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I knew this visit would probably empty my savings. “How much money do you want? I can transfer it as soon as I get service,” I admitted as I pulled out my phone to write down the amount in the note section.
She cackled like a true witch and waved away my attempt to get her information.
“I don’t need money. If I wanted, I could fund three presidential elections a year for the rest of my long life and then some,” she said, standing again and grabbing a small box and a thick piece of parchment paper that smelled like old books.
By the looks of the shack on the outside, I highly doubted that, but who was I to call her a liar.
“What I want is a blood promise to help me at a time of my choosing. In exchange, I will tell you what I know of the Bone Witch, what she’s done to you, and how you can fix it,” she said, looking over at me and placing the blank parchment paper on the table between us.
I looked down as she waved her hand, and what she just said appeared in black ink across the page. “How will I know it’s a one-time deal?” I asked, needing something in writing to ensure I was protected as well.
“As you wish,” she said with a faint smile, adding that.
This is a one-time service for both parties.
“Are the belts included in this deal, or are you going to ask for my firstborn next?” I gave her a pointed look.
She matched it and waved her hand once more, adding in the cost of the two belts.
“I want them spelled for protection,” I demanded.
Priestess Tanda leaned on the table and placed her chin in her palm.
“Now, little miss picky. You keep demanding, and I’ll take out the clause of this being a one-time thing,” she countered.
I gave her a small smirk and leaned back in my chair.
“You’re the one that’s asking for a blood promise and for a get-out-of-jail-free card that doesn’t expire… well, until I die, but I’m sure you have a way of collecting that even at that point.”
The twinkle in the woman’s eye confirmed my suspicion.
“As you wish,” she said, and added my protection spell. “Now, if you agree, prick your finger with the dagger and spill blood onto the document, and I’ll do the same.” She opened the box, and a small black dagger rested inside on red velvet.
‘What do you think, Thorn? Am I missing anything?’ I picked up the document and brought it down so he could observe it.
‘Well, the only thing you’re missing is your goddamn mind!’ he yelled through our link. ‘Rave, you should have talked to your parents before coming here. You know, since they are in charge and have more knowledge about this kind of stuff. Or maybe just passed on the Bone Witch to begin with. I told you we should have taken backup for this job. What do you think Kaye would be telling you right now?’ He rolled his eyes and stood up, propping his paws on the table to peek over the edge.
I clenched my jaw because nothing he suggested was helping me now. That was all said and done. ‘You know how much I hate working with others. Besides, we work best when it’s just us and Kaye,’ I admitted, replacing the parchment and picking up the knife.
I quickly poked the pad of my index finger, squeezing out a drop of blood. Once it hit the paper, the blood vanished with a hiss, and out of the smoky peppermint tendril of black smoke, my name was revealed in red. Priestess Tanda did the same, and her name appeared shortly after mine. Without ceremony, the document vanished with a puff of black smoke.
“You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make her drink. Remember that, young master,” she said, looking at Thorn.
“I thought you couldn’t hear our conversation,” I probed.
She chuckled. “I can’t, but I don’t have to be a mind reader to see the glare he’s sending you. Perhaps he’s not happy that you took on the witch by yourself or with only your one friend? Too proud to ask for more help? He’s right. There’s no shame in asking for help,” she pointed out. And she was right. They both were.
Thorn was glaring at me for those exact reasons.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. I’m asking for the help now. Can we get onto what that psychotic witch did to me?” I whined.
“Oh, that’s simple. Just by looking at your gray aura at your edges, I can tell she’s placed a nasty curse on you. But give me your hand so I can see what the specifics of it are per se and what we can do to set you right as rain.”
Just my fucking luck. I knew she did something to me.
I gave her my hand and waited for the verdict. Her soft, warm hands turned mine over a few times as she studied my palm. For a brief moment, my hand went cold, and a chill went up my arm before she released it. Discouragingly, she sucked on her teeth and smacked her lips as if she tasted something bad.
“Well, dear, she popped you with a doozy. We call it the Phases of Death. But have no fear.” She gave me a reassuring smile as she grabbed a small leatherbound book off of a stool by her. “There are a few ways to disperse it,” she said as she flipped to a page I couldn’t read at all.
