Read Online Almost to Die For by Tate Hallaway - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Tate Hallaway
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I glanced up at the sky. The moon rose just above the line of trees. Its cool, subtle light cast a silvery edge on everything. Magic filled the air; I could sense it. Maybe everyone was right. Perhaps I shouldn’t be so doom and gloom. Just because my powers had never manifested before didn’t mean they wouldn’t tonight, did it? The rabbit might be a good sign after all. Weren’t bunnies supposed to be all about fertility? Maybe some wild seed would sprout inside me right now, at this instant, and everything would actually work out perfectly.
Anything was possible, right?
It’s not like I didn’t believe in magic.
Thus buoyed, I skipped down the short flight of stairs and headed for the trail that led to the glen. I was as ready for the Initiation as I’d ever be. Tall grasses tugged at my jeans, and within steps of the cabin the woods became dark. I slapped at a mosquito and stumbled over a tree root. Just when I thought I should head back to the cabin for a flashlight and bug spray, I spotted a candle in a glass bowl. It floated like a flower, shedding shimmering, delicate light on the path. Two more steps revealed another.
It was a beautiful effect. I smiled when I reached a curve in the path that was slightly elevated and could see the trail of flickering lights leading to a natural opening among the trees.
Once within the circle of trees, I saw that candles had been placed in a large circle. The coveners stood in single file around the inner edge, a circle within a circle within a circle. Everyone whose eyes met mine smiled warmly and encouragingly. Mom gave me a nod and a proud look. The person standing closest to me stepped aside, and I jumped over the candle barrier and made my way into my designated spot. A larger, unlit candle had been placed at each of the exact cardinal directions. I found the one in the east, and picked up the little book of matches with trembling hands. Diane stood in the center of the circle and gave me a broad wink.
My stomach twisted in knots. I concentrated on taking slow, deep breaths and going over the words I would say in my head. I hadn’t memorized anything specific—I wasn’t supposed to. But there was a sort of order to the ritual that involved welcoming the spirits of the air, and listing some of the qualities that I wanted to invoke for the purpose of the Initiation. But nothing stayed firmly in my head for very long, and I found myself shaking even harder by the time the others made their way along the wooded path to the glen.
Bea looked very poised and pleasantly aware of the eyes on her. Nikolai took his place with a subdued seriousness, while Shannon hopped on the balls of her feet with barely contained exuberance. I slapped at a mosquito that lit on my shirtsleeve, and tried not to barf.
Diane cleared her throat. “We are gathered here tonight on this full moon to bear witness to a momentous transformation.” Her voice was clear, and she turned slowly in place to address everyone in the circle. “Tonight novices will become one with the coven, and be True Witches in their own right. Tonight these novices will come into their power. So mote it be.”
“So mote it be,” replied the coven in unison.
Bea’s dad, who was acting the part of the high priest, picked up his broom from where it lay on the ground beside him and began symbolically sweeping the edges of the circle. He moved in a counterclockwise direction, and said, “I banish negative energy from this circle.” Occasionally, as he moved past someone, he’d take an extra moment to mime brushing them off. Bea’s dad could read auras and could tell when someone was carrying extra negativity. In his day job he was a computer programmer. Other than the thick glasses and bushy beard he wore, you couldn’t tell. He biked to work every day, and had a trim, athletic body, which was currently covered in a dark, hand-sewn tunic and jeans.
When Bea’s dad got to where I stood in the east, he batted
Anything was possible, right?
It’s not like I didn’t believe in magic.
Thus buoyed, I skipped down the short flight of stairs and headed for the trail that led to the glen. I was as ready for the Initiation as I’d ever be. Tall grasses tugged at my jeans, and within steps of the cabin the woods became dark. I slapped at a mosquito and stumbled over a tree root. Just when I thought I should head back to the cabin for a flashlight and bug spray, I spotted a candle in a glass bowl. It floated like a flower, shedding shimmering, delicate light on the path. Two more steps revealed another.
It was a beautiful effect. I smiled when I reached a curve in the path that was slightly elevated and could see the trail of flickering lights leading to a natural opening among the trees.
Once within the circle of trees, I saw that candles had been placed in a large circle. The coveners stood in single file around the inner edge, a circle within a circle within a circle. Everyone whose eyes met mine smiled warmly and encouragingly. Mom gave me a nod and a proud look. The person standing closest to me stepped aside, and I jumped over the candle barrier and made my way into my designated spot. A larger, unlit candle had been placed at each of the exact cardinal directions. I found the one in the east, and picked up the little book of matches with trembling hands. Diane stood in the center of the circle and gave me a broad wink.
My stomach twisted in knots. I concentrated on taking slow, deep breaths and going over the words I would say in my head. I hadn’t memorized anything specific—I wasn’t supposed to. But there was a sort of order to the ritual that involved welcoming the spirits of the air, and listing some of the qualities that I wanted to invoke for the purpose of the Initiation. But nothing stayed firmly in my head for very long, and I found myself shaking even harder by the time the others made their way along the wooded path to the glen.
Bea looked very poised and pleasantly aware of the eyes on her. Nikolai took his place with a subdued seriousness, while Shannon hopped on the balls of her feet with barely contained exuberance. I slapped at a mosquito that lit on my shirtsleeve, and tried not to barf.
Diane cleared her throat. “We are gathered here tonight on this full moon to bear witness to a momentous transformation.” Her voice was clear, and she turned slowly in place to address everyone in the circle. “Tonight novices will become one with the coven, and be True Witches in their own right. Tonight these novices will come into their power. So mote it be.”
“So mote it be,” replied the coven in unison.
Bea’s dad, who was acting the part of the high priest, picked up his broom from where it lay on the ground beside him and began symbolically sweeping the edges of the circle. He moved in a counterclockwise direction, and said, “I banish negative energy from this circle.” Occasionally, as he moved past someone, he’d take an extra moment to mime brushing them off. Bea’s dad could read auras and could tell when someone was carrying extra negativity. In his day job he was a computer programmer. Other than the thick glasses and bushy beard he wore, you couldn’t tell. He biked to work every day, and had a trim, athletic body, which was currently covered in a dark, hand-sewn tunic and jeans.
When Bea’s dad got to where I stood in the east, he batted
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