The Witches of Dark Root: Daughters of Dark Root: Book One (The Daughters of Dark Root) (29 page)

He let the words sink in and I pulled the sweater tighter around me.

Why would anyone think it was a good idea to try and control a demon? To use Shane’s genie analogy, things never went right when someone was presented with absolute power. I had read Arabian Nights. The genies always won.

Shane continued after an appropriate silence.
 

“...A few of the men in the group actually tried their hand at summoning,” he said. “Your mother, of course, was against it and became infuriated when she heard about it. She banished them and their supporters from the group.”

My heart began to race and I felt like I was being watched. I looked over my shoulder just to be sure.
 

“You mean the ‘things’ I’ve been seeing may be more than just ghosts?” I said.

“Just ghosts?” Eve scoffed. “As if ghosts aren't bad enough!”

“Shut up, Eve!” I ordered her. “Take something seriously, for once.”

Shane thrust his hand between us. “I didn’t bring this up to start a war. I just wanted you to know that this may be bigger than what we got the guns for.”

So this was why Mother distrusted men. It made more sense now.

As if reading my thoughts, Shane gave me a somber look but said nothing.

“Stupid internet,” Eve complained, flicking the side of her tablet. “It keeps shutting down.”

“The connection’s terrible here,” Paul said, coming in from the outside and shutting the door behind him. He had messy hair and red eyes. He had either been sleeping out there or smoking something. He rubbed his hands together for warmth. “...I already tried. If you hold your tablet just right, you might pick up the neighbor’s connection for a few minutes, but then it goes dark. The World Wide Web seems to stop at Dark Root...”

“Dip Stix has internet,” Shane spoke up. “Free Wi-Fi for customers, not that it draws them in. Come by tomorrow. You can use my computer.” He took the keys out of his jeans pants pocket.

I knew it was late, but I didn’t want him to leave.

After all that had happened today––watching Mother and Merry drive away in an ambulance, learning about Merry’s cheating husband, and rescuing my niece from a possible demon attack, I wanted as many people around me as possible.

Especially someone as positive as Shane Doler.

“Stay,” I said, hoping he didn't notice the fear in my voice. “We have extra rooms if you don’t mind all the flowers and baskets everywhere.” When he didn’t answer I added, “Please?”

He nodded and put the keys back into his pocket.

“I need to get to bed then,” he said, turning his head towards the staircase. “Dip Stix opens early and I need to be there, customers or not.”
 

He said goodnight to Paul and Eve and I escorted him upstairs, turning on every light in the hallway as we made our way to the only masculine room in the house, The Huntsman Suite. It was a darkly-paneled room, with pictures of fish and deer hanging randomly on the walls. A bear rug lay in front of the four-poster bed.

“Paul not want this room?” he asked, his smile almost a smirk.

“He likes sleeping in the attic. Besides, he’s a vegetarian. Says all the dead animals creep him out.”

“Oh, really? I thought I saw him eating meat at the cafe.”

“He just smells it. Says he gets his fix that way, but won’t eat the stuff anymore. Something about spending a summer working on a farm one year.”

“Weird guy.”

“Not really.”

Shane gave me a quizzical look then changed the subject. “There’s something that’s been bothering me. I’m as worried about June Bug as you are, but I do find it interesting that your mother went to the hospital today, yet neither you nor Eve brought it up this evening. It’s none of my business, but...”

I pretended not to hear him as I went into the closet and pulled out some extra pillows and tossed them onto the bed. I grabbed a spare sheet as well.

“Maggie?” he pushed, waiting for an answer.

“That is interesting, isn’t it?” I bit my bottom lip and considered. “Maybe Eve and I are more alike then I realized.”
Both soulless?
“Anyways, thank you. For everything.”

I felt myself blush. In the last week I had thanked him more than I had ever thanked anyone. I was sounding like a parrot.

“No problem. Anything I can do for any of you girls––ever––I will do. Got it?” He leaned back against the headboard, then removed his watch from his wrist and placed it on the nightstand.

I wasn’t used to men being nice to me and I wondered what the catch was. I tilted my head to the right, trying to get a read on him, but I couldn't find any hidden agendas in his energy.

Odd. And nice.

“Guess I better get to bed, too,” I said, pretending to admire a picture of a bear with a fish in its mouth.

“Okay.” His voice was soft and his smile warm. He took the extra pillows I offered him, fluffed them up, and placed them by his side.

I turned towards the door, but didn’t leave. “When I left Woodhaven, I felt like I lost not only my boyfriend, but my family.” I bit my bottom lip to stop it from quivering. I could feel his eyes on my back. “There was this guy...Jason. He was so great. Cute and smart and always there for me. I think I miss him the most.”

“Oh?”

“Yes. You remind me of him,” I said, turning my head over my shoulder, aware of the heaviness of my hair as it slid down my back.

Shane sat up, his eyes unblinking. “Really? Now that is interesting. Tell me more about
Jason
.”

“He was always getting me out of trouble. I guess I have a way of getting into it.”

“That you do. You say he was cute?”

“Very. All the girls liked him but he didn’t seem to notice.”

“You and Jason ever...?”

“Ever?” His question caught me off guard, and it took a moment to figure out what he was implying. “Oh, God no,” I said. “He was like a brother to me. That would have been incestuous.”
 

I almost added that I had stopped seeing Jason as a brother the day he took me to the bus stop, but it was a moot point now, so I remained silent.

“Great,” Shane said, falling backwards as he rubbed his eyes. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need some rest. Something tells me we have a big day tomorrow.”

Sixteen: September

“I really appreciate you driving me,” I said, as Shane pulled into the hospital parking lot just outside of Linsburg.

The lot was nearly empty, and we found a space close to the entrance. It was nothing like the enormous hospitals I’d been to with Michael in California, where you had to take shuttles from the parking lot to the main building. Not that I had been in many hospitals, but there were times, Michael said, when even God needed a hand in answering prayers.

“Again, no problem, and please stop thanking me. It’s unbecoming of someone of your station.” Shane offered me a tired, half-smile as we walked towards Guest Services.

The wind had a chill to it and I pulled my sweater tightly around me. If I stayed in Dark Root much longer, I would be forced to go clothes shopping. I wasn't prepared for the cold weather to come.

“Are you sure we should have left Scooby and Shaggy alone?” I asked, referring to Eve and Paul. They were back at Dip Stix,
conducting research
on the internet.

“I think they’ll be okay. Paul seems to know his way around a kitchen, as does Eve. I feel confident that if someone comes in, they will be well taken care of.”

The receptionist let us know that my mother was checked into room 212 on the second floor. As we made our way to the elevator I was starting to regret my decision. “You sure you don’t want to go with me?” I smiled brightly, enticingly. “It will be fun!”

He shook his head as the elevator doors popped open. “No, my dear. I’m going to kill some time in the reception area. They have a fantastic selection of
O, The Oprah Magazine
I’m dying to get my hands on.”
 

He winked and practically shoved me into the elevator, before disappearing behind the two steel doors.

I wasn’t happy to be here, and I wasn’t planning on stepping foot inside Mother’s room. I was simply going to check on Merry, drop off a bag of her things, and leave. I took deep breaths as the elevator doors opened, reminding myself of the plan.
 

The hall was long, narrow, and overly bright. Vases filled with fresh flowers were set on tables outside every door. Old people in wheelchairs, pushed by tired-looking nurses, greeted me as I walked by. A brass number on the nearest door let me know that I had arrived at room 312. I spun around and walked quickly in the opposite direction.

“Maggie?”

It was Merry’s voice.
 

I stopped, smiled, and turned back around. Upon seeing her I opened my arms and said, “There you are!” When she didn’t call me on catching me mid-flight, I knew something was wrong. “Mother?”

Merry bobbed her head, sniffling, and I followed her to the room.

“She’s gotten worse in the few hours since we talked on the phone,” she choked, her red eyes tearing up. “I just don’t know what to do.”

I handed Merry her bag and pushed open the door to peek inside. The woman lying there hooked up to a series of tubes and machines couldn’t be my mother. She had become so thin that the blue veins in her hands popped out like electrical wires. Her breathing was hoarse and intermittent, as if it might stop at any moment, puttering along like an old car.

“Oh, Maggie,” Merry whispered.

She placed a hand on my shoulder and I could feel that her life energy, usually so vibrant and robust, was fading. She must have been feeding it to Mother.

“Do they still think it’s a stroke?” I tried to drown out the whirring and buzzing of the machines emerging from her room.

Merry shrugged, allowing a lone tear to trail down her pale cheek. I wiped it away with the tip of my fingers. She looked like she was about to collapse.

Merry was an empath. Whatever feeling she was experiencing, she was able to reflect onto others. She usually radiated joy and we clamored to bask in that happiness with her. But her empathy worked both ways, allowing her to take on the emotions and illnesses of those around her. She was a kind soul and never complained as she went about her ‘work,’ but I could sense that attending to our mother had taken too much from her.

“Pull from me.” I said, taking her hands. “Take my energy, Merry.”
 

She shook her head but my hands tightened around hers, squeezing them hard. I didn’t have Merry’s kind spirit but I did have something that she lacked. Strength.

“Take it,” I said.

Merry nodded and we closed our eyes and stood nose to nose, hands joined. She pushed her energy through me and I was overcome by feelings of her burden: sadness, helplessness, and desperation. When she was done feeding me hers, I offered her mine, hoping I wouldn’t poison her. Merry was pure love and I...wasn’t.

When the transfer was complete, we opened our eyes. Merry had regained color in her cheeks while I felt weak and unsteady. I placed one hand on the wall to keep from falling.

“Sorry to give you all that,” she said. “...And thank you.”

I noticed her round, almost angelic features. June Bug had her face. They possessed an ethereal beauty that even Eve couldn’t touch.

“I hope Mother gets better soon,” I said. My stomach roiled but I forced myself to stand upright. I knew the feeling would pass. “June Bug misses her mommy.”
 

Merry brightened at the mention of her daughter. “Speaking of which, I talked to June Bug today. Thank you for looking after her.”

I arched an eyebrow. “Did she say anything?” I hadn’t told Merry about our encounter in Sister House several days ago. She could only handle one worry at a time.

“Just that she loves her aunties and that you guys are starting up the Haunted Dark Root Festival again. She is so excited.” Merry’s eyes took on a faraway look. “I told her stories about how much fun we had as kids. I’m just surprised.”