Hallowed Circle

Chapter 35

The other witches were nowhere to be seen. Hunter waved and sped off to the north. I turned the broom southeast, toward home.

I rose high, leveling my ascent as the air grew cold. Cruising slowly along, I turned my face to the moon. Just past full, it was still almost whole. And it was beautiful.

Nana had said there would be a sign, and with one wide swing of a guitar, the Lustrata had left a green-and-yellow-blooded announcement: I'm here.

Many witches, and some of the waeres and vampires, would recognize what they had seen. Among them would be those who feared and loathed what I represented…

I had an opportunity, with the fey, to show all the other-than-mere-humans what I meant when I said "justice."

Nana had said, "Everyone's different agendas work against each other," and that I must find a way to maintain the balance. She said she'd seen the hostilities and that they "must be avoided at all costs." She hadn't indicated that I'd be the start of it.

Another broom came alongside me. "May we join you?" Vilna-Daluca asked.

"Absolutely."

Jeanine and Ludovika were with her.

"Xerxadrea wanted me to remind you that time runs differently in the world of the fey. We hope to have a week before they take some action, but that is not a guarantee. Boost your wards, link them to the protrepticus. We will come to you in the morning."

"Dawn?"

She sighed. "I would love to sleep in, but Xerxadrea isn't fond of it." After her words faded she kept gazing at me. She didn't seem starstruck exactly, but it was something akin to that. Like a devotee. It made me uncomfortable. I looked away.

"Is my first landing going to be a problem?" I asked.

"The brooms drive on intentions, so that's up to you."

"Thank you."

"You may thank me tonight, Lustrata. But soon we will all be thanking you," she said.

"I don't know if I can bear it," I muttered.

"And that's why I like you, Persephone." She nodded. "Until tomorrow?" she asked.

"Until tomorrow."

The three of them left me. Apparently, speed is part of that intention too. They zoomed like silent black rockets and were out of sight.

Broom-riding, I found, was actually a lot of fun and no matter how dismal the future might loom, I was in this moment.

Dipping, turning, following familiar roads from a brand new perspective, I was soon laughing out loud, going fast enough the make my new cape's length flutter out behind me. It reminded me of a roller coaster without the click of wheels on the track. It was a buoyant kind of motion, fluid. Maybe it was more like surfing, but I wouldn't know.

It wasn't long, however, before I saw a Toyota Avalon on a certain country road.

Flying low and pulling alongside, I noticed Beverley lying curled up in the backseat, her head on the pull-down armrest in the middle. Then I pulled slightly ahead.

Johnny did an open-jawed double-take at me before a grin spread across his face. He called to Beverley, who sat up and looked out her window. I saw her mouth move in a slow "Wow." Then she reached up front and took the cell phone Johnny was offering her. I could guess who she was calling.

When we came up the drive, Nana was waiting on the porch.

"Lord and Lady!" Tears brimmed in her eyes. "Riding a broom!"

After all the explanations were spoken, all the hugs passed around, Nana sent Beverley upstairs and shuffled out of the living room to follow her. In the doorway she stopped, though, and assessed Johnny and me standing there. I wanted to ask her about what she had seen in the scrying crystal, if she'd known I would start it, if she knew how it would turn out. But I didn't want her querying the crystal ball again. At least not until after we had the dining room renovation done. No, not even then. I didn't want to risk her getting hurt.

I needed her.

She said, "I'm proud of you, you know."

"I know."

"I let my resentment of your mother blind me. I'm sorry if I—"

"Nana. You molded me, for better or worse, into who I am." I held back the tears trying to get out. "Apparently, it's good enough. There's no sorry to be said."

She gave me a small, brief smile, then left Johnny and me alone.

He wiggled his eyebrows at me and, said, "Um, hey, where's that mask?"

"I still have it." I patted my black pouch. "Why?"

"Could you put it back on?" he asked.

"Why?" My suspicions were on alert.

"Because, I keep telling myself I had a normal childhood."

I blinked a few times rapidly but couldn't make the connections or guess where he was headed with this. "What has that got to do with the mask?"

"The way I figure it… every red-blooded boy wants to make out with some hot heroine from the comic books. So, you could, you know, fulfill that dream for me. Please."

I crossed my arms disapprovingly, knowing that it would increase the ample amount of cleavage already showing. "I think you used up all of your kisses the other night."

He grinned and nodded vigorously. "Yeah. I did." He took me into an embrace despite my crossed arms, arched his neck to peek down at my cleavage, then cuddled me a little and said, "I just figured that, instead of buying me a new guitar, I'd take what you owe me in trade."

There were all kinds of protests I could make about the selling of my kisses. But I didn't want to protest, even for fun. Still, my arms were trapped and I couldn't just pull him into a kiss. So I went on tiptoe and puckered up.

Johnny kissed me, once, very chastely. Then he completely released me. "That should do it," he said.

My turn to arch a brow. "Just one?"

"Hey now, we are talking about a high-quality, American-made guitar. While competitively priced, I'd never call them cheap."

"So you mean my kisses are quite valuable?"

He wistfully played with a lock of my hair on my shoulder. "Priceless, actually. But I lost a guitar, so I have to get something. One of your kisses seems fair."

"Yeah, but I distinctly remember you mentioned making out."

"That was with a hot, masked comic-book babe. But you are maskless." He leaned down. "You…" He breathed the word into my ear. "You are the Lustrata. One kiss from you outweighs a boy's dream version of a lengthy makeout session."

"So mask on, we make out, and mask off, it's just one kiss?" I reached for the mask in the pouch.

He gave me his most charming grin. "I think it's time I show you my apartment. Will that broom seat two?"