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With a sweep of her arm, she managed to slice the blade through the witch’s arm, drawing blood before Destiny stumbled back. The mist swirled around her, as if reacting to the miasma’s anger.
“Why do you fight?” Destiny demanded.
“You think I’m going to lay down and let you drain me?”
“It’s inevitable.” Destiny glared at her in frustration. “Why make it more painful than necessary?”
“I never concede defeat.”
The mist continued to swirl, thickening around Destiny until she was completely covered by the strange fog. Peri took a cautious step back. She didn’t know what was about to happen, but it couldn’t be good.
Braced for a blast of magic, Peri frowned when the mist started to fade and the aroma of fennel and ginger bloomed in the stagnant air. It was a peculiar scent she hadn’t smelled since she’d left her mother’s coven.
Horror crawled over her skin as the last of the mist drifted away to reveal a tall figure wearing a heavy white robe. The face was familiar, although the ashen skin was stretched so tight over her skull it looked like a death mask. And the silvery hair floated on a breeze that Peri couldn’t feel. The burning blue eyes and the raven tattoo on the side of her neck were the only things that looked the same.
It was her mother. Brenda Sanguis.
A taunting smile curved the thin lips as she took in Peri’s dumbfounded expression. “You always were stubborn.”
Peri struggled to swallow the lump lodged in her throat. “Mother.”
Emotions churned through Peri, battering her with a blast of agonizing memories. The ruthless years of being trained like she was a hardened soldier, not a child. The cunning plotting when she discovered that Peri’s power was far greater than her own. And the ultimate betrayal.
She was drowning when an icy voice pierced the darkness, offering a desperately needed lifeline.
“It’s an illusion, Peri.” Valen’s voice spoke directly in her mind. “Your mother is dead.”
Peri blinked. The vision of her mother remained, but she abruptly caught sight of the blood dripping from the tips of her fingers. It had to be coming from the wound she’d given Destiny.
“Dead…yes.”
Her mother stepped closer, the robe floating around her gaunt body. “I’ll never be dead. You know that. I’ll always be haunting you, reminding you that you have no worth beyond your magic.”
Peri flinched. This vision might not be Brenda Sanguis, but it possessed the nasty talent of striking Peri where she was most vulnerable. For as long as she could remember she’d been judged on the power that flowed through her veins. Nothing else mattered to her mother, or the women in the coven. Not the fact that she loved to read. Or that she was terrified of the rattlesnakes that would curl in the bottom of the cauldron on cold nights. Or that she hated the smell of the fennel potion that her mother brewed into the candles to extend their life.
It was always her power that attracted people’s attention. Without that… she would have been invisible to them.
“That’s not true.” She forced the denial between stiff lips.
“Who are you without your magic?” the vision of her mother taunted.
Peri shook off the ugly sense of defeat that was creeping through her. No. That was in the past. Her life now didn’t depend on constantly proving she was the better witch.
“Who am I?” Peri met the searing blue gaze without fear. “I’m a friend. And a neighbor. And a businesswoman.” She slowly turned her head until she could catch sight of Valen’s exquisite features and smoldering silver eyes. Even trapped by the evil miasma, he took her breath away. “I’m the partner of Valen, Cabal leader, and his future lover,” she announced proudly, returning her gaze to her mother. “I’m Peri Sanguis.”
Frustration rippled over the ghastly face. “They desire you because of your magic. They would despise you without it.”
Peri shook her head. Before she’d been taken in by Maya or opened her heart to Valen, she might have crumbled at the words slamming into her like bullets. It was, after all, what she’d believed for years.
No longer.
“They don’t care about my magic. They love me.”
The miasma hissed. “No one loves you.”
“I do,” Valen said, this time out loud, as if announcing it to the world. “I will love you for all eternity.”
Joy exploded in the center of her heart. It was one thing to acknowledge this glorious male desired her. And perhaps even admired her talents. But there was no doubting the stark sincerity that throbbed in his voice.
