a gurgling sound coming from one of the women. She started rocking back and forth, hissing through clenched teeth. Everybody stood up and backed away from the hissing woman, eyeing her closely.
“What’s going on?” Brenna yelled, having to raise her voice over the hissing sound.
“I don’t know!” Celestine yelled back.
The high-pitched hissing became louder, piercing the air with its shrillness. Three of the cloaked women let go of their wine glasses to shield their ears. Glass shattered; wine splattered the floor. The hissing woman started spinning around, tilting her head back, flailing her arms in the air. Suddenly, she stopped spinning and stood still, her eyes rolling back.
“Brenna, don’t worry about me,” said the woman, shaking violently.
“She’s channeling!” somebody shouted. Hailstones began crashing down on the roof, hammering at their ears, making it hard to hear what was being said.
“This is Maggie…”
Before Maggie could finish delivering her message, a dark shadow formed around the circle, blowing out the candles around the room, surrounding them in darkness. The only light came from candles in the protected circle. The shadow transformed into the shape of a wolf and pawed at the ground, snarling. It jumped at the girl who was channeling Maggie but was stopped by the invisible walls of the circle. It hit the ground, letting the girl continue.
“I’m stuck in a world between ours. I want you to know that I’m okay, Brenna. He can’t hurt me while you are alive.”
The girl went limp and fell to the floor. The wolf growled menacingly at the coven members and disappeared. The hail stopped, leaving an eerie silence hanging heavily in the air.
Celestine lunged toward the girl on the floor and roused her out of her slumber. Brenna stood stunned, replaying Maggie’s words over in her mind. Knowing she had to close the circle before they could leave, she waited for Celestine to close the circle. Celestine wished the elements, the God, and Goddess farewell, thanked them for their attendance and protection, asking them to leave in peace and love. She snuffed out the two white candles. Then she extinguished the incense and the circle was closed.
One of the girls rushed over to the light switch and flicked them on, lighting up the hall. The girl who had channeled Maggie was sitting in an armchair with hooded lids. Brenna walked over to her.
“I’m so sorry,” Brenna said.
Hazel Eyes walked up behind her. “Don’t worry, Brenna. This has happened to her before. She has a gift. She doesn’t usually talk after for a while, as it takes time for the force that entered her body to completely leave.”
Celestine turned to Brenna. “Brenna, you aren’t alone. What happened tonight was a good thing. Maggie wanted to let you know she was okay and that if you want to save her you need to stay strong. Don’t be phased, that judge is scared of you; that’s why he was here. He wanted to stop Maggie from getting her message to you. He doesn’t want you to succeed.” She laid a soothing hand on Brenna’s shoulder.
“Thank you for everything, Celestine. I’d better get going before the weather gets worse,” Brenna said, listening to the wind whipping at the building.
“That’s a good idea. I have a feeling we’ll all be dreaming tonight.” Celestine winked at her and wrapped her arms around her shoulders. Brenna tensed up, remembering the hug she shared with the thing she thought was Maggie. Realizing she was safe, Brenna hugged Celestine back.
“Drive safely, Brenna.” Celestine drew her arms back and smiled at her.
“Bye, everyone.” Brenna waved at the coven members.
The girl who had channeled Maggie opened her eyes sluggishly and waved at Brenna. The rest of the group farewelled her with hugs and smiling faces.
“It was great meeting you all,” Brenna said, reluctant to leave.
She dug around in her bag for her car keys as she made her way to her car, being pelted by heavy rain. When she found her keys, she unlocked the car and hopped in. She shoved the key into the ignition and started up the car, turned out when it was clear. The window wipers groaned as they pushed a blanket of water to the side, giving Brenna just enough time to see the road was clear. She drove through the pouring rain wondering what her dreams had in store for her tonight.
Chapter Eleven
Darkwoods 1645
Jonathon helped Rowena out of the carriage and they stood on the gravel waiting for Ronan. The three of them headed for the large