MITCH CHESTER"ARE YOU SURE you want to see them?" Mitch asked, trying to block Lorna from passing through. The bus was parked a few feet away and the driver stood uncertainly beside the backdoor."Step away from my way, Mitchell," she growled. "I have seen more deaths than you can imagine."Mitch stepped aside and nodded to the bus driver. "Open it," he said.The driver bowed and fidgeted with his keys, Mitch noted that the man's fingers were turning white with cold as he inserted the keys and pulled open the back of the bus."Bring stretchers from the hospital," Anna called from behind. Some patrol guards nearby hurried to do as she said. She came to stand beside Mitch and whispered, "We need more hospital staff."Mitch groaned and rubbed his eyes. "Lorna needs your shoulder to cry on," He mindlinked.Anna nodded and stepped up to Lorna. She placed a hand on Lorna's shoulder and gave her a grim smile."Careful, ma'am," the bus driver said as Lorna climbed into the bus. She crouched a
THE SUN SET in a deep golden yellow haze, basking the whole city in its warm glow. In a half-empty nightclub, Vladimir sat on a couch in the VIP area. He nodded his head slowly to the rhythm coming from the loudspeakers."This is one thing I enjoy about this Era," he said, raising his voice slightly as he spoke to Vorenus. "The music. That was not something I grew up with.""We had some sort of music in old Rome," Vorenus muttered.Vladimir scoffed and turned to Alice who was by his other side. "Can you listen to him?" He gestured at Vorenus. "Calling some unorganized rambling of tambourines and hideous trumpets "music""Alice rolled her eyes. "It was more than that," Vorenus said, gesturing at a passing waiter for another glass of champagne."And they didn't dance at all," Vladimir muttered, laughing.Alice frowned. "I don't see why you are in such a good mood," she snapped. "It's been days now and we haven't seen anyone of that traitor's family.""Oh be patient, my sweet," Vladimir
ENRIQUE DRUMMED HIS fingers on the steering wheel. They had been driving for the past 5 hours without saying anything apart from a few words. The silence was filled by the country music floating from the radio.Enrique suddenly pulled to a stop by the side of the road."What is it?" Lorna asked. "What happened?""A cramp on my leg," Enrique muttered, folding himself from the car and stretching."We should be there before any of my sisters," Lorna complained.Enrique snorted. He cracked his neck and yawned. "Did you even have breakfast?" He asked, looking at her."Henry," she said, reverting to one of the many variations of his name."Did you?" Enrique asked, leaning against the bark of a tree."I wasn't hungry," Lorna said under her breath. "Come on, let's go.""The engine is at risk of overheating, Lorna," Enrique said. "We need to give it time to cool off."Lorna leaned over to the driver's seat and looked at the dashboard to confirm what he said. She groaned and got out of the car.
IN THE NEXT few hours, a minimum of 200 witches had arrived. They were of different shapes and races, but they all bore some things in common. They all paid their respects to Lorna, and they had magic running in their veins.Enrique stood apart, being the only male and the only non-witch in the gathering, he was feeling like an outcast. He kept his eyes on Lorna, ignoring the looks that some of the witches threw at him.The sun was starting to set, and bonfires were lit at different spots. The mumbling of over 200 women talking swarmed the air."I was not expecting this sort of turn-up," Lorna said, coming to stand by his side."Is this all the witches in the world?" Enrique asked, watching as the crowd mingled with one another.Lorna heaved a heavy sigh and shrugged. "It sure looks like it," she said."Sister," a dark-skinned woman came to join them. She hugged Lorna warmly and kissed her cheek."Ada," Lorna greeted. "I wasn't sure you were going to make it," she said. The witch cal
ANNA KYLIN CHESTERLORNA AND ENRIQUE had been gone for hours now. We had no way of knowing if they were alright. I poked around my lunch uninterested."Patty would be happy if you ate up," Mitch said. I sighed and nodded."I'm sure they are fine," he said, knowing what was on my mind already. "They have my cell phone number.""Are they going to call?" I asked."Probably not," he chuckled. He reached across the table and picked a lone green pea from my plate. "But they will be fine." He threw the pea into his mouth and chewed thoughtfully.I nodded again. I was probably worrying for nothing and that was not good for my health. Maybe it was my coping mechanism. It was easier to worry about things I could relate with; like Lorna's safety and how she was grieving, than to worry about things out of my control... like Vladimir's interest in my blood, or my ancestry and the chance that I could be the reincarnation of the most powerful witch to ever exist."If the kids saw you worrying like
ANNA KYLIN CHESTERADDISON SKIPPED AHEAD while Aiden stayed close to my side as we took the short walk to Beta Draco's house."SO is she really a human?" Aiden asked, looking up at me."Watch your feet," I told him and nodded. "She is.""Why did her mummy drop her here?" He asked.I doubt it was a parent who dropped off a child in the middle of snowy mountains unsupervised."I don't know, Aiden," I answered truthfully. "YOU don't?" He asked."I don't." I sighed."Hmm," he kicked at a mound of snow. "I thought you knew the answers to everything."I chuckled. "What made you think that?" I asked him.He shrugged his small shoulders. "You are an adult."That was even funnier. If only every adult had the answer to every question, there would be a lesser number of fucked up adults out there. "No, Aiden," I said softly. "Nobody knows all the answers.""Not even our teachers at school?" He asked, his eyes came up to my face again.I sighed and shook my head. "Not even your teachers at school.
ANNA KYLIN CHESTER "EASY, DRACO," I said in a calm voice. "Take it easy." My Luna aura must have washed out because he was suddenly calm, although his breaths came out in guttural grunts. He sat down on the chair and tapped his thumb against his knee repeatedly in agitation."I had to tell you," I said. "You're the one taking her into your home. You had to know the risks involved."He nodded. "Thank you, Luna." He looked up at me. "But how did you come to this conclusion?""It was Lorna," I said honestly. "Tell me; what has she said since she woke up?"Draco shook his head. "Nothing." He replied and sighed, rubbing his forehead. "I think I heard her mumbling something to your children as we left. That must be the first thing I've heard her say."I nodded. Bringing the children along was a good idea. They would help her come out of the hypnosis. I hope it was nothing like what I experienced. "I tried talking to her when she came out of her unconsciousness," I told him. "She kept on re
IT WAS A starry night and the wind swept the vast expanse of the desert in strong waves. On the warm sand, a total of 405 witches stood in a circle, they all wore black gowns. In the middle of the circle, wood and sticks had been stacked like beds in a dozen places. The dead witches were laid upon the wood like they were sleeping. They looked almost peaceful. The whole environment was serene.Enrique stood a few yards away from the meeting. He heard the small mumbling of the witches as they carried out their final rites. It was an eerie place. He felt goosebumps break out on his neck. "Could do with some warmth now." He growled to himself under his breath, rubbing his hands together. Lorna stood alone in the middle of the dead witches. "We are gathered today," Her voice was soft, but it was like the wind worked for her. It carried her voice so everyone heard it gently. "To mourn and put our sisters to rest." She looked around. She could not make out the faces of the numerous women tha