Read STAIN (My Soul To Wake Book 1) Online
Authors: Tara Oakes
A sudden sound catches my attention and I snap my eyes over the tree line. Liz
a’
s bright blonde hair is easy to spot amongst the dark brush. She leaves the protection of the trees behind and walks determinedly toward me.
“
I gotta go, Will. Please meet me there, as soon as you can
.
” Liza is closing the distance, no doubt hearing every word
I’
m saying.
“
I love you
.
”
I slip the phone into the safety of the pocket to my jeans, right next to the almost-crumpled map I had been studying all morning.
Liz
a’
s eyes are their usual hard, cold, ston
e
… set directly on me. Her swagger is cool, calm, focused. Focused on me.
“
Wha
t’
s all this about, Leah
?”
Her tone is harsh, and direct.
I straighten my shoulders
.“
I
t’
s about the truth. Do
n’
t you think i
t’
s time to stop pretending
?
”
Her laugh is even colder than her eyes.
“
And what would
you
know about the truth
?
”
Ah. Sh
e’
s still playing her little cat and mouse game.
“
Everything. Thanks to you
.
”
She cocks her head to the side and smiles wickedly.
“
Thanks to me
?
”
I nod.
“
Yup. You se
e…
I never would have figured it out if you had
n’
t slipped up
.
”
Sh
e’
s trying to downplay her curiosity, but I see it peeking through, getting the best of her.
“
Really? And ho
w’
s that exactly
.
”
Back in college I took several psych classes. One of the things I remember is that guilty people, or people who are hiding something, tend to answer questions with questions.
So far, Liza has done nothing but respond with question after question. I
t’
s her way of finding out what I know without necessarily bringing any information to light that
may
not
be known yet.
“
You worked so hard at making me believe that Will was nothing but a desperately grieving widower. That I was only a person to take the place of someone else. But, right there. Tha
t’
s what gave you away
.
”
She says nothing now.
“
Because Will was never married in this life, Liza
.
” Her
e’
s the moment of truth.
“
He was, however, married for barely a night, over three hundred years ago. To me
.
”
I see her features stiffen, harden as she tries to maintain control over her facial expressions.
“
You stupid, stupid girl. You never could just leave well enough alone could you
?
”
A cold wind picks up, blowing hard enough to violently attack the petals and blossoms of the nearby flowers. I can feel her anger, and know I have to finish quickly.
“
And you knew that I would find nothing at the tree. You were waiting for that, to be the final straw, convincing me Will was wrong. Convincing me that no good could come from staying here
.
”
I gauge her reaction to my theory.
“
And you knew this because you knew I did
n’
t really die at the tree
.
”
Her eyes widen. The wind picks up, strong and powerful although the weather report was clear.
“
Then where did you die
?
”
I feel electricity charging around me, coming from the woman standing in front of me.
“
You know where I died. And you know what will happen when I go there, do
n’
t you
?
”
Her hands clench tight, fisting themselves.
“
What makes you think yo
u’
re going to get there
?
”
I swallow hard and know that I need to run. As fast as I can. I have to run for my life. I turn and move in the direction the map in my pocket had designated. The trees in the distance before me begin to move wildly now, swaying back and forth, almost hard enough to snap. The winds are gale strength, billowing furiously and pushing me around like a ragdoll as I run into them, against their current.
It slows me down, but I still run. I hear a loud crack immediately before the patch of land to my right is set ablaze. I feel the heat of the flames, threatening to singe me as I pass, leaving it behind.
The wind is having its way with the wildfire, spreading the destruction. Another crack. Another ball of fire misses me by only inches, burning my forearm as it soars past. I hiss and hold my elbow, cradling my arm in an imaginary splint, yet I still run.
I know sh
e’
s behind me, trailing close. The massive oaks guarding the entrance to the hidden path I must take, sway one last time in the storm, indeed snapping as I imagined they would. I reach down deep for every ounce of energy I have and use it to will my legs faster, to cross under the ancient trees just before they crash to the ground at my back.
That gives me a small reprieve as she loses some of the gain she had on my trail.
The sunlight is waning now, stamped out from not only a patch of clouds but also the trees above blocking the dimming rays. A heavy roar vibrates around me, and I know Liza has cleared the obstacle of her making.
The thick green brush carpeting the forest floor begins to move, individual threads snaking and spiraling near my feet, like slippery little vipers striking and trying to bound my moving legs.
I yelp as the branches whip and sting my flesh, even through my jeans. I have no doubt that their ferocity and strength is breaking my skin. I can hear my heavy panting, feel the sweat dripping into every fold of my skin.
I’
m almost there, I know it.
The closer I get, the more desperate she becomes to stop me, knowing full well that I have everything to gai
n…
and she has everything to lose.
One of the lecherous branches grabs hold of my free arm in passing, holding me captive and snapping my body back, knocking the wind out of me. I can hear her footsteps, rushing through the leaves and jumping over the fallen branches.
I pull hard but it only seems to tighten the knot of foliage around my bicep. Sh
e’
s mere inches behind me now. I draw deep down inside and channel my energy of my heartbeat, into my finger, using it to touch the vine at its tightest point. It shrivels and falls free.
I lunge forward just as Liz
a’
s hands skim down my moving back only to continue their fall down to the forest floor as I leave her behind. I can hear the impact her small body makes as she calls out in pain.
I do
n’
t look back, I know it will only slow me down. I can see the clearing ahead, and surge through the protective boundary of trees to spring forward and fall at the foot of the wall of broken stones.
I splay my palms over them and hug them, using them as a resting point, panting heavily to catch my breath.
The wind that has been heavily working against me now channels itself, spiraling up into a funnel, and bringing any and every loose object with it. My hair blows wildly around and I can feel a scratch against my cheek as a twig is pulled full force into the vortex.
The center of the corkscrew of wind begins to glow, cracking with currents and volts of electricity. The noise becomes almost unbearably loud, and I want so desperately to cover my ears but I know it will do little to help. I ca
n’
t risk taking my hands from the stone foundation of the old cottage.
The stones begin to vibrate from the loud acoustics and they resonate through my body. I begin to scream as a terrible pressure constricts my body, threatening to squeeze all breath from my lungs.
And then, just as chaotic and painful the destruction around me had become, it stops. I feel my body lifting, rising and floating. Bolts of lightning strike into my body from the still skies above. Each strike brings with it an image.
Maman, singing her lullabies to me.
Working the well in the corner of the yard to draw up fresh water.
My first day of school when Maman presented me with a fresh new bonnet.
Will helping me stand after the school children had thrown stones relentlessly, then standing guard as my protector, so they would throw no more.
Liza at the head of that crowd of school children, the instigator of my assault.
The first time Will kissed me, under a young sapling before he turned and ran.
Will asking me to become his wife for the first time.
The look in his eyes when I rejected him.
The smile in his eyes when I finally said yes, only to be arrested the next day for witchcraft.
The strength in his words as he recited his vows to me in the dark dungeon of a jail cell.
The rough rope cutting into my skin as I stood with my head covered in a burlap sack on the platform beneath the hanging tree.
The sound of that platform being kicked out from under me.
The opening of my eyes at the moment I should have dropped to the bottom of my rope, only to find that I was instead in my bed, here in the cottage.
The moment my heart broke when I realized that Maman had used her powers of transposition to take my place under the noose, sacrificing her life for mine.
The desperation I felt when I tried over and over to recant the reincarnation spell to bring her back to me.
The heat of the flame as the magic went awry and claimed both my home and my life.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
“
Leah!
!
”
I hear Wil
l’
s voice calling out to me, sounding like i
t’
s echoing through a long tunnel. I hear him slide to the ground next to me and take hold of my limp body. I see him kiss my forehead and wipe the strands of hair from where the
y’
re pasted against my face.
My cheek is reddened, cut, with many smudges of dirt and smut masking my complexion. I see him looking around fiercely like a lion protecting his mate. The wind begins to calm, with the debris falling like anchors, no longer swept up in the twister.
I still feel weightless, hovering above as I watch. I see him shake me, trying to wake me, but it does no good. He kisses my hand only to pull back in alarm. He then furiously rubs them, my arms, trying to warm them.
“
You ca
n’
t leave me, Leah. You have to come back to me.
I’
m going to hold tight this time,
I’
m never going to let go
.
”
I know Will has no magic in his body other than the few words
I’
ve taught him, but his words hold more strength and potential than any I could have ever shared with him.
They are his soul, put into words. I gather my strength and resolve to join both my spirit that watches over him now and my body that lies cradled in his arms.
I gasp loudly as I make the connection, the joining of the two. Will watches in disbelief as I do exactly what h
e’
s asked of me. Return to him.
He rocks me back and forth as I settle from the shock my body has just endured. His kisses and touch warm me and bring life back to my flesh.
“
How
?”
he asks me.
“
How did you know
?
”
“
I do
n’
t know. I jus
t
… I just believed
.
”
We sit in each othe
r’
s arms as I explain to him the portion of his story that he had
n’
t known.
That it was
n’
t me that was hanged from the tree like he had thought.
That Marcelle had switched her body with me at the tree, just as she had before my conception by transposing her body with Malcol
m’
s wife so that they could be together during the nights.
That I had failed at my attempt to resurrect my dear mother, and it had in fact cost me my life in the fire that destroyed the cottage.
That my essence, my stain, had been here at the ruins of the cottage all these centuries and not at the tree.
That it was Elizabeth herself who had started the hysteria that caused so many their lives and loved ones back in 1692. The hysteria that would cost my mother her life and take my own.
That Malcolm had furiously taken his rage out on Liza in punishment for the death of his beloved mistress and the daughter he had hoped would help him gain the power of the Triad.
That Liza had known all this and intentionally misled me into doubting Will, to prevent us from truly finding each other again.
We share all the feelings we had been saving for the other, holding tight.
He listens wholeheartedly as I reveal detail after detail.
“
Where is she? Did you kill her
?”
he asks.
I shake my head.
“
Help me stand
.
”
He does, supporting me as I struggle to lift myself from the ground. I can see the blood soaking through the denim of my pants from my earlier injuries.
“
I know yo
u’
re out there, sister
!
” I scream like a lunatic to the line of trees around us.
“
Like a coward. Just like yo
u’
ve always been. Doing your bidding from the shadows, lurking. Listen now and hear me well, for if I
ever
see you again, if our paths should cross in this life or the nex
t…
it
will
be the end of you
.
”
I can feel her watching from her hiding place amongst the shelter of the trees. To ensure that she knows the seriousness of my threat, I summon the long dormant power within my being, harvesting it. I do
n’
t need words.
I’
m beyond that now.
I close my eyes and practice the deep breathing Maman had taught me before I was old enough to speak. I feel the sudden coolness settle upon us as the sky loses all trace of light, the sun being eclipses by the moon.
I open my eyes and stare full force ahead, into the dark forest, knowing from that twin intuition that has plagued me for so long, that I am staring straight into her. She knows the truth behind what I speak. She knows
I’
m stronger, and she knows I have the desire to complete the task that she so rightfully deserves.
And then just as surely as I knew I was looking into her, I now know she is gone. I am left in peace, here in the place that bound my soul for so long, with my husband, the one person who can look deep into my eyes and see it.
COMING FALL 2015
MY SOUL TO WAKE
BOOK TWO
SISTER
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