Sweaty Nights & Gator Bites (Twisted Sisters Midlife Maelstrom #12)

Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12

DEANDRA

T he air in ladies’ parlor was thick with the scent of old parchment and the faint, lingering aroma of the bagel I’d eaten half an hour ago. I sat on the couch looking through one of the rare manuscripts Marie had provided open on my lap. Its pages were fragile, aged by centuries, and covered in intricate symbols and delicate script. The weight of its history and the power it contained was pretty impressive. I understood how her family got into power.

Adèle’s presence was a comforting constant beside me. She lounged gracefully on the back of the couch but her eyes were sharp and attentive. They flicked between me and the manuscript. “ Look for the references to the lunar phases,” she suggested. Her voice was a soothing whisper in my mind. “ They often hold the key to the most potent rituals. ”

I nodded, carefully turning the pages. My fingers lightly traced the faded ink. Before becoming a hybrid witch, I’d never encountered treasure troves of ancient wisdom like this. I spent my nights in the ICU caring for neuro patients. I still did, but on my days off, my life was filled with supernatural hijinks.

Reading over the incantations and rituals on the page I wondered how much harder it was going to be to keep my mundane job. I needed it to ground me. Being an empath and seeing spirits no one else could took its toll on me and it was nice to get a break at the hospital. The book’s latent power hummed beneath my fingertips and brought me back into focus.

The language was archaic. It was a blend of old French and even older dialects. Fortunately, I could understand enough to piece together the ritual’s meanings. “ Here ,” Adèle pointed out, her tail flicking towards a particular passage. “ This section speaks of aligning energies with the phases of the moon. It's crucial for the success of the summoning.”

I leaned closer and my eyes narrowed as I deciphered the text. “It says that during the full moon, the veil between our world and the spirit realm is thinnest. I already knew that. What is different? Other than it is the night before the reunion?" The thought of the ritual made my heart pound. The power it promised was immense but so was the potential for disaster if anything went wrong.

Adèle's mental voice was calm and reassuring. “ I recommend summoning them the night before the reunion, so it takes less from you. That will also mean you need to contain them longer. ”

I sighed as the ramifications hit me. “The families will know this information as well. Which means it gives them another day to make their move. If I make a mistake, the consequences could be catastrophic. I need to be certain I can control the energies I'll be unleashing for that long.”

Adèle's eyes softened. “ That's why you must prepare meticulously. Every detail must be perfect. The ancestors will understand the sincerity of your intent.”

“And hopefully cooperate,” I snorted. We both knew they could make this harder for me. “Okay, so I need to think about this as a whole. It's not just about summoning the spirits. It's about healing a fractured legacy and restoring balance. Most of them seemed to want that as well.”

The next few hours passed in a blur of my mind running around in circles going through everything that needed to be done. My sisters could help with some of it. Unfortunately, the bulk of the work would fall on me. I meticulously copied the key incantations into our family Book of Shadows as Lia and Dani’s girls had dubbed it. I copied the original with annotations so we had the original as well as my translations. I was sure to include the notes on their proper execution according to Marie’s ancestors. Our family was different and might be able to adapt this. This wasn’t the time to experiment with it, but I would eventually. Lia’s daughter Tegan was showing early signs of seeing ghosts, so I wanted to have as much as possible to help her develop her powers.

Adèle's voice interrupted my musings. “ Look here,” she indicated another passage. “These protective wards should be added to the set up before the ritual. They are Voodoo and designed to keep out any unwanted entities which will help ensure the summoning is safe.”

I studied the passage, committing it to memory. “These wards require a blend of herbs and crystals blessed in specific ways. How can we perform Voodoo magic? It’s not in our wheelhouse of fun.” My sisters and I had shown power inherited from a variety of magical types, but none of us had shown one iota of those powers. “Do we arrange them in this specific pattern around the gazebo? Will it even work for us?”

“ No, you will not be able to perform the magic like Marie or another Voodoo practitioner. You draw them and the ancestors will power them. It’s simply an additional layer, ” Adèle explained.

The first rays of dawn were cutting through the thick curtains of the ladies' parlor when my sisters joined me. I had been up all night, unable to sleep. The intricate work of the summoning preparations consumed me. My eyes burned from lack of rest, but the sight of my sisters brought a flicker of relief.

“Morning, everyone,” I greeted them, trying to muster a smile despite the exhaustion.

“Couldn't sleep?” Dani asked. Her brow furrowed with concern as she settled into a plush armchair.

“No,” I admitted. “There's just so much to do, and the summoning has to be perfect.”

Cami entered the room, carrying a tray laden with breakfast. “I figured you all could use a good meal,” she said, setting it down on the low table. The aroma of fresh croissants and strong coffee filled the room.

“How did you do all this so fast?” Dani asked as Dre joined us. She had a house about thirty feet east of the main house.

“I’ve developed precognitive abilities,” Cami chuckled. “Seriously, though. I heard Dea up talking to Adèle and knew she had been up awhile so I started breakfast rather than disturb her.”

I smiled gratefully at her. “You’re an angel. I needed this. Thank you.”

We helped ourselves to the food. As we ate, I began explaining what Adèle and I had discussed. “We need to add Voodoo symbols around the gazebo and the tent where we'll be summoning the ancestors. These symbols will activate once the spirits arrive and provide an extra layer of protection. ”

Phi looked up from her coffee, intrigued. “What do we need for the symbols?”

I listed off the supplies: “We'll need specific herbs, crystals, and a few other items. The symbols have to be drawn precisely, using a mixture of the herbs and crystal dust.”

Cami nodded. “Marie left a package for you yesterday. She said it had everything you'd need.”

We all turned to the package sitting on a side table. Lia retrieved it and opened it to reveal an assortment of herbs, crystals, and other ritual supplies. I underestimated Marie’s desire to heal her family and forge a new path. It took courage to change course and go against tradition. Not to mention the evil loa that held something over their family’s head.

“Perfect,” I said as a wave of relief washed over me. “We should get these symbols on the ground before we get busy for the day. Since there's no magic involved in the drawing itself, it should be straightforward.”

We finished our breakfast quickly and headed outside. The air was cool and fresh. In a couple of hours, that wouldn’t be the case. Lia had the box of supplies and I carried our Book of Shadows. We crossed to the gazebo and I flipped to the pages where I had meticulously drawn the Voodoo symbols we needed.

We spread out around the gazebo, each taking a section to work on. The morning light cast long shadows across the grass as we carefully recreated the symbols from the book. We worked in pairs. It was easy when we didn’t have to infuse it with magic.

Lia was kneeling beside me, working on a particularly complex design, when suddenly her gaze went blank. Her body went rigid, and she started to fall backward. Dre lunged forward just in time to catch her. Thank the gods, she prevented her head from hitting the ground .

“Lia!” Dre exclaimed, easing our sister to the grass.

My heart lurched as we all gathered around her. “She’s having a vision,” Dani interjected as my mind was wondering what could have happened.

“Gods, that scared the hell out of me,” I admitted as the vise around my chest eased.

“It’s always frightening when it happens,” Phi agreed. She had visions of a different kind. Hers were closer to those had by the oracle. They were vague prognostications with far-reaching consequences where Lia’s were triggered by scents and targeted to specific events.

We all hovered around waiting for Lia to come back to herself. A few seconds later, she blinked a couple of times and looked around. She was initially disoriented but quickly regaining her composure. “I saw something,” she said, her voice shaky. “There were dark figures invading the plantation during the reunion. The new wards... we never tested them. We just assumed they'd work and didn’t check to make sure.”

Adèle's voice echoed in our minds, urgent and clear. “ You need to test the wards immediately .”

We exchanged grim looks. Dani stood and pulled out her phone. “Let's test the wards now. I’m going to send a text to Kai and Hank and ask them to try to arrange for someone to sneak onto the property in ten minutes. We shouldn't take any chances.”

“They can’t come in gunning for us. They’d have to target a visitor to the property. The problem is the only person here is Fred and he’s pruning the bushes around the pool,” Lia added.

Dre inclined her head. “Relay that the target should be Fred. We should finish the symbols here and then pivot. We’re almost done.”

We finished what we had been working on and gathered our supplies. The mood among us was excited as we gathered in the yard to test out our experimental wards. It was stupid of us not to have tested them sooner. In our defense, everything had come relatively easy to us with regard to our powers. It was the only reason we were able to combat as much evil as we had. If it had been harder to master things, we would have been killed the first week.

Tall oaks and cypress trees surrounded us. Their branches cast intricate shadows on the ground as the sun dipped lower in the sky. The scent of magnolias and damp earth mingled with the faint hint of magic that always lingered at Willowberry. The soft hum of the waterfall in the pool not far away provided a backdrop to our focused efforts.

“Alright, let’s try turning the wards on and off,” Dre instructed, her voice steady and authoritative. “We need to make sure we can control them flawlessly. Then we need to check that there are no holes in them.”

“I’ve alerted the shifters to test them all,” Lia said.

We formed a circle on the lush green lawn, each of us focusing our energy on the new wards surrounding our property. I felt the familiar surge of magic flow through me, connecting with my sisters’ energies. “ Feel how they aren’t active ,” Adèle told us. “ Now, turn them on. Your intent should be clear to turn them on. ” We did as instructed and the wards shimmered to life. An almost invisible barrier that hummed with power, casting a faint, bluish glow around the perimeter of Willowberry. That was new. Our wards didn’t usually do that.

“Now, off,” Dre said, her eyes closed in concentration.

We collectively willed the wards to deactivate, feeling the shift in the air as the barrier dissipated. Adèle, lounging nearby with her sleek, gray fur catching the light. She was observing our efforts with keen interest. Her voice echoed in our minds, a soothing presence. “ You’re getting better at this. The on and off switch is crucial for the flexibility you need. ”

We repeated the process several times, each time feeling more confident in our ability to control the wards at will. The faint hum of the barrier became a comforting background noise. I saw it as a reminder of our growing strength and unity. Just as we were catching our breath, Dani's phone rang. It was Kai, one of the shifters. “We've been testing the wards and found a weak spot near the eastern boundary,” he reported.

“Give us five and then test the area again,” she replied to him. “I’m going to stay on the phone so you can tell us if it worked.”

“ Follow my instructions to fix it .” Adèle's voice echoed in our minds again.

We turned to face the eastern boundary, where Kai and Hank were waiting. We fine-tuned our magical senses as our familiar instructed. The weak spot was barely noticeable. It felt like a slight flicker in the barrier. We cast another of the new wards there.

“We can’t get through,” Kai called out through the speaker of my phone.

“Perfect. Thanks for spotting this,” I replied.

I was about to suggest we go back to the bayou and find Remy when Adèle's voice echoed in our heads. “ You should call Kaitlyn. Leave the wards up. I want her to discover what you can do. ”

My brow furrowed as I looked down at the cat. “You want us to flaunt what we can do to her?”

Adèle shot me a haughty look. “ She needs to know what you six are capable of. Plus, her expertise could be invaluable for this investigation. ”

Dre pulled out her phone and dialed, her expression tense. "Kaitlyn, it’s Dre. We need your help with Marie’s reunion and the recent murders in the bayou. Can you visit us to discuss everything?"

There was a brief pause before Kaitlyn responded, “Absolutely. I’ll have Kaveh bring me there right away.”

A few seconds later, Dre's phone rang again. Kaitlyn's voice came through, sounding frustrated. “Dre, we can’t get through. Something’s blocking us.”

Dre looked at me, then nodded decisively. “We will turn off the wards,” she told her. “Try again, Kaitlyn.”

Kaitlyn began to sputter, “But that’s no?—”

“Just do it,” Dre cut her off, hanging up before Kaitlyn could say anything else.

We quickly turned off the wards, the air around us felt lighter almost immediately. Woah. That added a lot of power to the property. We waited until the air shimmered and Kaitlyn appeared before us. Her eyes were wide with shock. She was dressed in her usual elegant, yet practical attire. Her long black hair cascaded over her shoulders.

“Finally,” Dre muttered, relieved. “We’ve got too much to do to waste time.”

“How did you manage to create wards that you can turn on and off?” she asked by way of greeting. She was clearly impressed. Her brown eyes scanned the perimeter of Willowberry. We turned them back on, making her and Kaveh gasp.

Adèle’s mental voice provided the explanation. “ It’s thanks to their mixed heritage. The combination of their magical lineages allows them to manipulate the wards in ways most witches can’t. ”

Kaitlyn nodded, her eyes shimmering with understanding. “This is incredible. It adds a level of control and security I’ve never seen. You’ve truly outdone yourselves. ”

“We’re glad you’re impressed,” I said, stepping forward. “We had to do it to prevent some assholes from trying to steal the power from Marie’s ancestors after I summon them.”

Lia inclined her head. “And then there are the murders in the swamp. Someone is stealing the power of the gator shifters’ lands along with other hotspots in the bayou."

Kaitlyn’s expression turned serious, her features tightening with determination. “Tell me everything. We’ll get to the bottom of this.”

We gathered on the patio around the biggest table. Lia and Dre went into the caterer’s kitchen where we kept drinks and brought some out for everyone. As we recounted Lia’s vision, the information we had, and the potential threat from the Montclairs, Dubois, and Rousseaus. Kaitlyn listened intently. Her fingers tapped lightly on her knee as she processed the information. Her mind worked quickly to piece together the puzzle.

“These families have ancient magic,” she said, her voice thoughtful. “Their power is formidable in itself. Why would they want to taint it with Marie’s power? They practice different magic. And historically, they worked together. It makes no sense.”

Dre smirked, her confidence returning as she crossed her arms over her chest. “Tell us something we don’t know.”

Kota leaned forward, her eyes reflecting the glow of the setting sun. “Don't forget about that asshole, Garrick. He's killing people and infecting the swamp so he can draw on that power.”

“I don’t have answers, but I will start looking. Next time call me sooner. I had no idea anything other than the reunion was going on.” Kaitlyn stood up, her posture radiating resolve. “I’ll help you prepare for the summoning as well. ”

The challenges ahead were daunting, but with Kaitlyn’s expertise and Adèle’s guidance, I felt a renewed sense of hope. The safety of the Leveau spirits and the balance of power in the bayou depended on us succeeding. Failure wasn’t an option.