Burned (Book1) The White Rose Vampire Series

Chapter Eighteen

Bethany's dorm room was on the far side of campus near the football fields tucked in the corner of a red brick building on the top floor. Bastian and I walked up the stairs hand in hand with Gilliam following while inhaling deeply. A couple of female students passing gave him strange looks. He flashed them a smile, melting away their anxiety and causing them to blush. I shook my head and frowned as I remembered something from the night before.

"Gilliam," I said, catching his attention as I glanced over my shoulder, his eyes sparking in sudden curiosity, "Can you really smell magic?"

"Only when it's been recently cast," he said, tilting his head as he leaned toward me, "Or a witch is really close. Each witch has a scent that is different but there is an underlying scent that is the same."

"What do you mean?" I asked as I tried to decipher his words.

Gilliam's brows furrowed as he contemplated how he would explain. "Well, your magic has the scent of petrichor," he said, glancing upward.

"The scent of rain?" I asked as he nodded. "That's one of my favorite scents."

"Those things hint that you are a water witch," he smiled. "You will work well with that element but your friend, Izzie, has the scent of smoke, and that hints she's a witch who works well with fire but there is always a distinct scent...Almost like an electrical charge beneath them that is the scent of power...The scent of the witch."

"But Bethany wouldn't have worked magic," I sighed in confusion because he was still sniffing the air. "She wouldn't even know she's a witch. Her family is dead and no one else would have been around to tell her."

"Unless she was scared and her magic kicked in to save her," Gilliam frowned as he inhaled again, "And I do detect magic here. The scent of pine and meadows...An Earth witch was here."

"If she was scared that means she was attacked," I said as panic slithered through me.

Gilliam nodded as we made it to Bethany's floor and turned down the hall but as we did, we almost ran into a maintenance man. Beside him was the woman who had yelled at Izzie and me at Brady's coffee shop. Her eyes widened as she glanced from me to Bastian and then, her gaze finally landed on Gilliam. Her face paled as his lip curled, flashing his teeth as she ran past us.

"She's one of the church members," I said as a chill slid down my spine. "She almost attacked Izzie and me at Brady's. Jonathon saved us."

"She's more than a simple church member," Gilliam said, narrowing his eyes. "Her name is Margaret Harrison. As the wife of their preacher, she's one of their leaders. I can only think of one reason she would be here."

Bastian tensed as he said the words we all feared. "She came for Bethany."

**********

As we stood outside of Bethany's door, we knew that she wasn't in the room. A twist of the knob proved that when it opened without the resistance of a lock. The room was small and every possession she had was strewn across the floor. Drawers were pulled out and papers were ripped from binders.

"Are you sure she had no friends?" Gilliam asked, his brow furrowing as he inhaled again.

"I'm positive," I whispered my heart clenching. If Izzie and I had tried harder to befriend her, she wouldn't be in danger now.

He picked up a book from the floor, glancing at the title as a piece of paper fell out. His eyes narrowed on it as he picked it up.

"Who is Mrs. Claiborne?" He asked, reading the name scrawled across the white slip of paper.

"She's the librarian," I shook my head as I tried to understand his reasons behind asking about her. "Why?"

"She was helping Bethany trace her family," he said as he flipped over the piece of paper, reading what was written there with a shrug. "I thought it might be something but that's what librarians do."

I blinked as I took a large inhale of breath, realizing she may be much more than a simple librarian. She certainly had a knack for being in the right place at the right time. "She helped Izzie too...When the police tried to take her to the hospital, she gave her a ride instead. As a matter of fact, I have to get Izzie's things from her."

"Do you think she's trustworthy?" Bastian asked, tilting his head as he studied me. "Bethany may have gone to her."

"I don't know." I twisted my hands in front of me as Bastian pulled me close to his side. "I know without her, Izzie would have died."

"Then, I think we should find the librarian," Gilliam said, arching a brow.

"I think you already have," Mrs. Claiborne's voice drifted from behind us. We turned to find the middle-aged woman with long black hair staring at us. Her chocolate eyes softened as they moved from me to Bastian, then to Gilliam.

He inhaled again and a grin slid over his face. "Magic," he whispered as Mrs. Claiborne smiled.

"You're a witch?" I asked but she didn't need to answer. I could feel the pull toward her and though I couldn't smell it as Gilliam did, I could sense it...the pulse and power of magic.

*************

We were in a small office inside the library twenty minutes later facing the woman who I now knew to be a witch. "Who are you?"

"A descendant of one of your witches," she said, sadly, "Just as my daughter is also a descendant."

"Your daughter?" I asked, blinking because I could not remember a time when she had mentioned her child. I suppose it shouldn't have surprised me. Mrs. Claiborne often went unnoticed.

"She's your age. Her name is Cally," She whispered, her voice trembling.

"Whose descendant are you?" I asked, my heart in my throat.

"Elenore's," she said, softly, "And I'm sure you've dreamed of her daughter, Lilly by now."

"Rebecca White...We were going to look up her married name to find her line," I said, twisting my hands in front of me suddenly nervous to be in the presence of such a powerful witch.

"There's no need for that now," she said on a sigh. "Her married name was Davies."

Gilliam moved from the wall he was leaning against with his arms crossed to stand in front of her. "How have you stayed safe?" Gilliam asked, raising his brow. "It seems everyone else's parents have perished...At least the ones we've found."

"Magic," she shrugged one delicate shoulder. "My daughter is a very skilled witch herself.  Air is our element."

"That's why you helped Izzie," I said, sighing in relief that she was able to protect her. "Did you help Bethany?"

"Bethany is safe," she said, raising her chin. "I will allow both to go with you tonight."

"They will be protected," Bastian said, his voice grim.

She nodded before straightening her spine. "I may need protection myself now too. I wouldn't ask but now, I'm in danger of facing the fire."

"What do you mean?" Bastian asked, frowning.

"I mean that Margaret saw me use magic while protecting my daughter from one of her followers," she said, softly. "Which means, they will be coming for me soon, then they will come for Cally. If they find Cally, they will find Bethany."

"Not unless they want to come to the manor," Bastian said, gritting his teeth. "We'll keep you safe. We'll keep all of you safe."

Mrs. Claiborne nodded, then took a deep breath, "And I'll help you find the others," she said and then, glanced at me. "And I can help these girls learn how powerful they really are."