Blood Witch By: Cate Tiernan
Sweep # 3
Morgan just discovered her birth mothers lost Book of Shadows in a secret library in Cal and Selene's house while trying to hide from Hunter Niall and Sky Eventide; two witches who cause odd and unrecognizable feelings within her. When she starts reading the Book of Shadows, she ends up losing track of time and is found by Cal and Selene. Although Selene seems calm on the outside, Morgan feels the rage she is hiding underneath and at first feels guilty about entering this private room without permission. Her guilt quickly turns to anger when she remembers that she found her mother’s BOS. She confronts them about keeping her mother’s book from her when they knew she was searching for information and tells them it is her book and she is taking it home.
On a trip to Practical Magick the next day, Morgan finally tells Cal about Seeing Sky with Bree and Raven in the cemetery. Although unexpected, Cal doesn't seem concerned about the information. Cal buys Morgan a Wicca gardening book as an early birthday present and Alyce tells Morgan she should read a book about Woodbanes. Although skeptical about the book, Morgan trusts Alyce and so she buys it. As they are leaving the shop, they come out to find Hunter crouched near the back of Cal's car.
After the initial surprise wears off, Hunter and Cal show how much they dislike each other. They take jabs at each other during a short and antagonistic conversation. Hunter Really gets under Cal's skin when Cal tell him he can leave and Hunter says that he plans on sticking around and might even teach Morgan a thing or two while he is here. He then goes on to tell Morgan that Cal is not a "big man" that he is just a "small fry" and that he wants to be around when Morgan realizes it. This upsets Morgan and she tells Hunter off and brushes past him knocking into his arm. When they touch a rush of energy enters Morgan knocking the breath out of her. Afraid of what just happened she begs Cal to leave. As they drive away, she glances toward Hunter and sees him staring at her with a look of hunger on his face.
Later that night at the coven’s circle, Cal tells Morgan he found a Peorth rune stuck to the underside of his car where Hunter was crouched. The Peorth rune stands for hidden things revealed, and Cal believes that Hunter is spying on them. During the circle the coven members all speak what their goals are, and Morgan's goal is to realize her power. After saying this an ancient Gaelic chant comes to her from an ancestral memory, the way other small spells have been coming to her since her first circle. This chant calls power to her and she briefly enjoys it before it overwhelms her and she has to ground herself. While Morgan is laying down grounding herself, a tiny gray kitten starts to climb on her. Jenna says the kittens are two months old and looking for homes. Remembering the kitten from her mother’s BOS she decides to keep it and gives it the same name; Dagda.
One day at school while in the restroom, Morgan heard Bree and Raven enter. Not wanting to get into a confrontation, she pulled up her feet and hid in the stall. They were talking about their circle with Sky and Raven asked if Bree was able to get some of Morgan's hair. She confirmed that she did get some from an old hairbrush and the girls left the bathroom. She wants to tell Cal about what she overheard but he had to leave immediately after school to help his mother. Instead, Morgan and Robbie decide to go foraging for pinecones for thanksgiving décor. While out with Robbie they hear voices in the forest and come across Matt and Raven discussing Matt joining their coven, when Raving asking doesn't work she starts to kiss him and promise him that if he joins them that they can be together. As much as Matt tried to resist, he eventually gives in to Ravens seductions and they start making out. Morgan and Robbie hide until the others leave, they both feel bad for Matt's girlfriend Jenna, another member of their coven, and Morgan decides she will have to talk to Matt and Cal.
When Morgan gets home from school the next day there is a grey car she doesn't recognize in front of her house. As she walks up Hunter gets out and comes over. The last time she saw him he looked a little ill, but now he looks even worse. He tells her that Cal and Selene are dangerous and that she doesn't know what she has gotten herself into with them. He says that because this is all new to her, she doesn't know any better and that he doesn't blame her but she needs to stay away from them. When Morgan calls him a liar, he claims that they are causing his sickness with dark magick. Morgan tells him off and turns to walk away, but Hunter grabs her arm. She immediately smacks away his hand and blue witch fire shocks him like it did Bakker. Hunter tells her that Cal only wants her because she is a super powerful Woodbane witch from the Belwicket coven, and that all of Belwicket was Woodbane including her parents. He tells her that Cal is a Woodbane as well and that they both have a choice to make. He says he is a member of the International Council of Witches; a large group of blood witches from all 7 of the great clans that make up the equivalent of the Wiccan government, and that he is also Cal's Brother.
After fleeing Hunter and what she hopes are lies, she starts looking through the BOS and finds an entry where her mother confirms that they are indeed Woodbanes. She goes to Cal's to talk and finds Sky getting ready to leave. Cal tells her that Sky was warning him that Hunter was out to get him and that he should be careful. Confused Morgan asks Cal why Hunter is after him but he wouldn't give her an answer. She tells him all that has happened, about the girls in the restroom, Matt in the woods, and even about Hunter and what he told her. Cal tells her knowing she is Woodbane is better than not knowing what she is or being a "mongrel". He also tells her that Hunter 6 months younger than him and the son of the woman his father married after he left them. He doesn't believe his father is also Hunter’s biological father and that at the most they are step-brothers.
Morgan takes a trip up to Practical Magick and ends up talking to David about the ICW, their seekers which are like council police, and being Woodbane. He tells her he is a Burnhide and that some blood witches have physical traits or marks denoting their clan. She shows David her birthmark and he says that it is what’s known as the Woodbane athame but not all Woodbanes have it. After leaving Practical Magick to head home, Morgan sees bright lights in her mirror tail-gaiting her. In her distraction she hits a patch of ice and loses control of her car, crashing it into a drainage ditch. Minutes later Bree pulls up and offers Morgan a ride home. Morgan doesn't know who was in the car that caused her to crash, so feeling that she can’t trust her she declines and walks the rest of the way home.
While waiting alone at home for the tow truck to arrive with Das Boot, Morgan reads a passage in the BOS about how her mother preferred scrying with fire. Morgan herself has always loved fire and decides to try scrying with it herself. She sees many images and many people, but the clearest image was one of Maeve standing near a small house pointing underneath it and smiling at her. A ringing phone breaks her concentration, but when she answers it, no one is on the line. All alone and spooked by the phone call, Morgan locks the doors and windows and she turns on all outside lights before hiding in her bedroom. Sending out her senses she feels the presence of two people on the edge of the property, but when she goes to look all spotted was long pale blond hair before all the lights go out. She knows Sky is outside and believes the other presence to be Hunter, they start circling her house slowly and she believes they are putting a spell on her. After they leave Morgan is too afraid to go outside and look so she decides to wait until morning. When she does go out to look the next morning, there is no sign of anyone ever being there.
Cal was not available so Morgan asks Robbie to take a trip to Meshomah Falls with her to find Maeve's old house. When she finally finds the house, she tells Robbie everything about why they are here and whose house it was. Although shocked Robbie is supportive and keeps lookout while Morgan crawls underneath the house where in her vision Maeve was pointing. Using her senses, she finds a metal box with the initials M.R. engraved on the top. When she opens it later at Robbie's house, they find the Belwicket coven tools inside; an athame with 18 pairs of initials down the blade, a green silk robe with silver and gold embroidery, 4 small silver ritual bowls, and a black wood wand with gold and silver lines and a large crystal sphere at the end. Once home, she uses her mother’s athame and walks around her house again, this time Sigils glowed all around the house.
Later at Cals she tells him about finding her mother’s tools and about the sigils around her house, Cal is ecstatic about the tools and wants to see them but Morgan left them at home. Cal gives Morgan multiple presents for her birthday including an athame, tiger's eye earrings, a spell-weaving book, and a lavender blouse. When Cal tells Morgan that he wants to make love to her, she hesitates and declares that she isn't ready to take that step yet. Instead, they do a two-person meditation circle before gathering all of her gifts and heading outside to take her home. Before they are able to get into the truck, a car pulls in behind them and Hunter gets out.
Hunter accuses Cal of playing Morgan for her power and plotting to destroy the council as well as anyone who is not Woodbane. Cal antagonizes Hunter by saying that he is a killer and that it is his fault their younger brother is dead. Their argument gets more intense and Cal grabs Morgan's birthday athame and takes off into the woods taunting Hunter to come and get him. When Morgan finally catches up to the boys, Cal uses a binding spell on her to keep her from interfering. As Cal and Hunter brawl in the snow, Morgan summons her strength and breaks Cal's spell then runs to grab the athame on the ground.
Hunter claims to be a seeker for the council and is authorized to take Cal in for his crimes. After pinning Cal, Hunter wraps a silver chain around his wrists. Cal screams in pain and screams to Morgan that Hunter is killing him. In an effort to protect Cal, Morgan throws the athame hitting Hunter in the side of the neck making him stumble. Cal takes the opportunity of Hunter’s distraction to kick him in the chest, sending him over the edge of the cliff and into the icy Hudson river below. Morgan then removes the Chain from his wrists deep red burn marks beneath. Cal tells Morgan that she saved his life and that he loves her more than he ever thought he could and that their future truly begins today. Walking back to Cal's house, Morgan realizes that it is after midnight and officially her birthday, she is now 17.
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