Liam

Chapter 12

Rayne reached into the bag and pulled out ᛈ, the rune Pertho. "Mrs. Engleman, your rune today is Pertho. It is a rune of the unknown, mystery, and secrets. I hope that helps."

"Yes sweetie, it does, but this isn't my rune, it's his," she pointed to the tapestry where Liam sat in Rayne's office. "He has secrets. He knows the truth is coming." With that, she stood up, placed a one hundred dollar bill on the table, and walked away leaving Rayne with her mouth slightly open and speechless.

Rayne poked her head in the door and realized by Liam's similar expression, that he had heard the old woman too. "How did she know I was back here? Who the heck is she?" he sputtered. "Does weird always follow you or is this a recent thing?"

She bristled a bit at his last question. "Actually, I've always experienced odd things, but since I met you it's been amped up a bit. Do these things happen to you often?" she fired back at him. She glared at him a moment longer then said in a huff, "Hand me that book with the red cover, please." She took the book and then left.

What did I do? thought Liam. He knew Rayne was mad, but he didn't know why. He had never even laid eyes on that Engleman woman, and he had no idea what she was talking about. What truth is coming? Liam shook his head and went back to the book he had been reading. He needed to know more about wraiths. He felt that somehow Klen and Stewart might be similar to the revenant Rayne had experienced when she was young.

Liam looked through a large book with ornate designs on the cover. The designs seemed vaguely familiar, but he couldn't quite remember where he had seen them before. As he searched the pages, he came across an image of a ghost-like creature wearing black ragged robes - a wraith. He began to read the first part of the entry:

Wraiths are creatures created from magical mistakes. If a life-extending spell backfires, often a witch or a wizard will find themselves cursed into an immortal existence as a soulless wraith. Wraiths can never pass onto the spirit realm and are condemned to wander between dimensions for all of eternity. Wraiths are immortal and possess incredible power. Their corrupted state fills them with emotions of hatred and despair. While they are a type of ghost, they are also often considered a form of demon. Harnessing a wraith can be accomplished by a being of extreme power, but it is a dangerous undertaking. If the wraith were to escape the binds of the controlling spell, it would turn on the caster, killing them.

"Well that's just heartwarming," Liam said sarcastically under his breath as he continued to search the text. "I can't believe Klen or Stewart could be a wraith, they were corporeal, I shook their hands." A few pages after the wraith, he saw a drawing of a skeleton wearing decayed clothing and carrying a shield - this was supposed to be a revenant.

In folklore, a revenant is an animated corpse that is believed to have been revived from death to haunt the living. Versions of revenants can be found in almost every pantheon. Unlike a zombie, revenants are aware of their actions. They tend to stay near their death sites or have been magically placed in a designated area by a powerful witch or wizard as a spectral guard of sorts.

"This might just be a possibility," he murmured as he stepped closer to the door to show Rayne what he had found. He paused, to make sure she wasn't with a client, then whispered her name, "Rayne. I know you're upset with me, but may I show you something?"

He heard her pushing some things around and getting up from her chair. The tapestry lifted and she gave him a frustrated look. "What?" Her tone was impatient and harsh, and she regretted it the moment she saw the fallen look in his eyes. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped," she apologized, "Show me what you've found." She stepped into the room and took the seat he offered her as he stood next to her showing her the pages about wraiths and revenants.

Liam pointed to the page on revenants, "From what I'm reading, I think we can rule out wraith, but what if Stewart is a type of revenant, or a mystical errand boy? I saw a draugr - Norse revenant - once, but it was more spectral. I've never seen one quite so alive looking, that's the only reason I'm unsure." Liam paused for a moment, "Wait, didn't you say you saw a symbol on Stewart's wrist? What was it?"

Rayne took out her notebook and pointed to her drawing of Solomon's knot. "He had this on the inside of his left wrist. It can represent immortality or eternity." She leaned up and kissed Liam, "You are a genius! This symbol can be cast as a spell. If it was cast upon his death, it would not only trap the soul but preserve the body while it is under the spell as well."

Before she could pull away, Liam grabbed her and pulled her in for another kiss. His arms wrapped around her as his lips moved to her neck. He licked and nipped at her soft skin. Rayne gasped at the electrical shock that passed through her body. She leaned back using the top of her desk for support. "Liam, stop," she said weakly, "I...I have one more client." she managed to say. He looked at her for just a moment, his green eyes peering into her soul, then kissed her again.

He gently released his hold on her and softly said, "To be continued, elskede mín." They both turned when they heard a soft chime ring. Rayne's next customer had arrived.

Rayne slipped out from behind the tapestry and froze. Sitting at her table was Mr. Klen. Rayne tried to scream, to say Liam's name, but Klen put his finger to his lips, and suddenly she couldn't make a sound. He motioned for her to sit. Her body sat, but it wasn't of her own free will. He tapped her deck of oracle cards three times. Three cards flipped over - Misery, Pain, Chaos. These were not her cards, they were not even from her deck. He looked into her eyes and she felt a burning pain. She could hear screams of pain, and cries of men and women, she could feel their fears and their dying breaths. Klen tapped the deck once again and the card that appeared showed The Cauldron of Inspiration. Klen looked to the tapestry, then back to the card. Rayne knew he was threatening Liam. Klen knew he was there.

Klen held out his hand to Rayne. When she did not take his hand, he tried to reach out and take hers. She felt the surge of power rise in her quickly. When his hand touched her wrist there was a flash of fire and he flew backward, crashing into books and tables alike. The noise brought Liam, Megan, and Kalli running to her. Klen quickly regained his feet. "You will pay for that, witch," he yelled. He raised his hands and a black mist came towards Rayne. Before she could even respond, Liam had pulled her behind him and the mist began to envelop Liam. It appeared to be burning his skin wherever it touched. Liam dropped to his knees crying out in pain.

Suddenly there was a bright flash of blue light and a loud voice said, "Stop!" Everything in the shop had frozen in place. The black mist no longer moved, and Klen's eyes were wide. Kalli stepped forward, but she wasn't Kalli anymore. Her skin was brilliant blue and black hair flowed over her shoulders. She raised her arms - her four arms and a blue flash of light blasted Klen backward. "You are not welcome here God of the Battle Cry. This one is not for you," one of her arms pointed to Rayne. "Go now while you still breathe." Klen scrambled backward, his toxic mist now gone as well, and he ran from the bookstore. When the door closed, all the frozen books, tables, and chairs crashed to the ground.

Rayne looked at Kalli, her mouth agape. Kalli smiled at her and turned her attention to Liam. Her hands flowed over his wounds, healing them quickly. She gave Liam a quizzical look at one point, and he just nodded. She whispered in his ear and he shook his head, no. She nodded in response and then stood, resuming her human form. "I think you will find him perfectly healed. Are you alright, Rayne? He didn't harm you did he?" Kalli asked her.

Rayne managed to say, "You...You're the Goddess Kali." Then she promptly fainted.

Author's Notes:  If this is your first story with me, you will find tons of mythology references.  While I do have an academic background in the subject as well as heritage in some areas, I'm always open to other viewpoints, stories, and information.

Rayne & Liam's lives are about to start moving at warp speed.  Please follow, comment and vote, my lovelies!