Page 65 of Evil Hearts

Chapter 2

I t’s the day after my aunt’s funeral and I’m almost done packing the little I own in my apartment. My supplies are all boxed up and ready to load in my car. My clothes are in the only two suitcases I own. Other than that, the apartment owners furnished most of it.

My aunt left me her house. A house that is paid for. I’ve cried for days and still haven’t fully processed it all. Everything seems to move rapidly while I walk through life in a slow motion video recording.

Her house is in the small town of Rainseren. A magical town filled with people that know and understand the use of magic. Many have magic themselves or either they are part of the community of magical beings.

This is a place where I can feel safe. I can get my license finally and practice in the open. I can be exactly who my aunt always told me I could be. A witch with a potions shop.

First, I have to finish moving and grieve the one person who has always been there when I needed her. The one person who has been my rock. I need her and she’s gone.

A tear slips down my cheek and I wipe it away furiously. I’m tired of crying all the time, but that is how my last few days have gone. Feeling as if the world will crash around me if I don’t let it out.

I grab the first set of boxes to take down to the car. Might as well get this over with. The mindless labor keeps my mind busy while I take the elevator down and then out to my car. I repeat the process until they are all loaded. Standing in my apartment seems pointless now. There is nothing I can’t leave behind me here that I will miss.

Linx winds around my feet.

“Nothing except you, Linx.”

I bend down to pick him up and cradle him in my arms carefully. I offer him some chin scritches and then turn away from my old life.

“Let’s get out of here, Linx. We have a long drive ahead of us.”

Linx meows at me as I close the door. I take it as confirmation and head for the elevator. It’s slow to reach the bottom floor. I open my car door and climb behind the wheel, letting Linx down in the passenger seat to curl up inside his fluffy bed.

I don’t even bother looking back at the place I’ve lived for the last year of my life. It holds no memories worth keeping. No friends to say goodbye to. Not even a girlfriend has visited me there.

I’m alone and now I’m going to be a person alone in an old house that was left to me. This should be interesting. A new town, a new life, and hopefully a big change to my future. Maybe this won’t be so bad.

I stare at the house with its light brown siding and the dark roof that offsets all the lack of color to it. Stone adorns the columns along the front of the house. Steps leading to a little porch with a few old rocking chairs. Windows reflect the setting sun at me and a chill races across my skin.

My witchy senses tingle and I freeze. It feels like something is watching me. It’s weird. Almost as if there is a presence here that is hiding. Something deep in the shadows that may not have the best intentions toward me.

Linx hisses and his fur raises on his back. He has one foot on the bottom step and his eyes are trained toward the front door. He feels it. The entity. Something dark and yet why am I drawn into its embrace like a long-lost lover?

I push myself toward the steps. Taking one step at a time slowly, I make my way toward the front door. The presence is stronger than ever, but still not close enough for me to decide if it’s something that will actually harm me or not. I take a deep breath and slide the key in the doorknob and turn the handle.

The first thing I notice is the thick air inside of the home. I make a mental note that a cleansing needs to be done as soon as possible. Lingering spirits are not something I prefer to deal with right now.

Linx slips in silently behind me and even with his fur standing on end and an annoyed expression, he moves over to his favorite recliner and jumps into the center. He settles in, staring at me as if this is all my fault. In a way, I guess it is. I could have sold it and moved on to other places.

This place has always felt like home to me. An evil entity won’t change that fact. My heart and soul belong here, and this is where I will be. I close the door and opt to grab my stuff later. I move room to room, exploring old memories with my aunt. Every single thought brings tears to my eyes. Some are good tears and some are just plain sad.

When I reach the main bedroom of the house upstairs on the second story, I hesitate to enter her room. This was her private space. Another breath and I twist the knob and it creaks open loudly. A wave of distress hits me straight in the chest.

Searching the room for whatever is here with me. A large bed is in between two windows along the back wall. Beautiful hand carved wooden nightstands with sleeping sigils engraved along the surface are next to it. A dress with protective sigils carved into the wood sits off to the left and to the right is the entrance to the bathroom.

The presence nearly overwhelms me, and I drop to my knees as I cough. Damn. It’s so strong. So large. I won’t be able to rid myself of this. I will need to gather some help.

My chest tightens, and it feels as if fingers are wrapped tightly around my throat, choking me with its strength. I fight for my life and bring my magic forward as I attempt to push it away. To protect myself.

It takes all the energy inside of me, but I lessen their grip on my throat and whoever has me in their hold releases me. I drop to my hands and gasp for air. A coughing fit burns my throat and I wait for the pain to pass and the coughing to cease.

When I can finally breathe without wheezing, I stand slowly, holding onto the door frame next to me for support. The clawing pressure eases as it moves away from me. I don’t feel better about that.

Knowing it can touch me only makes me feel like this is far more dangerous than I first thought it was. An entity can only touch you when it is old and has been here for far longer than it should have been. The odd thing is, I’ve never felt a presence here before. Was I just not paying attention or is this a recent development?

This isn’t a good damn thing. It could take months to get rid of this entity. What if I can’t get rid of it? Am I stuck wondering if it will kill me in my sleep?

“Shit.”

Holding my now sore throat, I make my way into the bathroom to see how bad it really is. What I find leaves me standing there with my mouth open wide in shock. There is a hand print shaped bruise along my throat. Fingernail tips indented along the left side of my throat.

It’s a woman. The entity in this house is clearly a woman, and she doesn’t like that I’m here. What will she do if I stay here tonight? Will she harm me? Kill me? I don’t think I want to find out. I can’t just leave and let her take the house from me.

This house is mine and I won’t cower even if I want to. I leave the bathroom and make my way back to my car to get my boxes of stuff. I need my ingredients. I could probably find everything inside the house, but that would take far too much time searching. I need to ward the bedroom and fast.

I bring in everything, taking my clothes to the bedroom and the boxes to the room where my aunt keeps all of her potion items. The room is so cold and empty without her here and my heart aches. I watch as a memory plays back and I can practically see an outline of my aunt moving around the room with such grace and expertise.

She taught me so much over the years and I never tired of watching her work. The image disappears and sadness is left behind. I swallow the lump that forms in my throat and force myself forward to unpack the stuff from boxes. I place everything on the work benches scattered all over the room.

Finding the ingredients I need, I mix the potions that will keep me safe tonight. One to drink so that if she passes my warding potion, she won’t be able to actually harm me. At least, that’s what I hope it will do. In theory, this should work, but I’ve never needed to test it before.

This entity is stronger than any I’ve ever crossed. It has a hate for me, so why do I feel so drawn to it in such a deeply personal way? Something is different and weird things are happening. I don’t know how to process everything that keeps happening. This is just one more in a long line of mess.

When the potions are complete, I drink one and the other I carry with me upstairs. I sprinkle its contents along the outer edges of the room while chanting a spell.

“Spiritus mali non possunt huc intrare. Nihil intrat quod malevoli desideria habet. Nihil intrat quod cogitationibus nocumentum et perniciem habet. Hic non potest intrare malum. Spiritus mali non possunt huc intrare.”

I repeat the words until I’ve circled the room counterclockwise twice and sprinkled the entire contents around. A golden glow emanates from all over the room and then disappears. Satisfied that it worked and that hopefully this does the trick, I head for my suitcases and unpack some things for a shower.

It’s getting late and I think that a shower before bed is just what I need to relax. It took far too long to create both potions. Maybe it won’t be an eventful night and I can get some rest. I have a feeling tomorrow is going to be a long day.

I turn on the water and stare at my image in the mirror as the water heats. The bruise on my neck has darkened considerably. It hurts to touch, but otherwise it will be fine.

The real question here is, does she want me dead or is something else going on?