Her apartment was stripped bare.

We stood to one side as the tribal elders offered their prayers, drums, and sweet-grass, and left a single eagle feather at the site. "Gentleness is one of the greatest attributes of the warrior," Standing Bear concluded. "Great Spirit, guide our warrior to the highest reaches of the universe, so he can bring back news to us in our dreams."

Nicholas and I left Standing Bear on the butte. He would remain there for the next forty-two hours in a private wake for his friend.

"What will you do next?" I asked Nicholas as he drove us back to the house in Jerome.

"There are people waiting for us at home," he said. "They are to help me prepare my report for the Council of Elders, which I am to take to London." He paused. "You should come with me. They'll want to meet you."

I shook my head.

"No. I'm done, Nicholas. As far as I'm concerned, my debt is paid."

Nicholas pulled in the driveway and turned off the car. I found no surprise or disappointment in his eyes.

"I'm going to resign." His tone was husky, a little unsure. "Quit the Council." He twisted in his seat, facing me, knee to knee. "I've done such terrible things. To you especially. I've done whatever it took to win, regardless of the cost. All to protect our community, to enforce the Council's rules. Because I'm an Orenda. Because it's expected of me."

He took my hands, but dropped them abruptly, as if he'd touched snakes. He was trembling when he again gathered up my hands.

"It doesn't matter now. I love you, Samantha. You are what matters to me now. I want to marry you. Start a family with you."

I pulled my hands from his. Shook my head back and forth. "No. Don't say that to me yet." He looked stricken, but I didn't stop. "I can't forgive you yet. You're asking for too much."

"Do you believe in destiny, Samantha? Or do you think the path we
choose
to follow makes us who we are?" He looked at me fiercely, his eyes bright with tears. "If you were me, would you try and prevent a person from fulfilling her destiny, if that destiny put her in danger? Would you try and stop her? At the very least, protect her?"

"I guess it would depend on which was the right thing to do. Whether destiny or another path, I'd want to look back and know I did what was right." I frowned. "Your priorities have been different. You believe any means justifies the end, because the end itself is just. I don't think I can live by those rules."

"Would your viewpoint change if you had a life to consider besides your own?"

I had never seen him like this, frantic, barely holding onto his emotions. He was begging.

My resolve to reject him, to make him go forward alone, slipped a notch. "Nicholas, I think we should…"

He was no longer listening. Instead, he stared through the windshield. I followed his gaze to a figure standing at the front door.

"I'll be damned," he muttered. "Aunt Bella."

* * * * *

"When Nuin showed up in Sedona, I knew I needed help," Bella explained, once we'd settled in the library to wait. Bella had summoned several people to meet at her house. "Interested other parties," she called them.

"I alerted the Council of Nuin's presence," Bella continued, "knowing they would dispatch Nicholas after him. I also went to the local shaman, Sinclair, for help, but he turned me down.

When I got home, I discovered the house wards had been at-tacked. They held, thankfully, but Nuin had set tracking spells all over the property." Bella shook her head in regret. "I couldn't return until Nuin was eliminated, since I was his primary target. I allowed myself to be snagged by one tracking spell and led them in a different direction. It worked long enough for me to spell the cloak to find someone who wasn't known and could help."

She took my hand. "It's so nice to meet you in person, Samantha."

I shook her hand, stunned. "But how do you know me?"

Bella dropped my hand abruptly, just as Nicholas had earlier. She stepped back and surveyed me up and down. Nodded, but didn't say a word.

Her scrutiny was extremely uncomfortable. I felt like a schoolgirl brought before a formidable headmistress. Like her nephew, Bella also looked inside someone, straight to the truth. I could feel her gaze settling somewhere around my stomach. But unlike Nicholas, I had no idea what Bella could be thinking. She remained completely blank and unreadable. She was, in fact, a little scary. Nothing like Maya. If I'd joined Bella's coven, I would be too intimidated to ever think about leaving.

"I knew about you through your grandmother," she said coolly. "To be sure, I've had many reports about you through your formative years."

Before I had a chance to question her further, the doorbell rang. Nicholas came back with two older men.

Bella hugged Noah Ravenscroft's thin frame gently but with great affection. He winked at me across her shoulder. It took me a moment to recall where I'd seen the second man, until Nicholas introduced him as Theodore Dyer. Of course. The shopkeeper who had sold me Maya's magickal snow globe. How odd. So many Traditional family members in one little town. Or maybe not so odd. Perhaps I hadn't been nearly as isolated and alone as I'd thought.

Behind us, a third man entered the open front door, carrying a handled instrument case. Bella shook Jaco Hunsley's hand solemnly, took the case and leaned it in the corner, and then led us all to seats around her long library table.

Bella lead the meeting, resuming her position as head of the Orenda family as if she had never left.

"Next steps," she said crisply. "Of course, Nicholas must report back to the Council."

"But what, exactly, does he tell them?" Noah Ravenscroft asked. "Does the shaman count as the third sacrifice? He wasn't part of our Traditional families."

"His name is…was… John Green Raven Sinclair," I said, my voice hitching. "And the women of his wife's family were Watchers, probably even further back than the Orendas."

Tears formed in Ravenscroft's eyes. "I am so sorry, Samantha. I didn't intend to sound disrespectful." He blinked and cleared his throat. "But my question is, if we are still working toward containment, where do we direct our efforts next?" He turned to the junk shop owner. "Theodore? Have you been able to see anything?"

Dyer nodded slowly, his eyes going unfocused.

"The prophesies are woven together now. Can you feel it? Samantha, your friend's death has joined our destinies together. But Sinclair wasn't the third sacrifice. We still have time."

"You're right Theodore. The prophesies are woven together now," Bella said quietly, "but they have not yet been fulfilled."

"There's another problem," Nicholas said. "Nuin was the member of
Los Oscuros
to take the demon into his body. But he wasn't the leader."

"How do you know this?" Jaco Hunsley asked sharply.

"When I spied on their meeting, there was someone else in charge. I didn't see who," Nicholas said. "But when I counted heads at on the plateau, there were four." He grimaced. "We only eliminated three."

Hunsley broke the silence after Nicholas's news sunk in. "I'll go with you to meet with the Council. We must find this man. Anticipate his moves. Get in front of him."

Everyone nodded, and my heart sank. My involvement with this odd band of witches was far from over.

"Clear up something for me." All eyes turned my direction. "The third sacrifice. The final sacrifice that means war. It has to be a Watcher, doesn't it? Or could it also be the Caller?"

Nicholas's expression was anguished.

Bella, in contrast, looked perfectly calm. "Now you understand, my dear, why you simply must go with us to London. Whether you want to or not."

She shot a quick look at Nicholas. There seemed a hidden warning in her look. "And no matter your current circumstances." She slapped open palms on the desk. "It's settled then. Nicholas, you and Samantha will go with Jaco and me to England. We leave in the morning."

Across the table, Nicholas closed his eyes. His shoulders slumped.

So much for resigning, I thought.

Now that a decision had been made, my spirits lifted. I had a purpose. Bella took charge, and I was more than happy to relinquish the immediate decision-making.

I had a clearly defined and necessary purpose, tied to Nicholas, but no longer dictated by his desires. Still in danger, yes, but now at least I knew I could defend myself. I could live with the compromise.

I looked across the library at the Phurba dagger on the mantle, sleeping in its pot full of coffee beans, which I found kept it grounded just as well as dirt, and smelled much better. The dagger was made to kill demons, no matter how powerful so while I owned it, the weapon guaranteed me some safety. Provided the Goddess granted me the strength to use it again. I smiled to myself.

If necessary, I had no doubt I would use it again.

And I intended to be better at it next time.

Much better.

THE END

Acknowledgments

Thank you to my husband Paul, who put numerous meals in front of me while I was lost in plot land. I went days without speaking to him, and, to my surprise, he still loves me. I am so grateful to my son Ian, who provided technical support throughout. Where did he get his patience? It certainly wasn't from this end of the gene pool.

Many thanks to the Desert Muses, for letting me follow in your footsteps, copy your successes, and learn from your mistakes.

Also, my online Readerlicious bunch, spawned from a shared Margie Lawson class, and spread from Atlanta to Kentucky, St. Louis to Denver. Your critiquing patience and support is never-ending; your friendship is priceless.

Since this is a book in which magic and witchcraft features prominently, I'd also like to acknowledge Desert Moon Circle coven. Thank you for believing in me, and for letting me brain-storm ideas with you.

Blessed Be, I love you all.

About the Author

Sandy Wright resides in Phoenix, Arizona with her husband, her college-student son, a rescued Australian Shepherd named Teak, and two twenty-pound domesticated black-panther cats. She fell in love with the southwest desert, including its Native American influences, when she relocated from the Midwest.

Song of the Ancients, the first novel in the Ancient Magic paranormal suspense series, introduces readers to witchcraft and shamanism, seen through the eyes of an ordinary woman.

Readers interested in witchcraft—or just a dark, spooky tale—will enjoy this paranormal suspense, written by a real-life Wiccan High Priestess.

Winner of the PNWA (fantasy), On the Far Side (paranormal) and Orange Rose (paranormal romance) contests, Song of the Ancients was published in May 2015.

Look for information in the series book two, Fire of the Ancients, in 2016.

Visit Sandy at www.writersandy.com.

For additional articles and short stories, see www.desertmuses.com and www.readerlicious.com.

For articles on Wicca and witchcraft, visit www.AZmagick.com.