Into the Light

77

I had to park a couple of blocks away because of the little benefit that Amethyst had warned me about. The streets were way busier than they usually were and cars lined the sides of the road. Sam and I got out, and I locked my car. "Does you feel like something bad is about to happen?" Sam asked, after we walked about a block. I sighed. "Yeah, I kinda do." "I guess I was hoping that all of this was over," he replied. "Me too," I said. When we made it to the park, I pulled out my phone and called Amethyst. "Hey, we're here," I said, when she answered. "Where are you?" She rattled off where she was located and Sam and I headed in that direction. When we got closer to the fountain, I started scanning the people and areas that she might've been. "She said she was over here," I told Sam and started walking in that direction. I didn't see her, but I heard someone call my name. I turned in the direction of the sound and saw her. She was sitting on the ground, under a tree. I thought that was a little strange but hey, normal is overrated. "Hey Amethyst," I said, holding my hand up in greeting when we got close. Sam nodded at her and smiled. "Hey, I'm glad you both could make it," she replied, like she knew that Sam was going to come with me. Maybe she did. "Would you like to take a seat or find somewhere else? I just like this spot because I feel closer to the Earth here," she said. "Uh, here is fine," I replied. Sam and I both sat in the grass and crossed our legs. "So, what's going on?" I asked, wanting to just get right to the point. She took a deep breath and looked to the sky. "You can see some of the stars tonight. Did you notice? Usually, you can't because of the pollution but sometimes, if we're lucky, the stars will show themselves," she said, quietly. My forehead creased in confusion but I looked up to the sky myself. She was right. There were a good few stars twinkling above us. "Yeah...it's nice," I replied. She brought her eyes back to us and nodded. "I guess I should start telling you what is going on. Please bare with me. It's hard to talk about because I'm not sure how much I can actually say without...drawing HER attention." Sam and I both nodded and waited for her to begin. "It started the night that I helped bring Anna's soul return to her body. When I got back to my home, I realized that I was completely and utterly drained. I wasn't that surprised, because I had just completed a complicated spell. Joining someone's soul and body is a complex situation where something could've easily went wrong. But I digress," she said, with a wave of her hand. "I decided to go to bed early that night to try and get my strength back. I knew that I had a lot of customers the next day and I had quite literally been drained dry with that spell." Jesus Christ, she was taking forever! I had a heavy foreboding feeling in my stomach with each word she spoke. Could she please just hurry the fuck up?! "I had nightmares plaguing me that entire night. About demons, death, and torture. It was so sickening that I got sick as soon as I opened my eyes. I put it off, thinking that I just hadn't cleansed myself from the negativity well enough before I went to bed. That day, when I was with clients, it started off normally enough...until my 11:30 appointment. A man with jet black hair and eyes dark as night sat down at my table. I got this wave of hate and anger coming from him. He claimed that he was a witch as well, and that he couldn't get his aura clear until he delivered a message. I asked him what he meant. What kind of message and to whom? "To you," he replied. Then everything changed. Blood started to drip from his eyes and his mouth split open in an unnatural, horrifying grin. I felt my stomach start to boil again and I wanted throw up or run. But I couldn't. I was glued to my seat by a heavy hand that I couldn't see. "Lilith knows what you did," he told me. "She's very upset with you meddling in her business. She wants you to know that you didn't accomplish what you set out to do, but you did make it harder on her. She doesn't forget, nor forgive. She will have her possession back because the connection remains unbroken." I told you that, remember? I told you that I couldn't break the connection completely but that it was weakened. You remember?" I nodded and swallowed hard. I hadn't meant to put Amethyst in any danger. "Well, he then said that SHE would come for me as well. That his death would mark my place so that she would always be able to find me. Then he pulled a blade, flashed that grotesque smile at me again, then drew the blade across his own throat. He bled out on my table while I screamed in terror." Sam and I both gasped and looked at one another. I knew that Lilith was evil and that she had killed people...but for someone to sacrifice themselves in front of someone that we knew? That was making it more real than ever before. "What did you do?" Sam asked, with his eyes wide. "You mean after I screamed until my voice was hoarse? I did the only thing that I could do. I called 911. When they were finished with everything, I left and I haven't been back. I thought that would help stop her from tracking me, but I should've known better. She had a blood sacrifice performed on my own magicks table. It'll take more than just me avoiding the place where it happened. That's not all that has happened in the two days since I brought Anna back. My nightmares started becoming real...or, at least, real to me. I started having hallucinations about demons chasing me down, or that dead man running at me with the same blade that he killed himself with. Other times, it's just a feeling of complete dread that overtakes me and leaves me paralyzed with fear for a few minutes, unable to break it's grasp. I tried to do a little more research and spoke to the few friends that haven't cut me out of their lives yet."