Chapter 11 #3
“Thanks for coming,” Saul says, looking around. “Where did that waitress go? She told me to flag her down when everyone got here.”
It feels kind of weird to be on this side of the waitressing gig. I really did take Frank’s competition rants too seriously. But I also couldn’t afford to eat out. Frank would usually give me a discount if I ate something from the kitchen, but the money went further if I invested it in sandwiches.
They introduce me to Ingrid and then the waitress comes over. After we’ve ordered drinks and our lunch, Ingrid leans closer. I’m not sure what she’s looking at until I realize she’s got some sort of stone in her hand, runes carved into it and glowing with a faint blue light.
“What’s that? What are you doing?” I ask anxiously, feeling very uncomfortable.
“It’s a Seer’s Stone. It allows me to read your aura, and what is hiding behind it,” she explains in a reassuring tone.
“What do you see?” Saul asks curiously.
“I’m not sure. I can see the fragments from the spell she cast that warped into a curse, but the original curse is a lot harder to see,” Ingrid says, squeezing the stone harder, which makes the runes glow more. “Oh, there it is… Huh, wow! Okay!”
Ingrid puts the stone down and shakes her head as the runes dim. I’m concerned. Victor and Saul seem concerned too, which only makes me more nervous.
“It wasn’t a curse. It was a fate-block,” she tells us. “One that ensured her bloodline was shielded from Mother Fate.”
“Shielded from Mother Fate? Why?” Victor snarls, some annoyance in his tone.
“To protect them,” she responds seriously. “She’s a… druid.”
“A druid!?” Saul gasps.
I gasp too, but mainly because I don’t know what a druid is, exactly. Some kind of witch who lives in the woods, I think. I remember Madison saying they built Stonehenge.
“That’s impossible. She used a druid spell, but that doesn’t mean she’s an actual druid. The rune must not be reading it right,” Victor argues.
“In ancient times, Mother Fate and Mother Nature were in balance. Mother Nature breathed life into all creatures and Mother Fate helped them find their mates,” Ingrid explains. “Shifters were created to protect the druids, so that they could maintain that balance.”
I blink at them, waiting for someone to realize none of that belongs in the same conversation as my lunch order, and none of it makes sense to me.
“I know the history, but the druids died in Mesopotamia. Mother Nature—Ishtar, was slain by Gilgamesh,” Saul growls.
“She was,” Ingrid says. “Mother Nature. All the druids. Most of the wolves. Only a few survived.”
“Then how can she be a druid?” Victor asks.
“You know our official history, but there are legends too. Some of them speak of something like this. That with Mother Nature’s dying breath, she shielded one of her druids from Gilgamesh,” Ingrid’s expression is very serious as she looks at me. “And if that’s true, then you’re her descendant.”
I blink a few more times in confusion, still processing it all. Druids. Mother Nature. Mother Fate. Gilgamesh. I had to read the Epic of Gilgamesh in high school, but I don’t remember anything about him killing Mother Nature.
“Is it a bad thing if I’m a druid?” I ask, looking around the table.
“It doesn’t change anything,” Victor replies. “You don’t know any of the ancient secrets or how to cast spells.”
“We should be cautious, though. I still don’t understand why Mother Nature used a fate-block to protect the last druid’s bloodline,” Saul says. “Wouldn’t they have been safer with the wolves, even if there weren’t many left?”
“Perhaps. We don’t know everything, but without the fate-block Mother Fate would have sent their mates to them.
Mother Nature must have believed it was safer if that didn’t happen,” Ingrid speculates.
“Regardless, Taryn’s spell disturbed the fate-block.
I’d say that makes her quite capable of casting spells. And curses, apparently.”
Goth phase Taryn would be excited right now. Current Taryn is getting more concerned by the minute. Part of me wishes I’d never cast the spell, but every time I look at Victor, it’s hard to have any regrets. The mating bond doesn’t care about the why or how. Just that we’ve found each other.
“She’s done casting spells,” Victor says firmly.
“In that case, there shouldn’t be too much to worry about. Just watch out for Witch Hunters. I don’t think breaking a fate-block will draw any attention beyond that,” Ingrid says. “We know the person who put it in place is long gone.”
“Leaving the universe permanently unbalanced,” Saul sighs, looking at Victor. “I’ll have Silver Pack come to Covington and stay for a few weeks, just in case there’s trouble.”
“I can handle a Witch Hunter, but I appreciate that,” Victor growls.
“I know you’re more than capable, but when the frenzy kicks in, you’ll be happy to have us around if there’s trouble,” Saul offers.
“True,” Victor relents.
I feel like I have more questions than answers. My family was never cursed. Not really. We were fate-blocked because we’re descended from druids.
I’m not sure if that makes things better or worse.