The Willow Read online

  “It’s a ritual cast by the Master of Witches calling on the elements.” Her voice began to ease with each word.

  A light breeze wrapped around us and it was warm and refreshing. The garden was just up ahead, and as we drew closer, I wished I came here sooner. It made the botanical gardens look like a place of weeds. A stone path weaved its way around the grounds as thousands of brightly-colored flowers, neatly tailored bushes, and small trees decorated every square inch of it.

  “What element do you have?” I asked her.

  “Earth.”

  “What can you do with it?”

  She wiggled her brows. Happy Haven restored. “Oh you’ll see soon enough.” She pulled me forward and stepped into the gardens.

  A small pond made of hundreds of flat rocks surrounded by large blooming plants and flowers sat off to the right. Florescent-colored fish were swimming beneath the surface while flourishing lily pads sat on top. I glanced back at Haven. “So, what kind of witch is Zia?”

  “She’s a Spirit Witch—a very powerful witch.”

  “What elements can she use?”

  “All of them.”

  I raised my brows in awe.

  She nodded. “Exactly. Like I said, they are very powerful. Plus, they are the only ones that have the ability to heal.”

  “Like fix wounds?”

  “Yuppers.”

  The path ended at a wrought iron gate. Completely overrun by green leafy vines, but the beautiful floral accents that decorated the front could still be seen.

  Haven opened it, and when I stepped through, I gasped. Places like this just didn’t really exist. A meadow filled with rolling hills, thick plush green grass and a large creek that ran through it. Wild flowers littered the grounds making this place picture perfect. Hundreds of trees were scattered throughout, some I recognized as birches, oaks, and willows. Others I’d never seen before. “Where are we?” I exhaled.

  “Guardians have the Guardian’s Hall. We have the Witches Meadow,” she answered, then sucked in an excited breath. “Oh look, they’re starting.”

  Following her gaze, Zia was standing in the middle of a large circle of witches, all joined together holding hands. Haven pulled me down to the ground just as Zia said, “May our powers protect us and connect us together.” She raised her hands to the sky. “To the north, we summon you, Earth!”

  Suddenly the ground began to shake. Not to a dangerous level, just more like a rumble moving underneath my body. “What’s happening?” I asked Haven.

  Her eyes twinkled. “Earth’s responding.”

  Zia continued, “To the west, we summon you, Air!”

  The breeze picked up and the trees began to sway. A slight wind whipped past my body, raising goose bumps along my skin.

  “To the south, we summon you, Fire!”

  Abruptly, an earsplitting sizzle came around us as fire tore around the circle of witches, and even from where I sat I could feel the heat radiating off it. “Christ,” I gasped, squirming back.

  Haven grabbed my arm. “It won’t hurt them. It never could. It protects them.”

  As I glanced back to Zia, she continued, “To the east, we summon you, Water!”

  A thunderous swish came as water began to swirl around the witches just above the fire. I shivered slightly from the dampness that spread across my skin and gave my arms a rub.

  “Connecting it all, we summon you, Spirit!”

  A brilliant explosion of light blasted through the meadow and all the witches had a glittering light moving around them—dancing around their bodies.

  There was a real pull to this element. Envy—I was sure of that. Whatever they were feeling looked good. I hadn’t had the time to mull over my being half witch all that much, but now being here, experiencing this, I couldn’t deny that this world didn’t intrigue me.

  “Return elements,” Zia shouted. “We thank you for your presence and the gifts you have bestowed upon us.”

  A deafening bang echoed around us and the magic was ripped away. “That was incred—” I started. Instantly, my mouth shut when all the witches turned to look at me. “Er—”

  “Come to me, Nexi,” Zia called out. “Join us.”

  I jerked my head to Haven. “Huh?”

  She laughed. “I love your reactions. They’re so funny.” She jumped to her feet and pulled me with her.

  The witches parted to let me pass as we approached. Haven gave me a little push forward and joined the circle.

  Zia stepped forward to wrap her warm hands tight around mine. “We have a new witch among us.” Her voice rose with happiness. “One who has been lost for some time. Let us unite with her.”

  With a loud whoosh, a blue ribbon appeared around the circle and wrapped from witch to witch.

  “Blessed be, Nexi,” the witches shouted in harmony.

  Zia squeezed my hands and my response came from deep in my soul. “Blessed be.”

  As quickly as the ribbon came, it withdrew.

  “You are a part of us now.” Zia smiled. “I know you don’t feel it, but soon you will.” She gave me a push forward. “Go now, meet your sisters.”

  From there, I was showered with hugs and kisses. Witch after witch introduced themselves. By the tenth witch, I’d already forgotten the first one’s name. Shira…Saria…Serin. It was pointless—I gave up trying.

  After the final kiss, Zia took my hand. “Come and chat with me.” Haven gave me a wave goodbye, then I followed Zia over to a large birch tree. “You must have questions?”

  I did—thousands of them. Taking a seat next to her, I got right to it. “What’s the circle for exactly?”

  “It’s to keep our sisterhood of witches united, and to give thanks to the elements for gifting us.”

  “So, am I part of the sisterhood now?”

  “You are, but you won’t understand it until you find your magic.”

  Her words led into my next question perfectly. “When will that be exactly?” The idea of me having magic seemed not only ridiculous, but also dangerous.

  “As I told you before, I am unsure when your magic will be released to you. Your age is going to make this difficult for you. Most younglings find their magic when they are around two years old, and the magic is weak. I’m not sure what will happen once yours is released or what will trigger it. I’ve never seen a witch come into her magic so late in life.”

  My panic rose to near lethal levels.

  She caught it instantly and patted my hand. “Not to worry. If you cannot control it on your own I will help you.”

  Her tone was firm enough that I believed her. I trusted her almost as much as I trusted Haven, which was definitely saying something. Strange really, I didn’t have a soul sister bond with Zia and I barely knew her, but there was something there—a very deep connection. My mother? They’d been close. I learned that the first night I talked with her and Drake.

  “We were soul sisters,” Zia said out of nowhere.

  “Pardon?”

  “We were soul sisters, your mother and I,” she repeated. “Did you know that?”

  I shook my head. “I didn’t know it ran that deep.” I actually didn’t know much about her and the curiosity was eating at me.

  Zia laughed softly. “You want to know what she was like?”

  I nodded, laughing with her. That was starting to get freaky! She was answering my questions before I even had a chance to ask them. Either we have some spooky connection between us or maybe it’s just two great minds think alike. The latter theory sat better.

  Zia quieted her laughs and took a deep breath before she said, “Your mother was a wonderful spirit. She had a fun sense of humor, a quick wit, and she was stubborn as a mule. But underneath all that was a deep and caring love for everyone around her.” Then, she grinned. “You are very much like her.”

  “I am?”

  “Very much so. In your looks alone, I see so much of her, but it’s your
personality I notice most. The things you say, the way your voice sounds, it reminds me so much of her.”

  Her voice trembled slightly and her eyes were drowning with sadness. “Is that hard for you?” I asked, softly. Imagining that it would be, it’d be like staring into the face of a ghost.

  “It is, but it is also wonderful. Having you home is like having a piece of her back.” She sighed deeply and her bottom lip quivered. “When she was taken from us my heart broke. I am sure having Haven now you can understand how hard this would have been.”

  I understood perfectly. It would feel as if half of your soul was gone—a part that would always be in a constant state of mourning.

  “There has not been a day that I do not think of her and miss her terribly.”

  It was hard for me to miss her. Having your mother described with a few short sentences is just not enough to know her fully. She must have been an amazing woman, considering Drake and Zia still felt so much pain over her death. Only someone pretty incredible could have that kind of effect.

  If only…

  Before I could finish my thought, Zia touched my hand, instantly slamming me into vision after vision. It only took a moment to realize that I was seeing her memories. All the experiences she had with my mother. They came unbelievably quick, and it was hard to keep up. Hard to grasp every little detail that made her who she was, and all the characteristics that defined her as my mother.

  The last vision was one I wish I never saw, and one that would remain forever burned into my memory.

  Tyrianna was running through the woods, screaming for help while I cried loudly in her arms. She fell, tripping over stones and branches, but continued to get up, running away from the vampire stalking her.

  “You cannot run from me, witch. I could kill you at any time,” a vampire said with a composed tone.

  This was him, the vampire who altered the course of my life—Lazarus.

  She tripped again, falling to her knees. She lowered her lips to my crying face, tears pouring down her face. “Go, Nexi. Be safe, my love.”

  Suddenly, I vanished from her arms and she turned to face Lazarus. She looked drained, exhausted. He closed in on her. She tried to throw Magic at him, but she had nothing left. Her strength was gone from sending me away.

  Lazarus laughed cruelly. “Used all your strength, did you, to send the youngling away? This will be easier than I thought.” He lunged toward her and sank his fangs deep into her neck.

  Her eyes closed, her body tightened then she screamed.

  The visions abruptly stopped, but the sound of her horrific scream was still echoing in my mind. I opened my eyes, and as I did, my heart plummeted for so many reasons it was impossible to pinpoint them. For the horror of what I just witnessed, for the knowledge that she was as wonderful as I suspected, and this was as far as I was ever going to know her. I could only hear her voice, see her smile, feel her love only through someone else’s memories, and the pain of that sank in deep.

  I met Zia’s gaze, tears filling my eyes. My words caught in my throat.

  She cupped my cheek in her hand, a tear fell down her cheek. “I know, sweetie—it saddens me too.”

  Chapter Five

  Another two weeks passed, and training was going—well, it was going. Kyden’s patience was hanging on by a thread—a very thin thread. My fighting skills were mediocre, if that. He began taunting me, egging me on, and I would’ve given my left pinky finger to be able to kick his ass.

  We had been circling each other for minutes now while he gave instructions on combat—rules of engaging the enemy. I listened, more focused on his moves, waiting for an opening so I could attack.

  Seconds later, I saw it.

  His body slightly turned and left him open. I lunged forward slamming my fist directly into his gut. Only to have him grab my arm and send me straight to the ground, face first.

  “Never let the enemy get behind you. This position leaves you vulnerable.” His voice sounded well amused in my ear.

  Annoyed, I smashed my head back, spun around and kicked out, flinging him backwards. I instantly jumped to my feet, a little surprised to see blood trickling down his nose when I turned to face him.

  He wiped it away, unfazed. “Once you begin the attack never stop. Not for anything.”

  Taking his advice, I lunged forward, and kicked out at his hip. It never connected. Instead, I found myself lying flat on my back with him holding on to my foot.

  He sighed, exasperated. “You need to do better.”

  Yanking my foot away, I leapt to my feet. “I’m doing my best.”

  He began to circle me, his face taunting. “Why are you so afraid?”

  “I’m not afraid. I—I just—I’m—”

  “You’re what, a coward then?”

  The words alone would have been the icing on the cake, but his clipped tone was the cherry on top. Thought ceased to exist in my mind—all that remained was action. When Kyden lunged forward, my instincts stepped in and I leaned out of the way quickly.

  “That’s it,” he approved. “Block hits with your arms. Kick out, and send me away. You need to get me on the ground as quickly as possible. The longer the fight continues the more tired you’ll become.”

  He came at me with a steady stream of punches and kicks, but I dodged and blocked each one. As the minutes passed, his words couldn’t have been truer. I was weakening and he was growing stronger. He moved in closer toward me, which reduced my ability to defend myself. He was gaining the upper hand. I needed to get him away and quickly.

  I raised my leg and kicked high, sending him tumbling back. Before I could even blink, he was on his feet again and preparing to land a low kick to my stomach. I couldn’t stop it. No matter how fast I moved away, his foot was going to hit. I held my breath, tightened my stomach and prepared myself for the blow.

  The impact of it sent me flying back, but just as I fell, I threw myself around his body. If I was going down, he sure as hell was going with me!

  We landed hard. “Well done, Álainn!” he praised.

  I raised my gaze to his. Molten embers stared back at me.

  Fighting definitely excites him, as it does me too. I grabbed his face, demanding he kiss me. He didn’t deny me. He stormed into my mouth as if he needed my body to save him. There was nothing gentle about it. His tongue was forceful as it pushed its way in—his lips violent as they crushed against mine.

  I moaned against his mouth, replying to his sweltering fire. He growled in response, rolling onto his back to pull me up to straddle him. I peered down with only seconds to spare before he grabbed my face tightly and angled my head for his attack. My breath went ragged instantly as he consumed my neck with pure greed.

  Seeing the intensity in him—feeling his erection beneath me, a thought slowly emerged. I had to tell him something about myself before we went any further.

  I probably wouldn’t have said anything at all, but judging by how he felt against my body if I didn’t, I’d regret it. “Kyden…I’ve…never…”

  “You’ve never what?” he murmured, nibbling my ear.

  I tried to say it twice, but every time I opened my mouth, nothing came out. Who’d ever heard of a twenty-four year old virgin? It wasn’t that I never wanted to or that I’d been saving myself. It was all Gloria’s fault. She didn’t raise a fool and my exes just didn’t measure up. By the time I ever got close enough to do the deed was usually the time I ended it.

  He laid back and crossed his arms behind his head. “What is it?”

  Holy crap! He was simply irresistible lying there beneath me. It didn’t make this any easier. “Well…”

  My hesitation lasted for many minutes while he searched my face. The confusion rushed across his features. Then, I saw it. The answer hit him like a smack in the face.

  “Virgin?” His expression matched his voice perfectly. He was completely shocked. He stared intently, waiting for my reply.


  With a groan, I said, “I am.” His face slowly lit up, a smile filled his entire face. “It doesn’t bother you?” I didn’t like feeling like an underdog here.

  “Bother me?” He laughed deep and low. “Not bloody likely.”

  Before I could even respond, he grabbed my face and kissed me deep enough to send quivers in places we were just discussing.

  Suddenly, a loud gasp sounded around us. It was Haven.