152 A Stranger's Touch

After a few minutes of surprised silence, the witches begin clapping as a woman in a long black dress walks over to greet the men. She slightly bows to them before turning to face everyone else and says "Ladies, I want you all to meet the last and most powerful Druids left here on earth." 

I feel my stomach clench as my mother lightly touches my elbow. The crowd grows uneasy as they all start whispering but the woman next to the Druids lifts her hands and says "Ladies! Please, let me explain. We are powerful but ever since we lost of male counterparts, we've lost our true power. These men agreed to step forward when news spread of our Hallows Coven."

I stiffen as everyone turns to look at my mother and I but I keep my face blank as I try to analyze the whole situation. All the Druids died out over two hundred years ago and the last time I checked, they didn't get along with us witches. If anything, they were out to kill us.

The five men suddenly start walking over to my mother and I so I quickly pull my magic to me without making it obvious. As they pass the other tables, the women turn to watch them with starry eyes while some even stand. 

The men ignore them as they continue walking to us like men on a mission. As soon as they come to a stop before us, they all take a knee before us and bow their heads, surprising and confusing me even further. I keep a blank face as the man in front lifts his head to me.

Jet black hair and bright blue eyes... much like my mother. The man looks me over before saying "We've heard of you Eris Hallows, a true descendent of Queen Cara, the first witch. We come to offer you our power in alliance with you and your Coven." 

Several others can be heard gasping with shock as the men out my mother and I about who we really are but it's really not a secret either so I keep a straight face as I stare down at him. What the hell is he after and what game is he trying to play? My mother clears her throat and says "We are not a Coven. It's just my daughter and I so I'm afraid that we can't accept your kind offer." 

The man glances to my mother before looking back to me and saying "There only needs to be her. She is the Coven. We've come out of hiding to once again serve the royal line." I finally take my eyes off the man and glance at the other men before looking up to the woman still standing in the middle of everything. 

The 'Grandmistress' watches everything with a small smile but I can't help but narrow my eyes in suspicion. I lift my glass and down the rest of my alcohol before standing up and saying "I came here under the impression of making peace with all of the Covens here in New Orleans but it seems that I was wrong." 

As we walk through the tables, everyone watches us with silent shock but no one says a word or tries to stop us. As soon as we step outside, Kian is there. Instead of going back to the hotel, I turn to Kian and ask "Can you take my mother back to the hotel where she's safe? I need to head to the club. Ambrose said the wall has become worse."

Kian doesn't look happy and I know he wants to know what's going on but he nods and says "Be careful. I'll be right back." I nod and walk away as they leave in the opposite direction. Druids... this makes me uncomfortable but since there's only five of them, it shouldn't be so bad... right?

I don't know much about them but my mother has told me stories of when they used to be around and in power. They have an edge as Druids because they can control the elements of nature on demand. Something an average witch can't do. Witches need spells, chants, and ingredients but Druids? I guess you can say we're similar in a way. 

As I reach Ambrose's club, I'm surprised to see that it's open for business and busy. As soon as I step up to the door, the Vampire at the door steps to the side and waves me in. As I step into the packed club, I look around and try to see if Ambrose is out but when I see him coming down the stairs, I push my way through the crowd and head over. 

Ambrose and I lock eyes before I come to a stop next to him and say "We need to talk." His eyes flash before he reaches out and grabs my arm. He pulls me over to the hallway leading to the room as he hisses out "You think!? I'm two seconds from chaining your witchy ass to my club! I ...." 

Suddenly, Ambrose comes to a sudden stop, nearly causing me to run into him but when I look past him, I see the Druid from before with a wicked-looking blade pointed right at Ambrose's heart! When I feel the power around us change, I look around to see that Ambrose and I were surrounded by the five Druids with the same looking blades.

Vampires start closing in as I quickly step forward and say "Lower your blade unless you want to start a war." The Druid keeps his blue eyes locked on Ambrose, completely ignoring me as he says "Release her." 

It's only now do I realize that Ambrose still has my arm. Suddenly, the air around us changes as Kian appears right next to me with glowing red eyes as he says "It looks like I almost missed the fun." Well shit...