“What happened to Leila’s mother?” I ask.
“She died last year, and her magic became Leila’s,” Kelly explains, and I nod my head sadly.
Magic empowers the town square. The walls are engraved with mystical symbols that create a shield against the outside world, but now it is on full display. My coven is no longer hiding in the shadows.
“So you haven’t repainted this?” Regan asks, and Kelly laughs.
“An entire town square overnight?” She shakes her head. “No. We’re just no longer hiding, My King. Why would we when the true queen has risen? We’ve just removed the veil that hid us, but we’ve always been here, standing as one.” She motions around the town square, and I scan the faces of all the women watching us. “They’re only ensuring their priestess doesn’t need them,” Kelly explains, but I already know that. Her words feel like a warning for Regan to behave.
Turning my gaze to Kelly’s store, I stare at the emblems and runes again. “Water?”
She nods once, then points to the woman across the street with fiery red hair. “Giselle is a fire witch.” Then she points to the woman outside the bookshop. “That is Mauve, and she is air.” The woman gives her fingers a flick, and a strong gust flips my hair over my shoulders, making me chuckle.
“And Leila is earth,” I say, and Kelly nods.
“Which makes you spirit, just like your ancestors.” She motions to the other stores again. “And our stores set the directions, North, South, East, and West. This land here is sacred because it’s where Litha died. We’ve protected it while awaiting your return,” she tells me, and I swallow, wondering what would have happened if I hadn’t.
As Kelly leads me to the back of her shop, I can’t help but glance around. To the untrained eye, it looks like racks of clothing and an array of trinkets and baubles, but to someone like me, it’s a treasure trove of magical artifacts. Magic clings to the air like a sweet perfume—ethereal and a little dizzying.
We reach the back of the shop, and a heavy oak door barres our way. She opens it, revealing a narrow staircase leading down into darkness. I raise an eyebrow at her, but she merely smiles, and her eyes twinkle with a secret.
The staircase spirals down into the basement, which is far from what I expected. It’s an apothecary, one not open to the public, and the shelves lining the walls are filled with jars, bottles, herbs, and all sorts of magical ingredients.
The air is thick with an earthy aroma, punctuated with the sharp tang of dried herbs. The scent of magic is potent here, and the sweet musk of sprouting grass and musty old books surround me. It’s like being trapped between two worlds.
Regan, who has been trailing behind me silently, glances around the room with wide eyes. His hand moves toward a jar filled with swirling silver mist. Just as his fingers brush against the glass, Kelly yanks it out of his reach. “Don’t touch that unless you want to transform into a salamander,” she warns, her tone severe. “That’s sylph essence. Pure elemental air energy that can wreak havoc on physical form.”
Kelly sets the jar back on the shelf and moves over to a small table where a teapot sits. “Goddess Diana, your ancestor, was sometimes known as the triple goddess due to her connection to three realms: Earth, Sky, and Sea. She is widely linked with Hecate, who is a lunar deity who rules over the night, earth, and the underworld.” She begins to pour hot tea into cups with her back to me. “Diana was known for her links with wild animals, hunting, and also fertility—all of which are associated with Hecate’s realm. Diana is said to have embodied moonlight itself, and she is the Moon Goddess, the creator of lycans.”
I take this all in with a sense of awe as Kelly hands me my teacup with gentle reverence. Steam rises from the cup as I sip the warm drink, listening intently to Kelly’s voice drifting through the room like mist.
“Hecate, on the other hand, is often characterized as a crossroads deity—one that guides travelers through dark roads, both literal and spiritual. It’s believed they were linked from birth; though some would argue they were the same person, and Goddess Diana was just one of Hecate’s crones. Whether that is true, I guess we’ll know when we cross over. But what I do know is that their power grew together throughout time until it reached its peak in your family bloodline.”
Her words weave a story of power, of women who defied the norms and embraced their inner magic. But with power comes conflict, and with conflict comes consequences.
“Your mother cursed King Theron,” Kelly begins, her gaze focused on the tea in her hand. “And in doing so, she breached the Universal Law of Magic. Do What You Will, But Harm None. She didn’t just curse King Theron. She cursed an entire species, pushing the lycans to the brink of extinction.”
My cup stills halfway to my lips. I knew my mother had been powerful, but the depth of her actions still surprises me. “And what of my own curse?” I ask.
Kelly places the teapot down with a defeated sigh. “Your mother’s actions had far-reaching consequences, Zirah. It caused a ripple effect. On your birthday, you will come into full power. However, since you are a hybrid, your lycan side can only be unlocked if the curse on the Lycan King is broken. Otherwise, it will remain dormant.”
“So I won’t become a lycan?”
Kelly shakes her head in response. After all the information Kelly divulged and instructions to mark the three sons of Theron, I can’t help but have more questions.
“And if I don’t mark any of them?” I ask cautiously.
Kelly takes a sip of her tea and sighs heavily. “They die. You remain a witch,” she says bluntly. Her words send a chill down my spine. She sets her cup aside and looks me in the eye. “If you ask me, I would just let them rot and be done with the lycan species,” she says with a laugh. Regan growls and gives her an angry look, but she doesn’t seem fazed by it. “But don’t worry, I am not her, Your Highness,” she sneers.
Remaining a witch doesn’t sound so bad. Until yesterday, I believed that was all I was, so . . . “What if I only mark one?” I press on, feeling desperate for an alternative solution.
Kelly pauses to think for a moment. “He’ll live, but the other two will die,” she explains slowly. “You’ll regain some extra powers from marking him, but not enough to become a lycan too.” She meets my gaze, her expression unreadable as she adds in a quieter voice, “But know that when you make this choice, it is irreversible.”
I take in her words carefully, digesting them in silence for a few minutes while Kelly prepares more tea. A heavy burden now rests upon my shoulders. My decision could very well determine the fate of an entire species.
“And Theron?”
“He will die unless you mark all three. It has to be all three,” Kelly explains.
