Chapter 10
FATA MORGANA.
As she strode toward us, I let go of Sandy. We needed to meet her as an equal. One thing I knew about Fata was that she had a tendency to take over situations. Or at least, she had in the past and I doubted that had changed. No matter how I was feeling, I wasn’t about to let her see my nervousness. Sandy seemed to sense my mood and she straightened her shoulders, and lifted her chin.
We waited until Fata was near, before moving forward to greet her. I wasn’t sure what to expect, so I wasn’t sure how to act. But Sandy stepped out in front, holding out her hands.
Fata Morgana paused, her gaze focused on me. For a moment, I thought she didn’t even see Sandy. Then, slowly, she took a deep breath and said, “I’m back. Did you miss me?”
“Fata,” Sandy said, withdrawing her hands when Fata didn’t meet them. “Welcome to Bedlam. Welcome to our home.”
Only then did Fata turn toward Sandy and slowly smile. It was a feral smile, ever so slightly dangerous. “Cassandra, I wasn’t sure whether you would be here. When Maddy summoned me, she woke me out of my slumber and I rose out of the ocean. I followed Maddy’s call, and… Here I am.”
A light flickered in her eyes that I didn’t recognize. She was Fata Morgana, and yet, she wasn’t. I reached out, searching for some familiarity. I knew it was her—there was no question of it. But she seemed distant and alien, like a sleeping princess who had been woken after a hundred years to find herself in a different land. I wanted to ask her inside, but I found myself a little afraid of what might happen.
Just then, Kelson opened the sliding door and Bubba ran out. He took one look at Fata, and dashed over and jumped into her arms. He had always liked her, and she, in turn, had been indulgent of him. Startled, she looked down, staring into his face for a moment. And then, the strange light flickered again and faded, and when she looked up we were staring at our Fata. At the Fata we had known and loved.
Bubba leaped down and wandered over to me. I picked him up, still worried.
Fata looked at the house and smiled. “So long, and yet, this house could have been around the last time I was out and about.”
“It might have been. It was built in the early 1800s.”
“What year is this?”
“2017. What’s the last year you remember?” Sandy glanced up at the sky, which was whipping up another round of rain and wind. “Why don’t we go inside?”
I nodded, motioning for them to follow me. Carrying Bubba, I led them into the kitchen.
Fata blinked at the artificial light. She took everything in, then shook her head. “So different. So many changes. I left in…it was a long time ago. It was after I left the two of you. I went over to Europe again, but didn’t stay long. The call of the ocean was too strong.”
“Where have you been all these years?” I asked. Bubba bounded out of the room, but before he left, he turned to me and let out a soft, “Mrpp…m-row?”
I gazed into his eyes. “I will, little guy. I will.”
With another glance at Fata, he turned and silently padded out of the room. I slid a quick look toward Fata. She seemed to be calm and focused, but I’d have to be cautious. Letting her in the house was like letting a wild tiger enter my home.
Fata drifted over to the kitchen table and, running her fingers over it, slowly sat in one of the chairs. She leaned back, her face looking as young as the day she had left us. Her hair glistened, falling to her shoulders smooth and straight. She was completely dry, unlike Sandy and me, who were soaked through to the skin.
“Where was I?” Her voice was faint. She seemed to be a long ways away. “I rode the waves out to sea. Out to the wide, wild ocean. There was something calling me. To be honest, there’s always been something calling me, since I was first born. I remember in my bed, as a child, I would close my eyes and hear the song of the ocean, beckoning me to come play. When we fought—oh, Maddy, how we fought that day. I was so angry with you. I wanted to drown the town and the two of you with it. But that was just the storm talking inside me. It wasn’t me.” She had closed her eyes and was leaning back.
I glanced over at Sandy, feeling totally creeped out. Fata Morgana had always been wild, but now, she felt barely constrained, on the edge of breaking into a fury. She was Fata, all right, but in the intervening centuries, something had definitely changed. Sandy licked her lips and gave me a cautious shake of the head.
After a moment, Fata spoke again. “What was I saying? Oh, yes. There was something calling me, and I summoned a wave. It came like the gentlest of horses and let me stand astride its back. And so I rode it out to the depths. For days, the wave carried me. When I was thirsty, there was rain, glorious rain, and I opened my mouth and drank straight from the heavens. When I was hungry, fish rose from the water, jumping high so that all I had to do was hold out my hand and they would land in my fingers. I ate them raw, alive, and the flesh was so sweet and so bright that I didn’t want for anything else.”
Fata opened her eyes, her lips wide in a brilliant smile. She was dazzling and beautiful, and she made me remember thoughts better left in the past. I shook away the vivid images that lingered in my mind, but when she caught my gaze, I had the feeling she, too, was remembering. She licked her lips slowly, then gave me the faintest hint of a wink.
“What did you do? You’ve been out of touch for nearly two hundred years.” Sandy seemed to catch the nuances and intervened. I let out my breath, flashing her a silent thank-you.
“I dove deep, I swam in the currents, and became one with the Ocean Mother. She welcomed me in, kept me from drowning. When I was tired, I curled up in her underwater caves and slept deep—sometimes for decades. When I was hungry, there was always fish. When I was thirsty, the rains came. Until…sometime during the summer, when I seemed to wake out of a long dream. I heard you calling for help, Maddy, and I had a vision.”
Pausing, she sniffed. “What smells so good?”
I cleared my throat. “Muffins, probably. Or soup. Kelson’s making dinner. Are you hungry?”
Fata nodded. “I haven’t wanted anything beyond fish for years, but now, my stomach aches. Do you have bread? And something hot? I don’t care what, really. I just…it’s been so long, but I need food again. Solid food.”
She leaned forward, elbows on the table. “I’m confused,” she said, and the sureness left her voice. She blinking, rubbing her eyes. “Where am I? What time is this? Maddy, how did we get here?” Fata asked frantically, a look of terror washing over her face. “I’m afraid.”
Sandy jumped up, motioning to Kelson. “Get her some food. Something’s happening.”
I took hold of Fata’s hands and held them tightly, trying to ground her. Sandy rubbed her shoulders, whispering words of comfort. After a few minutes, Fata seemed to relax. Kelson brought over a bowl of beef soup and a loaf of French bread with butter. Sandy slowly spooned the soup into Fata’s mouth, and Fata swallowed, staring straight ahead.
After we had managed to get half a bowl of soup and a slice of toast down her throat, Fata suddenly shifted in her chair, let out a soft cry, and fainted, slumping forward.
“Fuck. What the hell do we do? I suppose I can call Jordan.” I wasn’t sure what to think. I was absolutely unprepared for this.
“I think you better. Meanwhile, let’s get her into the parlor and stretch her out.” Sandy and Kelson carried Fata Morgana into the living room. They wouldn’t let me help. I found a blanket and pillow, and we arranged her on the sofa, then tiptoed out of the room, but close enough where we could still keep an eye on her.
“I’m afraid of her,” Sandy said in a low voice. “Call Jordan, now. This is Fata, but she’s more than Fata, if you know what I mean.”
I nodded. “Yeah, it’s like she’s got her memories and knows who we are, but she isn’t alone in there.” While Sandy watched Fata, I moved to the edge of the room and put in a call to Jordan. When he came on the line, he sounded a little bit harried.
“What’s up, Maddy? I don’t mean to rush you, but I was just heading out to dinner with my girlfriend.”
I have no clue that Jordan had a girlfriend. He’d make good boyfriend material, for sure, but last I heard he wasn’t involved with anybody.
Feeling guilty about interrupting him, I said, “What else? We have a serious problem. I don’t mean to interrupt your evening, especially after calling you about George, but we have…a situation. I can’t go into it over the phone. We just need you to look at somebody, and tell us what you think. And it has to be while she’s still asleep. I know this sounds cryptic, but it would take far too long to explain what is going on.”
Jordan paused, then let out a long sigh. “At least I know when you call me it’s not hypochondria or some mountain out of a molehill. I’ll be over as soon as I can. Is there anything I should know so I can know what instruments to bring?”
I glanced back at the sofa. Fata still seemed to be unconscious. “Have you ever heard me mention Fata Morgana?”
“Wasn’t she the water witch that you and Sandy hung out with a few centuries ago?”
“Yeah. She’s back, but there’s something going on and we need to know what it is. She was always a little scary but now, Jordan, I’m afraid of what she could do to the town. She brought the storms with her. That much I know. There’s more to Fata than just Fata. If that makes any sense.”
“In a way. All right, I’ll grab my bag and be over in twenty minutes.”
I turned back to Sandy. “He’s on his way. I wonder how long she’ll stay out?”
“I don’t know, but I hope it’s until Jordan gets here. What should we do in the meantime? I’m not certain I want to leave her alone.” Sandy gave me a long look that told me she was as frightened as I was.
“I suppose we just wait.”
Sandy and I settled down at a small table near one of the windows in the parlor. Fata remained unconscious, and we did our best to keep quiet so we didn’t wake her up. Finally, I caught a glimpse of Jordan’s car pulling in and I hurried to the front door so he wouldn’t ring the bell. As I opened the door, he took one look at my face and pushed past me.
“This really has you spooked, doesn’t it?”
“Jordan, Fata was a force of nature when we knew her. I was running wild at the time, but she… Fata was beyond control. We were just lucky she never took it out on anybody who didn’t deserve it. I’m not so sure she’s still as selective.” I let him into the parlor and nodded at the sofa. “We’ve tried to keep quiet. I suggest you move cautiously. I’ve no idea what she might do if she woke up and found you examining her.”
Jordan stared at Fata for a moment, then set his bag of instruments down on the table next to the sofa. But he made no move to open it. Instead, he closed his eyes and held out his hands, running them through her aura as she slept. When he opened his eyes, the look on his face went from curious to startled, and he backed away, motioning for us to follow him into the hallway.
“I can tell you one thing right now. She’s not fully a witch. She may have the DNA in her blood, but I’d swear to you she’s a water elemental, bound in form. I’ve got a couple more tests I can do, but they’re invasive. My ethics preclude me performing them unless I ask her consent. It’s not like she’s committed a crime or that the police are asking me to check her out. Do you understand?” He looked extremely uncomfortable.
I nodded. He was right. We were asking him to invade her privacy. And that didn’t feel right, as worried as we might be.
“Yeah, I understand.” I glanced at Sandy, who nodded as well.
“Do you want to wake her up and ask her if I can examine her? You could always tell her that she fainted, and you were worried about her so you called the doctor.”
I rubbed my forehead. This wasn’t going the way I had hoped, although I wasn’t sure what I had actually expected. I think I had hoped Fata would just fade away and not bother coming back. She meant so much to me back then that I couldn’t bear to see what she had become.
Sandy answered for both of us. “Come on in. We’ll try, although I’m not sure how she’ll respond.”
I knelt by Fata’s side and gently tapped her arm. “Fata? Can you hear me? Fata, it’s Maddy. We want to make sure you’re all right.”
Fata stirred, ever so slightly, her eyes fluttering. She looked confused for a second, then brightened as she saw my face.
“It wasn’t a dream, then. For some reason I thought I had dreamt that I had come back to you.” She glanced over at Jordan. “Who are you? I don’t remember you.”
“Jordan is a doctor, honey,” Sandy said. “We were worried when you fainted, so we called him. Do you mind if he examines you?” Sandy had a more winning way with her. I had to admit she had a diplomacy that I longed for, but never managed to attain. And it seemed to be growing the longer she took care of Jenna.
Fata blinked, still looking confused. After a moment, she said, “All right. If you think it’s okay.”
“Jordan is a good friend of ours, so you’re in safe hands.” I sat down on the sofa beside her as she swung her feet over to sit up. “We’ll be right here, so there’s no worry.”
She seemed more like her old self as she nodded and smiled. When Fata smiled, she lit up the room. She reminded me of the stars, cold and beautiful and twinkling with an icy chill.
Jordan introduced himself, holding out his hand. “Hi, I’m Jordan Farrows. If you let me just examine you for a little bit, I promise I won’t do anything that makes you uncomfortable. If you tell me I’m overstepping my boundaries, I’ll stop.” He opened his bag and pulled out a stethoscope and a couple of other medical instruments that I didn’t recognize.
Fata looked puzzled when she saw them, but she just shrugged. “Go ahead.”
He checked her lungs and her heart, and then he had her hold what looked like a quartz crystal ball, though I had a feeling it was more than just a regular crystal sphere. He was reading some figures off of a tablet as she held it. After a moment, he put away all of his instruments and closed his bag.
“Well, everything checks out. You work with water energy, don’t you?”
Fata nodded. “Since I was a little girl, I was strong with the water element. Just like Maddy and fire, or Cassandra and the air. I think that’s what brought us all together back then. We were at the top of our elements.”
Jordan cleared his throat. “I know that Maddy and Cassandra are experts with their particular elements. But Fata—may I call you Fata?”
She gave him a nod.
“Fata Morgana, you have become so enmeshed with the water element that you have become part elemental. The water has taken over part of your essence. Did you know that?” Jordan was being extremely diplomatic with his tone. That alone told me that he was nervous.
Fata stared at him for a moment, her eyes wide. The crystal blue of her irises clouded over momentarily, and it looked like a storm was gathering in her gaze. And then it cleared again and she shifted, shaking her head as she leaned forward to rest her elbows on her knees.
“At times, I know. Then it fades and I seem to forget. And other times, I’m completely part of the Ocean Mother, and I forget my former life. I sleep within her embrace for decades before waking to ride the waves again. But something called me and woke me to my past. I knew Maddy needed help, and so I came.”
She looked first at me, and then Sandy. “The three of us made a pact long ago that we would always be there for each other in darkest need. And even though we ended in an argument, that pact stands. I’m here because when Maddy called to me, I was given a vision, and I knew that she needed me. I came as soon as I could, although it took me a while to find you,” she said, turning to me. “I’ve never been to this land. But I knew I needed to find you and tell you what I was shown while I was dreaming.”
A lump formed in my stomach. I knew I didn’t want to hear what she was about to say.
“The pact,” I whispered. “We made it the day we raided the village. We stood around the fire and pledged blood to blood.”
IT WAS A windy afternoon, and we had been tracking the vampire village for months. And now, we were just a mile away. We were in Romania, having traipsed through Europe staking vampire after vampire. The humans knew who we were, and even though they were afraid of our magic, they welcomed us when they realized we were trying to help protect them.
There had been a particularly bad outbreak of vampirism in Romania and surrounding countries, and so we went where we were needed. I was still enmeshed in the blood thirst to destroy the creatures who had destroyed my sweet Tom, and no number of vampire kills could seem to assuage it.
Sandy and Fata Morgana had been by my side. The villagers called us the Witches Wild, and in truth, we were. Out of control, focused on one goal, we did whatever it took to accomplish our mission. There was always blood on my hands, blood on my skirts, blood on my dagger, blood on my silver stake.
As we stood above the village of vampires, I realized I was tired. My entire life felt like a river of blood that I continually waded through. I was tired of the coppery scent in my nose. I was tired of the dust that filled the air when the vampires crumbled.
But here, here we could make a major dent. I wasn’t sure how many vampires were down in that village. Possibly a hundred. But I knew one thing for sure—there weren’t any humans. The vampires back then didn’t leave their victims alive. They were waging war on humanity, and we were the only ones standing in the way.
As we stood there, staring down at the village, Fata Morgana held out her hands.
“We have come through heaven and hell together, and we’ve been here for each other throughout these long years. I propose we make a pact, that the Witches Wild will always be here for one another. When any of us are in danger, we have only to call out and the others will come. For once, let the blood we spill be our own and be healing, let it be a force for good.”
Fata was in one of her more coherent modes, and what she said resonated deep within my heart. I took her hand and held out my other to Cassandra.
“Together we stand. Together we fight, together we play, together forever.”
Cassandra took my hand, and then Fata’s, and we formed our circle. “In for now, and for always.”
I let go of both of them and took out my silver dagger. Auntie Berma had given me the pair—the dagger and stake. I held up my left hand and took my dagger, dragging it along my lifeline, cutting a superficial gash, but it was still strong enough to bleed. Fata held out her left hand and I slashed it as well, and then Cassandra’s. I put away the dagger, and then the three of us joined our blood together, meeting our hands in the center of the circle.
Hand to hand, we join our blood,
blood to blood, we join our hearts.
Our powers band, in fire or flood,
the sum of all, stronger than the parts.
Wind, fire, and water make,
a force that cannot break.
Witches Wild, so we three stand,
joined together, upon this land.
Bound together by our sacred oath, we turned to the village waiting in the valley below. I conjured the fire, surrounding the entire village with a row of flames at the top of the hill. Sandy invoked the winds, and Fata Morgana brought the rains to the surrounding areas so that the fire wouldn’t get out of control.
With one last breath, I whispered the spell to send the fires racing down into the village just as the sun began to set. As the vampires came out, shrieking as they met their deaths, I realized this would be my last raid. As the scent of smoke and char began to fill the air, I fell on my knees, wishing the world would burn around me.
In the end, there was only dust left…the dust of vampires scattered to the wind. And in that dust, I left my anger behind. I was so tired of my fury that I could no longer sustain it. We turned and walked away from the remains of the village, and left our vampire hunting days behind.
I SHOOK MYSELF out of my memories. For good or ill, the three of us had bound ourselves together that fateful day, and we were still bound by sacred oath. Fata Morgana might be part water elemental now, but she was still the Fata who had stood by my side, who had run with me through the country, hunting my enemies.
“You said you had a vision?” I took her hand.
She seemed to settle back into herself. With each moment that passed, she felt like the Fata we had known, rather than the wild, hybrid creature who had raged her way to shore in the storms.
“I did. It was a vision, not a dream. One of the Aunties—I don’t know which one, I don’t even know if I’ve met her—told me. She whispered in my ear while I was being rocked by the Ocean Mother.” She paused, then motioned for Sandy to come sit on her other side.
Giving me a hesitant look, Sandy took her place beside Fata.
Fata let out a long breath. “One of the oldest vampires has been awoken. I don’t know who woke him, or why, but he’s risen to walk the earth again. He’s coming for you, Maddy. Someone, deep within the shadows, is out to end your life. And whoever it is, they’ve summoned Dracula to be their assassin.”
I caught my breath, staring at her.
Dracula?
He was real, that much we knew. The book by Bram Stoker had been a simple retelling of a nasty encounter with him, but unlike the book—or the many movies made—Dracula had not met his end. He had vanished underground, hiding out till people began to question whether he’d ever been real.
Sandy caught my attention. Over Fata’s head, she mouthed, “The Arcānus Nocturni.”
Crap. Of course. If anybody was aligned with them, it would be Dracula. It had to be. He was one of the oldest of the old, as far as we knew. If they could wake him, of course they would. I was a danger because I knew about them.
The Arcānus Nocturni were the ancestors of the vampires. They were so ancient that nobody knew when they had been turned. And they had the ability to walk in sunlight, like the living, which made them a deadly menace. Few knew about them, and it was a good thing for vampires the world over, because if humans discovered that even a fraction of them didn’t require downtime—didn’t necessarily have the vulnerabilities that everybody thought they did—the entire vampire race would be wearing bull’s-eyes on their hearts.
Thanks to Essie, I had managed to catch a glimpse of an illustration of the Queen Mother of all vampires. I had also learned that said queen was bored. She wanted all vampires to be able to walk abroad at all times. Luckily, Essie didn’t share the ancient queen’s desire. Even though I didn’t trust Essie, I could take this information to her and she would help. She didn’t play well with other vamps, and bristled when she thought her territory was being challenged. Dracula would present that challenge.
Fata glanced at Sandy, then at me. “What? What are you two thinking about?”
I hesitated. Something was holding me back from mentioning Essie. Scrambling for something to say, I shook my head. “I was just thinking about how different Aegis is from Dracula.” Crap. The words had just tumbled out of my mouth.
She froze. “Aegis? Who is Aegis?”
I bit my lip. “He’s my boyfriend, Fata. We met when I bought this house.”
The look on her face was unreadable. After a moment, she said, “Is he a witch, too? Or did you end up with a shifter?”
Once again, I hesitated. Finally, I decided that she’d find out sooner or later. I couldn’t keep my relationship a secret from her forever. And with Jordan around, if she blew up, he might actually have something in that bag of his to knock her out.
“Aegis is a vampire.” I wanted to add, “He’s one of the good ones,” or some such qualifier, but it wouldn’t serve any real purpose.
Fata stiffened. She glanced at Sandy, who shifted a little away from her. Then, her voice so soft that it terrified me, Fata asked, “You’re dating a vampire?”
I nodded. “Yes, I am, and I’m in love with him. Vampires aren’t like they used to be—the majority of them. Modern vampires have taken their place in the world and adapted to the times. They have become part of society.”
“You expect me to believe that? You, who drove Cassandra and me across Europe, seeking the monsters who destroyed my cousin and your true love? You expect us to believe that everything is lovely with this vampire. You’re fucking him? Sleeping with him? He’s dead, Maddy—he’s worse than dead. He’s a mockery of whoever he was before he was turned. How can you do this? Mad Maudlin is sleeping with the enemy and protecting him?”
She pushed herself to her feet. Outside, the skies darkened. A low rumble of thunder echoed in the distance. I motioned to Sandy. We needed to calm her down. Jordan reached for his bag and unobtrusively stepped to the side table, where he began hunting through it.
“Listen to me. Times have changed. I’m the last person who expected to ever get involved with a vampire, but here we are. Aegis was a servant of Apollo. He angered the god and was thrown out after Apollo turned him into one of the Fallen. He’s a good man, though.”
Sandy tried to jump in and help me. “He is a good man. He’s helped us all, more than once. And he treats Maddy like a queen.”
“You say that now, but what about when he decides he wants to turn you? What will you do then? What will you do when his thirst drives him to feed off you? You know how vampires are around witches’ blood. We’re a gourmet feast to them!” Fata was flailing her arms. She whirled to Jordan, who had pulled out a syringe. “Put that away, healer. You think I don’t know what you plan on doing with that?” Her voice had turned to ice.
I glanced at the clock. It was noon. Thank gods Aegis wasn’t awake yet, but I was afraid to let Fata find out he was staying in the house. She might take it into her head to hunt him down and stake him.
“Fata, stop. Come back to yourself.” It dawned on me that when she faded out like this—when the ice and chill took over—the water elemental part of her was rearing its emotional head. And since Fata was already prone to volatile outbursts, the water was amplifying her anger.
She paused, slowly—visibly—reining herself in. “I need to go walk on the shore. I suppose you want me to meet him? This vampire of yours?”
I wanted to just skip the whole idea and say no, but we had no clue how long she was staying, and at some point, surely she would come in contact with him. “I wish you would, if only to realize you’re jumping to conclusions. But only if you make me an oath-bound promise that you won’t hurt him.”
She simmered, but finally gave me a curt nod. “Very well. I won’t hurt him as long as he doesn’t try to hurt you or Cassandra.” Turning to Sandy, she said, “Guide me to the shoreline. I can feel the water surging from here, and I need to sit beside the waves for a while.”
Looking frightened, Sandy cleared her throat. “All right. You’ll have to ride in what we call a car.”
Fata shrugged. “A cart? I have no need. Just take me out and point me in the direction.”
Still stuttering, Sandy led her to the front door. As I glanced out the window, I saw Sandy pointing in the general direction of the western shore, and then, in a whirl of sudden rain, Fata dissolved into vapor, and was gone.