Exaltation (14 page)

He nodded once. Raven glanced to the other couch to see River still sleeping. Kade had asked them all to go to a party that night. River said yes, but Raven was sure she’d agreed because she had her eye on the boy in his passenger seat, the one who was
exactly
her type.

Raven knew they were not making the party, not when they still had to learn this energy/vim stuff her father wanted to teach them.

She untangled herself from the blanket around her and made her way to the bathroom. Once her face was washed she stared at her reflection for a few minutes, recounting the dream.

She didn’t know who she was in that dream. She didn’t like that person. That person was scared, worried, shocked, and sad—Raven was a happy person.

She didn’t want to feel that way again, and surely didn’t want to fight anyone.

When she finally came out of the bathroom, she heard her father call her name quietly and then made her way to the kitchen. He had two hot mugs on the table.

Still groggy, Raven slipped into the chair across from him.

“Where’s aunt Saige and Miss Emery?”

“Emery is upstairs asleep. Saige is in the study, getting ready for our next step.”

“If it’s more herbal tea I’m good.”

“Did you dream?” Jamison asked, searching her eyes, seeing age in them, lack of bliss. That hurt him. Raven was only herself when she was happy.

Raven nodded as she sipped her mug. “In detail. At least I hope it doesn’t get worse than what I saw.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Bad storm. Jackson Square. Bad guys after me but some angel guy showed up. Taught us how to fight them.”

Jamison didn’t push her to say more, he’d heard the story before, seen what it did to her when he finally reached her side back then.

“In those dreams do you remember how you knew to propel vim at them?”

She shook her head. “Not at all. A bolt just left us. Like a huge wave.”

“Natural instinct.”

Raven looked right at him. “I don’t get why all that happened, why you think more is going to happen.”

“Fate is hard to understand sometimes, Raven.”

“We can’t stop it? Tell whoever I don’t want to fight.”

“You feel that way now but you won’t one day.”

“I will if I have to keep dealing with this stuff. So morbid, Dad.”

He nodded to agree. “This right now is just another wave. It will fade like the others, and one day you’ll be ready. I’m going to teach you to protect yourself, all of you.”

He let his eyes slowly move over her, seeing her as his little girl and not a young woman.

“Something happened last night. I’m sure you didn’t mean for it to but it did, and it put you at risk. I need you to be careful, Raven. No matter what choice you have before you, I need you to think it through.”

Raven blushed and looked down. She didn’t get how kissing a boy would make any spell fall and she’d be damned if she’d ask her father about it. They could talk about anything but boys. It just felt too weird to her.

“Kay,” was all she said.

Jamison looked for a way to ask her to tell him about Rydell but hit a wall. “Go get everyone else up. Saige has breakfast, or rather dinner on the stove. After you eat meet us in the study. We’ll start in a few. I want to get past this part so I can move on to teach you how to enter the Veil.”

“The
Veil!
The Veil of Death?” Raven asked with wide eyes.

“The one and only. If you can’t protect yourself or if you need to escape that will be the best place to hide,” Jamison said as he leaned back.

The Veil was nothing to play with, but he knew he could teach them how to be safe, and he also knew that would be the last place those hunting them would search.

“Dad, exactly how would one enter the Veil beyond the obvious way that I refuse to comply with?” Raven asked with a lifted brow.

He laughed.

“One foot in front of the other, little one,” he said as he stood. “Hurry up now, the night is vanishing.”

Chapter Thirteen

After a gourmet teenage meal—meaning grilled cheese, eggs, and Ramen noodles that Ash and Raven made instead of the health food Saige had left for them—Soren and the girls met Jamison and Saige in the study.

Saige lit a few candles and had them all sit in a circle. They were not strangers to meditating, calming their mind, and listening to their souls. It was almost second nature to them.

“When you feel the hum I want you all to let go of your anchor and follow my voice,” Saige told them.

An anchor was really important. Most people who didn’t do this often used their body. They never really let go, but they had learned this when they were kids. It was what they did before every naptime growing up.

They all had visuals they held onto in their minds to let them know how far they had drifted, to ground them, an anchor. They were told before if they let go they could drift too far. Soul jump is what Miss Thelma called it. ‘Best not be roaming where I can’t be finding you, child.’

The first visual they were taught was a boat. It was tied to a dock. They were told to imagine holding the rope, letting the waves rock them, distant but close, free but secure.

Raven was apprehensive about this, but before they even started she felt a warm cocoon of vim, one that smelled like her father, encase her. Saige was speaking calmly. “Follow my voice.”

Raven only imagined the boat thing once or twice. Boats were not her peace, skates were. So Raven saw herself gliding across the rink, holding a satin rope that stretched from the ceiling. A haunting song was playing, keeping her in a mellow rhythm.

“Come to me,” Saige said moments later.

When Raven opened her eyes again she was sitting in a field. Everyone else was, too. The blades of grass were orange, the sky overcast. In the distance she saw family friends spread out in a massive circle with their backs to them, like a barrier.

“Welcome to The Realm,” Jamison said to all of them.

“And where is this?” Ash asked.

Saige waved her hand and a small campfire appeared in the middle of them. “This is a dream plane. A place where you can manifest anything, a place that will teach you to control your thoughts while you’re around a foe. They cannot see into your mind but they can read your energy just as well as you would judge someone’s gaze.”

Raven did a double take. In the distance she saw what looked like River. She was leaning against racer boy’s car. The mystery boy who was always with Kade was leaning into her, and she was smiling up at him.

One glance to Raven’s side is all it took for her to see the real River next to her. Raven looked around thinking she was losing her mind then she saw Ash and Soren skating across the grass to a slow song, one Raven was sure was the last dance last night.

Lock down. Raven BellaRose put your thoughts on lock down. Do not let your father see you pull that boy to your lips!
Raven chanted in her head.

Raven caught her father’s stare. She let one of her lips curl into a half smile and gave him a glance that said ‘not happening.’

Reading her like a book he laughed. Right about then the girls saw their wayward memories and daydreams around them and gasped. Soren turned crimson as he stared at Ash. The images vanished then.

“I’m sure you all get the point,” Saige said. “All right, now I want you to envision your own vim.”

Easy enough. That second a haze of energy, that ranged in colors, surrounded them all.

“Now make it stronger,” Jamison said. “See it as a glass that cannot be broken.”

The haze turned into little domes.

Saige and Jamison looked at each other. “They already know how to do this,” Saige said.

“They didn’t know they did.” Jamison glanced around the circle. “Knock me down, Raven.”

Was he crazy?
Raven thought.

“Push vim at me and knock me down.”

Not happening.

“Raven if you do not do this, we’ll have to practice a lot during your free time. You may not be able to skate for awhile.”

Raven knew what he was doing. She gave him a playful glare and let the thought to knock him down come to mind. A wave of vim left her little dome and struck him. He lost his footing, then grinned at her. He made the others do the same. When it was Raven’s turn again he swayed back.

“Challenge her, Jamison,” Saige said.

“I am,” Jamison said with a proud smirk.

Saige raised her brow in admiration. “Then let’s make this more active.”

Right then men in suits appeared. On instinct the girls and Soren were all standing. Soren in front, Raven in the center, the twins parallel just behind her.

“They seal her,” Jamison said, as he realized each of their purposes.

“Engage,” Jamison said. The suits moved close to them. Soren had taken down five within a breath.

It was like standing in a virtual video game which was a world Soren spent the time he was not skating playing.

Raven kept avoiding them. The twins had sprung to action though. This may be some kind of a drill but it made the nightmares Raven had last night all too real.

Happy place. Happy place. I want my happy place!
Raven thought to herself as she dodged another man. She did not want to smell like sulfur!

All at once Raven figured out she was moving really fast. Skates. She’d manifested skates and her rink.
Hell yes!
Raven took off weaving around the men.

The haunts vanished.

Raven glanced around to see everyone staring at her.

“Raven, I need you to focus,” Jamison said in a tone that said he meant business.

Raven’s smile deflated. “This is how and where I focus.”

“And what are you going to do if you’re not on skates when something happens?”

“Pretend I am?” Raven said with a lifted brow.

Soren and River snickered.

“Raven, I wanted you to practice this. You need to be quick if you’re ever attacked by more than a few, or even if you are one on one.”

“Dad, I do not
do
fear—it blows. You teach me to be afraid of them and my entire head is going to be white. I dig my stripe but no more,” she said, pulling at the long blonde strip of her hair that developed right after the wreck.

Soren couldn’t help it, he had already manifested his skates. He knew Raven was ruthless on wheels.

Right as Jamison went to argue with Raven they heard someone clear their throat. Everyone looked to the side benches.

There they saw a Mark Twain look-alike whittling a stick.
Who still whittles?
That’s what Raven wanted to know.

He glanced up from under his hat. Jamison and Saige went ridged.

This could not be good. Raven was sure of that until she saw her father dare to let a small smile emerge, one full of respect and honor.

“All right, Raven,” he said, still gazing at the man. “We’ll make it fun.  For you are a child of bliss. Because you are the gift that taught me how vital, precious, and important life is. Just as Ash taught me to be curious and River taught me to be balanced.”

The twins and Raven angled their eyes at each other, then to the old man.

Jamison wasn’t talking to them and they knew it. It was like he was thanking this man. And the twins could have
sworn
Jamison just laid a public claim on them, spoke as if they were truly his.

The old man smiled, winked, then vanished.

Jamison and Saige glanced at each other. The Creator of all appears in many fashions, but you always know it’s him. You feel a calm wash over you, you feel your eyes open. That was him.

The last time Jamison had seen him was when he fell from his life as an Escort, when he asked him what he was to do then. The Creator guided Jamison’s fallen soul to the coven he now ruled. He guided him to the family Jamison would die to protect.

He also made it clear with his silence that Jamison’s girls, along with Soren, had to learn this their own way. Raven’s was fun; that was the only way she grasped anything. Pure joy, pure bliss was all she knew.

Jamison nodded to Raven to tell her to have at it then moved to the side to sit with Saige and watch. To serve as protectors.

“Turn it up DJ! Whoop whoop!” Raven said into the echo of the room.

All at once loud music, that was the perfect, beat pounded through the room. The lights went down and the spotlights started their dance with the music.

The twins had skates now and they were soaring across the floor with the beat. Soren was spinning the girls, chasing them. They were trucking, in and out, backward skating. It was heaven to Raven.

The bad guys manifested then.

At first it was too easy because they were not on skates so rolling by and pulling that black smoke, their soul, was a breeze. But then they had skates, and they were
good
at skating—it became a war then. But it was a fun war. Music was playing, Raven was on wheels, and her best friends were there. Bad guys were evaporating. The Fun Bus had returned—Score! That’s how she felt just then.

***

Rydell was furious. Raven wasn’t at this party, or the rink. She was still under some shield, which was ridiculous. She was the one who’d came after him. Then again, it did back up his theory that this girl had no idea who she was or what she had done to him.

Dagen was sure the girls would show up to meet his boy eventually, so Rydell hung around, sat in his car, and watched the field party. Kids were drinking and lounging on the tops of their cars, waiting for a race to start. The energy was wild. Exaltation was swimming in the air. It was a sweet taste for the only reason these kids were looking for it was to have fun. It wasn’t the same with adults; their reasons always seemed more selfish, at the very least they were looking for some material power.

Rydell was leaned back in the front seat of the Trans Am, he was rebuilding for the hell of it, when Dagen walked over with his boy.

“You racing tonight?” Rydell asked him as he cocked his head up to look at him.

“Naw, man. I came in fourth last night. Not good enough to make it into the lineup tonight.”

“You made it off the starting line,” Dagen said as he playfully slugged him in the arm.

That heap of metal, that might as well have been towed to Rydell’s garage, was lucky to make it to fourth. Rydell kinda enjoyed working on Kade’s car. It wasn’t the same year and model he wrecked the night Raven was born, but close enough.

He clenched his fists.
Where was she?

“I thought that’s why you invited your girl out here—to watch you race,” Dagen said. Rydell respected his roundabout way of interrogating people.

Kade shrugged. “Just wanted to hang with her.”

“Where is she?” Dagen asked.

“Not here, I don’t think. They usually make a grand entrance.”

“Meaning?” Dagen pushed.

“Meaning when three hot girls roll up in a Jeep, acting like they own the world, people pay attention.”

“Who was that guy who rode off with them last night?”  Dagen asked.

“Skater boy? Soren. He’s all right. He’s always near them.”

“Is he into them?” Dagen asked with a lifted brow.

“You know, I don’t know. And he never boasts about it. I know he skates with all of them, Raven the most.”

Rydell gripped the steering wheel so hard he was sure it would crack at any second. That was another red flag he had a fever for this girl—insane jealously, like
primal
jealously.

“I think he’s hitting up Ash hard core now. Apparently they ended last night with some hot dance,” Kade added.

Good, Soren gets to live
, Rydell thought to himself, then cursed himself for doing so.

“Give them a call. I wanted to introduce Rydell to them. Seems like there is one of them that’s not taken. We’ll flip a coin,” Dagen said with a wink to Rydell.

Rydell’s glare told him he was walking a
dangerously
thin line.

Dagen was still convinced that Raven had not put a fever on Rydell. He’d declared it hours before when the pair of them were walking the river just to be outside, and Rydell stopped to look at the lilies growing out of the mud.

Dagen slapped him on the shoulder and laughed a relieved laugh. Rydell had no idea what it was about and asked Dagen what the fuck his problem was.

Dagen grinned. “Raven is not fierce enough for you, man.” When Rydell pointed out how fierce she had been thus far, Dagen shook his head. “You still look at these fucking flowers like you miss someone.”

Right as he said that Rydell had an ache rip in his chest. He didn’t know why, didn’t care to know. He flipped off Dagen then vanished to check on his line.

Now here he was, at another dead end, having to listen to this Kade kid and Dagen go back and forth.

“Dude, that is not how you play the game,” Kade said. “I call her and I look like a lovesick pup. I stroll by her house tomorrow or Monday and act like I forgot I invited her and tell her about how awesome my weekend was, and I’m in the game.”