Chapter 14
Edna was feeling like a caged animal. She was stuck in a house that seemed much smaller now that the three witches of the Council had joined them.
Tonight they’d all crammed into the small sitting room.
Edna and Evanore sat on opposite ends of the settee.
A third chair had been brought in to accommodate the Council as they ignored what they were all really there for and seemed more interested in being fair to Evanore and questioning Edna’s motives for sending people across the bridge.
Honestly if that witch hadn’t kidnapped her no one would care about what she was doing with the bridge.
Now it was a major topic of conversation.
Barnes appeared with a tray of tea which he set down before serving each of them and offering them biscuits from a pretty china plate. Edna felt terrible about his predicament and that she hadn’t been able to help him yet. She hoped Maggie was working on a way to set him free.
“It must have come as quite the shock to ye when ye found out yer sister was dead,” Daire said.
“I cried for days,” Evanore sniffled. “It still brings me to tears just thinking of her.”
Edna wasn’t heartless. She felt Evanore’s pain and had sympathy for her.
What she didn’t understand was how anyone could believe that what she and Maggie had to do was wrong.
They were defending themselves, the Mackenzies, Angus and Richard.
No one on the Council had been present to see for themselves what had transpired.
If only there was some way she could show them.
She thought about it for a moment. Perhaps there was.
“If ye’ll excuse me, I’m quite exhausted. I think I’ll go to bed.” Edna stood and walked towards the door.
“Get yer rest. Ye’ll need it,” Melusina called after her.
What exactly did she mean by that? Edna wondered, but there was no use in worrying about it.
She had to think of herself and her family.
Family that included all of the couples she’d united, their families and the Mackenzies.
She wouldn’t let the fact that Evanore was cozying up to the Council distract her from defending herself.
As she approached her room, Edna saw Barnes waiting for her by the door.
“Good night, Ma’am.” He bowed slightly at the waist before opening the door for her.
“Good night, Barnes,” she said. “I’m going to try to help ye. Doona give up hope.”
Closing the door and leaving Barnes standing in the hallway, Edna hoped she could contact Maggie and tell her of her plan. Maggie would have to do the bulk of the work until Edna got her powers back.
“William, me love, will ye start a fire for me.”
He marched himself over to the hearth and sat down in front of it. He looked back at Edna and then turned again to the fireplace. Sparks flew and a fire was lit.
“Thank ye, William.” Edna sat on the floor beside him before placing him in her lap where she could stroke his fur while she tried to contact Maggie. She could see the camp outside in the flames. The only one seated by the fire at that moment was Richard.
“Richard!” Edna called to him.
Richard’s head popped up. He looked around to see who was calling him.
“Richard, ’tis Edna. Look into the flames.”
He did as requested. “Edna!”
“Would ye find Maggie for me please. I must speak with her.”
“I’ll get her.” He hopped up and jogged out of her line of sight.
A few moments later Maggie appeared. “Auntie. Is everything alright?”
“It is, but I’m hoping ’twill be even better. I need yer help.”
“I’m here for ye. What do ye need?” She sat down cross legged in front of the fire, listening for Edna’s instructions.
“I want to show the Council what happened with Brielle. All of the things she did that led to her demise. It’s all well and good to tell everyone what happened, but I think if they can see it then they’ll understand that we were merely defending ourselves.
Maggie even though ye destroyed the amulet that ultimately destroyed Brielle, I want ye to keep that part to yerself. Do ye understand?”
“But Auntie…”
“‘Twill only work if ye do as I say. As far as anyone kens I was the one who killed Brielle. If they’re going to punish anyone, let it be me.”
Maggie looked as if she might argue with Edna, but a stern look from her aunt did the trick.
“Alright, but how do we do it?” Maggie asked.
“Biera may be able to help as well. Her magic is different, but just as powerful. I’m thinking there should be something like a giant screen in the air.”
“Like a movie screen,” Maggie said.
“Exactly. Richard and Latharn were there, we could use their memories to show Brielle was on a rampage. That should take care of Evanore’s complaints about me murdering her sister.”
“What about undoing everything she’s done?”
“That will be the next challenge, but I will have to hope they are compassionate witches who will understand what I was trying to do and let these couples remain together.”
“I’ll get to work right away,” Maggie assured her.
“Good lass. I ken ye can do this. One more thing. Have ye been able to work on helping Evanore’s servant?”
“No’ yet, but I will.”
“Good lass.”
“Good night, Auntie. Sleep well.”
“I doona ken that it’s possible until this is all settled, but I will try. Good night, Maggie.”
The fire died out, but Edna stayed where she was. “Thank ye, William. Shall we retreat to the bed? It’s much more comfortable.”
She placed William on the bed and peeked over at the glass orb, which had been retired since the Council’s arrival.
She changed into her nightclothes and smiled when she saw that William had curled himself up into a little ball at the foot of the bed, hardly noticing when Edna got between the covers and placed her weary head on the pillow where she pushed thoughts of the next day out of her head.
She had faith that Maggie would take care of everything.
***
Maggie found a quiet spot where she could be alone to contemplate how she might help Barnes. Edna told her that he had been abducted from another time and was under Evanore’s spell. She turned the problem this way and that in her mind while building a small fire.
She had to find a way to release him from it, but it was a well-known fact that a witch could not undo another witch’s spell. At first, she thought she might be able to locate his family, but since she didn’t know anything about him she had no spell for that.
She sighed, not sure what to do next.
“I’m going to contact Dylan and let him know where I am,” she said aloud, then concentrated on the flames.
“Maggie,” Dylan said. “Is that you? Are you okay?”
“It’s me.” Seeing his face warmed her in a way the flames couldn’t. She was so lucky to have a wonderful husband like him. “I’m doing alright. They started the trial today and Evanore told everyone that Auntie killed her sister Brielle,” Maggie explained.
“That’s crazy!” Dylan yelled.
“And that she shouldnae have been matching couples from different times,” Maggie added.
Dylan shook his head and frowned. “That’s not good.”
“No. It’s no’, but they heard from some witnesses here today so we’re all hoping they are reasonable witches and they’ll see how terrible it would be to separate everyone.”
“Maggie, you’re going to be able to come back to me, aren’t you?” A tinge of doubt could be heard in his voice.
“I will be back as soon as this is over,” Maggie assured him.
“Good.” He sounded relieved.
“Auntie asked me to help the servant, Barnes. He is under Evanore’s spell. I’m going to try to set him free, but I doona ken where to start.”
“I wish I was there to watch you work. You can do it, Maggie, I am certain you’ll figure it out.”
“Thanks, hun. I’ve got to go,” Maggie said. “But I’ll be in touch tomorrow. Who knows, I may even be home and all of this will be behind us.”
“Let’s hope,” Dylan said as his face faded from view.
Maggie sat back from the flames and looked up into the night sky. She would have to find a work around, as the council had when they made the house appear. If there was a way she could get into his head and help him remember who he was, that might be all it would take.
She reached into her pocket and pulled out a pouch filled with dried herbs and some crystals.
Placing them on a flat rock she found, Maggie concentrated, set her intention and went to work.
Before long a plume of smoke rose from the herbs and drifted towards the house.
The smoke carried Maggie’s own spell. One that would tickle Barnes’ memory about who he was and where he was from.
At first there was no indication that it was working, but before long another plume of smoke left the house and wafted through the air directly to her. On it were memories from his past. She now knew who he was, where he’d come from and why he had been there.
The pieces came together with a story of a life of servitude that had been forced on him.
At first she thought that part was about Evanore, but as it turned out, it was not.
More and more information came to her and as it did, she sent it back to him.
With any luck as he received his own memories back again they would stick and he would be better able to escape Evanore.
Before she was done, she left him with the instruction to tell Edna that Maggie had helped him. This way they would know that it had worked.
The smoke that had been moving back and forth between her rock and the house stopped. Maggie gathered her crystals back into the pouch and, feeling pretty pleased with herself, went back to the camp to find Biera.