Page 43 of The Unbound Witch

“What's so special about them books, anyway?” Crow asked, leaning over the counter to get a better look.

“They are the source of our power,” Eden answered, drawing a finger down the spine. “The Grimoires used to be a single book, but the witches felt the magic was drawing too thin, so they performed a ritual, The Breaking. Dividing the single book into seven pieces, one for each of our sacred covens.” She placed her palm on the light green jewel pressed into the cover. “It contains the first and last drop of blood of every one of my ancestors. Spells one cannot receive but can conjure, dark histories and twisted tales of secrets. Nothing good can come from this damn book, but it is hallowed all the same.”

Crow flipped the book open. “Does it have pictures? I like those best.”

“Diagrams. It's not a children's book,” Bastian answered, slipping a hand around my waist.

I hadn't realized I'd been walking forward until he stopped me. The Grimoire was like a dangerous enticement, calling me. Luring me in as if I had no choice. I hated the way it made me feel as if I’d lost an edge of my own careful control. Turning away, I rubbed my hands down my arms, the hint of a headache on the horizon. I couldn't tell them, though. They'd all worry and hover and get distracted. We didn't need that.

“Are we going to test the barrier?” I asked, changing the attention of the room to something far less sinister.

“Kirsi, Atlas and I will test it tonight after the sun has set. One witch, one shifter, one wraith. That should be enough of an assessment,” Bastian said.

“I should go, too,” I countered. “Technically, you're only half witch.”

“And yet still more powerful than Endora Mossbrook.” He lifted an eyebrow, a half-smirk on his face and a challenge in his eyes.

“Fine,” I conceded. “But at least go as Grey. The Dark King is dead.”

18

RAVEN

The grooves worn into the floorboards of Crescent Cottage from a century of salt circles dripping with various candle waxes were the closest thing to home I'd felt in so long. Sprinkling the black salt into a circle and placing my seven candles around it was mind-numbing and just the thing I needed after the chaos of the day, the long ship ride, and the plethora of emotions my heart still needed to sort out. Eden had cast her barrier spell, but this one was also needed. Protection and blessings in abundance.

Flourishing a hand over the candles, I couldn't help but glance at Kirsi, knowing, though she watched me like a hawk, she was still hurting. Still so far removed from her own magic, she yearned for it, mourned it. She lifted her chin, always willing to show strength rather than sorrow. Our whole lives, she'd been that way. It made sense that, even in death, her nature had not changed.

I stepped over the salt barefoot, letting the familiar boards creak beneath my feet as I felt the power of the circle push over my skin, lifting the small hairs along my arms and down my spine. There was a time when I didn't know if I would ever get to feel this again or want to. But standing here now, the hem of my black skirt grazing the tops of my feet as the candles flickered below me, I couldn't imagine never again feeling the power that rumbled deep within me. It was different now, had been since the Trials. Something had awakened. Something I'd always known was there, but was hidden beneath. Bound.

Eden stepped into my circle next, the candlelight from below illuminating her face and contrasting hair in a way that was equal parts scary and hauntingly beautiful. She was two parts of a whole. Even in her life… exiled and rescued. Living in the human lands, a witch, but not. She slipped one hand into mine as Grey joined us. Truly Bastian in disguise, but it still felt wrong when he took my hand, rubbing his thumb over my knuckles.

“Almost time,” Kirsi said, floating up to the uncovered window on the ceiling.

Though many didn't know it existed, my grandmother had praised her moon window, keeping it hidden except for when she spelled in the shop at midnight. She swore the placement of the cottage in the Moon Coven Territory, along with the symmetry of the window's carefully etched glass, held its own sort of power. I prayed she was right.

Using magic to set the intention, I cast healing over myself. It'd never been much of a spell, only something to soothe a headache, or heal a scratch, but with more power behind me now, I wondered if that would change. Pushing my amplification spell, I considered how long it would be until they questioned me. The purpose of the spell circle was to ground ourselves back into the magical world, but I had plans of my own. Far healthier than I had been in the human lands, an ailment still haunted me. It seemed casting death had awoken something within me it shouldn't. Still, the circle, the spells, the moon … they were all I needed to finally feel myself again. Thank the goddess.

“Ready?” Bastian asked, his eyes flicking to my fingers.

He'd seen the motion to cast the spell, likely noticing the way my body finally relaxed, but without the visible markings as the rest of the witches had, he couldn't be sure of anything.

We three bowed our heads, Bastian's shadows swirling below us. Come what may, we needed the goddess' purest blessing to continue this fight. And so, we cast as the others watched from the opposite end of the shop, Crow’s jaw slackened, even Atlas’ eyes glued to the magic.

Each of us had our own selection of spells, though Eden's were far fewer than Bastian's. She'd spent most of her life cut off from receiving spells and so far, nothing had come to her to make up for lost time. Bastian created his own barrier around us, dark as a starless sky, blocking us off from the room. I pushed the unlock spell, knowing that intention was the derivative of everything and though it worked on doors, it could also work on other things. And then Eden's marking on her arm lit as green as fresh moss, as she waved a hand through the air, humming.

“Sky above, Earth below,” I whispered, “Three by three, blessing be.” The deep resonance of Grey's voice crept up my spine as he joined me the second time I said the chant, this time louder. Eden joined the third and final time as I lured a candle to us, letting it float in the middle as we chanted much louder.

“Sky above, Earth below. Three by three, blessing be.” The hair on my arms stood at attention, a swell of magic swirling as our intention was set. The red candles zapped out, confirming our blessing from the goddess was heard, but none of us moved an inch. No one could see beyond Bastian's barrier. We stood there, steeped in power blessed by the goddess, letting it replenish our spirits and whisper over our bodies like a summer breeze in a wildflower field. This was utter peace. This was magic.Home.

Bastian shifted back into his own form, though I wasn't sure he meant to as his eyes glossed over, his wings appearing at his back as the barrier he'd created grew to accommodate his large size. Darkness descended as the candlelight vanished, smothered by the Dark King's shadows, his power growing like a tangible object swirling around and around the circle, drawing me into him as my power coaxed his, stroked it. Alarms bells rang in my head. Something was wrong.

“Eden, leave the circle.” My voice rattled, not with fear, but conviction. “Leave now, while you can. Don't touch the salt.”

“You need to get away from him too,” she hissed back. “He isn't himself right now. The goddess is blessing him.”

“Go!” I shouted as the shadows grew denser.

She was gone in a flash, leaving me to the mercy of Bastian's blessing as I stood before him, hand still clasped in his. All of his rage, his passion, his determination radiated through the space, lifting my hair as his power became palpable. As his darkness called to me, drawing my own power. The day I'd seen his barrier the first time, it was a seduction unlike anything I'd ever known. Now, I understood why I'd felt so drawn to it. It was not the man. It was the raw, uninhibited power leashed somewhere within. Not him, but me. And when I cast the spell that took and took and took from me, it renewed everything I thought I’d known of the depths of magic. This blessing was not for Bastian, the Dark King. I dropped his fingers, understanding. He could not protect me from her. Because this blessing was for me.