I frowned as I looked at the sachet and the vase. “You do?”
“I trust Rome wholeheartedly. He’s been alone for a long time. Never settling down with anyone. You don’t have to marry your mate or even find your mate for true happiness, but for some reason, I always felt like he was waiting for a woman, the one who would step into his life and connect to him.”
“And you think that person is me?” I asked softly. I thought about his hands on me and how he took care of me. The way I felt when I was with him. And I thought maybe that could be true.
“I think it could be. I see how you two are with each other.”
My heart warmed, and the power within me flared, wanting Rome, wanting to complete the bond. The other part of me needed time to think. I was a thinker, even if I sometimes jumped in too quickly.
“I like the man I know, and I can see myself being with him. But a forever bond…that’s something that could change everything.”
“It will change everything. And it should.”
“I suppose I should focus on the magic at hand instead of fated mates and bonds that are starting to stress me out.”
“Say the spell, and let’s work on that home and hearth.”
I nodded, added the herbs to the water, and spoke the incantation.
“Herbs and words do magic bring, protect this space from fall to spring. Invite those in who need this place, for comfort, joy, and even grace. Powers rise of three times three; this is my will, so mote it be.”
Heat and magic infused into my skin, and I looked down at the now perfectly crystal-clear water in the vase and smiled.
“Just a pinch of herbs, and wow,” Aunt Penelope said from my side.
“I already feel warmth, like I’m coming home.”
“That’s the point of the spell, and I love it. It doesn’t change how anyone feels. It doesn’t alter their perception. All it does is allow you to calm and to find your center. Perfect for a bookstore when you are trying to relax for a moment before you have to get on with the rest of your day.”
“All of that with a single pinch of herbs.” I shook my head.
“It takes me a whole sachet, and sometimes it still doesn’t quite work out the way I want it to. You are so powerful, Sage. I’m sorry that I didn’t understand that.”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I knew you were special before, but I thought it was because you were my niece. I didn’t realize it stemmed from anything else. I think a veil of uncertainty shrouded us all. Sometimes, I wanted to talk to you and tell you everything. Bring you here. But at other times, I didn’t understand that you were needed as you are. I missed so much of your life, Sage.”
My throat tightened, and I nodded. “Rowen and I seem to believe that things were the way they were because of where we needed to be at the time. If any of us knew too much, maybe I wouldn’t have had Rupert for as long as I did. Or we wouldn’t have had what we had. I’m not sure. But if I keep thinking about the what-ifs, I’ll never move forward.”
Aunt Penelope touched my cheek. “You’ve grown so much, darling.”
I smiled, my heart healing far more in the short time I’d been in Ravenwood than it ever had in Virginia. “I don’t always feel that way.”
We moved to the front of the bookstore, where Laurel was helping a patron. She smiled, although there was sadness in her eyes that I didn’t understand. Aunt Penelope owned the bookstore and worked at it nearly every day. Laurel helped out where and when she could. I was there on my lunch breaks to be with my aunt, but this wasn’t where I worked. I had the bakery next door, and Rowen had the magic shop on the other side. It was nice for all three of us to have places we called our homes away from home near one another. Laurel might not think she was coven, and I didn’t know why she was cursed or what held her magic back. Since I was focusing on my power, I didn’t want to hurt her by asking, but I still felt as though she was a part of us.
As if she were my sister.
As if Laurel could see into my thoughts, she smiled at me. “I couldn’t sleep last night. I don’t know why, that’s just the mood. I felt your magic, though. You’re coming along nicely.”
I blushed. “It was the hearth and home spell.”
“I remember that one. Rowen is probably the best at it, but she’s of air, though my brother is of earth, so he can usually do more housekeeping spells than the rest of us. That always used to make his eyes roll, but he was good at it.”
“Was?” I asked, speaking before I meant to.
Laurel’s expression shuttered, and she swallowed hard. “He’s a sorcerer, a male witch. He’s of earth. When he was here, he was part of our coven. He’s no longer here, no longer part of anything. He’s still my brother, and I work with him every day, online and over the phone. I help him with his businesses, but he’s no longer of our magic. No longer of Ravenwood. And maybe that’s for the best.”
I opened my mouth to say something, but I didn’t know what to say. Everyone always treaded so carefully when it came to Ash, and it hurt to think of why.
Laurel’s eyes widened, and she suddenly held her sword. I frowned, and then I whirled.
“Sage!” Aunt Penelope screamed, and I rushed towards my aunt.
It wasn’t a spell gone awry. No, it was Faith.
And she wasn’t alone.
“I tried to be reasonable last time, but you’re not listening. Now, I need you to understand. Oriel will bring war, and then you will know the true power you’ve been missing. Join us, Sage. Stop working with Ravenwood and join us. Choose the winning side, not those who will perish fighting for what they cannot have.”
She shoved out her hands, water pouring from her palms.
I threw my hands into the air, creating a wall of water to block Faith’s. My aunt Penelope let out a sharp sound and moved behind the counter. Laurel shoved a dagger into Penelope’s hands. “You know how to use it.”
I blinked. “She does?”
Laurel gave me a tight nod. “She does. We may not be able to use magic, but we can still fight. Weapons training will be next for you.”
“If there is a next,” Faith said, grinning.
Faith slammed down her hands, and revenants poured through the windows. Glass shattered, the door fell off its hinges, and books began floating in the water Faith slowly made rise within the building.
My aunt’s face blanched, and I wanted to kill this woman. I realized I would kill Faith if I could. At least hurt her if I couldn’t take a life. Because she was hurting my aunt, the woman I always came to when I needed help. My family.
Damn this necromancer for daring to try and hurt her.
I stood in front of Faith as Aunt Penelope and Laurel used their blades against the revenants.
A screech sounded as a giant hawk flew through the broken window and began clawing out some of the revenants’ eyes. Rowen was there an instant later, barreling through the line of revenants, using her air magic to push them out of the way.
“Faith is mine, Sage. Protect your aunt.”
The hawk flew above us, clawing, protecting us, and fighting. I used my water magic to create a long sword. It was the only weapon I could make, as far as we had gotten during training, and thrust it towards the revenants. It pierced their flesh, and water began to gurgle out of their mouths.