I sat in a chair, eyes closed, meditating. I prepared myself mentally for the evening ‘talk’ with Nixon and the inevitable No. I worked closely with Cynthia over the past few days, preparing her and trying to get a feel for the magic as much as possible.

I knew the steps, the spell; I just needed the power to do it.

From her news a few days ago, my plan no longer mattered. No longer was it a matter of wanting this lock off; it was a must.

The babe was struggling.

Their heartbeat was faint and slow. Cynthia was immediately told to bed rest: no stressing, no walking, no chores. I relayed this to my mum and Nixon, who said, ‘I will think about it’.

There was no room for errors.

Leo pored over the book I had placed in front of him. He would finish if I could not, but only as a last resort. I could not stop my legs from jittering with anxiety.

The worst part was waiting.

I sighed once more and Mum placed an empty cup and a transparent teapot in front of me. Steam poured from the spout, and a curled-up jasmine flower lay in the middle. As it steeped in the hot water, it unfurled and turned the water a pale yellow-green.

“Drink. It will calm your nerves,” she encouraged, sitting down.

Green Jasmine Tea was great for anxiety. It often did calm me down.

“Is everything ready?” she asked.

I nodded, “Except this lock, yes.”

----------------------------------------

The whole coven gathered at Seri’s back garden when the time came. Although a lousy experience lingered here from a few weeks ago, there was no question it was the best place for us to convene away from prying eyes.

I spied Nixon nearer to the back of the house and peeked back at Leo. He gave me a nod, and I tried my luck.

“Nixon?”

“Lexi.”

“You probably know what I’m going to ask.”

He took a heavy breath and sighed, “I just don’t think this is the right time for you. We have only just relaxed your lock a little; it is too soon.”

“It’s not just about me, Nixon; think of the babe.”

“These things take about a week to break anyway. The child will be fine. You can pause and resume when you have recovered.”

“This curse is making the pregnancy high risk… to both. The longer it’s present, the more risk it poses.”

“I trust in you-”

“She could die. The best chance for success is tonight. The full moon. Any time after that, it’s a fool's game.”

He shook his head, “You and I know these things cannot be rushed. The whole coven is here to support you; use their energy, and you will be fine.”

I closed my eyes in frustration, “It’s not that simple. I cannot channel effectively with this lock. You know that: you put it on me. It will be slower and more painful than it needs to be.”

His lips pursed, “How’s about one foot at a time, eh? Try it out, then we will re-analyse.” he finalised, walking away from our conversation.

I took a breath to calm the rising anger.

“Alright! Gather around,” Nixon stated, “Thank you for pulling together our newest members. We know this is a tough time, and it is going to be a rough week for all of us.”

“Rough week?” Quinn whispered next to me.

“He won’t budge,” I whispered back.

She shook her head with a displeased look, “I got you.”

“Lexi.” Nixon stretched out an arm.

I approached Cynthia, who was already sitting on the grass with plenty of cushions to make her comfortable. I sat close to her back, and Noel brought the cauldron with the simmer inside. It was to purify and cleanse the strands as I removed them.

“As mentioned yesterday, we will need volunteers to share the pain,” I reminded.

Nixon said nothing as people stepped forward to sit in a circle with Cynthia. Mum, Heaven, Seri and Quinn sat. Hopefully, more would if things got rough.

Noel hovered close to us as Nixon cast a circle.

“Is there anything you want to add Lexi?” My mother said as Nixon finished.

I thought about it, “Yes. I think I do.”

I called out, looking to the stars, “I ask those goddesses who protect women, mothers and motherhood to join us tonight… Brigid, Frigg, Hestia, any deity who wished to, please help us tonight.”

I looked down at the wand and athame and took them in one hand.

‘Hecate, mother of the craft. Help me.’

I looked back up, “Join hands.”

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As they did, Winnie and Dawn, Lathen’s mother, stepped forward and sat to join the inner circle. I smiled slightly and placed my hands on Cynthia’s shoulders. My crimson magic circled them all together, creating a shared link.

“Roinn an grá, roinn an phian, roinn nó tá gach rud in vain,” I announced.

And they repeated, “Share the love, share the pain, share or else all is in vain.”

The rest stood around the circle, watching inside and outside the ring.

I took a deep breath with Cynthia, “You must relax. Let them take it. Ready?”

She nodded, placing my hand onto the wound; my magic slowly sank into the neon green. I let my magic sweep the inside, looking for the loose end.

There.

I pointed the wand to my palm, concentrating the end flew to my palm, and I heard a grunt. I glanced around to find Quinn looking weirded out.

“That felt weird,” Quinn said sheepishly.

I smiled lightly before twirling the wand in a circle, it took the first strand and curled it into a messy ball. I stopped once I saw the knot.

“Elevitarus.”

The wand struggled to stay afloat. Using my fingers, I inspected the knot and noticed a black sphere with red eyes.

“Shit,” I muttered, “It’s a screamer.”

“A what?” Nixon asked in disbelief.

“A screamer,” I repeated, “When I undo this knot, it will leave. It will go back to its maker.”

“She will know?” Noel asked.

I nodded, “She will know what we are trying to do, and probably stop us.”

“Is there anything we can do?” Noel asked.

“Hm, if we can keep it here and stop it from escaping, we might have a chance. But… That also means we don’t have a week, Nixon.” I turned to look at him.

“Once I take off this knot. The screamer gets loose. Even Leo isn’t strong enough to keep it here for a week. I cannot stop. I cannot pause.”

“Hm, how about you swap? Leo undoes it,” Nixon announced.

“I don’t know how,” Leo fibbed.

“It’s not something I can teach in five minutes,” I said.

His eyes narrowed as all eyes looked at him.

“Fine,” he spoke stiffly, “This may hurt.”

Pulling the collar of my dress back, he pinched the skin that held the mark. He gave no warning and forced his magic to cut the chains. I hissed in pain at the sudden invasion covering my senses.

May hurt my ass.

I tried to ease the pain by curling my magic up. His magic swarmed the cage; I could practically hear the links of heavy chains falling to the floor.

I felt a snap and a flutter in my chest as he let go and took a shaky breath. I no longer felt limited, and my fate thread freed. I blinked as tears threatened to accumulate. I could breathe. I felt free.

I shook my head and focused back on what I was doing. Rejoicing could come later.

“Are you ready to catch this?” I said to the others.

“Little game of hot potato,” Lathen joked.

“Three… Two… One.”

At one, the magic from my finger loosened the knot, turning it over, out came a scream, and it streaked up, leaving a trail of black smoke.

“Arrestoria!”

It halted, battling against an unseen force, in mid-air. Lathen was the first to test it.

“It’s a strong little thing,” he worried.

“Take it in turns; don’t attempt to look strong,” I told them and got to work.

My magic came to me quickly, and I did what I wanted without resistance. It was terrific; it finally felt like a part of me, not a separate thing.

The red made my fingers glow as I manipulated the knot. I teased it out: Ping! It sounded like a guitar string breaking.

“By knot of one, your spell is undone,” I spoke with intention.

Moving the wand next to me, it twirled the rest into a ball and threw it into the cauldron, where it sizzled and spat. The smell of juniper filled the area. For each strand thrown in, a berry would pop.

I repeated the process; luckily. It was just the one screamer passed to Lathen’s father, Philip.

“By knot of two, it comes back to you.”

The green ball sizzled as it got trapped in the water.

“Pass it, Phil!” I heard Devan say.

Ahhhh! It screamed as it was passed. Inch by inch the screamer got higher into the air above us.

“By knot of three, so mote it be.”

The concoction now bubbled with the heat it was making; I rolled my neck as the fourth one pinged; usually, I would be dizzy by now.

“By knot of four, this power affects you no more.”

Into the bubbles, it goes, sizzling and spitting.

“Here, Devan!” Travis took over, Ahhh!

As the wand wound on the 5th, I asked Cynthia, “How are you?”

I saw sweat dripping down her face, “Hot, but I’m okay. These ladies are amazing.”

“Good. We are halfway there,” I reassured as I untangled number five.

“By knot of five, this spell takes a dive.”

“Noel!” Travis shouted, passing it. Ahhh!

Bubble, bubble. The mixture took it in white steam, rising steadily.

“By knot of six, this spell goes to river Styx.”

I was beginning to enjoy the sound of the sizzle as I added another. Turning back, I noticed the next three were tangled around one main stem. It was different from the stead knotted line. Picking one, I went with it.

“By knot of seven, your events I’ll leaven.”

“Collin! Take it!” Noel encouraged.

The mixture was boiling steady with the seventh added.

Ping! That one came away easy…

“By knot of eight, you do not change fate.”

Splutter and sizzle. The mixture started to turn black.

Taking the second to last, a slight flick came loose; it was too good to be true.

“By knot of nine, your spell is in decline.”

Adding it, the cauldron threatened to boil over. It sizzled and spluttered more violently.

“Here, Leo. Take it,” Collin spoke. Ahhhh!

I coaxed the end of the tenth onto the wand. Instead, the wand stopped suddenly and dropped to the floor. Confused, I took it manually and tried to pull the last strand out.

It was buried within her body. The eerie glow under her skin glowed and the trail went straight down her spine. It would not budge one inch. I couldn’t see it attached to anything.

“Erm Lexi…”

I leaned forward, and Cynthia whispered, “Is it normal to feel the baby move? You have not finished yet… and I’m only five months.”

A cold shiver entered my spine and a cold sweat followed. I took a moment and turned my attention to Quinn, “Quinn. Be honest, when I tug this, where is the pain?”

Giving it a gentle tug, Quinn's face twisted into horror, “The hell is that?”

Winnie started to laugh, “I remember that feeling,” she looked to Quinn, “That’s a baby moving.”

While they were all smiles, my face turned grim, and I quietly leaned back.

I reminded Cynthia to relax and ensured my voice was calm. Closing my eyes, my magic flushed down the green wound and followed the strand to the source. I hoped it was not where I thought it was…

‘Hello there,’ I coaxed as my magic entered the baby's space.

‘Don’t mind me. I’m looking for something that shouldn’t be here.’

My magic followed the green line. As I feared, it was wrapped around the baby.

Manoeuvring it, I loosened the lasso around the body; luckily, it was not around the umbilical cord. I kept going until I found the knot.

It was now only knotted around the hand. I moved my palms to an open space away from Cynthia’s back and concentrated. Manipulating the strand, willing it to loosen. My magic danced around, trying to find a weak point.

It was a good few minutes before it loosened. I felt a little lightheaded. I opened my eyes, reached forward to the wound, and coaxed it out. The last strand was free, and I rolled it into a ball.

“By knot of Ten, your wickedness ends.”

I threw it into the cauldron with the others. Staring into the pot, I said, “Incendia.” The contents lit fire.

I turned to see Leo, now playing with the screamer. Pulling it this way and that. Like a cat playing with a mouse.

My hands latched on Cynthia's shoulders, “Thank you, sisters.” And withdrawing my magic, I added, “Thank you, deities.”

“We can break the circle now. Leo… you can let that go,” I said, glancing in his direction.

“Soona,” I said, healing the cut left behind on Cynthia’s shoulder.

Examining everyone, it was clear this took its toll. Everyone looked exhausted. I felt drained, but goddess, I felt whole again.

Ahhhhhhhh!

The screamer echoed around the dark night as it left, shooting to the north.