Black Blood

Chapter 57

The woman pushes a jar into my hand as she starts walking towards the counter again. I am interested in this woman and her vast amount of knowledge. Although I am part witch, I have never used it. Being a Night Rider is part element, wind and air in my case. Having immortality in terms of age, being able to give and take life at a certain level and everything a mage can do. The only thing I have used is the element control part, I have never performed a spell.

'Come, come.' The woman waves her hand through the air. With swift steps, my heels slide across the floor in her direction, leaving a tapping sound on the wooden planks. I stand in front of the woman. She starts to turn open the jars and fill the bags with the spoon. I follow all her movements with my eyes, taking them in. Her trembling wrinkly fingers do not let a leaf fall off the spoon.

'Where is the journey going?' the woman asks without looking up.

'The Andes.' She nods slowly as she folds up the second bag and puts it away on the right-hand side of the counter.

'Would you like to know how your journey is going to go?' I look at the woman as if she has asked me if I can talk to animals. Of course I would like to know if I am going to reach the blood mountain in time.

'Of course.' A small smile appears on the woman's lips. She fills the last bag and folds it. She puts the bag to one side with the others. Her hand reaches under the counter and comes back up with a wooden bowl. The bowl is almost identical to the one used at Asa's coronation. She places the bowl in front of her on the counter.

'Darling, could you get the Montsechia vidalii from the third shelf.' The woman stretches out her wrinkled hand to another cabinet full of jars. I look at her in surprise for a moment before I start walking towards the cabinet. I have no idea what a Montsechia vidalii is or how I should pronounce it. If she says it must be somewhere on the third shelf here, I suppose it is.

I stop walking as soon as I am standing in front of the cupboard. My eyes glide over the pots. Most of the names on the labels I don't know or couldn't pronounce. Whereas the other cupboard was mainly full of coloured flowers and herbs, this one is full of green plants.

My eyes stop at a jar with a green water plant-looking contents. Montsechia vidalii is what the label says. I take the jar from the shelf and walk back to the woman with it.

By now she has put several things next to or in the bowl. Next to the bowl is a small knife, a bottle with a purple-looking liquid and a bag of coloured herbs. In the bowl there is a small layer of transparent liquid, which I assume is water. I place the jar with Montsechia vidalii on the counter in front of the bowl. She nods approvingly and picks up the jar.

'What is it?' I ask curiously. A small smile appears on the woman's wrinkled lips. She opens the lid of the jar and takes out a few green plants. She puts the pot back on the counter with her one hand and starts to pull the plants apart with her two hands. Small pieces of the green plants fall into the water in the bowl. I watch her slow movements with fascination. My thoughts are empty.

'Montsechia vidalii is the oldest plant species in the world. It carries a lot of magic and knowledge that we can no longer use or have. You need history to see the future.' I have only been in this shop for a short time, but the woman has already taught me so many life lessons that my mind can no longer keep up with them. I would like to have as much knowledge as this woman before me. She seems to know every plant species by name, function, growth and smell. It is fascinating to say the least.

As soon as she has laid out all the things in front of her, she extends her hand to me. The palm of her hand points towards the wooden ceiling, her thin wrinkled fingers extended towards me.