Page 50 of Magic Touch
She stops before Prudence, puts down her gray cloth bag, and makes a pretty curtsy. "Hello, Great Mother. I've been sent to assist you."
"Katrina Davidson? Why would the coven send you here?" Prudence stares her down as if to read her mind.
"I only do as I'm told." Katrina says in a light voice. She turns toward Esme and me and makes another curtsy. "I am Trina, if you please."
"Esme, and this is Sir William," Esme says. "What does Sara Beth think you can help with exactly?"
Trina shrugs. "I suppose she thinks I have some talent with magic, and that the great mother might be getting tired after so many weeks away."
Truth be told, Prudence does look tired after a day of blessings and healing. She heaves a sigh. "I shall go and nap then, if I'm so feeble I need a redundancy of help to train one witch." With another loud heave of breath, she allows Anne to assist her into the house.
"What kind of witch are you, Trina?" Esme asks.
Eyes sharp, Trina faces Esme with her hands fisted. "What kind of witch are you?"
Esme's brows rise and she puts down Prudence's medicine bag. "I'm a healer, and my magic is earth in nature."
"And him?" Trina bites out.
"He is standing right here, and it is quite rude to speak of me as if I'm not." I move next to Esme and wonder why so much hostility flows from the girl.
Her expression softens and she dips a shoulder. "Very well then, Sir William. What kind of witch are you?"
"I have no idea," I answer honestly.
"This must be going very badly if you haven't even divined his magics yet. Perhaps that's why I was sent, to help with basics where you are lacking, healer."
Esme takes a menacing step forward, and Trina backs up the same distance. "Do not think to disrespect me, girl. I may not be part of your coven, but I have power enough. You are here, and you may help, but if you think that wicked tongue will win you favor with anyone, you are much mistaken."
The soil under Trina's feet begins to collapse. Inch by inch, it draws her down.
She struggles to free herself and calls to the pond water. A wave surges up.
With a flick of her fingers, Esme pushes the wave back, all the while pulling soil up over Trina. Her hips are buried, and she tries with bare hands to dig herself free. "I'm sorry. I was rude, and I'm sorry. Please, release me."
As the dirt reaches her waist, I begin to grow concerned that Esme won't stop. "Do you plan to bury her over a child's rudeness?"
With a cock of her head, Esme stops mounding the earth. "I just want to make sure my point is well received. I'll not play mother to a girl who doesn't know her place. I'll send you right back to Windsor to explain to the coven why you were not of use."
Another flick of her wrist, and the mound of dirt opens, allowing Trina to jump out.
She brushes the earth and grass from her dress. When she looks up, her expression is far more contrite. "My apologies to you both. I was rude, and perhaps a bit weary from the road. I have been away from home a long time, and my manners have suffered."
"Very well. There is an extra bed on the lower level with Anne. You will find her good company, and a fine cook and maid. You will treat everyone in this house and village as if they were your esteemed aunt or uncle. Do I make myself clear, Katrina Davidson?" Esme's stern voice is so fierce, it's hard to believe this is the warm, gentle woman I know.
Trina gives a nod and keeps her eyes lowered to her filthy hands. "Is there someplace I can wash, miss?"
"That pond is fed by a stream. You can wash in private if you follow the stream into the woods." Esme points to the east, and Trina trudges off with her bag in hand.
"Why would the coven send another witch?" I ask so that only Esme can hear me.
"Perhaps they don't trust me, and maybe what Trina said about Prudence is true. Though, Great Mother seems quite spry to me. She tires easily, but at her age, so will we." Esme picks up Prudence's satchel and heads into the house.
"Esme?"
She turns back toward me from the doorway.
"Do you think…?" I don't know how to ask what I want to know. If my power is manipulative in nature, is her attraction to me real?
