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Chapter 3
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2024-10-29 19:42:56Bri
A few hours later I ducked into the backroom of the coffee shop where I worked. I didn’t need to work there, I had enough deposited into accounts to keep myself stable for years, but my mother and the group couldn’t say no as things had to appear normal. To be honest it was the most normal thing in my existence. The feel and vibe of the place kept my magic subdued and the pot was an added perk. It was for my sanity. Maggie, my boss, sat in a chic fringe chair, with her legs propped up on her messy desk, pulling a joint from her lips she smiled holding in the smoke, and held it out in offering. I walked across the room and took it gratefully. One inhale and it felt like melding closer to earth which I craved. Passing it back I held in the smoke until my lungs burned, letting it out a haggard cough escaped me that nearly choked me. “What's with you today?” She eyed me. I had taken that hit rather aggressively I supposed. I perched on her desk. I still kept my eyes cast down but I shrugged and met her hazel orbs with the briefest of acknowledgment before sighing heavily. “My arch-nemesis kissed me.” I blurted. “You win,” She announced, handing the joint back to me and standing, to head for the cafe kitchen. It was almost time for the music to start.I was starting to feel my body relax from just being in this space, and as my energy began to settle I pulled out the burner phone. If I wasn’t with Zoey or Maggie I wasn’t safe with my powers anymore. They always had this healing, calming, radiating energy that reminded me of my father. They were family, they didn’t expect anything from me, just enjoyed my presence and allowed me to exist with them and I was grateful for that. Soon, I would be missing them terribly. I flipped the phone open and typed S.O.S. I took another puff and exhaled before the phone vibrated with a reply back W.T.F. My fingers moved across the keypad, double and triple punching numbers as needed on the outdated device E.T.A. hell-storm <10-31. Another puff,‘boy this isn’t the normal stuff,’ I thought, feeling the hum of the high seeping into me. The phone vibrated wildly in my hand, the sensation doing wondrous things to my nerve endings. “Z?” I asked. Her distorted voice came across like a chipmunk and I smiled. “Si (yes)” she responded. “The snakes have pushed the mouse hunt forward, muy rápidamente (very quickly), don't forget what's important. très bien? (very good?).” I let her know in code. “Mon amour n'importe quoi pour toi (my love anything for you,)” she responded. “Cuidate, (take care of yourself).” I said, ending the call. We jumbled the languages to scramble up our conversations for any listening program that may be bugged into the place. If they were there then they wouldn’t flag the conversation as it wouldn’t make sense. I was paranoid, for obvious reasons, though Zoey didn’t know the particulars, she was a human witch, so secrets I, unfortunately, had to keep to myself. She accepted the challenge, I didn’t deserve her or Maggie’s unconditional love, yet they gave it freely. A tear rolled down my cheek as I took another puff. Maggie opened the door and leaned on the door frame.“That bad? Some girls like their enemies a little too much, not your type?” I cringed. “Ok then let's make this better, we have coffee and pastries to serve!” She announced. Maggie waved a cup in the air, no doubt full of delicious coffee, caramel, and creamy goodness. I smiled, grabbing my apron and wiping the tears with the back of my hand before putting the joint out and taking the coffee from her as I walked out. Maggie clapped her hands. I held my coffee high as we shouted on our way out, “Laissez les bons temps rouler, (let’s get this party started)” several times until the gathered crowd took up the chant and I melted into the fray of jazz music and buzzing energy with a beaming smile on my face. I’d wait to tell Maggie I was leaving until the end of my shift. I was selfish and needed the hustle and bustle. The smell of coffee and the sound of organic milk frothing up. The scent of cocoa and sensations of harmony that filtered through the place had offered a small respite in my world of strife, I was starved for it. I swayed my hips as I carried my trays to the beat of the music. Dancing with some of the patrons as I moved through my duties, I sang along with an acoustic guitar to a song I’d never heard. This was as close to being natural as I got. My hoodie was tied around my waist. My dark caramel tresses down, hiding the scars, skin free to the air. The people congregating here wouldn’t touch me against my will, they were not my enemy, and my magic vibrated with them. They were Zoey and Maggie’s people and I would let myself feel this until I couldn’t. This Harmony, this release, it strummed deep inside my soul, it soothed the fire that begged to burn from within me.Related chapters
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Bri“Hey, Mags?” I said with a heavy heart, as I wiped down a table after closing. She scowled at my tone, holding a finger up. She disappeared into the office coming back with a pipe. I sighed. Was I going to risk going home high? I was never sure who may be there or when someone would show up at the house, my family home, I had to maintain absolute control, but tonight I wouldn’t care. I plopped my ass in a chair and motioned for her to sit. She handed me the lighter and bowl, which I took from her. “You know how I've told you we are the same but different?” I said in a whisper of a tone, placing my finger over my lips and pointing to my ear, looking around in hopes she understood I meant to be vague. “I'm aware at this point Bri,” Maggie admitted. I sighed taking a hit. I exhaled and looked at her, the magic languidly rose within me, resting at the surface, which I chose to allow her to see. She deserved for me to be honest. Her eyes widened but she simply nodded before letting out
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When I hit the call pad at the gate, my mother’s voice came across instead of the butler's. “Brianna come to the dining hall, we have to have a discussion.” Goddess! Couldn’t I at least eat a damn sandwich before having a conversation with her. No doubt it was about what Andrew did which he made sure Draven saw. “Fine Lorraine,” I said, I hadn’t called her mother in years. She tisked as usual, but pressed the button to allow me in. I walked up the long drive enjoying the plush gardens, taking the long way around the back through the kitchen, and grabbing an apple and slice of bread. I moved my way through the house to the dining hall and paused, all 4 of them were there, plus Trent. What in the actual fuck was this about. Boy was I glad I was high right now, I may get through the night without murdering someone. I’d have to remember to thank Mags later. I studied the seating choices. My mother, wearing a precocious red suit jacket with lips to match watched me like the Snake she was,
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I had to let them think he incapacitated me. That kind of mind fuckery wasn’t something just anyone could snap out of and it did leave a fog behind as the slime of his magic pulled away. Disgust, humiliation, and loathing coursed through me. I pushed the rage down before I unleashed goddess knows what. I reasoned with myself, ‘You're almost out, Bri. Hold on. Just hold on.’I heard Draven chuckle, “I can’t wait to taste her, how was she Andrew?” He said with perverse excitement. As if that was ever going to happen. I refrained from letting my body react to the slime that dripped through me like a blanket of repulsion and dread. I opened my eyes just enough to see that Andrew was leaning forward, blocking his face. His elbow and forearm on the table, his cheek leaning into his hand, as he looked at Trent; who looked absolutely horrified as he mouthed something to him. Andrew ignored Draven’s taunt. Silas pulled me up by the hair at the back of my neck, bringing me toward his chest. The
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As we moved through the halls Trent dutifully beside Andy, he went to speak ‘Shh,’ I barely breathed, and Andy chuckled. “Sneaky, very sneaky,” he murmured in amusement ever so quietly. When we got to my bedroom I felt him motion for Trent to open the door. He laid me on the bed and the door clicked shut. I groaned forcing myself to sit up. Trent was shaking his head, looking back and forth at us both. “How is this ok?” He said flabbergasted. “It's not,” we both said in tandem. “Th-Those other guys could be your dad or your grandfathers.” My stomach turned, it seemed so much worse when someone else said it out loud. “And Draven, that guy is like a pedophile, did you see how he stared at her all night?” My gut lurched and I propelled myself off the bed, stumbling into the bathroom to relieve myself of what little was in my stomach. After rinsing out my mouth I walked out with a hand towel, a glass of water, and some Advil. I plopped back down on my bed. “Andy I knew there were others b
Heart of the Bayou Beasts Chapter 8
Bri Two weeks later, I slipped around the cameras in the house and into my father’s study. My feet worked the floorboards by the window, until I found just the right one. I pried it gently up with a butter knife from the kitchen. Beneath it was a small pile of books, some of my dad's prized trinkets including his chain watch, and some books on magic he insisted I hide before he died. I had adhered to his every last wish, all that remained was revenge. He had said when the time came, they would make sense to me. They had sat here for 10 years waiting for this day. The day I refused to be their pawn and their property. They had a contract in blood I was not consulted on or asked about, nor did my blood adorn the scrap of old parchment willfully. They had held me down and stolen it. I was 14 then. My mother kept it under lock and key, hidden somewhere inside her apartment upstairs. After the night of being confronted about Andy’s kiss, everyone backed off except for my new little messe
Heart of the Bayou Beasts Chapter 9
BriAs the sun rose golden beyond the thick canopy of Spanish moss-laden cypress, the nocturnal creatures laid down to rest. I spent that day pushing the small boat around fallen logs and trees through thick patches of marsh grass, lilies, and duckweed in the shallows and paddling through deeper channels. The familiar sounds of my bustling home in The Big Easy were gone now as the buzzing of insects and the drone of cicadas filled my ears, the occasional calls of birds sounding off in the distance. Telltale disturbances disrupted the murky expanse of the stagnant waters as gators, frogs, and slithering things moved within its depths. It was impossible to know what exactly lay beneath the dark brown water below, it was void of light. The biggest gator ever recorded was a behemoth of 19 feet. That one must have inherited some prehistoric DNA. My father used to tell me stories about all his dramatic encounters as a boy growing up in Cajun country, and though I'm sure there were many exa
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Bri My darkness settled over the onyx water becoming a mist of dark fog ready to strike at the next intruder of my mind. ‘Fuck you Silas! Good luck getting through that Asshole!’ Beneath the water lurked creatures of this world and of others laying in wait, ready to strike. The light of my power rose above it like the full moon overhead, resting in my chest as my breath staggered to slowly rise and fall. While once my mind had looked like the fine beauty of the glossy and lush gardens and mansions of New Orleans those; buildings were now dilapidated, sunken, and overgrown. Crumbling as the darkness of the swamp took over so that the light could shine above it. A memory distracted me at the sight of it. "Without darkness Brianna there could be no light,” my father had once said. “Without evil, we would not know goodness,” he had schooled me. “Without hardships, you could not appreciate the joys in your heart.” He had taught me as I sat beside him when the sickness had begun to take
Heart of the Bayou Beasts Chapter 11
Unknown POVAs I’d entered the swamp tonight a sense of eerie anticipation had hit me and as I stalked through the bayou in my other skin I could feel a power pulsing, old, older than the swamp, ancient. It scented pure and clean, its owner had no ill intent, not even an ounce. As I made my way through the stink of stagnant water I felt the others following using the shallows and sandbars to try to keep up with me, their leader. Thankfully they were not cursed like me to stalk the swamps in the full moonlight as a monster. I could be The Beast whenever I wanted any other time, but beneath the light of that full bright moon that taunted me, he owned the power over me to be present, and he would not recede.I rested at the back of his mind with little more than a suggestion to sway him. My other form, the wolf, was as equally a part of me as the man. But The Beast was separate, he had his own mind and presence. He sensed something bright in the darkness, he could smell the goodness seep
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WyattOn the ride to the truck, I found myself gripping my chest, Beau with his head leaning against the window did the same, the pain scorched and burned and though I knew the heartache would always be there this was more than my own. Beau’s eyes squeezed shut and a tear fell. I glanced at Zoey keeping quiet in the passenger seat leaning forward as she wound her way around narrow streets.“Promise me you will watch over her,” I asked. Zoey glanced at me as I gritted my teeth against the pain blooming in my chest.“You have my word,” Zoey answered quietly. I gazed out the window unseeing as the streets of New Orleans passed by.“I know she loves you both, very much,” Zoey said, swallowing hard. This had to be hard for her, knowing what Bri was sacrificing, what we all were, and being the only one who knew it all. A lump had grown in my throat as I gritted through the emotions of this “separation” and took a steading breath.“If she ever needs us, we will be there,” I let her know as Z
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BriI woke to a rapt at the door moving felt wrong as the men growled in slumber and I pulled away, throwing one of their shirts on to answer the door. Thankfully it was Zoey as I leaned against the door jam not bothering to button the shirt and she handed me our bags. Her eyes scanned me as Wyatt came up behind me growling but I pushed my ass out to block him before he realized he was naked. Typical male Alpha bullshit dealing with his possessive female.I just passed the bags to him before I gripped Zoey’s hand like a vice as my emotions rose. “Give us some time, don’t leave me yet.” I bit my lip, emotions coursing through me.“I'm not going anywhere ma ami,” Zoey said, her eyes sad as they met mine. She knew the toll weighing on my heart perhaps, but not the one tethered to my soul. I nodded to her before ducking back into the room. My face fell as I faced them.“This is it,” I said, as both men approached me, my back leaned against the door.“We are only a few hours away,” Beau s
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BriBeau placed slow-moving molten kisses down my back when he came to the dip in my backside where the dress covered my ass his fingers deftly began unclasping it when the skirt finally fell open, Wyatt undid the clasp at my neck and the entire thing slid into a glimmering pool of glittering fabric at my feet. Beau collected it and I stepped over it in my heels before he laid it out over a chair in the corner.Wyatt growled, “You went into that room without any underwear?”“Did you not see the dress?” he looked about to go feral on me and I was glad for it. Beau returned only to sink to his knees behind me as Wyatt's large calloused hands began to work my breasts as his tongue warred with mine. Beau’s lips pressed against the small of my back and descended. When he reached the seam of my ass Wyatt yanked one leg up high on his hip, steading me with an arm around my waist. The air hit my damp core and caused me to shiver. The next thing I knew Beau's mouth had found a mission. My dr
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WyattBri had been magnificent, the amount of power that had poured through her, that she had siphoned into us for our wolves to take shape outside of ourselves had been immense. I could have said it shocked me, but that would be a lie. Our Moonbeam was more than a common witch. She hadn’t hesitated, barely batted an eye as she became judge, jury, and executioner to the Vipers who had done such unspeakable wrongs against her. She wore her scars for all to see and I loved her more for overcoming it all. It hit me then, this was our last night. Her very power marked her as the rightful head of this seat on the council. When she had claimed it, no one had dared to oppose her.When the doors had unlatched a few cowards took off. I watched her note them. Analyzing who they were and how she would have to manage the aftermath, those who would oppose this spectacle. I stood prone and mute as did Beau. Her father's supporters and those brave enough walked before her and bowed low expressing th
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beau182He had a cocky smirk on his weathered face, his silver beard mirroring his hair. He looked too strong for his age as he filled out the light grey tuxedo, a plaid handkerchief tucked ornately into his pocket. He nodded looking around at the now vacant dias.“Seems like it’s ma turn Little Bird,” he said, his accent thick and not any I recognized. Bri scowled at him. “You can try tae kill meh, lass but it wulny work. Yae urny ready for aw the answers yae seek. It’s still tae be seen if yae earn them.“What the fuck is that supposed to mean,” Bri spat. “You were always a strange one, I could never quite figure you out,” Bri admitted. “That you weren’t the worst of them, doesn’t get you out of this Silas, you will be judged.” Bri pointed out.“Judge me aw yae wish, I care not. I did wit I needed tae dae, by you and I’ll stand by it. I never molested yae, I didny beat ye. In fact, if it wisny fur me, they wid hiv taken ye years ago. I stopped that, just like I stopped them from s
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Beau“Fucking disgusting pedophile freak, and a necro to boot,” Brianna tutted, she looked at her fingernails and shook her head, “I wonder if I took more than your ability to walk when you came looking for me. Do you know how hard it was to not kill you on the spot every time you touched me? To endure it so I could get out? Just so I could gain my full strength to come back and seek retribution for everything? She smiled towards her mother, “You don’t get to go to hell for killing my father. You wanted purgatory and I have someone here that can send you somewhere better. And you won't have any power there, will she?” She turned casually to Wyatt in question. “No,” he growled out, his canines showing his face shadowed in the angles that marked him as a predator, as he sat precariously in the lane between shifting and humanity. I wasn’t any better off as I struggled to keep my claws in. Brianna set loose her mother.“You little bitch you ruined everything! From the day Pierre brought y
Heart of the Bayou Beasts Chapter 180
BeauWithin Bri lay the power of the moon, pure and clean and good. Their cruelty had created something far darker and more sinister within her. They didn’t anticipate how that darkness would protect the light. How Bri’s mind would find a way to survive everything they put her through, and how the mysterious girl would fuel the light with hope.Andrew smirked as the crowd gasped in awe. He bowed low. “I, Andrew Carlson, offer you my allegiance and my loyalty. I bid for your place as high priestess of the North American Council of Witches. I am a son of both the eastern house and the western, may they see the strength you have borne in your oppression, and the vengeance I know you will cast as a testament to the tides of change. ” He stood and his eyes locked on Sug’s, she held that stare. “Brianna has shown me the world of witches her father sought to join together. I for one share that dream, that all sects of our kind and humans can preside alongside each other in a natural harmo
Heart of the Bayou Beasts Chapter 179
Bri“So we have established that a rite was intended to take place, that my mother ordered my familiar killed, and Beckham dealt that blow. Andrew.” Andrew took a tentative step forward. “I ask that you speak only the truth, Andrew here is a victim too, he didn’t have a choice in this either, he was forced to follow his father’s wishes.” Andrew’s gaze looked over the crowd of fearful faces before looking straight at Bri.“I always knew you’d never walk away without justice being served, I am sorry for my part in this and how I treated you over the years. You were once my friend and I hope you can forgive the things I did and overlooked while under the same roof as you.” His eyes raised to the crowd, “I wasn’t much older than Brianna when my father started acting strange and fell under the seductive spell of Lorrain’s promises. Power and dominion. She wants this seat on the council so that she can worm her way into the highest position possible. She’s a compeller and weaves that into h
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Bri“On the contrary Lorraine, I am very present,” I said, striding before the dais. “I have come to see to it that you do not steal my father’s legacy and poison New Orleans as you did my Papa.” My voice was cold, hard, resolute. In this moment I let the warmth my heart had grown accustomed to leach into the men at my sides. Let her try to get out of this farce she made for herself.“Daughter, you are well,” Lorraine hid her surprise and I laughed darkly.“You do not get to call me daughter, after what you did to me. Allowed to be done to me. The abuse you exposed me to, in hopes you could wield the power I bear.” Beckham stepped forward gritting his teeth, eyes livid.“Child, enough of this nonsense,” Lorraine tried to reason.“You girl, owe us all a debt,” Beckham growled out. “I owe you nothing, if you ever thought I did that's on you.” I seethed. “Your little den of snakes stole everything from me,” I shot back. “You don’t get to pin a scared 14-year-old girl down and force her
