Strega (Strega Series) (24 page)

I ran back to the marina, suddenly desperate to get home.

The thought of having to see Shaun's lifeless body again made me sick. It momentarily distracted me from the bomb Vince had just dropped.
If he doesn't want to hurt me, then why the hell did he kill Shaun?

I had to call the police and report Shaun's death. Someone needed to come get his body. I recited what I'd tell them.

I was waiting in the car. I didn't see what happened, but I think he was struck by lightning. He was out in the storm, on his way back to the car.

This was the third murder in town in two short months. And all three were somehow connected to me. If Detective Laine wasn't already suspicious, he would be after this phone call.

I approached the marina and braced myself for the horrendous sight of Shaun's limp body. I slipped my hand into my pocket and grabbed my phone, preparing to make the dreaded call from the shelter of Shaun's car. But my phone slipped back into the depths of my pocket. I stared at the pavement where his body should have been, and searched frantically in all directions until I finally trusted my eyes. He was gone.

I saw him die. He was limp. Pale. I felt no pulse.
Maybe he is still alive!
I yelled his name as I ran down the dock to the boat. As soon as I stepped in, an overwhelming scent hit me. Something burned.

"Hello?" I called out as I searched the boat, hoping to find Shaun inside. His uncle's door was closed as usual, but the light was on. I knocked but nobody answered. My hand settled on the doorknob and I nervously turned it and pushed open the door. As my eyes swept the room for Shaun or his uncle, the reality of what I was seeing slowly settled in. Lifejackets, rafts, and boxes of supplies filled the small space. But there was no bed. No dresser. No personal items. No sign of an uncle at all. Shaun had lied to me.

I had to get the hell out of there. As I cut through the living room, I noticed a large black scorch mark on the carpet. I knelt down beside it, and I was overwhelmed by the burning smell that had hit me when I first walked in. I touched the charred carpet and it was still warm. Then I noticed a trail of blood from the scorch mark to the door. I followed it outside and it continued all the way up the dock, stopping exactly where I'd left Shaun's lifeless body.
What the hell is going on?

As I ran to Shaun's car, I shouted his name again but got no reply. I was starting to wonder if I wanted one.

I drove Shaun's car back to Ruth's and crept inside. Waking Rena was the last thing I wanted to do. I grabbed the note I left her and ripped it into pieces on my way upstairs. Her door was closed and the lights were off. I locked my bedroom door behind me and turned on every light, half expecting Shaun to be sitting on my bed or in the small green chair in the corner. I pulled the shades down tight and closed the curtains, and I sat on my bed staring straight ahead, thinking about what Vince said.

You don't want to hurt me, Jay. You are in serious danger. Go home. Please.

It was three a.m. Everyone was asleep but me. Running on fumes, I sat in the chilling quiet. I hated it, but I hoped that nothing would interrupt it before sunrise. In the midst of this silence, a hopeful thought emerged. It was nine a.m. in Italy, and there was at least one person in the world that was awake and eager to talk to me.

"Jay, my sweet girl! Where have you been? I've been calling you for days!" Ruth's voice erupted with worry and relief. "What are you doing up so late?"

"I'm sorry I didn't call you back sooner. Things have been really crazy around here."

My voice trailed off into a ditch, stuck in the awkwardness of bringing up a subject she and I'd never spoken about.

"What's wrong, Jay?" Her voice took a hard, sobering turn. "Are you all right?"

"I don't know. I don't even know what to tell you. It's all so bizarre."

She said nothing but I felt the tension in her silence. After years of keeping secrets, the moment of truth was finally upon us.

"I'm in trouble," I continued.

"What kind of trouble, Jay?" Her voice plummeted into full-on panic.

"The kind of trouble that I can only talk to you and Celia about."

Silence took over on the other end of the phone again.

"Ruth? Are you still there?"

"Yes I'm here," she said reassuringly. "Tell me everything."

"I don't even know where to begin. Someone's after me. I was attacked. A teacher at my school was killed. I'm seeing really bizarre things. And something weird is going on with Shaun."

Ruth let out a deep, pained breath.

"I know I'm in danger. I read Gram's journal. You don't need to keep secrets from me anymore. I just need to know the truth."

After another anxious, thought-filled exhale, her reply surprised me.

"Go to Celia's shop. Our friend Luci will be there waiting for you," she said, and I knew she'd planned for this moment for a long time. "Celia and I will be there as soon as we can."

Before we said goodbye, I heard her shuffling things around. She was already packing. I was relieved to have a plan, but her sense of urgency made me even more afraid. She'd never sounded so worried.

***

I drove Shaun's car back into town and parked it in his usual spot. I still didn't know where he was or if he was alive. If he was dead, I was definitely going to end up at the top of the suspect list. I was his girlfriend, and I was with him that night
—with all the commotion, somebody must've witnessed something and seen us together. My fingerprints were all over his car. All over the boat. But I didn't even care. I had worse things to worry about. I left the keys under the driver's side floor mat and carefully closed the door before I ran through the dark streets of Market Square to Celia's shop. When I got there, the door was still locked.

To my surprise, the bakery across the street was open. I'd never been in town at that hour before
—it was barely past three. It was the only place that showed any sign of life. A delivery truck was parked out front, dropping off fresh bread and morning pastries. I smelled fresh coffee from the street. There was only one other patron inside, and he sat hunched over his cup, looking like he'd had a rough night too. I sat by the window and watched the entrance to Celia's shop, sipping my coffee and waiting like a bird perched and ready for the first worm to pop out of the ground.

Soon, I saw a woman approach the door. She jiggled the key in the lock until it opened. She was bundled against the morning chill with her head wrapped in a scarf. Her short, stout body was tucked under a wool shawl. I grabbed my bag and tossed my coffee in the nearest trash bin, and made my way across the street.

A glimmer of light from the streetlamp caught the silver letters on the white wooden sign hanging above the brick sidewalk.
Celia's Natural Marketplace
. As I approached the door I'd been through a million times, it suddenly seemed different. Artfully duplicitous. The shelves in Celia's shop were filled with all things natural. Food products, teas, homeopathic medicines and remedies, but also herbs, extracts, crystals, stones, and a plethora of other items seemingly benign to the majority of her customers, including me. But I'd begun to realize that much existed beneath the surface. Many of these items were quite potent to those who knew their value, like Gram. I'd spent so much time in that shop over the years, but like everything else that was once familiar, the obscuring veil lifted and it was new again.

The little bells tinkled as I pulled the door open. The smell of sandalwood and lavender immediately wrapped around me like a cozy blanket. I passed by the baskets full of stones and crystals, and the shelves full of new age books, candles, tapestries, incense, and oils.

"Hello?" I called softly, nervous to speak with a stranger about the insane things I'd seen and experienced. The store was so quiet. The first rays of early dawn were still far away, and the darkness of night seeped through the glass storefront. I nervously anticipated the woman's sudden emergence from behind the counter or around a tall shelf. Just then, a soft light went on above me. The curtains to the back room billowed and she emerged, stretching her arms out to me.

I gasped when I saw her face. She wrapped her familiar, safe arms around me. Her flowing clothes were a rainbow of color and softness, and they billowed with the scent of smoky incense and fresh linens just off the line. Her bracelets clanged together like a gentle wind chime as she rubbed her hands across my back. I melted into her, as if I was slipping under the wing of a nurturing mother bird. Celia called her Luci, but I knew her as Luciana. Signora Sovana.

From the moment we'd first met at Sovana's, our connection was one that I couldn't explain or deny. She was like family before I even knew her. And I began to wonder if there was a reason.

When I addressed her as Signora Sovana, she insisted that I call her Luci. She brought me through the curtains to the back room—a cozy space with a sofa and two chairs, a small kitchen, and a large closet where Celia kept supplies. The space was just as spirited as the store, ornamented with fine tapestries and bursting with color. Luci sat me down on the fluffy green sofa, and memories of my visits with Gram came pouring in.

"I've been waiting for you," she said in her thick Italian accent. She prepared a pot of tea, and came and sat down beside me while the water boiled. Somehow, I knew the wait she was referring to didn't start that morning when she arrived at the shop.

She pointed to the silver chain around my neck, and I pulled out the pendant and held it in my hand.

"The cimaruta," she said, holding it as she adjusted her glasses. "Your grandmother's?"

"Yes."

"And why are you wearing it,
mia cara
?" she asked, pleased that I was, but looking for the reason. She peered at me over the top of her glasses.

"I didn't know what else to do," I said, pure honesty pouring out of my mouth.

She adjusted herself on the sofa beside me and traced the upside down tree with her index finger.

"Strong roots that penetrate deep into the earth. Branches that reach far into the heavens. A connection between two worlds," she said. "The cimaruta is a powerful amulet. The sacred rue plant, after which the amulet is named, is revered for its power to protect, to ward off evil, and has been used for this purpose since the time of our ancestors.

"The three branches of the rue plant symbolize the three faces of our beloved goddess Diana. The maiden. The mother. The wise one. And each of these branches holds powerful charms with which we channel Diana's divine protection, knowledge, and strength."

I listened to Luci intently as tears stung my eyes. Her voice was so maternal, so genuinely loving. I thought of Gram and Mom and wished they could have explained these things to me. Luci saw the pain in my eyes and nodded her head as if she knew exactly what I was feeling, and she continued on as I wanted and needed her to.

"The fish symbolizes fertility and abundance. The key opens other realities and unlocks hidden knowledge. The serpent coiled around the full moon symbolizes connection. That of Diana, goddess of the moon, with the heavens and the earth. That of all gods and humankind. The bond between the overworld and the underworld. And the power of magic, to poison or to heal. The vervain blossom protects and calls forth the guardians of Nature, gentle spirits who serve Diana as their queen. The rooster, possessing the power of light to banish evil to the shadows, embodies Diana's true love Ataiun, god of the sun."

She flipped the amulet over and traced the back of it.

"Here, each charm mirrors itself, with one exception. The fish conceals the most important symbol of all. The sacred blade. A Strega's most powerful tool. We use our blades to channel Diana's power and the fiery light of the heavens."

Her fingers slid up the broken chain and stopped where I'd clumsily tied it together.

"It is in need of repair," she said, loosening the knot and letting the amulet fall into her hand. "The cimaruta speaks to us, guides us when we need it most. In the presence of evil, it quickens. Its vibrations alert us to impending danger, and through it flows the wisdom of ages. Its whispers offer us guidance."

I'd heard these whispers. They terrified me. First at Ruth's, when I put it on.
Seek the ones you know. They will protect you
. And then with Shaun. Its warning was clear.
Run!

Luci clenched the amulet tightly in her hands, and suddenly her body stiffened and her eyes closed. Her hair blew back from her face as if a gust of wind had suddenly cut through the room. Watching her, I knew what was happening. I'd been taken away like this before. In that moment, though she sat before me, she was somewhere else.

When her body finally relaxed, she opened her eyes. Her face was pale and sober.

"What did you see?" I asked anxiously. She looked surprised by my question.
How did I know she'd seen anything?
But then she reached out and grabbed my hands.

"Your grandmother," she said solemnly. "She wore this amulet when she died. They broke it, when they tore it from her neck."

"Yes," I confirmed.

"Mia cara, you must tell me. How much do you know...about who you are?"

My entire life was thrown into question in recent days. I felt like my brain had reset to zero. Everything I thought I knew was shattered, and I was starting from scratch.

"I know my family kept a lot of secrets from me. I'm seeing strange things, having bizarre dreams...but I really don't understand why."

My own words overwhelmed me, and I rubbed my eyes. The small cast iron pot began to whistle. Luci turned off the stove and returned with a teapot and two cobalt teacups.

"Where shall I begin," she mumbled to herself as she sat back down beside me and let out a long sigh. "You come from an extraordinarily special family, Jay. A family with unique gifts. Gifts that are innately good and meant to help others. Your heritage is rich and long. Your mother, your grandmother, your great-grandmother, they all possessed these gifts. And Jay, so do you."

"What gifts, exactly?" I asked nervously.

"I think you know," she said, leaning forward and taking my hands in hers. "You've already begun to use yours."

Luci reached for the pot of tea and poured us each a steaming cup.

"We share the same ancestors, Jay. I, too, possess these gifts. Thousands of years ago in ancient Italia, in the same beautiful lands of Toscana where I grew up, the Etruscan people once thrived. Among them, there were three wise women of the forest, known by their people as
Strega
. These women were devoted followers of the goddess Diana. And from her, they received powerful gifts. These women were the first of our kind. Their gifts have been passed on through generations of women, ultimately to us.

"Since the beginning of time, the goddess Diana has watched over all women. She inspires us, guides us through the joys and pains of birth, life, and death. She protects us, gives us strength, and heals us. She is many things. Goddess of the forest, adored for her beauty and coveted healing touch, she brings fertility and abundance. Goddess of the hunt, revered for her unyielding power as a huntress, she is always seeking, always defending. Goddess of the moon, channeling the fiery light of the heavens, she provides great light in darkness.

"In the ancient Etruscan forests, in a sacred grove where the light of the moon poured in, and its power could be drawn down, the three women of the woods gathered to honor Diana with pure devotion. Each night they did this. Diana provided them with clarity where there was confusion, hope where there was doubt, and strength where there was fear. And one fateful night, a night forever held sacred by all Strega, Diana descended to earth and bestowed great power upon them.

"These women of the woods were known for their wisdom and for their superior bond with nature. This is why Diana chose them. Though they were mere mortals, they had the innate ability to tap into the power of nature to bring blessings, healing, and protection to their people. And their people honored them and called them
Strega.
Masters of nature. Vessels of innate wisdom.

"Diana foresaw a resurgence of darkness that threatened to consume all of humanity. An evil that she and all the gods of the heavens had banished to the underworld. Demons. These creatures, spawn of the dark chthonic gods and humans, roamed the earth, spreading only darkness and death. Upon banishment, some evaded capture and remained on earth, hiding in the shadows, continuing to proliferate and spread destruction under the cover of night.

"Diana's vision revealed that these demons would grow too powerful for the gods to stop. She shared her vision with the gods, but upon hearing it, they fell into conflict. Some dismissed her warning, denying that demons could ever grow so powerful. Others feared it, trusting Diana's vision and knowing that without intervention, it would inevitably come to pass. Determined to protect her people from what threatened to destroy them, Diana tirelessly hunted all demons. But she knew that her efforts alone would not be enough.

"Diana chose the Strega to be her beacons of light on earth. She came to them that sacred night and bestowed upon them her own godly powers. To the first, she gave the power of precognition, vision, to see the past and learn from it, and the future, to change it. To the second, she gave the power of acceleration, to move with great speed, strength, and dexterity, for advantage in the hunt. And to the third, she gave the power of translucence, to conceal herself among her enemies and become invisible. To each of them, Diana gave a sacred blade
—all three unique and forged in the heavenly realm. With these blades, they channeled the fiery light of the heavens, just as Diana did through her fiery arrows.

"These very first Strega
—the
Originali
—slayed countless demons. Each was powerful on her own, but when together with her sister Strega, all of their powers deepened. Together, they formed a triquetra of power, and they were as impenetrable as a god.

"These women received their gifts with honor, and understood the great responsibility that came with them. For years, they defended their people. And as their powers were given to them by their mother goddess, so it was that they passed on their magic to their own daughters. And when their daughters became mothers, they too passed on their matrilineal gifts. A Strega's power remains dormant in her sons.

"This was the way for generations in Etruria. With the passage of time, as our ancestors fled from persecution, their bloodlines scattered throughout Europe. But their blood, the blood of the Originali, runs through our veins now. And in us lies the very same power and responsibility that they once came to bear."

Ironically, Dad had contributed Italian
Bonifacio
roots to my ancestry. But it was Gram's Celtic roots that Luci was referring to, and they clearly took some unexpected turns.

"My mom wanted to teach me," I said, remembering what Gram had written. My heart ached. I wanted Mom back every single day. I wanted them all back. I didn't know how to move on. I ran from the pain, as if I could ever escape it. But I was in its grip all along. I felt everything, and the sorrow was unbearable. Luci put her arms around me and pulled me in close as I cried. She gently rocked back and forth as if it would shake free every last bit of my pain.

"Celia and Ruth have told me much about your mother," she whispered in my ear. "She was strong, and she protected you for many years."

With a bittersweet smile, I sat up and wiped my tears away with my sleeve. What Luci was telling me was unbelievable, but finally everything I'd been through was starting to make sense. I wanted her to continue.

"The women in your family, like mine, possess the power of precognition. It is what you will pass on to your daughters if you have them. The dreams and visions come first, as you've experienced. What you see in them is as real as what you see in wakefulness. They deliver you to a place between worlds, beyond the boundaries of time, where the past, the present, and the future are revealed. With time, your gift will advance and blossom in unique ways. Deepening intuition, accessing the thoughts of others, or even projecting your own thoughts into reality. Nothing is impossible, mia cara."

In the newsroom, Matthew tripped and spilled his coffee all over himself, just after I'd seen it happen in my mind. And my power was going to advance.
To what?
I gulped.

"You've experienced it," she said to me before I could say a word. "But still you doubt yourself. Mia cara, this is your gift! Don't let it scare you. It is new, this power, and it will take time to harness. Now, it is wild and raw. Inconsistent, and often quite startling. A Strega's power is bound to her emotions. Intense fear or desire will often trigger it. Precognition can also be provoked by touch. All things possess residual energy, and we can access it through physical contact, though this ability usually comes later.

"Like any other force, you will learn to control your power and use it consciously. You are at the beginning of an incredible journey, and you've seen only a glimpse of what is ahead."

As I digested this idea, she reached for her tea and took a long sip. I did the same. And as she set her cup down, she asked me a question that made me choke.

"Now, where is your blade?" She extended her hands in anticipation. But I didn't have it. I didn't even know it belonged to me until now. The last time I saw it, it was tucked into the back of Shaun's pants.

"Do not worry, mia cara," she responded to my unrest. "It will return to you. A Strega's blade always returns to her."

She stretched out her legs and sat back like she often did when she was about to tell a more benign story. It added a touch of normal to everything she said after that.