Witch's Promise : The Witching Hour Series Book 4 Read online

  WITCH’S PROMISE

  THE WITCHING HOUR SERIES BOOK 4

  JOANNA MAZURKIEWICZ

  Copyright © 2018 by Joanna Mazurkiewicz

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  CONTENTS

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Newsletter

  CHAPTER 1

  DARK MAGIC AND DEATH RITUAL.

  T hings between Kate and me were complicated. She hadn’t spoken to me since she found out I cheated on Quentin. My humiliating secret was revealed during a girls’ night out in Central London. As usual when I drank too much I started talking about things I shouldn't and told her what happened between me and Nathaniel while I was still seriously involved with Quentin. That night Kate told me I had no brain and she was officially done with me. Okay, fair enough. I already knew I was an idiot for stepping in the same shit with the same left foot a third time. No one ever understood why I couldn’t say no to the drop dead gorgeous Nathaniel La Caz and just push him away once and for all. Out of all my friends, I thought Kate would understand, but no, she was hurt that I’d been lying to her for months.

  At work, she asked Rufus to change her shifts, so they wouldn't clash with mine, and whenever she had to work with me, she always referred to me as Miss Taylor. I tried explaining things to her from my perspective, but Kate refused to even acknowledge that we used to be friends.

  Tonight, was my last attempt to talk to her. Next week she was leaving with her family to attend the biggest gathering of witches and wizards since Salem, and I was certain I would have no chance of reconciliation after her return. Tonight, I was determined to put things right between us.

  The past few weeks were really tough for me. My magic and the nightmares about the fire had been keeping me up at night. A few months ago, I nearly died. One of my best friend’s ex-boyfriends wanted to take over my power, which I frankly thought was useless since I couldn’t control it. For months and months, he tricked me into thinking that I was murdering people with my temperamental magic. In the end I had to make a decision, and I chose my own life over his. Since then I’d been staying up late, not wanting to fall asleep. My focus at work deteriorated; I’d been cranky and annoyed about everyone and everything. On top of that my parents were going through a divorce. Dad had become a shadow of himself, barely speaking to me or Mum, while she was going through her partying phase.

  The last few months had been tough. I was in a relationship with a giant named, Quentin and we were happy together. I mean, everything was great until I started sleeping with my ex-boyfriend, Nathaniel behind Quentin’s back. Even now, I regret that I managed to hurt so many people because I couldn’t stay away from the man I thought would never commit to me. Then, me, my mother and Kelsie were nearly burned alive. Kelsie’s ex trapped us inside my parents’ house, and I really thought we weren’t going to make it out of there alive. I passed out when the fire became too much, and the acrid smoke consumed me, but then Nathaniel saved me. He barged inside with the help of Tron and managed to get us out. I’d already given up and thought I was dead.

  While I was in the hospital Quentin showed up, seeing Nathaniel at my bedside and put two and two together, realising I had been cheating on him for months. I was unconscious, but I wished that I had been awake because I wanted nothing more than to make amends. He didn’t deserve to find out that way. He was a decent man.

  After everything that happened, Nathaniel and I finally confessed our true feelings for one another other.

  At the same time, I wanted to apologise to Quentin. I didn’t want to leave the situation unresolved. However, he’d changed his phone number and became unreachable. I tried several times to go to his home, but it was as if he’d just disappeared. He must have moved away, because no one had heard from him. He made it impossible for me to apologise to him, to explain myself. I honestly couldn’t blame him after everything and the way he’d found out.

  Nathaniel mentioned that things with Meredith were unresolved as well. She moved back to Geneva. She didn’t want anything to do with him and even mentioned that she wouldn’t just hurt him if he were to try to contact her again. After a gruelling few weeks of trying to put things back to rights, I decided it would be best for Nathaniel and me to remain friends. We’d just hurt too many people in our horrific attempt at trying to be together. Nathaniel said that he would fight for me, but if he could only have me as a friend for now he was fine with that.

  On top of everything else, Tron had disappeared with no word or even a phone call. He was completely unreachable, and I never even got a chance to thank him for helping save my life. If not for his magic, Nathaniel never would’ve been able to enter the house. The fact that he was gone weighed heavily on my mind. I wondered if something might have happened to him or maybe the royals had come looking for Alex, and they left together. I honestly had no idea, but it was worrying all the same.

  Yes, instead of sex I was getting driving lessons. Since I refused to sleep with him, he had been pushing his way into my life, trying to show me that sex no longer mattered, and he was there for me no matter what. Despite the lack of sleep, constant stress and putting up with my crazy mother, I passed the driving test, thanks to him. Straight after that I bought an old Ford Focus and saved a great deal of money on taxi fares.

  While driving my car to Kate’s house, I used a spell that boosted my concentration. An hour later, still alive and still convinced that driving through London just after six was a bad idea, I reached Kate’s house.

  Her family liked me, so it was just a case of getting her talking to me again. I missed her like a sister and hated that we weren't talking.

  I parked my car outside and pulled my handbrake, peering through the window. It was the beginning of November, so it was pretty much already dark, and a light mist had settled around the neighbouring houses. A strange hollow feeling arose in my stomach when I saw that Kate’s door was wide open.

  I chewed my lip for a little while looking around, wondering if maybe a spell or a charm went wrong, and she had just forgotten to lock her door. After some silent contemplation and going over the pros and cons, I got out of the car. From the moment I stood up, I had this odd overwhelming feeling that someone was watching me, although her street was completely empty. A thick intimidating fear began spreading inside my gut. As I approached her door, something didn’t feel right. My magic started crawling up my spine, sending a cold shiver all ove
r my body. I could feel it in my bones.

  "Hey, Kate, are you there? Mrs. Bloomfield," I cried, aware of the strong currents of magic in the air. I slowly walked into the living room. The house seemed empty. I checked the kitchen and a few bedrooms upstairs. All the furniture was in the correct place, rooms were tidy, and there was no sign of struggle or a fight. I took out my mobile phone and scrolled for Kate’s number. The phone started ringing somewhere on the table. It was Kate’s mobile and it looked like she had forgotten it. The hollow feeling in my stomach didn’t go away. It was strange that Kate and her parents just left the door wide open, but they were a bit eccentric.

  Yes, my own internal voice was right. Something must have happened to them or Kate. I glanced around the room, searching for clues, when a piece of paper on the table caught my attention.

  "Chepstow Park, in twenty minutes. Be there," I read aloud and then scratched my head. The park mentioned in the note was only about a five-minute walk, but I’d promised my dad, Nathaniel, and Kelsie that I would avoid trouble since I’d nearly died three times already. If I wanted to be reasonable, I’d call Dad and ask him what to do. However, Dad was staying in Canterbury: he took a few days off work trying to cope with the divorce. I didn’t want to talk to Nathaniel again, and Kelsie, well, she had a hot date with Michael tonight.

  Instead of being reasonable I ditched the idea of calling anyone, locked the door, and decided to walk to the park. This had to be some kind of mistake. Kate was probably practicing magic with a friend and didn’t want to be disturbed. Thinking out loud, I headed through the misty streets.

  There was another possibility: Kate was secretly seeing someone, a guy that she didn't want to introduce to her parents. Since her relationship with the artist had fallen apart, there hadn’t been anyone else in her life. I didn’t think she was going to like seeing me there, but I had to check on her, just to make sure she was all right. It had been weeks since we last spoke, and I had no idea how long she was planning to stay angry with me.

  I shivered and tucked my scarf around my neck. The temperature dropped as I approached the gated park. Thinking about our heated discussion from weeks ago and feeling a little anxious about the darkness, I continued walking anyway. The creepy silence was bothering me, but it was too dark to see anything. The path in front of me curved and that freaky feeling in my gut from a moment ago disappeared. The park was empty, and I quickly understood that Kate had to have been pulling my leg. She must have known that I’d show up to check on her.

  I turned to walk away but then I smelled the smoke. Burning wood or plastic. I couldn't distinguish it completely, but it was coming from the centre of the park.

  By the time I walked through the bushes and managed to get to the grass, I was pissed off. Kate’s joke wasn't funny anymore. The burning smell became more intense as I approached the playground from a distance. It took me a few seconds to realise what I was seeing. For about a minute I stood frozen in shock and disbelief. My skin prickled with a whipping current of unknown power. A fire was still blazing, creating a large circle around something or someone that was spread on the ground. There was a strong smell of blood. Right in front of me, I saw a pile of bones and flesh, still burning. The smell reminded me of decomposing bodies that had been left in the sun for days. This whole thing looked as if someone had cut a person to pieces and then set them on fire.

  The food that I’d consumed only a few hours ago was pushed right up to my throat. I couldn’t stand it, so I ran to the side and started puking. Part of me felt like the vomiting would never end, because every time I tried to take a deep breath the odour of burning flesh and decomposing remains hit me. Shaking all over, I noticed that inside the circle beyond the flames was an intact body of another human being. All blood drained from my face as I tried to push back the panic.

  "Oh, no, no," I whispered and approached it, recognising Kate. Her arms and legs were spread away from her body, her were eyes closed, and face pale. I squatted next to her and pressed my head to her chest, hearing a heartbeat. She was still alive.

  "Kate, please, please wake up," I begged, but nothing happened. My Kate looked like she’d been unconscious for several hours. I dialled the paranormal unit’s number, trembling all over, and with a cracking voice I explained where I was.

  London was full of paranormal creatures, but humans were unaware that they shared their daily lives with elves, fairies, witches, wizards, vampires, trolls, giants, and mermaids. To humans we looked like ordinary people. After years of living with my father, who was a full-blooded elf, my human mother discovered the truth and went mental.

  I didn't want to walk away from Kate, but I had to. I felt sick to my stomach being so close to the sacrificed person who had most likely been alive a few hours ago. My stomach was too queasy. Half an hour later, the police and ambulance services arrived, waking up the whole neighbourhood. Dannika, my father’s right hand, found me by the bushes, puking again.

  "Are you all right?" she asked, once I was back on my feet.

  "No, how is Kate?"

  "Healers are with her. Come on, let’s get you out of here for a bit," she added. Shortly after that I was a good distance away from the vile smell of human remains, so the dizziness passed.

  "What the hell happened here?" I asked, breathing harder than was necessary. "Please tell me Kate’s going to be all right?"

  "This looks a lot like some sort of dark magic ritual. Your friend is unconscious, spellbound. No one knows what’s wrong with her."

  I couldn’t understand what Dannika was saying. Healers were there with Kate, so why didn't they know what they were dealing with?

  She told me that she needed to speak to someone else. Stewart, her partner, strolled after her. A moment later, the healers were carrying Kate towards the ambulance.

  "Is she going to be all right? Please, her heart is still beating, right?" I asked as they loaded my friend into the ambulance. A male fairy shook his head.

  "She is, but I can’t detect what sort of curse she was struck with. We need to get her to the hospital."

  Soon after that, they drove off and more Paranormal Department officers began to arrive. Dannika was in charge, coordinating the forensic team. She sent a few officers to find Kate’s family, so I went back to my car. A few people gathered outside the crime tape. I recognised a few neighbours and my stomach churned again.

  I sat in the car for several minutes with my head down. My breathing was irregular and the images from the crime scene were piling up in front of my mind. I ran through the list of people in my head that I could call, and in the end, I texted Kelsie, then drove to the hospital. An hour later Kelsie was already there waiting for me.

  "I don’t know what’s going on. No one wants to talk to me," Kelsie said, pacing around the corridor.

  “She's unconscious and cursed. I don’t really know. I found her in a circle of fire. Dannika thinks she was part of some sort of dark ritual," I explained. "I went to her house to talk to her. The door was wide open when I got there, and then I found a note on the table. It looked like she got a message to go to the park—"

  My voice broke there, as the images of a burning body revolted in my stomach.

  "Kate’s always so careful; she doesn’t do shit like that. What the fuck is going on here?"

  "I have no idea, but I’ve never witnessed anything so terrible—the bones and flesh. The whole place smelled of death. And Kate…"

  I couldn't talk anymore. Kelsie sat next to me and together we waited for Kate’s parents. They arrived half an hour later and spoke to the healers for several minutes. Her father wasn't there when Kate’s mum came over to update us on her daughter’s condition.

  "I don’t understand any of it. We left early in the morning to visit family before the Sabbath. Kate mentioned that she wanted a night to herself," her mum said, shaking her head. "She was cursed, Julia. My Kate is in a bad shape."

  "Cursed?" I repeated, swallowing hard.

  "The he
alers… Oh, God… they think she won't make it." Mrs. Bloomfield choked back a sob. "They said if we find a white witch then she might have a chance."

  Her mother broke into tears and I stood in front of her, lost. Kelsie looked pale.

  "White witch?" I whispered.

  "She has about a month before her soul is lost. Kate’s dying, dear."

  Kelsie looked at me, gasping for breath. Magic pushed right through my core, lighting up my insides. I wasn't prepared to hear that my best friend was dying. She had been working in the office only yesterday.

  CHAPTER 2

  PAINFUL COMPROMISE?

  I had no idea what to do with myself. Kate’s parents were devastated. Kelsie went home, letting me know that she was going to talk to Michael, hoping he could come up with an alternative solution. Kate was always so careful. Okay, so sometimes she came up with pretty whacky ideas, but she was the more reasonable one of our little trio. The healers must have been wrong. Maybe this curse was just one big mistake and they just didn't have the right spell. Dad was going to be back at work in a few days and he would get to the bottom of what happened in that park. It was just a matter of time.