Chapter 1
Emma fought back the tears that were forming in her eyes upon seeing the pinkish red hue making a circle right above her head. She was standing on the middle of the Galata Bridge, just outside of the Spice Market in Istanbul, when the monstrous circle appeared. The pink circle started from one side of the bridge and extended to the other side.
Emma knew what it meant. Trouble. She set the warning system herself when she was a little girl. Her mother, who was a witch just like herself, taught her how to symbolize her sixth sense into clues. The pink circle only meant one thing: someone was hunting her. But who?
Emma took a deep breath and tried to calm her thoughts. She was a twenty-four-year-old woman, now; she was no kid. She had known this was a possibility ever since her parents passed away. However, dealing with the reality of it was not as easy as planning for it.
Emma hugged the cotton bag in her arms where she had carefully placed all her spices. Every witch knew that a spell was only as good as its ingredients. If you wanted a good spell, you needed good spices. If you wanted good spices, you got them from Istanbul.
Emma reached into the cotton bag and took the rose oil out of its secure little pocket. She started inhaling the sweet scent of roses to calm herself. The events had an unexpected turn as the day processed. Emma spent all day hunting for the best spices. She had a nose like a hound and could determine the best of the best by a sniff. The Artless that she bought the oil from said the best rose oil in the world was made in Isparta. The witching community called people without magic ‘Artless’ since they did not know the Art of Witch Craft. However, Emma thought it would be unfair to call whomever made this rose oil Artless. It was divine. She remembered her thoughts of wanting to visit Isparta one day, to walk among the rose gardens. How much had changed in an hour, she thought. Now, she couldn’t even go back home.
Emma was originally from Port Gamble, Washington, but had to flee to Europe after she and her family were attacked by the Howlers. Her parents managed to smuggle Emma onto a ship headed to Europe just in time. They insisted that they travel different ways to send the Howlers off their track. Her parents were supposed to drive to Los Angeles and get a plane from LAX to Africa. However, they were ambushed in San Francisco. Both of her parents died fighting the Howlers. Howlers were excommunicated witches and wizards who were after one thing: power. They developed wolf-like features, their appearance changing slowly as they chose to use their powers for money and influence. The dark magic they used started to give them a wolf-like look. Even at twenty-four years old, just their appearance was enough to frighten Emma. The oldest were the worst. They looked like they were out of a nightmare. Howlers always traveled in packs and used an ancient language to communicate, which sounded like a howl. That’s where they got their name from. They were very dangerous and Emma was their new target now. If she wanted to survive she needed to move quickly.
Emma was by no means rich, but she did get by. She had a small botanical shop on Baker Street in London where she exclusively sold succulents. Her little shop was named ‘Patience’. The succulent plant was also known as the patience plant in the witch community due to its drought resistance. It could withstand a drought patiently by reserving water in its leaves. The succulent plants also gave patience and long life to their owners, if used correctly. Emma used a little enchantment daily to get over the anxiety caused by her parents’ death.
Emma wished she was in her shop right now and felt the tears burning her eyes again. But this was not the time for self-pity. She took another sniff of the beautiful rose oil and started to collect her thoughts. The first thing to do was to get to an airport. Every enchanted creature knew that airports were mutual ground. The High Council of Witch Craft deemed using any kind of magic in an airport to be an act of treason and punishable by death. There were just too many cameras, too many Artless, and too much security to keep their secrets hidden. Therefore, for any enchanted creature like Emma, who was being hunted by the deadly Howlers, airports were the safest place. She hailed a taxi and got in. She started feeling better the minute she closed the car door. Suddenly there was a barrier between her and the crowded city. The movement of the car made her feel safe too. It was much better than standing still on a bridge.
The taxi steered through Istanbul traffic and Emma felt calm enough to decide her second move. She had to play the ‘Placement Game’. It was a game she started playing when she was a little girl. She would place the options in her mind like tarot cards. Each option would have a symbol. Emma would use her magic to determine which card was playing a role in her life. Emma knew that someone was hunting her, but who? She placed the first card on her mental table.
The Sanctus Vitae, the Pure Life or the Puritans. Emma belonged to this witchery clan, so did her family. The Puritans drew their power from the nature and the karma of good deeds. They did make great doctors using their power to heal and draw more power from the act of healing. They were never rich or powerful, though. The aim of the life of a Puritan was to end the pain in this world. It could be a kiss or just a word, but a Puritan could give a ray of light to anybody who was hurt or in dark. It was very unlikely that they would hunt her. Hunting was not a Puritan’s business. It would only diminish their power. However, Emma learned the hard way that she needed to take every threat seriously. The symbol of the Puritan was a candle with a lavender engraved on the candle holder. Emma placed the mental card on the mental desk in her mind.
The second card Emma placed in her mind belonged to the Diomedeidae, the Albatross. The Albatross were the most powerful kind of witches and wizards. They were rare and mysterious. Albatross is originally the name of large, oceanic sea bird. They have the largest wing span of any living bird and they can fly for long distances. These legendary creatures are strong yet beautiful. In the wizarding world, the Albatross got their name from the tattoo burned into their skin just above their heart that is shaped like an Albatross when this magical transformation occurs. The transformation from a regular wizard to an Albatross is only completed when the tattoo forms on the wizard’s chest. The transition was said to be very painful even torturous. But it is the only way to become an Albatross. No witch or wizard is born an Albatross. But some turned into these mystic creatures. Half of them didn’t survive the process of turning into an Albatross. But the ones that did survive, were very powerful. No one knew exactly how or why. But if an Albatross was hunting her she was as good as dead. The symbol of an Albatross was a flying Albatross over a sea. Emma placed the mental card on her mental desk.
The third card belonged to the Thinkers. The Thinkers were the great minds of this world. But they were seldom great wizards. They would often use their powers to gain personal interest that is why their magic was usually the least strong. A witch or a wizard would have their powers as long as it was serving a just cause. The magic was fed with good karma. When the magic was used for personal gain and money, it would slowly weaken. The thinkers usually died in their forties of old age. The greed would age a witch like nothing else in this world. Emma wasn’t afraid of the Thinkers magic-wise. However, even with a weak power, a Thinker could get very strong in the Artless world. Thinkers could be very powerful when it came to money and that would make them very dangerous nonetheless. The sign of the Thinkers was a white rose wrapped around a pan. Emma always loved the symbol. She placed the third card in her mind.
The fourth and last card she placed belonged to the Benders. Benders were the most dangerous group of the four. They could bend and alter their power in any situation. They were not as strong as the Albatross but they were survivors. Benders were the hardest to kill and easiest to be killed by. A Bender could control the elements and talk to animals like a Puritan, just like Emma did. They could also build gadgets and form plans like the Thinkers, which was something Emma was not good at. When it came to Albatross, even tough Albatross were very powerful, they had their weaknesses too. A Bender could find a weakness of an Albatross and retaliate in any method that would be necessary to take down an Albatross. Changing and adopting meant survival and Benders were surviving. The sign of the Benders was a sunflower. Emma thought how such a peaceful and simple flower could be used to describe such a dangerous lot. She placed the last card on her mental table.
Now that there were four cards on her mental table, she took a deep breath and started going through the cards. She concentrated on each symbol. She waited for a sign, a picture, a vision. Then right there in the taxi, the card with the sunflower came forward. It turned into a dark, deep tunnel and started to suck her in. She was transferred to another dimension and someone whispered in her ear: Jason. She then saw his picture. A very handsome young man. Half Cherokee. She felt the powerful Cherokee blood running true his veins.
Emma suddenly heard a honking from the outside world and lost her concentration. She was now in the present, still in the taxi, very close now to the airport.
Emma started to gather all the information in her head. She opened another imaginary page and started to write down the facts.
Emma knew she needed to get help. She couldn’t fight this on her own. But who would help her? She had nobody. The tears she tried so hard to avoid were coming back. Emma had nobody.
‘So what?’ she said to herself. Her mother always said that when there is a problem, there is always a solution. To her mother, no aspect in life was impossible. She said, ‘No one might have a solution yet; it doesn’t mean that the problem is unsolvable.’ It was just a matter of hard work and dedication.
Emma decided to set aside the self-pity and let her mind run free. She started to think of the deep oceans, the calls of blue whales, and the ancient whisper of the wind. She started to think of the non-stop movement of water. How it could give life to earth or how it could bring destruction. Emma thought of the rain drops that fell into this beautiful earth for thousands of years. How small she was compared to the vastness of the universe. How small her problem must be compared to the ones of the endless cycle of humanity. There must be a solution, she thought. There must be a solution because there is no problem without a solution. The problems were just a way of universe talking to Emma. It all had a purpose. So, where was her solution? Just as she was thinking of deep oceans, a touch of dark blue came to her vision. Blue eyes. Very dark blue eyes, almost navy. Dark hair and a very handsome face. Emma knew who the face belonged to: Richard. If it was a normal day, Emma would say that she would rather die than ask help from Richard. However, today that might actually happen. So, Emma made a choice. She was going to swallow her pride and ask for help from Richard. Just when she decided that, she felt a tingle in her body. She knew that Richard already felt her call for help and accepted it. If it was any other wizard she would be amazed. But Richard was an Albatross. A very powerful wizard. Emma winched in embarrassment. Once upon a time, Emma and Richard were the parties of a betrothal agreement. They were supposed to marry when Emma turned twenty-one.
What happened when Emma turned twenty-one, you might ask? Emma and her parents were invited to Richard’s great aunt’s summer house in Mexico. Up until she met Joanne, Emma always made fun of the fact that she had a betrothal agreement. She was going to take one look at the weirdo, who was supposed to be ten years older than her, and say goodbye. The only reason she was putting up with this nonsense was because of her mother. She said if she didn’t do as she was told, she was going to give her an ass whooping that she won’t forget. Considering how proper and ladylike her mom was, she decided to take this threat seriously. Her parents didn’t even raise their voices at her. They were very modern in every aspect, but this stupid arrangement held very high importance to them.
When Emma arrived at Mexico that summer, she felt an instant connection with Joanne. She was like the cool and loving grandmother she always wanted but never had.
Joanne must have been close to her nineties however she didn’t look a day older than forty. She had the most loving eyes Emma ever saw. Her gray hair was up in a bun. She was wearing a gray sundress and beautiful leather shoes. What was most amazing about Joanne was that her house was full of enchantments. The kitchen was up and running like a five-star restaurant, cooking on its own, a full feast. Emma looked in amazement at the spoons stirring the pots and the knives cutting the vegetables. She gave a little laugh looking at the strawberries walking towards a pot of chocolate in a military march. They were jumping in to the chocolate sauce with a splash and laying on a big white serving plate. Emma’s mother never allowed such spells to be used in the house with the fear of an Artless walking up on them. However, Joanne’s summer house was so far away from any Artless, the house was practically running on magic.
Joanne walked up to them and ushered Emma’s parents into the long and inviting sofa. She then grabbed the lemonade jar and poured lemonade into five cups. She served the two cups to Emma’s parents. It was a courtesy to hand-serve your guests in the witch world. Emma liked Joanne’s commitment to old ways. Since she was an elder no one cared if she used her magic for serving, but she was determined to show hospitality.
Emma remembered like yesterday that her parents had a very peaceful look on their faces as they accepted the lemonade. Then, Joanne walked over to Emma and handed her two glasses of lemonade. “Emma, honey, why don’t you go ask Richard if he would like some lemonade, he is sitting in the upper porch,” she said. With that sentence Emma was pulled out from the happy place that she was in. She wasn’t there for a visit. She was there to meet Richard. Up until that minute, Emma didn’t care of the outcome of this nonsense agreement. But now that she met Joanne and saw this beautiful home, Emma wanted to be a part of it. As strange as it was, she wanted to belong with Joanne.
Emma decided that she was an adult and she could handle this. She gave Joanne a wide smile as she grabbed the lemonades and started to climb up the stairs. Joanne called after her saying “He is in the third floor, honey.” “Alright,” Emma said. It would have been better if his majesty came down to greet her but oh well. Mr. “the very powerful Albatross” couldn’t be bothered she guessed. Maybe he wanted to be alone with her. Emma didn’t know. As she climbed up the third step, Emma came into a beautiful room. She looked around her with amazement. The room was all glass with glass French doors opening to a big porch outside. The estate the house was built on was breathtaking and the room had a beautiful view. The estate was located on a private beach with white sand and palm trees. Apparently the land had been in their family for centuries. The room was covered with white pillows. She saw that the glass French doors were open. She saw the big white swing in the porch and heard the slow rhythmic cracking of the chains. The swing was moving in a very slow paste. She slowly moved toward the porch and turned around to face Richard. He was looking out to the ocean. He seemed to be preoccupied with his thoughts. He didn’t even realize Emma walking out to the porch.
The first thought Emma had was that Richard was a handsome man. He was six feet three, with broad shoulders and a broad chest. His body was covered with muscles. He had dark black hair and dark blue eyes. He had a defined jaw and a big characteristic nose. He was a handsome man, alright. The Albatross tattoo on her chest was shining with the bright sun light. He was only wearing swimming trunks. She wanted to walk towards him, stroke his hair and ask what was bothering him. Instead she stood there, feeling like a six-year-old, not knowing what to do.
Richard turned to her slowly, with a gaze that burnt her soul. “Emma?” he asked. “Yes” she said. She gestured toward the lemonade cup in her hands. “l brought you lemonade” she said with a smile. She was expecting Richard to give her a smile. However, he looked at her worriedly. Like he had some bad news.
Oh my God, Emma thought. He thinks I am ugly! Emma was wearing black jeans, a yellow t-shirt and flip-flops. Her mother asked her to wear something more girly, like a cute sundress and heels. However, Emma told her that she was not there to impress anybody. If he wanted her, he should be happy with her brain not her body. Also, she was told that she was very sexy. She had a round full butt, full breasts and long legs. She was not going to show off her boobs like a gold-digging bimbo. But that was before she laid eyes on Richard. Now that she saw him, she longed to be like one of the girls of the Playboy Mansion. She wished she was a woman who knew the art of seducing a man, rather than being her inexperienced, awkward, virgin self.
Emma bitterly thought that her Biology degree was not handy when it came to getting the man. She was not going to impress him with her endless knowledge of plants. He was certainly not going to be impressed with her magic since he was an Albatross. He was out of her league. Period.
Richard walked towards Emma and took the lemonade from her hand. He motioned Emma to sit on a chair at the end of the porch. Richard sat in front of her. He was looking straight into her eyes but Emma couldn’t look into his. She turned her gaze into the ocean. Emma was a water witch and she could taste the salty ocean water in her lips. The sea water was calming her.
“Emma,” he said calmly, “I don’t know what to say or how to say this. You are amazing. However, what I am is very complicated. I am not right for you.”
Yeah, sure Emma thought. if I looked like a Victoria Secret’s model, I am sure your mind would be changed.
“It is alright,” Emma said. She was happy that her voice didn’t shake. “This whole thing is stupid. Waste of our time really.”
Richard gave her a hard look “I don’t think it is stupid, Emma. It is just that my life right now…”
Emma interrupted Richard. “It is okay,” she said. Giving him a faint smile. “This is a very beautiful beach,” she said, hoping to change the subject. “Yes,” he said, “This house was in my family for generations.” Emma looked up to Richard. Inside somewhere she hoped Richard would ask her to join him to a stroll in the beach. She wanted her to invite him for a dip in the ocean. She wanted him to show her his favorite hidden corner of the beach. But instead, Richard sat up from the chair slowly. “I have to get back to New York,” he said.
“Sure,” Emma said.
“It was very nice to meet you too, Emma,” Richard said flatly and headed to the stairs.
Emma felt the rejection down in her stomach. She wanted to throw up. She was never going to belong to this beautiful beach, this beautiful house or this beautiful man. She was never going to be a family to Joanne. She had to go back to Washington, back to her boring life. But before all of that she had to go down and face Joanne and her parents. God, how embarrassing for them. Their only child being rejected so quickly.
Emma walked down the stairs and saw her parents staring worriedly at her. Joanne walked toward her and took of a golden ring from her finger and put it on Emma’s finger. It was a beautiful antique. Emma wanted to reject it but Joanne closed her slim fingers on her hand and pulled Emma towards her. She gave Emma a very gentle kiss on her forehead and said “It was a pleasure meeting you, Emma”. Emma was touched by the genuine worry in her voice. “It was a pleasure meeting you too, Joanne,” she said and she meant it. After all that happened, Emma was still happy that she met Joanne. That she saw this beautiful beach and this enchanted house.
As Emma was leaving to go to the boat that brought them to the summer house, Joanne handed her a pink bucket, full of chocolate covered strawberries. Emma gave Joanne a big hug. Her parents shook hands with Joanne and soon they were in the boat heading back to Washington.
On the boat Emma made a decision. She was never going to put herself in this position again. She was never going to give a man the power to decide her destiny. She had enough rejection for a lifetime. One day she thought, I will find someone who love me for who l am and when that day comes, I will be happy. But until then, no other man will ever have the power to make me feel inferior, she vowed.
To this day, Emma kept her promise. But today, Emma needed Richard’s help. Ask her any other day, she said she would rather die than ask for his help. But now that the theory was put the test, Emma decided that she wanted to live. Even if it meant asking for help from the one person that made her feel the most inferior in her entire life.
