Chapter 10

CHAPTER TEN

FRANKIE

I jumped out of the car and took my first deep breath since arriving in this town. Something about the crisp, salty ocean air just hit a reset button for me. Talking to Elizabeth had helped re-center me, and her staying on the phone while I set up my room really helped me get it done. But getting to see the beach before I started school was crucial for my well-being. If there was anything good that came out of this move, it was the closeness to the ocean. Back home the drive to the beach was a much bigger commitment.

"I need my toes in the sand."

Uncle Kyle turned to face me, but there was no smile on his face, and his silver eyes lacked their playful sparkle. "Before we go out there, we need to go over something."

My pulse skipped. "What is it?"

Aunt Kimmy walked up to stand beside him. Her face was grim. "Listen, we've mentioned demons before but you've yet to see one. This is not a joking matter. We need your undivided attention before we go onto that sand."

I swallowed roughly. "Well, you've definitely got it now."

"Good. Most witches don't know that there are demons in the ocean." I must've made a face because she nodded. "They're drawn to magic and power, so The Coven living here for twelve years had its effect. The demons linger because of it."

My heart pounded in my chest. I leaned to the side to eye the shoreline behind them. "So, there are demons in that water? Now?"

"No. And yes." Aunt Kimmy grimaced as she tied her blonde hair up in a ponytail. "They're not just sitting there, but any little bit of magic can summon them, so you need to be careful and very, very observant."

I nodded and wrung my hands together. "Okay. Um . . ."

"Breathe, Franks. We're not trying to scare you. We just want you to know the truth of the world so you're not caught by surprise." Uncle Kyle squeezed my shoulder. "You're going to learn what to do, and what not to do, but for tonight we just need you paying attention to us. "

"If we say to do something, you have to listen. Not because you're a child, but because you're untrained. Got it?"

"Yes, coach. Got it." I gave them two thumbs-up. "You just say how high, and I jump."

Uncle Kyle narrowed his silver eyes on me. "Maybe we should give her a bat, just in case?"

"I left one in the trunk?—"

"On it." He did a swish and flick with his wand, and by the time I glanced over my shoulder, I saw my Louisville Slugger flying straight toward us. "Good thinking, love."

I reached out and caught the bat, the grip against my palm instantly calming my nerves. "Okay, but like . . . am I supposed to carry my bat around with me everywhere? It's a bit big and can I actually kill a demon with it?"

Uncle Kyle's silver eyes sparkled. "Actually, I have a great idea. Let me see that bat?"

I handed it to him and arched my eyebrow. "Gonna wrap some chains around it like in The Walking Dead?"

He grinned and wagged his eyebrows. I was about to ask questions when he pulled his wand out and pointed it at my bat. Silvery light sparkled around my bat for a few seconds before it shrank down to about two inches tall. Another flick of the wand and a silver key ring dangled from the handle. "There, now it's a keychain so you'll always have it."

I chuckled and reached for it. "Whoa."

"Hold that thought." Aunt Kimmy took my miniature bat turned keychain and then grabbed my hand and pressed it to my palm. "Close your hand around it."

It tingled against my fingers as I squeezed it in my closed hand. "Now what?"

"Picture a dagger," she said softly. "Any dagger."

I stammered and my mind went blank. "Uh . . ."

Silvery magic hit my arm, causing little neon-blue flames to dance along my skin. I gasped and an image of a dagger filled the dark canvas of my mind. I saw it clear as day, as if I were holding it. Those blue flames shot down to my hand and then crawled between my fingers. Warmth filled my palm. The keychain vibrated against my skin for a second, then a long silver blade popped out the bottom of my hand. It was about six inches long and curved slightly halfway down. My eyes widened. The hilt poked out the top of my clasped fist. It was crystal-clear and curved in the opposite direction of the blade with intricate gold inlay at the top. I opened my palm and found more of that gold inlay around the base of the hilt and along the sides of the blade.

I blinked a few times, just staring down at this gorgeous weapon in my hand. "I . . . I saw this on Pinterest . . ."

Uncle Kyle pursed his lips and nodded. "Well done, Franks."

"Now what?" My voice came out a little too squeaky for my liking.

"You're going to recite a spell that will change this dagger into your baseball bat and vice versa. Once you learn how to use your magic, you might not need to say the words, but for now, the words will suffice. All you have to do is take a deep breath and recite the spell in your mind, no need to say it out loud. So do it with me . . ." She took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, then waited for me to copy. With a nod, she softly chanted four lines in perfect poetic verse.

I licked my lips, then recited the words she'd said. " Take this image in my mind, transform my weapon now in kind. By way of water, strength in might, hold thy magic for my echoed rite."

Blue flames spread across the dagger, swallowing it whole in the blink of an eye. No sooner did the magic cover it did it change back into a full-sized baseball bat. I frowned. The bat had been two inches long a minute ago—the bat vibrated in my hand, then shrank back down to the keychain size Uncle Kyle had given me. My eyes widened.

"Now, where's your phone?"

I pulled my iPhone out of my pocket and held it up to her. "Why?"

"Repeat after me . . . In Aether's name, I call to me . . . "

"In Aether's name, I call to me."

" Deceive the mind for all to see."

"Deceive the mind for all to see," I repeated. The bat keychain turned cold instantly. When I looked down, I found it had turned into a two-dimensional sticker of a bat. "What am?—"

"Put the sticker on the back of your phone case."

At this point, I was beyond questioning why, so I just peeled the back off the sticker and stuck it to my phone case. Once I ran my finger over the sticker to ensure it was flat, I looked back up to my aunt. "Now what?"

"Now, when you need a weapon, you'll always have it, since you teenagers never go anywhere without your phones." She winked playfully, then tapped on the sticker. "Just press your finger to the sticker and recite the spell you just used."

"Go ahead. Try it, Franks."

I shrugged. " In Aether's name, I call to me, deceive the mind for all to see. "

Sure enough, the sticker instantly popped off my phone case and landed in my palm in the form of the miniature baseball bat. I shook my head. " Take this image in my mind, transform my weapon now in kind. By way of water, strength in might, hold thy magic for my echoed rite."

Right as those blue flames appeared, I pictured the dagger in my mind and the bat changed into it immediately. I grinned and recited the spell again, this time picturing a full-sized bat. For a good minute I practiced these spells over and over, changing the weapon into a sticker and back again.

Uncle Kyle chuckled. "Show off."

"I call it teamwork, love." Aunt Kimmy nudged him with her shoulder. "Feel better about it now? The demons?"

I barked a sarcastic laugh. "Hardly. Can you give me an idea what the demons might look like?"

"They're black. Darker than night itself." She tapped on her cheek just below her eyes. "And their eyes are bright, glowing red."

Uncle Kyle snapped his fingers. "And they smell like maple syrup."

My eyes widened. "Seriously?"

"That's usually a good warning sign, but if they're in the water, you won't smell them." He gave me two thumbs-up and grinned. "All right, sandy toes time. Let's go."

I changed my weapon back into a full-sized bat because that was my comfort zone. This whole talk about demons had me on edge, so I wanted to be ready. Aunt Kimmy hooked her arm around mine, leaving my right hand free to swing that bat if I needed to. Together we followed my uncle over the small dune and onto the open beach. I kicked my flip-flops off immediately and didn't bother to pick them up. I'd grab them on my way back to the car. The feel of the powdery soft sand squishing between my toes felt like coming home. I smiled as a chunk of pressure eased off my chest. It was a gorgeous, crystal-clear night without a cloud in sight. Nothing but diamonds twinkling in the midnight-black sky. The waning crescent moon was a tiny sliver of gold in the dark, barely illuminating anything yet painfully beautiful all the same.

The Gulf of Mexico was a soft lullaby, waves gently rolling onto the shore. The three of us walked until our toes sank in the wet sand and the next wave washed over our bare feet. We all sighed. For a moment we just stood there in silence, letting the ocean heal the trauma in our hearts. The beach had always been a special place for us. We always made time for it. But we'd never lived this close, and now I was kind of mad we hadn't.

We're here now, Frankie. Just enjoy it.

"This was a good decision," Uncle Kyle whispered from my right side.

Aunt Kimmy chuckled softly. " I can't believe we were going to not come tonight."

I smiled and pulled both of them tighter to me. "Can we sit for a few minutes? I know it's late but . . ."

"But?" they both asked in perfect unison.

I shrugged. "I'd like to know more about this witch society of ours before I go to a school with witches in attendance. Ya know, to reduce the risk of embarrassing myself?"

They laughed and nodded, then led me back a few feet to sit on the dry, powdery sand. We sat in a line, with them on either side of me like a protective bubble. I wasn't mad about that. Frat boys were one thing, demons were totally different. We sat in silence for a few minutes, just enjoying the salty cool breeze sweeping across our faces. I silently willed my bat to return to its sticker form on the back of my phone, then shoved my phone into my pocket.

Eventually, Aunt Kimmy cleared her throat. "So, is there something specific you wanted to know?"

I frowned. "Well . . . you said witches live here in this town. Why here? You might have told me but it's a lot to remember."

"Fair. I can't remember if I told you or not." She chuckled. "So to make a very long story short, in 1692 two members of The Coven accidentally ripped a hole in the barrier protecting our realm from the other dangerous ones—like Lilith's or the Fae. This hole let any monster or demon from other realms walk right in. It was very dangerous. They patched the hole temporarily, but in doing so the pressure caused smaller holes to burst open around the world. These were referred to as Gaps. The largest Gap in the whole world was right here in Tampa, so for the last decade, The Coven has been stationed here to monitor and maintain demon activity."

"That Gap was closed in October, by the way." Uncle Kyle sighed heavily. "Won't lie, I had no interest in living here while it was open."

"And where The Coven lives, civilians will follow . . . like a moth to a flame. We can't help it."

I nodded and rubbed my hands together. "Right. I guess I get that. So, where else do civilians live?"

"Everywhere. Anywhere." Uncle Kyle ran his hands through his black hair. "There are arcana headquarters in most of the major cities around the world: New York, Boston, LA, Miami to name a few. The Coven appoints witches to run them and sort of be in charge of the cities, along with Knights who will fight any demons who roll into town."

"Right. Makes sense." I spun the crystal ring around my finger and watched the waves. "Here I was expecting you to say there was our own version of Hogwarts somewhere."

"Oh," they both said at the same time.

I glanced back and forth. "What?"

"There are two schools."

My eyes widened. "What? Where? Why didn't we go there?"

Uncle Kyle grimaced. "See, the thing is, there's a place called Eden that is witch home country. Humans cannot enter Eden, and there's a magical barrier wall to keep demons out. It's our safe place, or it is supposed to be."

"Where is this home country?"

"It moves. Throughout the history of the world, Eden has been in different locations. In Ancient Greece, the Greek humans thought Eden was Mount Olympus . . . The Romans saw us the same. For a few centuries, Eden was in Europe. But it's been in the United States since the late 17th century. It was first in Salem, but in 1692 it moved to the Appalachian Mountains down in the Tennessee and Carolinas area."

"I'm going to have a lot of questions about how that works later, though that doesn't answer why we didn't move there instead."

"We thought about it back before the accident. There's a school there called Edenburg for all witches . . ." he shook his head, "but with Lilith's new war looming, things are a mess. The Coven had to evacuate all of Eden in December. They just had a massive mini-war there last week, so we figured maybe Eden wasn't the best decision just yet."

"Edenburg must be epic."

They nodded.

Aunt Kimmy cleared her throat. "In the fall, The Coven opened up a magic school in Manhattan. Everyone is pretty excited about it. But we figured you'd prefer this to the big city."

This was the ocean. I nodded. "You're probably right about that."

"We know this is a hell of a lot to take in at once." Uncle Kyle bumped my shoulder with his. "We wanted this to be as stress-free and easy as possible."

"There are witches here your age. Well, of all ages. From diapers to dentures." She giggled at her own joke. "But the teens at the high school have all grown up with magic, and they'll be great mentors for you to start learning, which is why we wanted you to start school immediately so you can meet them."

Butterflies danced in my stomach at the mention of school. I was suddenly nervous. I wrung my hands together to hide the shaking. "Do you think they'll know I'm a witch too? How will I spot them?"

She pursed her lips. "You should feel the difference between human and arcana, but don't worry, they'll spot you."

"They'll spot me? Why? Do I look different? Do I look non-human?"

They shook their heads, but Aunt Kimmy was the one who answered. "You're new to your magic, but once you get comfortable, you'll realize you can feel magic in other people. They're not rookies, so they'll feel your magic right away."

"And then they'll hear your name." Uncle Kyle leaned into me. "You're a Proctor, like me. That's a big deal in our community."

I scowled. "Being a Proctor is a big deal? Then why did you change your name?"

His cheeks flushed. "Because the Proctor name was being carried on by your parents, so I decided to take my wife's name when we married so her name would not die off."

"That's sweet of you." I smiled. "But why are we a big deal?"

He took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled. "Right. Long story short again, when arcana were created, there were one hundred bloodlines, but only twenty of those founding bloodlines survived. One of those founding family bloodlines was the Proctor line. Our line."

"Wow." A cold chill slid down my spine, so I shivered. "We're a founding family. That's intense. What are the other nineteen lines?"

"The Lancasters were the first, birthed from the angel Jophiel. They are the keepers of the light. Most of them live in England, except for Jackson Lancaster who is in The Coven." He frowned. "Though I did hear rumor that the entire Lancaster bloodline just moved to Eden. So that'll be interesting, and more reason to steer clear of there for now."

"Okay . . . so Lancaster and Proctor . . ." I waved them on. "Who else? Who was next?"

Aunt Kimmy pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes like she was thinking really hard. "The order is a little fuzzy. It was a long, long time ago. But what's important are the bloodlines that survived. Lancaster was first of all of the one hundred, and they survived. The second of the one hundred was the Bishop line. They also survived. They're one of the most important lines because they are and always have been the strongest with magic."

"So, the first line are the keepers of the light and the second line are the most powerful? Did I get that right?" When they nodded, I continued, "Are there any Bishops in The Coven now? You said there's a Lancaster."

They both laughed.

I scowled. "What's funny?"

"Like half of The Coven are Bishops." Uncle Kyle snorted as he scooped a handful of sand and let it slide between his fingers.

Aunt Kimmy rolled her hazel eyes. "Not half, but a good chunk. There's Tegan Bishop who is one of The Coven leaders, and her twin sister, Emersyn, and two brothers, Cooper and Bentley. Hunter and Devon are their parents, and they have an uncle named Kessler."

"That is a lot. Are there Proctors like us?"

Uncle Kyle grinned. "Oh yeah. The other Coven Leader is Haven Proctor, but everyone calls him Tennessee. His sister, Bettina, is in The Coven. Kenneth and Saraphina Proctor used to be, but they've retired from The Coven now."

I frowned. "Wait, so then I'm related to The Coven leader and his sister?"

He wagged his eyebrows. "See why I said your name would stick out? Literally every witch in the world knows Haven Proctor's name, even if they refer to him as Tennessee. He's basically worshipped like a god by civilians, and rightfully so. His sister is quite a badass too. And while that might feel like big shoes to fill, remember that they'll want to help you."

"Why?"

"Because no one—and I mean no one —wants to be on Tennessee's bad side."