The Time Witch - Part #28
Recap: In a time-altered 2024, everyone in Baxter Creek wanted to seal the Wedding Pact with a marriage, and they believed it was between Evangeline and Adas Abernathy! Jumping to the real 2024, Evangeline has other plans.
LINKS: The Beginning, Last Part (#27), Time Witch page
“Don’t leave me here.”
Samuel’s plea filled the Carnegie Library closet. The time-traveling foursome retreated into the tight space and stepped back through time, but not as far back as 1910.
“You disappeared from your time period,” Evangeline said, “so either you came with me, as you have, or you died, and no one found your body.” She hated that idea and quickly moved on. “I have proof that we have more time together than we’ve had so far, and I won’t jeopardize it. Hiding you in my time is the only move that makes sense.”
Stuffed inside the closet with the arguing couple, Starlight and Charles wisely kept their own counsel. After all, who would want to argue with someone who could theoretically plop you off anywhere in time? Not to overlook the effects of the recent time jump. If their coloring was any indication, it did a number on their equilibrium.
“I’d prefer being at your side,” Samuel pressed. He stood close enough to feel his breath on her skin.
“Me too,” Evangeline said, wishing they were alone in the closet. Given the chance, she’d show him how much she agreed. “It’s too dangerous.”
“Ah, danger,” Charles murmured, a hand to his stomach. “An old friend to many but a nasty Mistress.”
Starlight gave him a withering look, recovering faster from the unique transportation. She cleared her throat, “You are too silly for me, Charles. I hope you agree that we shall never marry despite what we’ve witnessed.”
Charles pulled a face. “As I recall, sweet lady, the Wedding Pact was actually about never mingling the Founding Families with the Coven. More of a non-wedding pact. Thus, no offense is taken. It is as it should be.”
“Is that true?” Samuel asked, a bit sharp. “I had never heard of such.”
“Grandfather told me,” Charles said.
“I have heard similar,” Starlight confirmed. “The Coven must stand alone from the town. Together, yet apart.”
A crescendo of magical explosions vibrated the walls.
“Oh my!” Starlight exclaimed. “We have landed in the midst of trouble.”
“Where are we?” Charles asked, worried.
Evangeline frowned. “My time, where I left my friend in a battle with the Coven.”
Starlight gasped. “The Coven quarrels so openly with a non-magical?”
“Oh, no, she was part of the Coven,” Evangeline explained. “They had a falling out. I thought you might help me smooth things over. One of the witches is Nixie, but a different version, than the girl you just met.”
“My descendant?” Starlight questioned. “Is that wise to interfere?”
Evangeline shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m just hoping to inspire a little common sense.”
“May I be of assistance in this matter?” Samuel asked, perking up at the idea of helping.
Evangeline nodded. “Sure. They might listen to you. And we need them on our side. Especially if we are to outwit Adas Abernathy.”
“I shall try,” Samuel agreed, “but you shall also need my aid with the apothecary. We have seen his ability stretch into future times. We must assume Adas has mesmerized several souls in our time to produce the outcome we have just witnessed.”
“Twisting the truth into this wicked Wedding Pact is diabolical,” Charles said. “Brilliant in its simplicity, but utterly awful. I’d be impressed if I wasn’t horrified.”
“Would we not encounter his magic in this time?” Starlight asked.
“I don’t think it works that way,” Evangeline said, trusting her gut. “At least, it was my intention to bring us back to a spot he hadn’t corrupted.”
No one contradicted her. How could they? The rules were unknown.
Evangeline had slowly—frustratingly—leaned into her intuition. It tingled and coaxed her into using her new skills. She had a bad feeling that it wouldn’t be enough to beat someone as seasoned as Adas Abernathy.
Maybe she’d eventually learn how magic worked. Until then, she planned to get help. “We need the Coven on our side,” Evangeline said, “but Adas has won over the past. I don’t know how to get through to your sisters. We have a sliver of a chance in this time period.”
“We are in another future date,” Charles added, clearly confused by the specifics.
Evangeline nodded. “We’re where I came from.”
“Let us make haste.” Samuel motioned for the door. “Time pushes back, I believe; thus, I sense it running out.”
“Yes,” Evangeline reached to open the closet door. “Our window of opportunity is closing. We must stop Adas Abernathy from forcing time down an unnatural path.”
A soft hum greeted them from the library. Evangeline knew it to be a humidifier system that kicked in automatically when needed. Mold could be a problem without it.
“How long have you been fighting this battle?” Starlight asked.
Evangeline wanted to answer that it had only been a few days, at least in real-time, but she couldn’t make the claim. In many ways, it felt much longer. She wasn’t sure how long it had been. Ignoring the troubling question, she indicated the library entrance. “I’m gonna freeze the witches. We’ll go out and try to talk some sense into them, and when that doesn’t work, I’m counting on all of you to pull rank and tell them to stop fighting each other.”
Samuel, Starlight, and Charles nodded, agreeing to do their best.
“I do hope your expectations are low,” Charles said. “Mine are.”
Evangeline led the way through the library. She was happy to see it in the same state of mid-renovation as when she’d left it. The sounds of a magical battle sounded from outside, painting a desperate picture unfolding on the other side of the library’s front door.
“Shall you freeze them now?” Samuel asked.
Evangeline sighed, unsure if she could wield her magic through a door; at least it hadn’t worked that way so far.
“Wait until you are outside, amongst them,” Starlight interjected. She gave a knowing nod. “Your magic will be more reliable with direct contact. It takes experience to wield from a distance. It did for my magic.”
“We do want accuracy,” Evangeline said.
Charles nodded. “You go out first, my dear. We shall manage the door and be right behind; don’t you fret.”
Somehow, his caution toward her power—or the possibility that it might not work—was more comforting than false praise.
Samuel had nothing to offer. He didn’t even look at Evangeline. While they’d shared a moment in the closet, it seemed left behind. Somehow, his mood, tinged with opposition for the first time, made Evangeline wonder if the ghost was present. Not in corporeal form, since how could the ghost be in the same spot as the man? They were one and the same. She only knew that the time they’d spent together was too short. They needed more to see all their sides, even the frosty ones.
Still, Samuel seemed to notice he’d lost focus. He smiled and encouraged the group, which gave Evangeline the courage to step through the library door when they opened it. She walked into the fray.
With a dark sky threatening overhead, the conflict was as Evangeline had left it. Danna held the high ground at the top of the steps and the Coven, consisting of Nixie and the three Mages, stood below on the sidewalk. The magic hissed in the air and a bolt of lightning sizzled toward the library’s door.
Evangeline’s hands flew up and the tableau froze. But like before, she used her magic with intention and was able to maintain the witches’ awareness, stalling the battle. Plus, she kept it from affecting her friends or the rest of the town.
Danna turned, surprised. She instantly smiled, relieved to see her boss and friend. She quickly hugged Evangeline. “You just left! Don’t explain. I’m happy to see you… and your friends.” She squinted at the other three time travelers.
“Samuel Covington-York, at your service,” Samuel said, gesturing to his brother. “Charles is the younger Covington-York, but we don’t hold it against him.”
Speechless for perhaps the first time in her life, Danna could only nod.
“I’m Starlight St. Cloud,” the witch introduced herself. She pointed at Nixie, frozen with a mouth twisted in a scream. “I believe that one is my fault.”
“Oh, well, oh,” Danna stuttered. “She’s usually not so pig-headed.”
“No magic,” Evangeline warned the petrified Nixie, touching her arm to release her from the stillness. The lightning bolt dissipated at the same time.
Leaning over to catch her breath, Nixie eyed them, especially Starlight.
“Must I prove myself to you, child?” Starlight asked her descendant. The identical red of their hair spoke to a family connection.
Shaking her head, Nixie also waved off the need. “I know you. Sketches.”
“My sketches survived?” Starlight grinned, pleased.
Evangeline sighed. “I know this is a moment, but the Coven needs to chill. We’ve got a problem from the past that will destroy the future.”
“She speaks the truth,” Starlight said. “I have seen it and met you in an altered future. While you appeared happy, you lacked a will of your own. It is not a future I would choose for you, as it was a very hollow place.”
Nixie didn’t respond, looking lost.
“We have failed you,” Samuel stepped forward, and his height drew Nixie’s gaze. The broad shoulders and fit frame were not lost on her.
“When are you from?” Nixie asked.
Samuel smiled as if he had all the time in the world. “The year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ten.”
“Holy crap.” Nixie turned to Evangeline. “Enough. What do you want us to do?”
Evangeline bit her lip, pausing a beat. “I want you to return with me to the past and stop a soul-stealing monster.”
“What???”
The single word was followed by stunned silence.
“I know it’s a big ask,” Evangeline said, “but our future lies in the past.”
Oooo "Past is Present"! Nice!!