Southern Charms

The Drive Home

 The drive to Oxford was uneventful, which was both a blessing and a curse as we were all exhausted. After a catnap, I volunteered to trade places with Ash. He grunted in response and didn't pull over. Willow teleported Charlie into his dorm room, put a ward around the space, a charm around his neck, and popped back in the car. We'd let Clemmy manage the coven politics later, and I prayed Charlie would be okay until then.

"Do you think Malphas is still inside of Charlie?" I asked about an hour into the drive home.

Ash shook his head, not in response but to wake himself up, and through the rear view mirror, I could see Willow peel open her eyelids. She glared at me for disturbing her rest, but she straightened up as if she knew this conversation wasn't going to be easy.

"Y'all?"

Two giant sighs filled the interior. Ash scrubbed his eyes before balling his hand into a fist and shoving it into his mouth to stop a yawn.

"I don't know," he finally said, pulling his eyes from the road to look at me with pity. "My guess is no, but the Council doesn't approve the study of demonology beyond the basics unless you present with the Evocation Gift."

"And even then," Willow added, leaning between the seats, "they're only allowing the study of it to help control the Gift. Not use it. Gertie Lodge said her parents cried when she turned seventeen and accidentally summoned a lesser demon to her birthday party. She started lessons the next day, and all they did was teach her how to not summon demons."

I processed the information. None of this was helpful.

"What makes you say no, then?"

"The wards around the town," Willow answered. "Malphas disappeared the moment we went over the town line. His spirit is likely still in Black Brier."

"So Charlie is safe," I said with a sigh, dropping my head back and closing my eyes. That was what was most important.

"Not exactly."

I stiffened. "What do you mean not exactly? Ash?"

"Possession requires certain rituals to prepare the host. Malphas can't just jump into another body, not without expending a lot of power. They'll want Charlie back because Malphas can slide back in without assistance."

"You're sure? You just said you didn't know much about demonology. How do you know about this?"

"We cover possession briefly, but mostly to learn how to banish spirits," Ash explained.

He slowed the car to turn off the highway and used the moment to look at me. Somehow, in the last few hours, he'd turned years older. Lines marred his smooth, bronze skin, and his lips were pressed into a flat line. It made me want to put my hand on his arm and offer some small comfort, but after what Charlie had let slip earlier, I didn't know if he would welcome my touch. Not without a long explanation...an explanation I didn't exactly possess at the moment.

This was terrible. A week ago, my biggest worries were surviving a long weekend in Black Brier, juggling my two best friends, and avoiding Jemina Goodwin. Now, I'd added two boys to my juggling, had pissed off the witch, and discovered a plot to summon demons and steal magic. If I could just go back in time, I would stop whining about being powerless and left out. I swear I would.

"So what do we do? I don't know if Charlie was in Oxford when they brought him to Black Brier- he was supposed to be- or if they caught him before he left town. Either way, it's not going to be hard for a witch to get him again."

Willow rested her cheek on my shoulder as she answered, "We stick with the plan. You tell Clemmy, and she takes it from there. Hopefully, that means she'll talk to the Council because they have to know someone is messing with black and blood magic."

"You agree, Ash?" He hesitated before nodding. "That didn't seem like a real strong agreement. More like you're outnumbered."

"It's not that. I know it's what's best."

"What then," Willow said, her voice rising with confusion as she studied her cousin.

"I'm worried they're going to point fingers before they actually try to get answers. That's what people do when they're scared, and this is some seriously scary stuff. If the person or people who summoned Malphas can't control him, he could turn the tables. He has one goal and that's to rise in the ranks. He's a prince in hell, but on earth, he could be king."

Nope. Nope. Nope. I muttered a prayer once more promising to keep my whining to a minimum. Just let things go back to how they were before, and if that wasn't possible, then let me return to blissful ignorance. I had no place in the middle of this. I had no power.

My fingers rubbed along the bracelet on my arm, drawing comfort from its heat. I certainly wouldn't be removing it anytime soon. I reached up and touched the locket around my neck. Deep breath in and out. Repeated twice. I wasn't sure it made me feel all that much better, but I did take it as an opportunity to remind myself I wasn't completely without protection. And that included the safety my friends provided.

"Ash, if someone tries to accuse you of anything, we'll stand up for you." Clemmy's warning of the timing of Ash's arrival with the events at the party swirled in the back of my mind, but I shoved them down. I didn't believe he was involved.

Willow's snort was loud in my ear. "Oh yes, I'm sure the endorsement of a powerless witch and a queer witch will convince the Council."

"You forget we have a Clemmy, and she's on our side. Shockingly enough."

"True that," Willow said without a hint of sarcasm.

The grim lines in Ash's face softened, and he offered a weak smile. "Just hearing you say that makes me feel better."

"I know it's not much, but-"

"No...it's a lot Rose. I-I haven't had many people stand up for me over the years, and I need you to know what that means."

The atmosphere in the car shifted, and I had to look away to hide the flush in my cheeks. Willow groaned and disappeared into the backseat.

"Gag me," she said.

"I can arrange that," I said, twisting in my seat to swat at her leg.

Ash's rich chuckled laced with her shriek, and for a moment, we were three, normal teenagers goofing around. It was perfect. Until the tingle passed over my skin, and a weight settled over me. Suffocating me. We were back in Black Brier.

"What the heck?" I cried, my hand covering my mouth as Main Street came into view.

Ash slammed on the breaks, unable to go any further. A few people in the large crowd blocking the road turned to look at us, but most people were intent on something else. Through the glass, I could hear muffled sobs, and then someone began to wail.

Mama teleported next to the car, her expression severe as she peered into the car. I tried to read the emotions in her eyes, but she wouldn't look at me.

"Roll down the window."

Ash did as instructed. "Mrs. Wych, what's happened?"

Mama shook her head and wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. "Someone was killed, and another person is in critical condition. Acantha Rose, where have you been?"

"Who, Mama?" I ignored her question. Something made my heart gallop in my chest. Something told me the answer was going to be devastating.

"It's your father, baby girl."