Page 91 of Magic Touch
"I would be easier if you let me do this, and if Great Mother marries us today. Then the coven will acknowledge our union." I run my finger down the soft skin along her jaw.
She leans into my touch. "I will not deny that marrying you would make me happy, so there is no reason to argue. Do what you wish, but stay alive, and live a long life with me in this world."
"An order from my lady that I am happy to obey."
The coven house is bustling with activity. We go upstairs and are led to a bedroom where Trina lies on the bed clutching the sheets and drooling like a feral animal. When I enter, she screams as if I've stabbed her.
I reach out with magic to calm her, but she bucks violently against my magic. "What is this?"
Sara Beth says, "We don't know. She's been like this since that evil thing came into the house. She wants to leave, but I can't let her. I don't even know if this is her, or some wicked spell."
Turning to Esme, I ask, "Will you help me?"
She steps inside and takes my outstretched hand. "What do you need?"
"I'd like to try to find Trina inside whatever has a hold of her, I feel that your healing magic, along with whatever my magic is, might work." It's the best I can give for an explanation. I still don't know the language of magic well enough, nor do I understand my unique way of conjuring.
Concern etches lines around Sara Beth's mouth. "How will you accomplish this?"
"As gently as possible, High Priestess. I have no desire to harm her more than has already been done. I don't believe her evil. I've seen her aura and think it is shadowed by something unnatural." However I explain, it will not be satisfactory. I know it, yet I must try.
Shoulders back, Sara Beth looks me in the eyes for a long moment. She reaches out and places a hand on my chest.
Esme stiffens.
Sara Beth shifts her gaze and pulls back an inch.
I kiss Esme's hand. "It's alright. She'll not harm me. She only wishes to know my aims are of the light. It is her duty to protect Trina."
Esme doesn't relax, but she nods, and Sara Beth presses her hand against my heart. Her eyes close. Sara Beth's magic tingles as it shifts inside me. After a moment, she opens her eyes. "You may try to reach her but be careful you are not drawn into whatever holds her."
The fact that she cares if I'm harmed is not lost on me. I incline my head and draw closer to the bed with Esme at my side. "We'll go slow. Heal what you can, and I'll search for the light in Trina. Maybe she can tell us something, and we can save her."
"I think you ask a lot, William. Some wounds cannot be healed." Sorrow shines in Esme's eyes.
Prudence comes to the door where Sara Beth and the others have retreated. She says, "I could not reach her. Be careful as you go, children."
Esme places her hand on Trina's sweat slicked forehead.
Trina arches off the bed, and her mouth opens in a silent scream. Wide-eyed, she stares at some horror on the ceiling only she can see.
I round the bed and press my hand over Esme's. Pushing my magic through, I slip like a ghost inside Trina's mind. There are images I don't recognize, like memories, but not mine. It's as if I'm in a dream filled with shadows and smoke.
"Trina?" I call softly in her mind.
A soft cry eddies through the mist of dark and light clouds.
Following the weeping, I move through the image of a cottage in the woods with flowers growing all around. Then a child playing in a field. A puppy falling in the river and being dragged out to safety.
The crying gets louder.
"Trina, can you hear me? I want to help."
Silence, then a crow dives at me. "Go away."
"I can't do that." I keep moving forward, but the dark is closing in. It's harder to see, and she's stopped crying.
Esme?
