"So what's on the agenda for today, love?" Liam asked, sipping his coffee. Rayne was finishing putting her hair up in a braided knot and turned to take her mug from his extended hand.
"Well, I have a few appointments booked for today at the shop. Maybe while I'm there, you could reach out to that client about Klen. I think that may be our best place to start. Could you drop me off and pick me up at 6 o'clock? Rayne glanced at the clock and started to head for the door. "I'm going to be late if we don't leave now."
As Liam drove Rayne to the shop, he said, "I'm not sure I feel comfortable leaving you alone after yesterday. Maybe I could use a space in the bookstore to make some calls?" He glanced at her with pleading eyes. She sighed but finally agreed.
Liam and Rayne stepped through the door, making the bell ring. "Hey girl, so did you get lucky this weekend...." Megan's question hung in the air as her cheeks began to turn beet red and her eyes were wide. Liam chuckled softly as he held Rayne's hand. "Um, oh, um, sorry about that. Hello, I'm Megan, nice to meet you. This is my girlfriend, Kalli," she extended her hand toward Liam.
"Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Megan, Kalli," Liam shook their hands and smiled broadly. "I hope I won't be in the way, but I will be keeping this ravishing woman company today." He slid his arm around Rayne's waist, making her blush slightly. She tugged his arm and led him to her reading corner, leaving Megan and Kalli staring at each other with gaping mouths.
"You enjoyed that just a bit too much didn't you?" Rayne grinned as she poked Liam in the ribs.
"Hey, I didn't confirm her question, now did I? I was a perfect gentleman," he bowed with a flourish of his arm. "So where do you want me, dear? I'm afraid my prophecy skills are a bit lacking, so I won't be much help there. Although, if we lowered the table cloth a bit, I could get comfortable and make you moan," his eyes twinkled as he looked under the table.
Rayne rolled her eyes at him. "You really are insatiable, aren't you?" Liam winked at her in response. She pulled back a large tapestry, revealing a plain white door. "Come on, there's a small office back here you can work in. I'll be just on the other side of the door, safe and sound."
"Wait, this room is actually in the shop, right? You're not putting me in another room in a tower in the middle of nowhere are you?" He looked at her a bit suspiciously. Rayne couldn't help but laugh out loud at his question. He didn't look amused.
"No, it's just my spare office. I keep some of my tools and personal reference materials back here. You're welcome to look through the books. Maybe you can find something about our mystery men, or whatever they really are. Speaking of, I need to grab my runes. My first reading will be here any minute." She pulled Liam through the door and grabbed a small red velvet pouch off the disorganized desk. The room was overflowing with books, crystals, statues, drawings, and more. "Sorry about the chaos. I'm a messy thinker." She kissed him quickly and stepped back to her reading table. She left the door slightly ajar, so he could still hear her, but the tapestry obstructed his view. She began to spread out her reading cloth and place the rune stones on the cloth. She lit a white candle and waited for the client to arrive.
Mrs. Engleman was a slight woman who always wore a bit too much perfume in her vain attempt to mask the smell of cigarette smoke. Today, she reeked of a cheap jasmine perfume that didn't hide the smoke smell by much. She sat down across from Rayne and started making small talk. Each week it was the same. Mrs. Engleman chatted about odd subjects, then wanted Rayne to draw a single rune to answer her question. She would never speak the question aloud, only tell Rayne when she was ready to have the rune drawn. Today was no different. After about twenty minutes of chatting, Mrs. Engleman said, "Draw it now."
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!