The Blood Witch Saga - The Complete Series

Excerpt from The Blood Witch Saga

I looked up from the book I was studying when I heard footsteps on the stairs. Mom smiled over a tray with a teapot and a couple of cups. We'd been back at Merry's for nearly two weeks while I finished recovering physically. I still tired easily, but Merry had made me a little concoction I could add to my coffee or tea to give me some pep.

I had taken to spending the afternoons in the basement, trying to learn everything I could. While the purges of blood witches in the past centuries had pretty much decimated any books that would teach me how to use those gifts, I wanted to at least get some basic magic under my belt. I hadn’t yet graduated to the tomes I had taken from the Kourt, all of which went well beyond my meager knowledge.

“I thought you two could use some afternoon sustenance,” Mom said as I cleared a space at the table for the tray. She set it down revealing more than tea, but a plate with sandwiches as well.

She poured the tea and handed a cup to Ciara who sat across from me cutting up herbs she'd gotten from Merry's gardens to brew something. She had probably told me what, but I'd been more focused on the spells I was learning for defense and combat. I’d bet things would have gone much better for us if I'd known some of these, and since we didn't know what was coming next, it would be good to learn.

“Thanks.” She took half a sandwich and settled back on her stool. She’d been quiet since we came back, but I’d learned that she had only discovered her specific gift at fourteen and that it made her a pariah to her family.

“What book do you have your nose in today?” Mom asked before tipping it aside so she could see. “Oh, yeah, that one is… very dry. There's another one that is probably better for you to start with. That one's all theory, which is nice if you're an academic, but not so much for practical use. I'll see if Merry has a copy.”

I put the book down and rubbed my eyes in agreement with her assessment of the book’s dry theoretical approach. I'd been reading it for hours and couldn't tell you much about it. “I heard from Cambious this morning,” I offered as I took my cup of tea from her. “They found Reyansh's clan, and are staying a few days to help him settle in. Then he said he’d head back to the gate.”

“It will do Reyansh good to be back with his people, even if he would have rather stayed with you.” She took the only empty stool and poured her own cup of tea. “And Merry thinks she may have found your aunt, Ciara. It looks like you might be related to Thána, on her father's side.”

Ciara made a face. “Aunt Greta? She won't want me. Dad's side of the family is very anti-blood witch. They might even be the reason the Brotherhood found us.”

My mother frowned deeply. “You can't believe your own family would… do that?”

Ciara shrugged. “Mom thought so. That's why we moved around so much, hoping Dad's side of the family would lose track of us.” She chewed for a minute, then swallowed. “Honestly, I'd rather stay where I'm wanted. And Merry has a great book collection. I could learn a lot here.”

Mom smiled. “Yes, you could. Since you're nearly eighteen, we probably won't even need to do any legal paperwork to keep you, but I'll have Merry's daughter do some checking.”

Peter’s family had been easier to find, and his parents had traveled to come take him home. He’d been so happy to see them, and they were beyond grateful that we brought him back to them. They believed he had been killed.

I sipped at my tea, then reached across the table for the tablet Zo had loaned me, swiping the screen to the last thing I’d been looking at. I turned it to Mom. “So, it looks like Patoras died of his injures yesterday.” When he had been found in the ruins we left behind, his body was covered in third-degree burns, bringing the last of the prophecy to fruition. We found Peter and he helped us find my mother. My blood had spilled when I’d slammed into the torn-up cemetery and now, Patoras had died by phoenix fire, said to be sacred to Apollo.

Mom took the tablet, her eyes scanning the news story. “Good riddance.”

There was a lot about the destruction that sat sick in my stomach, the number of men and boys who had died was high among them. Not a single one of the youngest men had survived. We had no idea how many did make it out, but we were fairly certain no one was coming after me, at least for a while. Still, the loss of life was too much to think about.

“Meanwhile,” Mom turned to look at me, “I hope you’re ready for the madness that will descend on us tomorrow.”

I nodded, even though I wasn’t sure that what I was could be called ready. Anxious. Nauseous. Sort of terrified? “As much as I can be, I suppose,” I said, trying to keep my tone neutral.

“It will be nice to see my brothers and sister,” Mom said, “but I worry about the rest of them. I’m hoping they won’t be too much for you.”

Her hand caressed mine until I pulled it away. “Yeah, me too.” I was uncomfortable whenever the word family was used. I’d gone a long time believing I had no family, and now I was being asked to participate in some sort of family reunion. I had no context for how to feel or what to expect. “And they all… know?” I asked, glancing at Ciara before looking Mom in the eyes.

There was a sort of apology there, in her eyes. “At this point, I think the whole family knows that we have a blood witch in the family again.”

I licked my lips and swallowed. “How do I… navigate this?” I had spent some time with Zo who had warned me not to let myself be sucked into playing savior, that there were bound to be family members who would want to see me demonstrate my powers, including a few who might be expecting miracles.

“Merry’s told everyone to not expect you to be some sort of super-witch,” Mom said. “But I’m told that there is at least one who could use your help. He doesn’t have long, and the cancer is too far spread for any magic but yours.”

I flushed and my stomach sank. I still had no idea how to control those gifts, or if I could rely on them. “I don’t want them all staring at me.”

Mom smiled sadly. “I know. We’ll get through it.”

The earthy scent of what Ciara was cutting up smelled strong and reminded me of the inxbane that Cambious had brought me. I found the absence of the big man strange. So much of my life since arriving in California had involved him. I had given up trying to figure out exactly how much time had passed since that first meeting.

The spot in my side where the fence had ripped me up was still tender and the stretch for a book near Ciara’s elbow made it twinge. The ache in my shoulder from the gunshot wound made itself known at least once per day as well, but back home, I’d likely still be in the hospital, if I had even survived.

I snorted. Back home, none of this would have happened.