The Opal Witch: Prophecy (Book Two)

Chapter One

Lux

As Lux flipped the sign over the coffee shop closed, she sighed with relief. She loved her job. What wasn't to love? She slung lattes and wisdom to the people who went through her drive thru. It made people happy to see a smiling face, especially when it was accompanied by caffeine. But she was beginning to think it was time to move on. It was the job of a teen girl on school break, not a woman trying to make her way in the world.

Sadness gripped her for a moment, and she shook it off. Maybe she didn't know where she was going these days. No plan. No calendar. The summer she turned seventeen had shifted the course she'd plotted for herself, and even though it went against everything inside of her, she decided to give up trying to control every moment. It never worked anyway, and with so many changes, she had to believe it was a blessing to be in this season of life.

She yanked the collar of her coat up to cover the lower half of her face as she stepped outside. Summer lasted forever in Mississippi, hanging on far into the autumn months, but when it bowed out, it didn't do it gracefully. Often, it happened in the blink of an eye, summer's liquid heat replaced by winter's bitter bite.

Someone honked as she scurried across the parking lot, and her southern upbringing forced her to put manners over comfort. She drew a hand from her pocket and waved to the passerby even though they were likely too far gone to see her. Lux exhaled, her breath turning silver against the black as she watched the retreating tail lights, wondering who was inside the vehicle.

Reaching her car, she unlocked it with a thought and slid inside. A key was still required to start the engine- manipulating machines required a thorough understanding of their mechanics- but a handy spell Sara Elizabeth discovered brought the temperature inside the car to something far more tolerable than freezing without having to wait on the car to warm.

Rather than put the car in drive and head home, Lux stared through the windshield thinking about the mystery person who'd honked. It could have been one of a dozen people. Sweetwater was a small town, and it was Christmas break. The college students were back home, which meant it could've easily been Sara Elizabeth or Travis. A smile tugged at her lips. She could probably cross her ex-nemesis off the list. Sara Elizabeth would never do something as subtle as honk.

Brooke and Ruby were seniors this year but both lived across town. Neither would be caught shopping at the boutiques surrounding Lux's coffee shop. Mama was at home. Memaw was at the Godelieve Estate. And Declan...

She pushed those thoughts away and tightened her grip on the steering wheel. No, it wouldn't be Declan. But the other possibility made her almost as sad because she missed her best friend.

Senior year had been torture- forced to watch Kitty withdraw inside herself a little more each day until there was nothing but a shadow of blonde hair and blue eyes to mark the girl as Lux's childhood friend.

Everyone told her to stop blaming herself, and she thought she had. Especially after she'd approached Kitty just before graduation and offered to lift the binding on her powers if she would agree to work with and not against the Circle.

Lux had received a hollow laugh in reply and words that sent a cold shiver of fear down her spine. "Oh, Lux. It's too late for that. Too late."

The passenger door ripped open, making Lux scream in alarm as a petite figure hopped inside. Without thinking, she lashed out with a fist, catching the woman in the jaw.

"Holy hell," the intruder shouted, rubbing her jaw. "What the hell, Lux!"

"Wh-who are you?"

"Al? It's only been a few months since we last saw each other."

Lux grew stiff and ran her eyes across the woman claiming to be the Guardian. The woman she knew was built like an amazon princess- tall, toned, and curvy- with hair like sable satin and doe brown eyes. This person looked more like a child than a woman, and she had platinum hair and crystal blue eyes. Lux would bet if they were standing side by side, she'd barely reach her chin. She'd witnessed a lot of magic since finding out she was a witch, but something told her Alina wasn't wearing a glamour token.

"M-my how you've changed," Lux said, curling her fingers around the necklace at her throat.

"Oh crap. Sorry bout that," Alina said, dropping the visor and studying her face with a frown. Closing her eyes, she drew in a deep breath and transformed back to her former self. "Better?"

"I did not know you could do that."

"One of my Talents. Guardians all have unique abilities based on our bloodlines. Damn girl. You can throw a punch. Guess I should be glad it was that instead of a spell."

Lux laughed nervously while cursing herself for her thoughtlessness. When was magic going to become second nature? Even after over a year, she found herself relying on physical strengths instead of power. It drove Declan crazy... nope, not going there.

"Not that I'm upset to see you, but why are you here? Checking on the... you know?"

Alina nodded. "I already stopped by the Estate. Things are under control, but I need a really, really big favor."

"Sure," Lux said. She and the First Circle owed this woman a lot, and she'd never seen the Guardian look so nervous before.

"I need a spell. It's going to involve the Circle."

"That sounds like a really big spell."

"It is, but it's important. Like protecting the Gateways and The Grail kind of important."

They'd reached Lux's house. Warm light poured from the windows, and she could see shadows dancing in the kitchen. It made a happy bubble blossom in her stomach. After everything, her mother deserved to be happy, and Lux would have never expected her father to come back into their lives.

"Well, spit it out." Lux demanded, turning her attention back to Alina.

"I need you to wipe my memory. All of it. Gone."

The happy bubble burst. A familiar feeling swept through Lux. It was the same one she got when she knew who was calling or if it was going to storm later. Right now, it told her she had to do as Alina asked, but it also whispered things were about to be very, very bad.