A Werewolf, A Vampire, and A Fae Walk Into A Bar (Book 1 of The Last Witch Series) novel Chapter 48

Nanny’s eyes are full of light even as the rest of her begins to fade. I committed a great act of evil that was inspired by the greatest love when I stole your magic to bring your mother back. It is not for witches to interfere with the destinies of others. My beautiful granddaughter, I am giving you back your destiny. I will be here, watching over you. Watching over Rain.

My body burns, but this time it is a welcome fire that sparks my soul to life, a part of me I didn’t even know was dead until now.

But at what cost? My Nanny has almost entirely disappeared. The outlines of her body are fading like smoke dissipating on the wind. Only her face remains clear. Her eyes, still full of so much love.

But girl, know this, she says, her voice becoming faint even in my mind. It was always you.

And then, she is gone. I feel it the moment her soul departs this world, as all the power she released slams into me.

I scream.

The sound of my voice rings through the forest, waking up all the creatures who live here, driving magic into each leaf, each blade of grass, each stray rock.

Time--which was at a standstill--now snaps into motion, my mother moving to sacrifice my child over the fire. The whole interlude with Nanny happened in the blink of an eye, so my mom never saw Tilly. She doesn’t see what has changed in me.

With instinct born of desperation and fear, I push it all out of me, every drop of magic I feel swelling within. I can’t tell if I’m reigning power in from the natural world or if it’s all emanating from my own being. I’m acting without thinking, and the result is a tsunami of electricity.

Light crashes over the Order, my mother, everyone near me.

While the world bends and shakes around me, I set my intention to one thing only.

Save Rain.

I must save Rain.

My eyes stay focused squarely on my baby as wave after wave of brilliant light crashes through the others. They scatter and fall to the ground, stunned or unconscious. If a fallen witch tries to stand back up, she’s immediately struck down again. Meanwhile, Rain floats gently on a soft, glowing cloud, safely above the fire.

My gaze never leaves her as I walk to the fire’s edge. She’s hovering just above the flames, the same ones that were meant to consume her life, and yet I feel no fear. She’ll wait for me. She is safe.

I pull her from the floating stasis and move away from the blaze, squeezing her in my arms. “Oh sweetheart, are you okay?” I check her little body for any injury, the light from my fingertips soaking into her soft skin. She coos, grasping at the glowing streaks my magic leaves.

I stand amidst the chaos my power has created, but my feet do not sink into the snow. Instead, I find myself floating above the earth, moving toward my mother, who was blasted to the ground and now struggles to right herself.

She stares at me, slack jawed. While the other Order members lay motionless, my mother is still alert. Whether that’s because she’s the stronger witch or my subconscious intention was to leave her standing I cannot say.

“How did… where did you get such power?” she asks, fear in her eyes for the first time tonight.

“It is mine by blood,” I say. “And you are done here.”

My mother’s lips curl like a rabid dog and she reaches for her wand and pulls at the blue fire still burning between us.

“I didn’t want it to be this way,” she says. “I wanted to spare you. But you’ve made that impossible.”

With a flick of her wrist, she casts the fire at Rain and me, intent on completing what she started, even if it means I die with my daughter.

Without thought, without knowing what I’m doing, I call my magic to me on instinct. My intent is enough. A golden shield forms around my child and myself, and when the blue fire comes for us, it is repelled backward by the vibrant light.

My mother’s eyes widen. Before she can manage a scream, the fire wraps around her body, her own flames consuming her.

As relieved as I am to be alive, I can’t help but feel the pain of losing her all over again.

I hold Rain so she can’t see her grandmother die, but I watch. I bear witness to the consequences of messing with dark magic. Of bringing back the dead. And trying to kill the innocent.

When her screams die to nothing, the fire flashes. I blink, and when I open my eyes again, my mother is gone. Nothing remains of her body but a dim blue light fading out into the night.

Around the eternal witch’s fire lay the remains of the Order, all unconscious but alive.