“After your last visit, I started to have dreams,” Jane admitted. “I should have told you sooner, but I thought they were just dreams until I heard the prophecy.”
“The stone keeper is supposed to see things. I’m actually surprised you didn’t see the prophecy, or did you?” Zoey asked.
“Galen is the stronger of us in terms of the stone keepers’ powers since he was born to it. He has that and the ability to heal. It was very helpful being a doctor before becoming the stone keeper. I still feel as if we’re learning so much about our calling. Luckily his grandmother left lots of journals. Anyway, the dreams were about my mother. You know I saw her killed during Alexander’s massacre.”
Zoey nodded as she measured out her flour. “Yes. You told me that you saw your parents killed and your aunt thought you’d be safe in Ian’s room, not knowing he was behind the attack too.”
“My aunt, Loralei Farrington, got me to safety and then went back to see if she could get my parents out. She was very close with her brother, my father. As you all know, the Farrington line is a very old and powerful one. However, my mother’s was too. She was just as strong until she married my father. I don’t know if he sucked the power from her with his isolation or if she just never used it.”
“A witch’s form of emotional abuse,” Zoey said sadly. “Some men can’t handle powerful women.”
“Look at me. I’m more powerful than my father ever was, at least according to Agnes and Vilma, and he sold my powers off to Ian,” Jane said, the bitterness of betrayal still in her voice. “But in my dreams, it’s my mother who is coming to me. She’s in the stones and she’s calling to me, but I can’t hear her. I rush to her, but when I get there she’s gone. Instead, I see the six of us, you, Slade, Polly, Samuel, myself, and Galen. We’re together with our hands linked. Then my mother appears over us. She says something and I can tell it’s urgent, but I can’t hear her. I wake up yelling for her to speak up.” Jane blew out a breath. The dream had seemed to become more urgent as the days passed. Her mother was desperately trying to tell her something, but what?
“The six of us again. Just like the vision I had,” Zoey said as she absently stirred the muffin mix. “That must mean something.”
“It means you should have talked to me sooner.”
Jane jumped in surprise at the new voice. She turned to see Grand Mistress Lauren sitting at the kitchen table.
“You have to stop doing that,” Zoey said with a roll of her eyes. “Grand mistress or not, it’s creepy.”
“Apparently I have to eavesdrop or I won’t learn anything. My little witches are keeping secrets.”
Jane felt like a kid being called out by a teacher. “I’m sorry, Grand Mistress. We wanted Polly and Samuel to have a day of celebration before this started.”
“What exactly is this?” the grand mistress asked with her arms crossed unhappily over her chest.
“That’s why we called the meeting,” Zoey said, stepping in to defend Jane like she always did. She was a true friend.
“Then I’ll tell everyone to hurry up.” Grand Mistress Lauren closed her eyes briefly and Jane clasped her hands to her ears. It sounded like a siren was going off in her head.
“I think that’ll do!” Zoey yelled, as she too clasped her hands over her ears even though the sound was entirely in their heads.
In seconds, the entire Tenebris and Claritase councils were in the stone keepers’ house grumbling about the early wake-up call. Jane tried to smile to greet them, but the worry sat too heavy on her heart to do so.
As soon as everyone was in the living room, Grand Mistress Lauren called the meeting to order. “Witches have been keeping secrets. This morning we lay it all out and work together to figure out whatever these secrets mean. Jane, go first.”
Jane took a deep breath and with her hand held tightly by her loving husband, told of her dream. It was time to admit their peaceful existence of the past nine months was over.
6
“A traitor, a love taken, families destroyed all for power. A masquerade hiding evil has been in place too long. It’s time to reveal who is under the mask. Only a power stronger than True Love can defeat the dark magic as evil as this,” Zoey said, repeating Helena’s words to the councils.
Everyone was quiet for a moment and then everyone started talking at once.
“What power is stronger than True Love?” Raiden of the Tenebris council asked.
Another round of everyone talking at once started up again. Slade kept his hand on hers. When Zoey looked around, she saw Jane and Galen and Polly and Samuel were each in a similar embrace. This, right here, was True Love. Raiden asked a valid question, what was stronger than the love between soul mates?
Grand Mistress Lauren held up her hand to quiet everyone. “Taken together with Jane’s dreams, we need to go to the stones for guidance. Maybe together we can gather enough power to see a vision.
“Wait,” Galen said, stopping them. “This doesn’t have to do with you all. It has to do with Jane. It’s her mother trying to reach her. It needs to be Jane who does it and Jane alone. The stones have spoken. It’s to be so.”
Zoey looked over at her friend who stood, ashen faced but stoic.
“I can’t go with you, but I’m in your heart,” Galen said to her before kissing his wife.
Zoey gave her an encouraging nod of her head as Jane looked at her. “Remember, you are stronger than you realize. You’re safe in the stones. Let your power free.”
Lauren and Magnus nodded in agreement and Jane turned on shaky legs. She walked slowly to the door and then she was gone.
The people inside the house broke off into small groups to discuss what had happened. Galen went to the window to watch his love on a journey he couldn’t help with. Slade and Samuel joined him at the window. They’d help Jane in a heartbeat if she needed it because they were friends. Was friendship the key? Was friendship more powerful than True Love?
“We knew something was coming,” her father said quietly as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “How are you doing, Jellybean?”
“Not too great, Dad. I’ve been feeling off since the vision.”
“I know.”
Zoey turned to her father. “You do?”
Her father nodded. “You’re my daughter. Of course I know when you’re not feeling well.”
“Do you know what will happen?” Zoey asked the question she didn’t know if she wanted answered.
“I don’t know how this all ends, but I know a bit about your future. However, your future is not for me to tell. It’s for you to experience. I also know we need to get back to Moonshine Hollow as soon as Jane is done. Don’t you feel it? I wonder if it’s what’s making you feel bad?” her father questioned.
“It feels like I’m being held down. It’s hard to take a full breath even though I know my lungs work. My heart pounds and my stomach feels as if I’m on a boat,” Zoey admitted.
Her father nodded. “I feel most of that too, especially the weight of dread. It’s coming. And once again it’s up to my daughter to defeat it. I would take your place if I could. I might not be in the vision but I’ll be there by your side. I’m your father and I will die to protect you.”