Ruby sighs looking through the taxi window lost in her thought. She's still kind to her clients, she still takes care of her coven, feeds Morgan and cooks for me... she hugs me every night but her mind is thousands of miles away while doing all those things like an automaton. Sometimes, the hunter in my head laughs with morbid satisfaction when he notices that the witch is worried but my druid kicks his ass hard and watches the beautiful woman powerless, not knowing how to help her. The truth is that we don't know that much, not even if my theory about the succubus is true, although the girls started to consider it a real possibility when Lester confirmed that his friend the shaman jumped from the bridge very early in the morning and Sarah had been taking a nap like Miss Yangyang.
The coven has been busy working hard to be able to go to New Orleans as planned but they're also spending their free time checking books, calling other witches and trying to gather information about succubi, zombies and everything related to mind control. They all have strengthened the protective spells in their homes paying a special attention to the ones around their beds. The invisible shield around Diana Siena's crib is the most powerful the coven has ever casted, even the High Priestess was shocked because we were exhausted that night and our mood wasn't the best, but we were determined to protect the baby and Mother Nature helped us channelling a lot of energy.
Louisa was furious because someone dared to kill her lovely neighbour and can't wait to find the persons responsible for this to be able to kick their asses to the moon, getting angry is how she deals with sorrow but her combative mood has spread to the coven and they're all working hard to find out who's behind these deaths. Ruby's wiser and more cautious and prefers to focus on protection till we have more information, I can hardly walk even a step through the apartment without tripping over a quartz crystal, a bottle full of oil with healing herbs or one of her mini brooms embellished with flowers that keep bad energy away.
Yalitza agrees with the artist and prefers to be cautious too, of course she's told her clients that someone is attacking witches in their dreams and the information came from Ruby because that gives credibility to the story given that my girl is very respected, but hasn't mentioned the word succubus because many people would think it's a joke. I don't understand it, honestly, men and women with magical knowledge are supposed to have an open mind, they're able to connect with other realities, seeing or feeling other worlds that aren't visible. Why are they refusing to accept that demons can be as real as we are?
Ruby hands the money to the taxi driver and opens the door but she's still lost in her thought. I follow her looking around with curiosity, I've never been in Brooklyn before despite all these past months living in NY but I like what I see: a clean street, trees on the sidewalk, a nearby pizza restaurant smells heavenly and the gorgeous brick house has a bay window... Savannah told me Ruby's mom refused to leave the popular neighbourhood of Bay Ridge and her old friends but allowed her daughter to buy her a better and bigger house. I run my fingers through my hair nervously and fix my jacket before moving one step closer to the stairs but my movements seem to snap Ruby back to reality and she looks at me blinking surprised.
"Are you nervous? Really? Baby, my mom adores you..."
"But she doesn't know me," I answer in disbelief and my girlfriend chuckles.
"Iselen, my mother raised me to be an independent woman, with a lucid mind and strong personality, and that's why she trusts my judgement. She believes that I chose you because you're smart, lovely, funny, amazing, out of the ordinary... My mom loves everything that's special and different..."
"But she should be worried because there's a hunter in my head that tried to stab her daughter on one occasion, shouldn't she?" The artist smiles and shakes her head, gesturing with her hand to tell me to climb the stairs.
"I told you, she loves things that are uncommon... She's thrilled about meeting you tonight, I promise..."
"Sweetheart!" Ruby's barely had time to finish her sentence when the door opens abruptly and a beautiful blonde woman who wears a flower dress runs to her arms, kissing her cheeks and hugging her so tight that I think the witch struggles to breathe for a second. "Finally, you remembered you had a mother and came to visit me... You work too hard, Ruby, you have to stop from time to time to smell the flowers and enjoy life... You must be Iselen, I'm Katia..."
"I'm pleased to meet you," I whisper surprised when the lady raises her hands and puts them in front of my face, closing her eyes and mumbling something. I stare at my girl confused and she only smiles and shrugs.
"Wow, your energy is wonderful, your connection with the Great Mother is really powerful... Tell me, dear, druids are forest people, aren't they? I mean your energy is more in tune with the air element that shakes the tree leaves than with the earth and cultivated fields..." I nod puzzled and she steps back, waving her hand to invite us to come into her house. "Ruby's energy is in tune with the fire but that makes you a good match, air always helps fire to burn brighter... I bet you're really good in bed..."
"Well, I eh..."
"Be careful, Ruby, people connected to the air element are independent and they don't like to be bossed around... If you try to control her life, she'll fight you and you'll lose..."
"I know, mom. I can assure you Iselen is perfectly capable of putting me in my place..."
"I love her..." Katia shakes her hands nervously while pointing at us. "You're perfect together, Mother Nature did a great job with you two... What do you think, Boudica?"
"Meow..." A black cat stares at us casually from the stairs leading to the second floor sitting with a majestic attitude.
"She agrees... But come in, please, you must be starved... I've made hummus from Morocco, some Mexican tacos with chicken and guacamole, Japanese ramen and an almond cake with raspberry ice cream, a recipe I learnt from an old French witch... To be honest, I didn't know what you like, Iselen, so I decided to cook a little bit of everything but not Spanish food, of course, I bet you're sick of eating Spanish dishes since the day you were born..."
Katia keeps talking nonstop while we follow her through the living room, the house is decorated in a style I'd call boho-hippy but tastefully: there're dozens of colourful pillows, candles everywhere, lots of plants, wicker chairs and antique lanterns, tons of books on shelves but also on tables or piled up in corners, oriental mirrors that match small coffee tables made of carved wood, soft colourful carpets... All the rooms are crammed with stuff but it doesn't feel overwhelming and the perfume of flowers gets mixed with incense but it doesn't make me feel dizzy. In fact, I'm not feeling sick and I suspect my hunter is as shocked as I am and that's why he doesn't know how to react.
"Boudica is Morgan's mother," Ruby whispers in my ear when the cat zigzags between our ankles down the corridor. "It's a grumpy old animal that gets pretty upset when you wake her up from one of her countless naps but she's the only serious and responsible creature living in this crazy house. My mom is really funny, I'm afraid, and has an extraordinary creative personality I got from her, but her life is a relaxed chaos, if you know what I mean... It's not that she doesn't care, she raised me the best she could and was always worried about my future, but she doesn't turn every situation into a drama and she's able to see the bright side of life even when people thinks she's being reckless, irresponsible or a lunatic sometimes..."
"I'd love to be like her, sometimes I think I worry too much about things that haven't even happened yet... My family always praised me because I was a serious and responsible girl and I always behaved up to their expectations... I feel like I've been living wearing a tight corset... The only spontaneous thing I've ever done was coming to NY and going to live with you in your apartment and yet, I had doubts and weighted pros and cons..."
"That's not true, the most spontaneous thing you've ever done without thinking twice was sitting on my chair and letting me tattoo a gorgeous garden on your skin..." Ruby smiles and kisses my lips slowly. "Thank you for allowing me that privilege, my love... and now it's time to eat, you'll love the food. My mom is a great cook."
Katia's kitchen is as special as the rest of the house, with walls painted in a soft shade of orange, colourful tiles, grey furniture and a turquoise fridge, there're lot of plants, wooden shelves and Mexican carpets on the floor. But there's also lot of light, pictures hanging on a wall, incense burning in a corner and cookbooks scattered around along with others about astrology, the wooden table is covered with food that smells heavenly and Ruby's mom is taking ice tea from the fridge while Boudica wolfs down whatever is in her bowl. Katia seems to be the traditional hippy woman that goes crazy about esotericism but she's not a fraud, I can feel her power and my hunter is watching her carefully now that he's finally woken up from his astonishment.
"Sit down, my dears, and start eating... We don't respect the conventions imposed by society in this house and we don't give a damn about the established order, Iselen, you can eat whatever you want... If you feel like eating the dessert first, go ahead, I'm fine with it..."
"Mmmm... thank you. I think I'll start with the ramen before it gets cold, it smells good..." Katia smiles when she sees me taking the chopsticks but I could swear I saw the cat rolling her eyes hard and shaking her head while looking at us from the island counter. It must have been my imagination, I guess. "This is really delicious..." I whisper while chewing trying not to show how surprised I am, after all, you need to follow some rules while cooking and make sure not to skip any step of a recipe and this woman behaves too spontaneously to obey the orders of a Japanese chef, but food is great.
"I'm happy to hear that, honey, you need to eat well... I don't want your grandmother to scold me when I summon her with my Ouija board to talk a little and get to know each other, you know grandmas are always worried in case their grandchildren don't eat enough..." I can't help staring at Katia speechless for a few seconds while my girlfriend smiles discreetly and keeps eating. "Boudica, do you want a small bite of chicken?" The cat jumps on her mistress' lap and they both eat from the same plate happily.
"Mom, I hope you don't mind taking care of Morgan for a few days while we go to New Orleans... Do you have hot sauce for the tacos?"
"Of course, I'll be delighted, sweetheart. Wait, try this, hot kiwi sauce with onion, jalapeño, cilantro and lime... It's a new recipe, you'll love it... Are you going to visit Angelie? Send my regards to her, it's been a while since the last time we talked... I give her a headache..." Katia turns to look at me leaving me speechless once again. "Savannah's grandmother is a powerful Voodoo queen and we get on well, seriously, but in small doses. She's too formal for my taste, things around her must be tidy all the time so she can keep control of the energy flow and I prefer my life to be governed by spontaneity and indiscipline, you know..." The blonde woman waves her hand pointing at the books piled up among aromatic herbs in pots on a shelf and I nod because, honestly, I don't know what to say.
"Mom, I'll need the recipe of this kiwi sauce, it's delicious..." We keep eating, giving a small bite to Boudica from time to time, while talking about a little bit of everything. Katia asks me about some druidic traditions, about forests and mountains from my home region and about food recipes, I talk to her about how beautiful my goddaughter is and Ruby promises to invite all her friends to come to her mom's house for a barbecue in the backyard and this way she'll meet the baby. The almond cake is soaked in liquor and the homemade raspberry ice cream is to die for. I can't help leaning back on my chair and heave a sigh of satisfaction.
"Thank you, Katia, this is the best dinner I've had in a while... and that's a great compliment because Ruby is a great chef and our sister Elvira too, but this food is fabulous, honestly..."
"I'm happy you liked it, Iselen. Why don't you go to the living room while I make some herbal tea and we can sit down comfortably so Ruby can ask me what she really wants to know? Oh come on, sweetheart, I know you come to visit me often but today is different... Something's going on, I noticed your upset energy since you arrived..."
"You're a smart witch..." the artist smiles while getting up.
"I'm a mother, Ruby, even if I weren't a witch I'd know if my baby girl is worried... the bond a mother shares with her children is the strongest magic in the world, you'll feel it when you both have a baby... Go to the living room, Boudica will go with you too..."
"I like your mother..." I whisper while flopping down on the couch next to my girlfriend and fixing the pillows behind my back. "But sometimes she says things that make me feel awkward..."
"My mother is known for saying what she thinks at the most inconvenient time," Ruby answers chuckling. "She doesn't know what hypocrisy and white lies are, I'm afraid, she's never been a fake person, and it happens that some people don't understand her or believe she's rude... But some others become loyal friends and she knows lot of witches all over the world. I hope she can help us..."
"Help you about what?" The pretty lady comes in the living room carrying a tray and hands us some cups full of steaming tea while Boudica makes herself comfortable on top of a red pillow. Ruby adds sugar and stirs her tea while thinking about how to raise the issue but I decide to ask the crucial question hoping that such a special and open-minded witch won't make fun of me.
"Do you think succubi exist, Katia?"
"I don't see why not," she answers immediately sitting on an armchair.
"Mom!"
"Do you have evidences that proof they don't exist?" she asks cutting off her daughter abruptly and Ruby shakes her head reluctantly.
"I said the same," I try to hide my smug smile behind my cup of tea taking a little sip.
"I really like your girlfriend, sweetheart, great minds think alike..." Katia leans forward and we both clink our cups while the artist and the cat roll their eyes.
"I see you're both against me, okay... Mom, we believe that someone..." Ruby emphasizes the last word. "... is sneaking in witches' minds during those seconds between waking and dreaming to take control of their bodies and force them to kill themselves... It happened three times as far as we know."
"That's terrible! Why would anyone do that?" Katia stares at us with her mouth wide open and her daughter shrugs. "Well, they have an important motivation for sure, it seems to me a very complicated method in exchange for the pleasure of getting rid of a bunch of witches... Is this why you asked me to check the protective spells of my bedroom?" Ruby nods and we all drink our tea quietly, thinking about the reasons why someone would want to do something so horrible. "And there's no apparent connection between the victims?"
"A young witch from Montana, a shaman in California and an old Korean witch living in NY... they didn't have friends in common, rituals or traditions."
"All right, then... The responsible for these crimes is someone who travels a lot or has acolytes serving them all over the country and is doing this to get something all witches and shamans have in common regardless of their background... Succubi feed on the energy they steal from the men they seduce, according to what I read, maybe this monster you're looking for is doing the same given that the only things all the victims have in common is a lot of magical energy..." Ruby frowns confused.
"But witches get their energy from Mother Nature for our spells, cosmic energy coming from the Universe and telluric energy from Earth, why would anyone steal that from living creatures?"
"They don't have a strong connection with the Great Mother, maybe, or they're lazy... We need to work hard to control our powers, you know that, Ruby, despite you're very talented you always end up exhausted after channelling lot of energy through the pentacle during a ritual, but it's easier when you join your powerful coven..."
"Because we're several witches channelling energy at the same time..."
"No, it's because the energy comes to you through them and they've already processed it, however, when you take raw energy from Mother Nature you have to clean it, reduce it and aiming it at your goal... But when you take energy from your sisters, you only need to aim it at your goal..."
"So the succubus is skipping some steps of the procedure so they can get what they want faster and easier?" I ask surprised.
"It could be... Picture in your mind all the effort involved in making tonight's dinner: I went to the supermarket, carried all the stuff to my home, I chopped veggies, cooked meat, set the table... Now think, what if I would've called the Italian restaurant down the street and ordered some pizzas? Or maybe I could've put something in the microwave at the last minute... It could've been a delicious dinner anyway, you'd be satisfied too, but I wouldn't have needed so much energy, time and effort... You're looking for a powerful person but they've got that power through the easy way."
"I've never thought about it, the whole situation seems crazy to me..." Ruby shakes her head wearily and I slide my hand on the pillow to entwine my fingers with hers.
"Because I've raised you to work hard, to fight, I explained you about how important the balance is, how important concepts like sharing, giving and receiving are... You're the less selfish person I know, honey."
"That's true," I whisper leaning forward to kiss her cheek and my girlfriend smiles, blushing slightly.
"I'll keep an eye on my friends and ask some questions about witches behaving in strange ways, being unnaturally depressed or angry, and will warn them to be cautious... Whoever is doing this, they're good at covering their tracks. You must be careful, sweetheart."