Legacy of Magic (EBOOK)

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Prologue

Tendrils of mist snaked along the forest floor. The full moon guided her hurried steps. Foreboding drenched her senses. Nerves taut, Josephine paused beneath a towering oak and placed her palm against the ridged bark of its massive trunk—seeking the comfort it usually bestowed. Fear and urgency shrouded her like the dark cloak she wore. Her gaze searched the murky path behind her.

Nothing stirred.

An eerie silence stretched across the dark woods. The scurrying and calls of night creatures were absent.

Josephine took several small steps forward. She was already late.

Her coven waited. They needed to decide on a plan of protection and detection. Two members had already mysteriously disappeared. Fear ran rampant throughout the coven. Some whispered they were under attack. By whom, they didn’t know. But why, they could guess.

Power. Their coven comprised twelve of the most powerful witches ever born—each a master in their discipline of the four elements.

Delicate ferns flicked at her ankles. A branch snatched the edge of her hood and halted her progress. Josephine freed the material, only to have another branch snag in her hair. She stood motionless and examined the path ahead. The clearing where they always met wasn’t too far away. She could be there in just a few moments. She studied the plants along her path. Branches, twigs, even the leaves were arching onto the trail, blocking her way.

Dread snaked across her senses and intuition.
Something was wrong.

She took a cautious step back. Her hand covered the precious life already growing inside her. A rare vision had shown her the child she carried. She wasn’t even a month along.

Ominous shadows thickened. The hairs on the back of her neck rose. Evil had been done in the forest this night.
Josephine clenched her fists over her womb. She would not risk this cherished gift. She veered back toward her home. A twig snapped behind her.

She didn’t look back. She ran.

A spell whispered from her lips, “Plants of the Earth, hear my call. Protect our flight. Hide us from sight.” She repeated the words three times as she continued to run.
Roots broke through the ground behind her to hinder the steps of those who pursued her.

Branches and vines stretched across the path to hide and block.

A plan formed in her head. She and Adam would disappear. Her husband had mentioned relocating from England to the American colonies before, but she’d always been resistant. She hadn’t wanted to leave her coven and all that she knew. Their baby must come first. She’d move to the ends of the earth if necessary.

She would have to bind her power. There was no other way. Those seeking her would sense it and find her. She must lock away her magic until it was safe to pass on to her child.






Chapter One

“Time to face facts Cory, you’re lost.” Cory glanced down at the car’s navigation system for the dozenth time in the last half hour. She didn’t recognize any of the street names. The GPS had directed her off the highway and onto back roads, each smaller than the last. Nothing looked familiar.

“Take the next left,” the English sounding navigation voice intoned.

“Left? What left? I see trees,” she mumbled.

Granted, it had been quite a while since she’d been here. Not since she was a kid. The last few times she’d seen her, Aunt Addy had traveled to her parents’ home in New York. If she remembered correctly, her aunt’s house was perched on a small hill on a corner. There were a few other houses on the road. The town should be just a short distance away. So where on earth was she?

There…was that a road? Good grief, is that dirt?

Sure enough, the next left was a dirt road. Cory made the turn and stopped. Should she turn around? Maybe she should go back and find some civilization and ask for directions. The map looked like it opened up to more streets ahead. Should she chance it?

Why not? Live a little.

Cory crept down the road. There were no potholes or ruts. It was in pretty good shape. At least she wouldn’t damage her car. The last thing she needed was a car repair bill to put a drain on her savings. She was on a tight budget until she could get a job.

Ooh…a mailbox, and another just ahead. So maybe she wouldn’t end up as a headline after all. “Woman lost in the wilds of Connecticut.” She snickered. Who knew Connecticut had wilds to get lost in?

Cory glimpsed pavement ahead. “Yahoo,” she muttered.

Two turns later, she loosened her tight grip on the steering wheel and relaxed against the headrest. She might be headed in the right direction after all, and if not, there were at least houses around if she got into trouble.
“In a quarter of a mile, take a right-hand turn.” The disembodied voice was really getting on her nerves. Whoever decided a snooty, nasal, English voice was the way to go, anyway? It was like having an old professor lecturing her on the proper way to drive. Personally, she’d like to hear someone soothing yet confident, like a Southern drawl or an Irish lilt.

Cory looked at the map on the navigation screen to read the name of the road. Clarkhill, that’s Aunt Addy’s road.
Finally.

The squeal of tires jerked her gaze back to the road. A neon green sports car barreled straight for her.

She yanked the wheel to the right and slammed her foot onto the brake pedal. Her BMW hit the dirt on the side of the road and slid out of her control. Her white knuckles gripped the steering wheel as the small car rocked back and forth gently before stopping completely in the shallow ditch running parallel to the road.

Someone wrenched her door open. “Are you hurt?” The gravelly voice echoed from somewhere above the roof of her car. She stared at a pair of jean-clad thighs before whispering, “I don’t think so.”

“Then do you mind telling me what the hell you were doing driving on my side of the road,” the harsh voice demanded?

She gasped and pried her fingers off the steering wheel. Her fingers ached slightly. “Your side? What were you doing driving like a bat out of hell?”

A pair of furious, ice-blue eyes suddenly appeared in her line of vision. “What speed I was driving wouldn’t have mattered a damn if you had been on your side of the road!”

Cory clenched her hands in her lap and glared at the man. One arm rested on her roof as he leaned down to give her a withering glare. Rich black hair fell haphazardly around his head in a complete absence of style. Five o’clock shadow darkened his strong jaw, despite it being nowhere near five o’clock. In the back of her mind she registered she would find him quite handsome if she wasn’t so pissed off at him.

“Back. Up,” she uttered through clenched teeth, as she disengaged her seatbelt and began the arduous and ungraceful process of climbing out of her car. Luckily, he complied and shifted to stand at the side of her tilted vehicle. He offered her his hand, which she ignored. As she finally made it out and stood beside him, the realization dawned she needed to look up quite a bit to meet his gaze. One dark brow shot up while he scanned her from head to toe.

She spotted his car parked on the shoulder of the opposite side of the road. The sports car didn’t look to be suffering any damage. What was he complaining about? She was the one sitting in a ditch, and she refused to believe it was her fault. “I hope you have insurance.”

He folded his arms across his middle and leaned back against her car. “It’s not my insurance you need to worry about, sweetheart. It’s your own.”

Sweetheart? Of course he blamed her. Probably for the simple fact she was a woman.

Insufferable man.

“Take a look at those skid marks between your car and mine.” He gestured to the road with a lift of his chin. “Those wider, deeper skid marks are mine. Notice they’re all on my side of the yellow line. Now take a look at yours, the narrower set. Which side of the line do they start on?”

Crap!

Damn it. Okay, she had looked down at the GPS, but only briefly. Cory closed her eyes and sighed before turning back to Mr. Tall, Dark, and Annoying. She really, really, hated to eat humble pie.

“I might have drifted slightly onto the other side of the road,” she grudgingly admitted. “But if you hadn’t been driving so fast, my car wouldn’t be practically on its side in that…trench right now.”

“Perhaps if you knew how to drive, your car wouldn’t be in a ditch.”

“Listen, you male chauvinistic—”

He held up a hand and interrupted her. “It has nothing to do with you being a woman, just a bad driver. Now, go stand out of the way while I check out the damage to your car.”

“Why you arrogant—”

“Do you want to get out of this ditch or not, lady?”

Cory stalked to the front of her car. The smell of burnt rubber scented the air. She wiped her clammy palms on her jean clad thighs.

Her foot started tapping as he got down on the ground to look under her car. It rested at an angle, making it easier for him to examine the undercarriage. He just assumed she knew nothing about cars because she was a woman. How did he know she wasn’t an expert? For that matter, what did he know? He could make matters worse, and then where would she be?

He stood up and wiped his hands together. “Doesn’t look like you bent the axle, but you’re going to need a tow truck to get you out of here. You should have it fully checked out before driving it again. There’s a decent garage over in Bensonhurst, about an hour north of here.”

“What about Allendale? That’s where I’m headed.”

“You’re in Allendale.”

She inwardly sighed in relief. “Oh good, isn’t there a mechanic around here?”

The man smirked. “Yeah, but I don’t think you’d want him working on your car.”

“Why not? He’s not any good?”

“Oh, he’s good, but he’s also picky about the cars he works on and doesn’t take kindly to being called chauvinistic, arrogant, or run off the road test driving a six-figure car for a client.”

Double crap!

Fine, Bensonhurst it is. Time to regroup. First, she needed to find a way to get to her aunt’s.

Cory walked toward her car to get her cell phone and insurance information just in case there was damage to his car, or the client’s car. “I’ll give you my insurance information, so you can be on your way.”

He stood next to her car with his hands on his hips while she scrambled to the glove compartment and back out, grimacing as she bumped her knees against the console, and handed him her insurance card.

“New Jersey? What are you doing in Allendale?”

“Visiting my great aunt.” She pointed to her insurance card. “Can you just take a picture of that with your phone?”

He frowned down at her card. “Your aunt wouldn’t happen to be Adelaide Stone, would she?”

Was the town that small? “Yes, why?”

A harsh sigh accompanied him handing back her insurance card. “Because she happens to be my neighbor, and she said her niece was coming to stay with her. Come on, I’ll give you a ride.”

He walked over to the green sports car while she stood there debating whether to accept the grudgingly offered ride or stay and try to call a tow truck or taxi, or something. Did they have taxis out here? It would probably be better to get to her aunt’s and then figure out how to get a tow truck out for her car. Her rude rescuer was already opening the driver’s side door before she made her decision. Cory grabbed her purse and hightailed it across the road—before he changed his mind. If she was completely honest with herself, she couldn’t really blame him if he did. But who said she wanted to be honest with herself?

Trees and houses with large yards passed by in a blur. Silence hung heavy in the confined space of the sports car.

She should say something to relieve the tension. Not an apology. She’d rather suffer the silence than apologize to the condescending, arrogant jerk. If he hadn’t been speeding, it wouldn’t have been an issue if she had drifted over the line for a split second.

Before Cory could come up with something to say to diffuse the tense situation with her aunt’s, and probably her, neighbor the man drove into the driveway of the old Victorian her aunt called home. It was a grand old lady, white, decorated with ornate trim work, and a large wraparound porch. The gardens she remembered surrounding the home were in disarray and overgrown. Her mother was right. It was getting to be too much for Aunt Addy to take care of. Well, she was here now, and she could help.

Cory extended her hand to her newfound nemesis and reluctant rescuer. “We’ve gotten off on the wrong foot. Since we’re going to be neighbors, why don’t we let bygones be bygones? My name is Coralea Bishop.”

He stared at her outstretched hand, making no move to shake it. She was about to drop it and give him another tongue lashing on his rudeness when he smirked and enveloped her hand with his. His skin was warm and rough from calluses, and it swallowed her hand whole.
“Finn D’Orsey.”

“Thank you for the ride, Mr. D’Orsey.” He was already sliding out of the car, so Cory scrambled to do the same. Apparently, he planned to accompany her into her aunt’s. Was he planning on tattling on her? For gosh's sake, she felt like a child about to get in trouble. Well, if he was going to tell on her, she was going to tell on him. So there. She wanted to stick her tongue out at him, and if he had been in front of her instead of in back of her, she would have.

The door opened as she approached the front steps. She looked up with a bright smile ready to greet her aunt, only to find a tall, handsome blond man in the doorway. He was dressed in a white button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled back and black trousers. He stared piercingly at her for a moment before a welcoming grin spread across his face. Wow, someone should bottle that allure. They’d make a fortune.

“You must be Coralea. Adelaide has been waiting, eagerly, for your arrival.” He stepped out onto the porch and took hold of her arm, gently directing her into the house. “I’m Sebastian Marks, Adelaide’s lawyer, and friend, I hope.” He completely ignored Finn D’Orsey.

Sebastian led her through the two-story foyer into the living room to the right of the stairs. Little had changed over the years. A floral covered sofa and two wingback chairs were grouped together on an oriental rug in front of the marble fireplace. The smell of jasmine reached her, and she spotted the teacup on the table next to her aunt.

“Look who I found,” Sebastian called out.

Aunt Addy craned her snow-white head in the entry's direction. A wide smile bloomed across her face. She placed the papers she’d been perusing on the small, round table next to her chair and grasped the arms of the chair to help her rise. “Oh Coralea, I’m so glad you made it. I was beginning to worry.”

Cory hurried forward to greet her aunt with a kiss against her soft cheek. A hint of lilacs surrounded her. A pale, pink, button-down blouse and tan slacks adorned her slight figure. “I’m sorry to make you worry, Aunt Addy. My GPS decided to take me along the scenic route.”

Twinkling blue eyes stared into her own. They were the same height and shared a strong family resemblance. Is this what she would look like in another fifty years? If so, she considered herself lucky indeed.

The older woman grasped Cory’s cheeks with her cool palms. “Oh, just look at you, more beautiful than ever.”
“I must concur,” Sebastian murmured behind them. Her aunt spared him a small smile, which transformed into a wide, welcoming smile. “Finnegan, I didn’t know you had arrived too.”

Finnegan? Cory glanced over her shoulder to find he’d come up behind them.

“Hello, Addy.” He stepped forward and kissed her opposite cheek, brushing up against Cory. “I actually arrived with your niece. Her car broke down and luckily, I happened by.”

Broke down? So, he wasn’t going to tattle and gloat after all? What was he up to? Did Sebastian’s presence have something to do with his attitude? She glanced over at Sebastian to find him frowning at Finn and Aunt Addy. No. She doubted he would care about that, but Sebastian didn’t seem to care for Finnegan. Why? Was there a reason, other than his abrasive personality? Perhaps she should keep a close eye on her new neighbor. Aunt Addy seemed awfully fond of him, though.

“Don’t worry about it. The tow truck is already on its way to haul it to my shop.” Finn patted her aunt’s hand where she grasped his forearm.

“Wait, what?” She must have missed part of the conversation. Was he talking about her car? When did he call a tow truck, and what happened to sending her to another mechanic an hour away?

Finn stared at her with one eyebrow raised, just daring her to say something.

“Oh Coralea, you’re so lucky Finnegan found you.” Aunt Addy took Cory’s hand. “Now, you must be tired from your ordeal and all the driving. Why don’t you go upstairs and freshen up? I’ve prepared the guest room to the left for you. It’s bigger than the one you used as a child, and it has its own bathroom entry. Once you’ve rested, we’ll catch up.”

“Thank you, that sounds wonderful.” She was tired, and more than happy to escape from having to make an attempt at polite conversation with Finnegan and Sebastian. What was up with those two, anyway? They still hadn’t said a word to each other or acknowledged one another’s presence. She’d have plenty of time to figure it out later, if she was so inclined. As long as neither one of them was taking advantage of her aunt, she didn’t really care if they hated one another.

“Mr. Marks, it was nice meeting you.” Cory nodded in his direction.

He crossed the short distance and took her hand. “A delightful pleasure meeting you, Coralea. I hope we can get to know one another very soon.” He smiled and kissed the top of her hand. His hand was smooth and cool to the touch, a distinct contrast to Finn’s.

Was he flirting with her? It had been a while, and she was out of practice. A charming gentleman to be sure, and a handsome one to boot. Perhaps things were finally going her way.

She looked at Finn. “Mr. D’Orsey, thank you for your assistance. I assume I’ll be hearing from you about my car?”

The corner of his mouth lifted in a smirk. “You assume correctly.”

Condescending jerk! He should take some charm lessons from Sebastian. To think she was now obligated to him for the ride, towing her car, and hopefully fixing the thing. God help him if he messed up her car. If Aunt Addy wasn’t here and didn’t seem to like him so much, she’d tell him not to lay a finger on her car just for principle’s sake.

Cory gave him a tight smile and started for the stairs. He was really helping her out, and she was trying to be gracious about it, but did he have to make it so damn hard? It was clear he was only helping her because of her aunt. Granted, she had run him off the road and given him a piece of her mind. She wished she’d given him a swift kick to his well-shaped ass. Not that she had noticed or anything. All right fine, she had noticed. She wasn’t dead or blind.

****
Cory laid down on the queen size bed in the guest room and stared at the ceiling. The royal blue quilted bedspread cushioned her. She absently rubbed the soft fabric between her fingers. Her aunt said to rest, but she didn’t feel like sleeping. She’d only latched onto the excuse to escape her frustrating new neighbor, who made her want to hit him. She couldn’t remember ever meeting anyone who produced such a reaction in her. The only other person she’d ever wanted to commit violence to was her ex-husband, John, and that was only after she found out what a no good, lying, cheating, bastard he was.

Perfectly reasonable to want to punch him a time or two.
Rolling over onto her stomach, she studied the oak wood dresser and armoire on either side of the room. This used to be the primary bedroom, but after her uncle had passed away, her aunt transformed his study into her bedroom and their bedroom into a guest room. Was staying in the room they had shared too much for her?
What would it be like to love someone so much? She had loved John, but wouldn’t it have hurt more to lose him? The anger of betrayal still churned in her gut, but she didn’t miss him. She didn’t mourn the loss of her marriage. What did that say about her? Did they just grow apart, or did she just convince herself affection and comfort were love?

She rose and walked over to the window overlooking the front of the house. A flash of movement in her peripheral vision prompted her to look down at the driveway. Sebastian walked to a black, expensive-looking car. Her aunt’s lawyer was a markedly good-looking man. Of course, he was probably all too aware of his attraction and used it to his advantage. A man who looked like him couldn’t not be aware. Women had probably been throwing themselves at him from the time he left the cradle. His charm and confidence only made him more appealing.

As if sensing her perusal, he suddenly looked straight up at her. He stared for a moment prior to giving her a melting grin and a quick wave before he got in the car.
Cory leaned against the window frame as he drove away. There was something about Sebastian which made her a tad uneasy. Maybe she was becoming too paranoid in questioning everyone’s motives, but the way he so completely ignored Finn and how he stared at her as if he was trying to see inside her didn’t sit well with Cory. And maybe it was his blatant interest in her. That was probably the reason. The ink was barely dry on the divorce papers, so she wasn’t exactly looking to get involved with anyone.

Slipping her phone from the back pocket of her jeans, where she’d stuffed it after grabbing it from her car and darting across the road before Finn took off without her, she dialed her friend, Melanie, to let her know she’d arrived safe and sound.

“It’s about time. I was getting worried.”

“Sorry Mel, it took me a little longer than I thought.” A brief pang squeezed her chest. Melanie was the only thing she missed from New Jersey. Her friendship had been a godsend throughout her husband’s infidelity, subsequent divorce, and being laid off from her job in the midst of it all. “Do you remember when we met?”

Melanie’s melodic chuckle sounded over the phone. “How could I forget? I arrived to welcome you to the neighborhood with freshly baked cookies, and you dropped a box full of books on my foot, breaking it in two places.”

Cory winced. “Oh my gosh, I still feel awful about hurting you.” She remembered the startled surprise in Mel’s brown eyes being replaced by pain. The two had bonded during the drive to the hospital and the long wait for x-rays and then the cast. “Still the best oatmeal and raisin cookies I’ve ever had.”

“I’ll bake some more and send them to you. I wish you weren’t so far away. I’m going to miss having you next door.”

The thought of her old house didn’t bring any wistful feelings of regret. The brick colonial sat smack dab in the center of a neighborhood filled with its carbon copy, like a line of identical English soldiers marching off to battle. The house had been a reflection of her husband, not her, which was why she hadn’t fought him over ownership.

“I’m going to miss you too, but I needed a fresh start, and Aunt Addy’s invitation to come stay with her came at just the right time. I can help her while I figure out what to do with the rest of my life.”

“No chance of getting your old job back?”

“No. They eliminated my position. They’re still downsizing. It doesn’t look good for the company. Part of me is sad. I feel for all the people in the same boat as me. I started there as an intern in college.” After ten years of demanding work and long hours, they hadn’t given her the courtesy of telling her in person, but instead sent her a short message stating she was being let go because of economic downturns. “The other part of me is still angry. They let me go in a damn email after all.”

Cory traced the frame of the window with her fingertip. “I hate the thought I’ve become a cliché. A divorcee of a husband who cheated on her with his secretary, and now I’m at a loss with what to do with my life.”

“Honey, him cheating with his secretary doesn’t make you a cliché. It makes him one.” Mel sighed. “The universe certainly gave you a push, didn’t it?”

“More like a swift kick in the pants.”

Mel’s laughter rang loud and true before trickling off. “Promise we’ll keep in touch, okay?”

“Always, we’ll talk soon.” Cory hung up and stared out the window of her new home.

Finn’s dark head appeared in view, and Cory immediately took a step back. She didn’t want to be caught looking at him, but she couldn’t resist peeking out the window from a distance. His long-legged stride reached the car quickly, and unlike Sebastian, he didn’t look up before getting in the car and driving away.

She leaned forward, wanting to see which of the houses was his, but he didn’t stop at any of them. He roared off down the street and out of sight. Cory frowned and stepped closer to the window. He had said it was a client’s car, so maybe he needed to return it. So, which house was his? There was the blue colonial across the street, a small brick ranch on the right, or perhaps it could be one of the other houses farther down the street out of view. Some people used the word neighbor loosely.

Oh, who cares which house is his? It would be best to avoid that man. She and Finn were like oil and water.

Shaking her head at herself, she walked back over to the bed and sat down. Hanging her head, she groaned in dismay.

Damn it, she was going to have to talk to him, and soon.

Her luggage was in her car.