Bloodstone (3 page)

My soul hurt at the prospect of treating my sister as someone who would harm anyone who attempted to remove Zephora from this plane, but she left me no choice. Alexis had made up her mind.

“So now what?” Celestina asked Zephora. “If Aunt Serena sent Darius away, what’ll you do now?”

Tears appeared in Zephora’s eyes. “I…I don’t know.” Her lips quivered and her head sagged. “I suppose I could commit suicide.”

“What?” asked Celestina. “You can’t do that.”

The sorceress lifted her head. “But your Aunt Serena murdered the love of my life. What reason have I to exist?”

She sounded like a horrible actress on a poorly written soap-opera. Only someone young and inexperienced would have soaked up such melodrama.

“You can’t give up,” Celestina told her. “I won’t let you. There has to be another way, right? With magic, there’s always another way. If you were able to come back, why can’t he?”

“No!” I shouted to Celestina, hoping she heard that single refrain. But she hadn’t. “Zephora’s  lying. You can’t trust her.” Of course, my warning fell on deaf ears.

“You’re supposed to be the most powerful witch ever, right?” Celestina continued. “Well, you must know how to bring him back.”

Of course, Zephora had lied in an attempt to win my niece’s affection and support. Based on Celestina’s determination to help her, Zephora’s plan had worked. I couldn’t blame my niece for her compassion, since I cherished that attribute in her. Zephora had preyed on Celestina’s naiveté, and the only way my niece could overcome that shortcoming, unfortunately, was if someone she trusted broke her tender nature by betraying her. And I had no doubt that Zephora would do just that.

Zephora considered her words. A warm smile appeared on her face with more ease than could be expected after supposedly contemplating suicide. “I suppose you are right. Thank you, Celestina. You are not only a powerful witch, but a kind and loving soul.”

Alexis smiled at the prospect of having raised Celestina. “Come on, you should get to bed. It’s getting late.” She slung an arm around her daughter’s shoulder, but at that moment, Celestina’s body quivered and lost control. Her mother, having dealt with this predicament countless times, corralled her arms around her daughter’s shoulder and pressed her tight against her.

Celestina had fallen asleep. Since most people didn’t fall asleep at a moment’s notice, I suspected a vision had gripped her mind, resulting in her brain shutting down her body, so she could absorb whatever prophecy corkscrewed its way into her.

How had she received these images? They couldn’t have just appeared out of nowhere. Someone had to have put them there. But no matter how much attention I gave to the matter, neither she nor I had been able to uncover that mystery.

“One mother shall perish,” Celestina said in her sleep, “but another shall replace her.”

What did that mean? Whom did she refer to? Alexis? If so, it occurred to me that my sister would die, leaving Zephora to take her place. The idea of such a power hungry monster guiding Celestina, corrupting her mind and destroying her goodness, leaving only a bitter, cruel shell of her former self in its place left my soul vibrating with anger and anxiety. Then I realized I hadn’t considered that my
sister
would die. For someone who pushed her life to the limit, it shouldn’t have surprised me that she’d potentially soon perish. Even worse, for the briefest of moments, I was relieved that Alexis might leave this world. After the idea passed, however, I cursed myself for such damning notions. I attributed those repugnant thoughts to Alexis’s misguided approach toward parenting. After all, what kind of person – and sister, no less – wished her other half would end up six feet under?
Perhaps a sister who had died at her hands?

Celestina yawned, her face taking on a sleepy look, but after plugging her fingers into her eyes and rubbing them, her eyes snapped open. “Oh sh—…” she stopped speaking, as though realizing it best not to mention a word of the images  had flashed across her mind.

“What does that mean?” asked Alexis. She pushed her daughter up to a standstill position, so she could walk of her own volition. “One mother shall perish? Do you mean me?”

“I…I…”

Alexis shook her shoulders, making Celestina rattle around as though she lacked the ability to control her movements. “Out with it! Did you mean me? Am I going to die? Is that what you saw?”

“I...” Tears rimmed her eyes. “I don’t know.”

“Admit it!” Alexis shouted. “You saw it. Admit it, dammit!” She jerked her daughter back and forth as easily as she might have shaken a snow globe.

“Stop,” Celestina said, cringing as tears spilled down her cheeks. “Please stop!”

Seeing Alexis once more demand answers from my niece while attempting to physically force her to speak, I stormed up to my sister while energy pushed out of my body, rather than toward it. “Let her go!” I shouted.

A gust of wind blasted against my sister and Celestina. Alexis, shaken by the unforeseen response, released her daughter and backed up as though the air preceded a hulking monster that would soon bust down the door and attack her. Celestina and Zephora, however, drew back, but only for a moment, as though the interruption hadn’t surprised them. Maybe they hadn’t reacted because they were more attuned to magic disturbances than Alexis?

“That’s enough,” Zephora shouted at my sister. “Leave. Now!”

My sister hustled Celestina toward the door, obviously thinking the sorceress had whipped the air against her face. A couple seconds later, they vanished from the room.

I turned back to Zephora, eager to spew a heap of curse words at her, only to find that…

Zephora stared back at me as a smile hovered on her lips.

I drew back, startled. In contrast to when she’d stared through me a short while ago, she now looked directly into my eyes. Surely, I’d seen incorrectly. She hadn’t acknowledged me the entire time I’d stood in her vicinity. I blinked and set my gaze upon hers once more to determine if I imagined her staring at me.

That hideous grin grew wider, peeling back her lips from white teeth. “Hello, darling. Did you enjoy my performance?”

CHAPTER THREE

I awoke and kicked my legs in bed. Drawing myself against the bed board, I placed a hand to my chest, glad that I hadn’t punted my dog, Lulu, off the bed and into the hall. As I worked on regaining my composure and slowing my fluttering heart, I looked around for her, but didn’t see her anywhere. I must have been talking in my sleep and disrupting her sleep cycle. I almost chuckled at that since most dogs lounged around every day.

More likely, she’d gone in the second bedroom to visit my best friends and bandmates, Kendall and Brandon. They were staying over until the insurance company sorted out their claim and determined how to settle considering nearly all of their personal belongings had been destroyed when Darius’ crew of vampires ignited a bomb that blew up their apartment.

I looked to the floor on my left, expecting to find Nolan there, even though he’d only stayed one night. Since he had his own home and we were no longer fearful that Darius or his vampire minions might attack, he’d returned to his house. Still, it would have been wonderful to wake up and see him.

“Hi, Serenity!” said Grams from the foot of my bed.

I checked that direction and saw my grandmother’s spirit standing a few feet away from me. “Grams?” I asked, unable to wipe the smile off my face. “Is it really you?”

“Who the hell else would it be?” she asked with an irritated expression. “Of course, it’s me. What’ve you been getting mixed up in?”

Even though she’d scolded me, I felt tingly all over and happiness swelled inside me. “Grams?” I still couldn’t believe that she’d visited. “I’ve—”

Her severe expression vanished, replaced by a kind smile that made it clear she missed me as much as I’d missed her. “I shouldn’t even be here, but it’s lovely to see you.”

I scrambled across the bed in order to reach her. “It’s so great to—”

“I’m afraid this isn’t a social call.” She glanced on either side of her as though expecting someone or something to arrive any second and drag her away. “I can’t stay long, but I needed to visit to say—”

“But you can come whenever you want,” I said, wishing she’d appeared in physical form so I could embrace her. It had been so difficult without her these past few days, and seeing her now fully aware of her surroundings and no longer stricken with Alzheimer’s made tears slip down my cheeks. I wiped them away but more immediately replaced them. “You can always visit.”

“And that’s why I shouldn’t visit,” she said with a hurt expression. “You need to grow and move on, and the only way that can happen is if I allow you to live without me.”

Hearing those words made it feel like someone had grabbed my heart and squeezed it with all their might. “Then why are you here?” I asked, unable to prevent the hurt from reaching my tone.

“Because you’re meddling with things you shouldn’t. Black magic, Serena?” She closed her eyes as though looking at me disappointed her. “And now with astral projecting so often—”

“What’s wrong with that? It’s one of my abilities, and I’m getting better at using it. I thought you’d be proud of me.”

“When you travel between realms,” she said, cringing as though it caused physical pain to explain the truth, “you welcome other
elements
into this world.”

“Elements?” I asked, feeling my heart thud quicker at the word. “What does that mean?”

“Those who once lived on Earth are drawn to those that are bound to Earth. When they sense a ripple of activity impinging on their world, they are eager to uncover the reason for the disturbance…in hopes that someone on Earth might be attempting to communicate with them.”

“But I didn’t try to talk with anyone.”

“That doesn’t matter. They can
feel
you. You draw their attention, and they latch onto you to visit this dimension. Each time you astral project, you’re straddling two realms, yours and that which is beyond the veil. But it’s even worse, now that—” She looked off to the side, unable to meet my eyes.

I knew what she had difficulty addressing. My use of black magic. Seeing her disappointed expression made it feel like she’d caught me in a lie. That’s not how I wanted her to perceive me, especially now that I didn’t know if I’d never see her again after this visit. “But I needed to use it. I couldn’t have vanquished Darius without the power boost.”

Grams sighed and nodded. “I understand, but in ending my daughter’s life, you cracked open the portal to the other side…at least, until Zephora inserted herself into Delphine’s body. By using black magic, you’ve just re-opened the door for every nasty creature to slip past the veil and enter this realm. You’ve accidentally begun unravelling everything our line has accomplished over three-hundred years of vanquishing evil entities. It’s the only reason I’m able to visit. Otherwise, you would need the ability to commune with those who’ve moved on that now reside in my dimension.” Sadness gripped her as she lowered her gaze and clasped her hands as though wishing she could help reverse the course I’d set in motion. “Unfortunately, now that you’ve opened the gateway,
you
can’t close it.”

Oh, shit!
My mind reeled at the implications. Guilt pecked at my conscience, but how could I have known? No one taught me otherwise.

“Thankfully,” she continued, “the fissure is not large. But now that you’ve dabbled in black magic, these monsters can
partially
detect your soul signature.”

Fright clenched onto me and refused to let go. “What does that mean?”

“It’s sort of like a radio station you can’t pick up with clarity. You can identify the song, but it comes with static. In this instance, those beyond the veil will gravitate toward you, but they won’t know exactly where to find you.”

I trembled at the repercussions. “How?”

“Like attracts like. You tapped into evil, and they’re evil, so they’ll be able to sense you.”

Thankfully, those beyond the veil couldn’t enter this dimension unless one of their predecessors, who’d squiggled into this realm had perished. “What do I do now?”

“Astral project only when absolutely necessary.”

“But it’s the only safe way I know how to find out what Zephora’s up to. Besides, it’s one of my gifts. Are you saying it’s a curse?”
Hadn’t I made that same claim to Alexis a couple days ago?

Grams held my gaze with steadfast resolve. “Are you finished with your outburst?”

“You know, I could have learned all this if you’d have just told me about it!”

She closed her eyes and nodded, admitting her mistake.

“I needed your help,” I said, feeling my voice crack. “You let me down. How am I supposed to defeat Zephora without astral projecting? My sister
killed
me, and now she’s buddies with the most powerful witch in history, and I’m—”

“She has been vanquished three times,” Grams said. “If she was the wisest witch on the planet, how did those in our line defeat her three times?”

“You expect me to send her to hell with what, help from my dog?”

Mention of Lulu made her smile. “Didn’t she help you break Darius’s attempt to compel you?”

“You saw that? How?”

“Beyond the veil, we can see multiple threads of life in your dimension at the same time.”

That made my heart speed up. “So you know what Zephora’s up to? What is she planning? How do I stop her?”

“Those in my realm are prohibited from assisting those on Earth.”

“But that’s ridiculous. So if you see something evil happening, you won’t tell me about it? You’ll just let it happen and say, ‘Oh well, it’s your problem now!’”

An empathetic expression crossed Grams’s face. “Does God intervene?”

How could I argue with that logic?

“I’ll always watch over you. That will never change.”

Her words made me feel warm and fuzzy inside, and it earned Grams a reprieve from my animosity. “So if I understand you correctly, every time I astral project, I’m actually allowing creatures to enter this dimension?”

“You can’t inhabit two realms at the same time without calling attention to yourself in either one or both at the same time. Otherwise, since the line broke during the few seconds Delphine died and Zephora slipped into her body and possessed her, it will remain tenuous from here on out, unless of course, either Zephora, Alexis, or Celestina dies. When that happens, the line will be broken forever.”

She didn’t mention the consequences if that occurred to save me from feeling guilty. After all, I’d caused the fissure in our line by murdering Delphine. I’d unknowingly severed the spell granting every woman in our line the ability to pass magical abilities to their daughters. With no forthcoming children in our line, I’d accidentally sparked the inevitable: one member of the trio Grams mentioned would eventually die, and when it happened, all of the creatures our line had spent centuries preventing from entering our dimension would be unleashed upon the Earth.

Darkness would descend and wipe humanity from the planet. And no one would take the blame…except me! I’d always know that because of my shortsightedness, without my ignorance, maybe our species wouldn’t have had a short lifespan. I shook those thoughts from my head, determined not to let possibilities sink my confidence.

On second thought, I recalled Celestina’s prophecy, which all but proclaimed that Alexis would die. Besides, I couldn’t allow Zephora to lead hordes of creatures across the world. Put in that perspective, no matter what I did – kill Zephora or allow her to live, I couldn’t save humanity from dying out. That relinquished some of my guilt. Until then, however, I would damn well do everything possible to prevent the inevitable from taking shape…for as long as possible.

“You may recall,” Grams said, “that when someone on Earth dispatches an evil entity, another creature is immediately allowed to take its place. But by astral projecting, you’ve inadvertently allowed a different pathway to open, where the same rules apply. The only difference is they are waiting in line to kill you!”

Upon hearing her last statement, I stiffened and feared that I’d now be looking over my shoulder now more than ever. As much as I wanted to rely on a sarcastic remark to put things in context, I couldn’t. My tongue tasted like ash, and I couldn’t lift my spirits to make light of the situation.

“If I tore another hole in the fabric between our worlds and evil is waiting in the on deck circle,” I said, “how did you get through?”

“Those with magical abilities on the other side who have more than a passing connection to you can squeeze through without detection. That explains how Darius and I were able to visit you.”

“So I basically gave Darius a ‘Get out of Hell Free’ card.”

She cracked a half-smile at my terminology, probably to keep me at ease and not allow the burden of what she’d told me to overwhelm me. “That about sums it up.”

Just like those in my line, Darius had found me based on my soul signature, and if I had any hope of avoiding a similar visit in the future, I needed to render that impression unreadable. “Is there a way to cloak my soul signature?”

“I’m sorry, I can’t—”

“Tell me a damn thing?” I asked, allowing anger to get the best of me. “I can’t stop over to my sister’s house with a cheese plate and say, ‘How about a time out, so Zephora can teach me how to prevent demons from finding me?’” I immediately felt guilty for lashing out at Grams. She was only trying to help. “I’m sorry, but all of this is a lot to take in.”

Grams shook her head. “No, I’m sorry. I will try to give you hints about imminent danger, because actual intervention is strictly prohibited, otherwise, you’re alone.”

“Great! At least you had help from Darius…when he wasn’t evil. And I would have Celestina on my side, but she thinks I’m a liar.”

“Your niece is wiser than you think.”

“I could have told you that. She’s smarter than I was at her age, but her mother and—”

“You can’t do anything about it. Trust your intuition when it comes to those you care about.” An unidentifiable clatter rose from the other end of the hall, drawing Grams’s attention. “You’ll need to check on that.”

Lulu’s shrill bark erupted a few times. She trotted out of the second bedroom, stood in the hallway, and looked in my direction. She spotted me, held my gaze, and then barked a few more times. She whirled toward the front door and scampered in that direction before stopping at the door. She barked again, swung her head back to me, barked again, and then set her attention on the door, a low rumble in her throat. She scratched at the door, as though begging me to let her outside to attack whatever lay beyond it.

I turned my attention back to Grams, but she had vanished. I sprang out of bed in my pajamas, flicked on the lamp on my nightstand, raced down the hall, and hurried up to Lulu.

“What’s going on?” asked Brandon as he stepped into the hallway behind us, wincing from the light as he looked in my direction. “Where’s Kendall?”

“She’s not with you?” I asked.

“No.”

Maybe she’d had a difficult time sleeping and went outside for a walk. I looked through the peephole but didn’t see anyone. “Move, Lulu.”