Chapter 36 #2
“Well, Ena,” he said, breaking the beat of silence. “Are you ready?”
“I am,” she replied, her gaze like steel. “Let’s break the bond.”
***
Ty watched in admiration as Ena took control.
“Turner, go get the amulet from my pack, please,” she said as Greya reached into her bag and pulled out the chalice and athame she’d brought, handing them to Ena.
“Mel and Cris, join me in the center of the grove as we form our sacred circle.” Turning back to her sister, she spoke quietly.
“You don’t have to stay for this, Greya.
Thank you so much for bringing the objects, but maybe it’s best if you return, so you’re less culpable. ”
Greya shook her head. “No, I’m here for this. I need to be here.”
Ena nodded, a pleased smile on her face, and Ty felt another part of him settle. Maybe Ena really would be alright after all this. If Greya could accept this, then maybe the rest of her Coven would too.
Leaving her sister on the edge of the grove, Ena moved to the center of the clearing with Mel and Cris. The three of them stood in a circle, and Ty made his way in, centering himself in the middle, just as she’d described to him.
He faced Ena, their bodies close. He could feel her warmth as he towered over her, guarding her like the trees around them. She looked up at him, her ocean-blue eyes filled with reverence and certainty, trust and faith.
“Kneel,” she said, her voice gentle yet commanding in a way that he had never heard before. He’d be lying if he said his cock didn’t shift at the sound of her voice like that, and suddenly, every nerve in his body felt alive in her presence.
He lowered himself to the ground, submitting himself before her.
His dark goddess.
He felt it the instance the three witches around him began to reach into their Knowing, preparing for the spell. The stillness of their bodies was eerie as they communed with the signs around them.
Ty was so focused on her, watching her breathe as she prepared to begin the spell, that he made a mistake.
He didn’t hear the person’s approach until it was too late.
All of a sudden, the world around him began to move slowly—Ena opened her mouth to speak, but it was barely moving, like she was stuck in molasses.
Ty, finally sensing something was wrong, turned to look at the other witches. They, too, were so still they appeared to be frozen. Standing up, he looked to the edge of the grove to see Greya standing there, looking like she was carved from stone.
That’s when he saw her.
The matriarch of the Auster Coven emerged from the dark woods, her wrinkled face screwed up in effort as she held her hands outstretched towards them.
The matriarch’s Gift was tempus—the power to slow down time—and from the looks of it, the way she held all four witches at once, she was very powerful.
Ty’s stomach plummeted. This was the very thing he’d feared. The thing he’d dreaded—and like a fool he thought they’d avoided it.
His heart began to race, and he looked around frantically until his eyes locked with Turner’s. As daemons, they were the only ones unaffected by the matriarch’s magic, and he didn’t need to speak to know they were on the same page about what needed to happen next.
He couldn’t let her stop this. They were so close—finally. Everything he’d worked for. Everything his mother had set in motion. Everything Ena had bled for.
He wouldn’t let her take it all away, no matter who she was.
Without thinking, he moved, pulling his dagger from his belt as he stalked towards Heran.
“Stay back, daemon!” she shouted, her voice full of mettle and venom. “You will not triumph on this day.”
“Release them,” Ty said, menace in his voice. “I don’t want to have to hurt you.”
Maybe he would be able to intimidate her enough that she would drop her magic and let Ena speak to her. Maybe she could convince her. But if she’d already alerted the rest of the Coven…
“Never,” she said, her voice sounding strained. Was the use of her Gift wearing on her already? “You can never hurt me. Gaia is with me, and she will not let you descend this world into chaos.”
“This is Gaia’s will, witch. Release them and let Ena explain,” Ty said, his voice coming out angrier than intended. He felt his rage boiling inside him. He did not want to hurt her, but he couldn’t let her ruin this. This was their only chance to fix everything.
“I don’t know what you’ve done to twist my dear Ena’s mind into believing you, but I swear to Gaia, if you—”
Ty moved closer, meaning to threaten her with his physical presence, maybe grab her and hold her arms down, when suddenly the old woman doubled over.
She cried out in pain, clutching her left arm as if it hurt, but Ty hadn’t even touched her yet.
Then everything happened quickly.
The old woman released the other witches from her tempus, and Ty heard Ena begin speaking once more.
“Wha—?” She looked around, confused at Ty’s apparent disappearance from their circle. Then her eyes landed on Heran at the same time Greya’s voice rang out.
“Heran!”
Greya rushed towards the old woman as she collapsed. She looked pale as death, her face screwed up in agony.
“Ena, help!” Greya called, her voice choked with a sob.
Ena rushed toward her sister and the matriarch, falling to her knees beside them. “What happened?” she asked frantically as she ran her hands over Heran’s face. “How did she get here? I was about to start the spell and then all of a sudden, Ty was over here.”
“She used her Gift,” Ty said, trying to explain while the old woman struggled to breathe. “She tried to stop us, and I told her to let you go, but then she collapsed.”
“I think it’s her heart,” Greya said in panic. “She’s been slowing down the last few months and I—we need to do something.”
“Run back to the house and get some herbs. Do you have any hawthorn tincture?” Ena asked Greya. Her voice shook but she spoke clearly and decisively.
“Yes, I think so,” Greya said. “But what about—”
“Ena,” the old woman gasped, her face desperate as both Greya and Ena focused on her. “Do not…let…Iblis…triumph.”
“I swear I serve Gaia, Heran. I swear,” Ena replied.
“His…Power…destroys… Please, my child,” Heran whispered frantically.
“Heran, please, hold on, and I’ll explain,” Ena begged, her voice childlike and afraid. “Greya, go—”
Ena’s words cut off as Heran’s eyes drifted closed and she lost consciousness.
“Heran?” Ena called, putting her hands on the old woman’s face. “Heran!”
Her voice echoed around the dark clearing, her helplessness cutting Ty to the bone.
“She’s not moving,” Greya said. “Ena! She’s not moving anymore.”
Ena reached out to feel the old woman’s pulse, grabbing her wrist and placing two fingers atop it. “I can’t feel her pulse,” she said quietly, her voice shaking.
“Are you sure?” Greya asked in disbelief. “Heran? Heran!” she called, wrenching her wrist away from Ena to feel for the pulse herself.
Ena looked up at Ty, desperation on her face. He watched helplessly, not knowing what to do. Not knowing if there was anything to do.
“Lay her down. We need to compress her chest,” Ena said to Greya.
The woman complied instantly, laying Heran on the cold dirt.
Ena moved over to her, placing her hands in the center of the old woman’s chest, lacing her fingers together. Ty had no idea what she was doing—he’d never seen anyone do this before. Was it a witch thing?
Rhythmically, Ena began compressing the old woman’s chest, moving her body with the force of her motions. She did that several times before tilting the woman’s head back, lowering her mouth over the old woman’s and breathing into it.
Then she repeated the process. Again. And again.
The silence of it all was deafening—everyone frozen as if still trapped in the woman’s Gift, watching, waiting for her to move, to breathe.
Eventually, Ena stopped, breathing heavily, her own body shaking with the effort.
“Why did you stop?” Greya asked, her voice a panicked sob.
But Ena didn’t reply. Instead, she looked up at Ty, searching his eyes for absolution.
He shook his head solemnly at her. Did she know it was over? It seemed like it to him, but he didn’t know how to tell her that.
How do you tell someone the woman that raised them is dead?
She looked away from him, the realization clearly dawning on her, too, as she turned back toward her sister.
“Greya,” Ena said in a broken whisper. “She’s gone.”