Blood Moon (15 page)

“Really? What a great way to hide something. How did you find it?”

“By accident. I set my coffee cup on the page and a circle of writing the size of my cup appeared. I didn’t copy the text down since I don’t want a copy of it to fall into the wrong hands, but it seems to relate to the lunar cycles. Rowan knows them by heart, so I thought I’d show her and see if she could make sense of it.
 
Plus, there is a page in the book we call the doodle page. The more I look at it, the more I am convinced that it is a clue to something about the spell.
 
The pictogram on the back seemed to relate that a heat source would find a spell.
 
That’s what the coffee cup did.
 
The pictogram had a figure of a book of spells, a sun, or candle – I’m guessing the heat source – and an evil spell. It had only just dawned on me before I fell asleep last night that it was a clue to what I had already figured out by accident.
 
If it has that clue on it, then it may hold other clues. I think we should keep it separate from the book.
 
If one falls into the wrong hands, we certainly don’t want both to be handed over. Especially if they are bold enough to just walk into the house.”

“I agree. You can keep the book in the safe if you like. Maybe you could find a spell to keep any magic from being used on the safe; that way no one who shouldn’t be in the safe can get in.”

“Yeah, that’s good. I will.”
 

Chapter 14

Later on that day, the rest of the gang came home from their camping trip. It was good to see them all so happy and laughing.
 
Darby had been worried about the werewolf issue for Allison and Dean, but by the looks on everyone’s faces, all seemed to be right with the world.
 

As they all settled into the living room, they filled in Devon and Darby on their week’s events: rafting, camping, and hiking. They were happy to be home though. All six of them talked and laughed through most of the evening, relaying stories to Devon and Darby.
 
Soon, Rowan had to bid them goodnight as she was to start classes the next morning bright and early.
 
She kissed Blake goodnight and headed for her room. Devon grabbed some of the plates, while Darby and Allison grabbed bottles and napkins that were strewn on the coffee table.
 
When they were in the kitchen, Devon spoke to Allison. “Hey, I’ve been meaning to ask you about the woman you brought to Paddy’s the night you met Dean.”

“Oh? What’s that?” Allison inquired.

“What was her name?” Devon asked.

“Allys…something, I can’t remember what she said her last name was. I do remember that she spelled her name oddly; a ‘y’ and an ‘s’ instead of an ‘ice’.” Devon looked at Darby and she back at him.
 
“Why do you ask?” said Allison.

“Oh, just a little confusion I wanted to clear up.
 
By the way, did she mention to you that she was sisters with Cheral, the woman who hit Darby’s car?”

“Hmmm. I think she did say something about that.”

“Thanks, Allison! You’ve been a big help,” Devon said and left the room.
 

“What was that about?” Allison asked Darby.
 

“Well, something happened while you guys were away that has made us a bit suspicious about Cheral and Allys. Plus there was an incident with Blake and a woman named Sally, whom we are pretty sure now is Allys.”

“Hmmm. That’s interesting. You do realize Sally and Allys are anagrams, don’t you?” Allison said.

“No, I hadn’t. What made you think of that?”

“It’s a game my brother and I used to play, mixing up letters of names to make another name. The other person had to figure out what the original name was.”

“Interesting. I’ll have to let Devon know that. Thanks, Allison.
 
That may be the key we needed to figure this out.”

“Anytime.”
 

“Just out of curiosity, can you think of one for Cheral with an ‘al’ instead of a ‘yl’?”
 

“Hmmm. Learch . . . Rachel . . .”

“Rachel?”
Sally and Rachel? Weren’t those the names on the Keatons’ family tree they had copied?
She grabbed a notepad and pencil and wrote Sally and Rachel Keaton, and then wrote Oktane.
Oh My God.
 
Oktane is an anagram for Keaton.
 
Sally and Rachel are the Keaton witches.
 

“Devon, can you come here, please!” she yelled.

Allison stood there, not sure what was going on.
 
Devon came into the kitchen followed by Dean and Blake.
 

“What is it?” Devon asked.

“Allys is Sally Keaton, and Cheral Oktane is an anagram for Rachel Keaton.
 
These two are the last of the Keatons on the family tree Rowan and I copied a couple of weeks ago.
 
Devon, where is the necklace you pulled off of Cheral?”

“On the nightstand.”
 

“Wait here.” Darby ran across the hall to the bedroom and grabbed the necklace and her notebook, and brought them both into the kitchen.
 
She flipped through the notebook to find the folded sheet with the Keaton family tree on it.
 
There in the corner was a family crest. It was the same family crest that was on the necklace.
 

“The Keaton sisters have come here to get back the spell our family took from them. Allison, if you see either one of these women, play ignorant.
 
They don’t need to know what we have figured out about them just yet.”

“Sure, but who are they and what have they done?”

“Remember when you started at the book store and I told you about the O’Rielly lineage of witches?”

“Yeah, why?”

“I found a diary our grandfather had kept and it spoke of a rival family of witches named the Keatons.
 
Several generations prior to our grandfather’s, a Keaton witch performed a very powerful spell in which she acquired an evil power.
 
She terrorized the town and everyone in it. It’s said that she was responsible for the killing of 13 young girls to power the spell.
 
Our family was asked by the elders of the town to vanquish the witch. Our ancestors wrote a spell to do so and then hid the evil spell and our vanquishing spell somewhere in our Book of Shadows. Now it seems another generation of that family has come back looking for the spell.

“Sally put some kind of love/lust spell on Blake over a week ago, that I had to counter with another spell. She had him under foot for three days. Thankfully, he didn’t know anything so he couldn’t have given them much information. Also, last night Cheral, I mean, Rachel, put some kind of sleeping spell on the house in order for her to come in and take the Book of Shadows.
 
She hadn’t anticipated that Devon had only just come home and was not affected by the spell. They had a bit of a bout and that’s how he got the necklace with the crest. I just wish that Rowan wasn’t going back to school tomorrow.
 
I could use her help with figuring some of this stuff out.

“Oh, and before any of you go anywhere tonight, let me give you a protection charm. It will prevent any magic from influencing you.
 
I’ve already given one to Blake and Devon and I will stick one in Rowan’s book bag tonight. Allison, until this is resolved, the bookstore closes before dark and I’m going to make sure that if I can’t be there with you someone will be.”

“Do you really think that’s necessary? I mean, why would they come after me?”
 

“I think they already have tried and Dean spoiled their plan.”

“What?”

“The night you met Dean, Sally was with you. I think her plan may have been to get close to you to use you some way to get at us.”

“Maybe, but I think you are grasping at straws.”

“Could be, and I hope I’m wrong, but don’t you think that being safe instead of sorry is a better plan?” She turned and ran across the hall and grabbed the wooden box she used to keep with the book and brought it into the kitchen.
 
She opened it and moved a couple of things around, looking for something, and grabbed two little velvet pouches and handed them to Dean and Allison.

Devon spoke to Dean privately in the hall.
 

“Heads up, Dean. Seems these girls have been around werewolves and/or vampires. She knew I could use my senses of smell and hearing to find her even when she cloaked herself so she also cloaked her scent and any sound she made.
 
That’s how she gave me the slip.
 
She knew she couldn’t outrun me.”

“Tricky little minxes,” Dean said. Allison looked at him in the hallway. “Sorry, Al, but you have no worries from me.
 
Yeah, Sally’s good looking, but I don’t like them sneaky – I like them redheaded and sweet,” he said.

“Is that so?” she responded. Devon and Blake chuckled.
 

“Hey guys, the camping was great and this evening was fun, but I’m going to bed too.
 
I have a flight in the morning to San Diego for an interview and I’m beat,” Blake said.

“Yeah, it’s been a long day, I think I’d like to call it a night too,” Dean said, turning to Allison.
 
“You’re welcome to spend the night, or I can take you home; whichever is fine with me.”

“I need to do some laundry and stuff, so it would probably be better if you took me home.”

“Okay. Devon, can I borrow the keys to your car so I can take Allison home?”

“No problem,” Devon said and tossed Dean the keys from across the room.

“While you are taking her home, I will go put a ward on the doors and windows over there,” said Darby.
 
“It won’t affect you at all, Dean, but it will keep out uninvited guests. I might need your help, Devon, is that okay? Plus, I need to see the book.”

She grabbed the wooden box and walked with Devon next door.
 
They waved goodbye to Allison as she and Dean drove off. Darby and Devon went to the front door first.
 

She scattered some salt at the threshold, lit a white candle and said:

“This doorstep with its welcome ways

Is guarded by a shield of rays

To guard this home by day and night

Protect it with this door of white.

Let nothing enter not of good,

And those within do as they would.

The aura left by herb and spell,

Will safely seal this entrance well.

So mote it be.”

She repeated this at the back door too.
 
She visited each window also where she recited:

“Guard this window of purest glass,

from those who think to trespass.

Keep those safe who live and dwell,

in this loving domicile.”

Then she wrote both incantations down on a piece of paper and put the Book of Shadows in the safe.
 
Devon closed it and twirled the dial.
 
Then with the candle still in hand, Darby made the sign of the pentagram on the safe door and said:

“With this pentagram I do lay,

protection here, both night and day.

And the one who should not take,

let his fingers burn and ache.

I now invoke the law of three.

This is my will, so mote it be.”

They finished and then went to Darby’s house and repeated the window and door incantations.
 

The very last thing she did was set up the altar cloth in the living room on the coffee table and lit five candles. One green for Earth, one blue for Water, one yellow for Fire, one purple for Air, and a white one in the middle.
 
Then she said:

“I call upon the power within me,

from Moon and Star, from Sun and Sea.

I call for protection, defense and safety.

It forms a force field around me and my family.

I’m protected at all times,

from cock’s crow, to clocks chime

All negativity disperse and dissolve at the sight,

of my aura of radiant light.

All harm and danger and shadows will flee,

leaving peace, love and serenity.

My family, home and loved ones are protected too,

from anything bad that may ensue.

As I will it, so mote it be.”

With the candle’s flame, she lit the piece of paper with the incantations on it, put it in a dish, and let it burn to nothing.
 
She blew out the candles one by one, kissed Devon, and said, “Let’s go to bed.”

He agreed as it had been a long day for everyone. As he locked up the house and started turning out the lights, he saw Dean pull into the driveway next door.
 
Good. Everyone is home safe and sound.