DF Chapter 24

Kalina wants answers and she's going to get them.

The place Zane had in mind was his place of residence, an old warehouse that had been gutted and refurbished into an open house. The main part of the home was open with no walls to enclose the space. You stepped in the front door and could see the living room, dining room, and kitchen. Except for a large leather recliner, the furniture was old and elegant all from the Victorian ages.

 

Above the main area, in a loft, that used to house the warehouse’s managers office, was the bedroom and master bath. It was here that Kalina knew Zane spent most of his time. The bed was huge, bigger than a king and fluffier than bunny’s fur.  Large bookshelves line the walls, filled with thick books. As Kalina approached, she was surprised by the titles. She had expected novels, books on pleasure. Instead she was met with book of research. Titles such as Full Moon Legends and the Truth Behind Them, The Properties of Black Magic and How to Use it, and Wolf’s Bane; Friend or Foe?, lined the selves.

 

A book half open in a chair, a shirt lay crumpled in the corner, and the very aura of the room, clues left behind to where the true heart of the house existed.

 

Turning from the bookshelf, Kalina walked across the room to the double solid oak doors. The salty air tickled her nose as a breeze blew from the bay and the chill caused her to shiver. Despite the spells woven around her, the night still felt cold causing her brows to come together. Normally the fall coolness didn’t affect her. Then again normal went out the window long ago.

 

“You’re going to catch a cold,” A warm blanket was wrapped around her shoulders and Kalina sighed.

 

“Witches don’t get sick unless they bring it upon themselves,” Kalina responded but didn’t turn around. She needed a few more minutes to think before she faced the unconscious woman and the questions that lay below. There were answers that needed to be found. “Can... can I have a few minutes alone please?”

 

Zane had recognized the need the moment he put the blanket around her. It pained him that she couldn’t lean on him. But her wish was her command. “Of course,” Leaning down, his lips caressed her neck softly before whispering in her ear. “Remember Lina, you never need to be alone. I’m here and always will be.”

 

The gasp had been involuntary, a reaction to his lips so close to her pulse point. So had the sudden pulse of heat that shot her heart, sending it thumping. If Kalina had been braver, if it had been another time, she’d have followed him back through those doors and led him to the unused bed. Fate was a cruel creature though and there were bigger problems at foot.

 

Clenching the blanket tighter around her, Kalina held her breath until she heard the doors close behind her. She was getting to close to her vampire, so close that it scared her.

 

Shaking the thoughts and feelings away Kalina watched the flames lick the horizon. From here you could see the heat across the bay eating away homes and businesses. She should be there, helping extinguish the fires that would forever burn. Impulse screamed for her to get moving while intuition yelled to stay put. Her place was here with her coven, trying to figure out what was going on and how to stop it.

 

‘You can’t stop it, it’s useless,’ a faint voice whispered into her ear, causing Kalina to spin about wildly trying to find its source. However the only inhabitant of the balcony was her self. The wind and her mind were playing games with her and it was time to face the music.

 

She found her coven in the living room. Kristina hovered over Marcella, washing the girl’s brow with a damp cloth. Margaret sat at the girl’s feet, a look of concern and concentration on her face, and lips moving slowly as she mumbled a spell. Careen sat on the edge of a chair, fingers nervously turning her engagement ring. They all looked up when she entered the room, the fear and confusion evident in all their eyes.

 

It was time to take charge; to calm her sister’s down. “Careen, you need to call your mom. I think its time we had a talk with Deirdra. May, finished your spell before your magic runs wild. Kris, you’ve done this before? Taken care of a drunk that is?”

 

Careen nodded and took her phone our, already dialing her mother’s number. Margaret remembered what she was doing and got back to work. And Kristina nodded, ringing out the rag before placing it back on Marcella’s forehead. “My mother, she died of alcohol poisoning four months ago. I couldn’t save her but maybe…”

 

Kalina allowed the sentence to hang, reaching out to squeeze her sister’s shoulder. She understood the loss of a loved one and the pain of remembering.

 

“Yes, yes, yes mom we found air. Well Kalin says its air, I don’t remember…. I know.” Careen’s one sided conversation filled the air, waving away some of the tension that lingered. “Okay, I’ll put you on speaker.”

 

Careen pressed a button on her phone and set it on the coffee table in the middle of the room. “Okay mom, they can all hear you now.”

 

“Blessed be daughters,” Deirdra’s voice was answered with a chorus of greetings from everyone but Kalina. The girl was still angry about the lies the woman told and wasn’t going to forgive and forget any time soon. It wasn’t the lies themselves that angered her, but the lack of trust.

 

“Deirdra,” Kalina answered coldly, leaning closer to the phone. “I want to know everything about the door and HIM. I want to know it now.”

 

A gasp could be heard as well as the phone hitting the ground. The statement had rattled the woman enough to cause her to lose her grip. The silence rang for several moments, weighing heavy on everyone’s shoulders. Finally Deirdra picked up the phone and cleared her throat, speaking softly but load enough to be heard. “Before I answer you questions, I must ask some of my own. Kalina, are you sure this is your air? And have you done anything you might regret?”

 

“Yes,” Kalina answered the first question automatically. Fists clenched at her sides as she fought the need to yell. There was nothing she regretted, but the intention behind the question hurt and upset her. No longer would she be trusted, not even from the woman she had considered her second mother. “And no Deirdra, I am proud of all my actions.”

 

Her coven looked at her, all finally accepting her relationship with Zane. The trigger could be seen in all there eyes, once again making her heart ache. Would anyone ever trust her?

 

“Thank you dear. Now, are you girls alone. This is for your ears alone.”

 

Kalina glanced up, searching for the vampire. She found him slipping out the front door, giving them privacy. “Yes,” Kalina answered and sat on the arm of Careen’s chair. “Now quit stalling.”

 

“It started long ago; back with the council was young, five witches banded together and locked up a force so evil there was no name for it. On the day the key was turned, a prophecy was made. As no one believed the lock would hold forever, the council wrote every word down.

 

“When Careen, Margaret, and Kalina first formed a coven, something clicked inside me. It was like I had seen you three before, long ago. Curious I asked around and found said prophecy. The words frightened and concerned me as they described you girls, my girls.

 

“It wasn’t until Kristina came into the picture that I accepted what was to come. My girls’ destiny was already written for them, a destiny so important that life itself depended on your success. And it begins,

 

‘Water shall rise

Drowning the humans by morning

 

Fire shall burn in the sky

Roasting the humans by noon

 

Winds shall swirl and howl

Tearing their homes apart by night

 

Earth shall crack and crumble

Swallowing their lives whole

 

The door will open

HE will emerge

Bringing terror and death upon the world

 

Unless five are born

Locking The Door forever

 

Water was born of old blood

Expected to walk great paths

 

Fire had temper to match her element

But her loyalty out weighs the rest

 

Air is a warrior at heart

Her blood breed to hunt

 

Earth has lost her true love

She walks two worlds

 

Spirit was born of forbidden love

She holds the key and will prove them all wrong’”

 

Silence once again reigned as the words settled onto each of them. Kalina looked at her sisters and knew the truth. Careen, born into a family with generations of council men and woman, was expected to follow in her ancestors footsteps and one day become the best. Kristina, ready for a fight with just a single word, had continuously been loyal to her sisters blood or not. Margaret, her father an ex-guardian and mother a traitor, strived to prove her worth to the council. And from what Kalina seen, Marcella was a warrior.

 

Those same eyes rested inside herself. Sure she’d lost Damien, but that had been long ago. And what did it mean to walk two worlds? This one and the one inside herself maybe?

 

“Girls, are you okay?” Deirdra asked worryingly.

 

“We’re fine,” Kalina spoke up; receiving nods from each her friends. “How do we stop it Deirdra? It’s on fire already.”

 

“No one knows how you guys stopped it last time, or the time behind that. For that answer, you’ll have to look back. Kalina, you and Kristina remember. You two will have to look back and find out the truth.”

 

“I tried Deirdra, everything before his death is fuzzy.” Kalina growled, “I need access to the library, I need to look some stuff up.”

 

“You can’t, but Careen ca...”

 

“What do you mean I can’t? I’m the leader of this coven and I need information. The library is open to everyone but criminals of the…” Then it sunk in. Kalina was being barred because of Badanie’s actions. She had been a criminal of the courts, tried, found guilty, and executed for the crimes she committed. And it still hung over her head, even in a different life. “Fine, I’ll find my own way without the councils help.”

 

As Deirdra called her name, trying to make her understand, Kalina snatched up the cell and snapped it close. Tossing it to Careen, she growled out. “Go home Careen, take Margaret with you.”

 

“What about Kristina and her,” Margaret asked as she rose.

 

“We need to look back and we have training tomorrow.” Kristina answered for Kalina and hugged her sisters. “Tell the vampire he can come back in. Maybe he can help?”

 

The question had been directed at her and Kalina shrugged. The only thing she knew was that they had to face a big bad guy and had no idea how to do it. “We’ll see you guys later.”

 

Careen and Margaret nodded, gave hugs good-bye, and left. Before the door could close, Zane breezed in and looked right at Kalina. He hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but his enhanced hearing couldn’t be shut off on the whim. “Lina, you three are welcome to stay here for the night. And if you need anything, just ask.”

 

Kalina nodded, knowing he was looking out for her. It warmed her inside and scared her at the same time. “Thanks, we’ll stay down here and make sure Marcella wakes in the morning.”

 

Kristina echoed her thanks before returning to her task. Zane watched them briefly before heading for the stairs. He seen the need for some space in Kalina’s eyes, so didn’t press. “Good night, see you two in the morning.”

 

Author's Note

Pretty, pretty, pretty please review! I will love you forever!