Cauldrons call the curse.., p.1
Cauldrons Call: The Curse Of The Blood Moon, page 1
Cauldrons Call
The Curse Of The Blood Moon
Kristen Proby
Contents
Title Page
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Epilogue
About the Author
Newsletter Sign Up
Also by Kristen Proby:
Cauldrons Call
A Curse of the Blood Moon Novel
By
Kristen Proby
CAULDRONS CALL
A Curse of the Blood Moon Novel
Kristen Proby
Copyright © 2023 by Kristen Proby
All Rights Reserved. This book may not be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission from the author. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. All characters and storylines are the property of the author, and your support and respect are appreciated. The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
* * *
Cover Design: By Hang Le
For Kathy
Prologue
Giles Corey
September 1692
* * *
“I spoke with your sister three nights past,” my dear wife, Martha, says as we sit by the fire. Darkness has fallen outside, and with the accusations swirling around Salem, we are more frightened than ever.
“What did Louisa say?”
“She and her husband will not leave Hallows End. Giles, they are steadfast in their belief that no harm can come to them there.”
“No witch is safe in Massachusetts.” It comes out as a whisper, in case anyone may hear. “They cannot shield themselves from this hysteria.”
“She said they plan to cast the curse.”
My head whips up, and I stare at my wife. I love her with everything in me. Martha and I have only been married for two years, finding each other at our advanced age, after our previous spouses passed. Our children are grown and gone, and she is more precious to me than my wealth or anything else in my possession.
I am an old man. Fighting this war of hysteria is something my body and spirit are almost too weary to withstand.
And yet, for Martha, I will fight with everything I am.
“Louisa suggests we join them in Hallows End, Giles. ‘Tis only until this is over, and then we may return home.”
“No.” I shake my head and stare into the fire once more. “We shall not leave our home. Casting the curse is foolhardy, and Jonas should rethink that decision. There must be another way.”
“Jonas is a smart man. An excellent coven leader. Giles, there may not be another way.”
I sigh, then stand and shuffle to the loose stone in the fireplace. Once I’ve removed it, I pull out my mother’s Book of Shadows.
“Giles.” Martha’s voice shakes with fear. “You assured me you disposed of that. If someone found it here, we would surely both be hanged.”
“Do not be concerned, my love,” I reply as I sit and shuffle through the pages until I find the one I want. “I found this today. It is a spell to rewrite history. Martha, this could be what brings all of this to a close without Hallows End disappearing.”
“Jonas assured Louisa the curse can be lifted when we are all out of danger.”
“And how long might that be?” I demand and drop my fist onto the Book of Shadows. “A year? Five? Martha, I am an old man. I do not want to lose my sister for what remains of my life. At less than thirty and five years, she is still a young woman. And she is all that remains of my family.”
“I understand,” Martha murmurs, staring into the fire. “I am afraid of losing Louisa, as well.”
“Who?” I blink at her, not understanding what she said. “Losing who?”
“I do not know.” Martha frowns as if confused. “Why do you have that book out? Giles, someone will harm us if it is found.”
I look down and scowl at the book in my lap. Surely, Martha is correct. If anyone saw this, we would indeed be executed.
“I—I do not know.”
I stand and return the book to its hiding place.
“We should rest this night, my love. It will be another busy day tomorrow.”
Chapter One
Breena
“I can do this.” I bite my lower lip and grip the small box that just happens to be on the bottom of a pile of other packages and give it a pull. Pressing on the ones above in a vain attempt to keep them in place doesn’t work, and before I know it, all of them tumble around me. “Shit. I hope nothing broke.”
I blow a strand of hair out of my eyes and get to work picking up the mess, but then I bump into another stack of boxes, and there’s more tumbling.
“For the goddess’s sake,” I mutter, just as a knock comes from the door. “It’s open!”
“Hey there—” my cousin, Lorelei, begins and then stops short. “Are you in there?”
“In the back corner.”
“We can’t see you over this mountain of stuff,” comes a reply from my other cousin, Lucy.
The three of us grew up as close as sisters, and I love that we all live close enough to pop in on one another. At least, I usually like it.
“Some boxes fell over.” I’m out of breath as I finally retrieve the last package, set it aside, and then stand and smile over at the two people I love the most. “What are you two up to today?”
“We brought coffee,” Lorelei says with a frown, looking around the space. “But it looks like we need an intervention here, honey.”
I shake my head and scoot around my big craft table, walking to where they are and taking the proffered coffee.
“It’s all temporary.”
“Listen,” Lucy jumps in, “it’s awesome that Giles offered to let you use this apartment above his shop so you had a private place to live while you figured out the house situation, but this is way too small for you.”
“I have a business to run.” I shrug, then cringe as I look around the space. “And that business is making things for customers. I need to have the product on hand in order to make said things.”
“This is chaos,” Lorelei counters with a shake of her head. “And I know you, Breena. You can’t take chaos like this for long. It’ll drive you crazy.”
“It’s better than living in that house.” A shudder runs through my body at the thought. “And that makes me so mad. I loved that little house. But it ruined it for me.”
“I don’t blame you,” Lorelei hurries to assure me, her green eyes full of compassion. “I totally get it. That thing held you prisoner in your own bedroom and tried to kill you.”
I wince again. “Thanks for the reminder.”
“But I told you,” she continues as Lucy picks up a candle I’ve been working on and smells it, “I have plenty of room at my house. You can bring all of this with you.”
I shake my head and sip my coffee. “I appreciate the offer. I really do, Lora. But like I told Giles when he tried to get me to move in with him, I need my own space. I think I’m almost ready to put the house on the market anyway. Then it won’t matter because I’ll have the money from the sale to buy something else.”
“Wait.” Lorelei holds up a hand. “Giles wants you to move in with him? Like, not just up here but into his house?”
I sigh and silently curse myself. Why do I always say stuff I don’t mean to? “He mentioned it.”
“Like in a friendly way, or in an I-want-to-jump-your-bones-so-come-live-with-me kind of way?” Lucy asks.
“You’re incorrigible. Anyway, I’m going to call a realtor and put the house up for sale this week.”
“Why haven’t you already?” Lucy wants to know. “I’m sure it would sell pretty quickly. Houses in Salem are a hot commodity, and that cottage is adorable.”
“Yeah, we just won’t tell anyone about the evil entity that attempted to murder the previous owner,” Lorelei adds.
“I guess I hoped that maybe I could get past what happened and move back in.” I sigh and move to lean on the table before thinking better of it. “I loved that house. But I don’t think that I can ever feel safe there again, and that makes me feel like I’m so weak.”
“Not at all,” Lucy assures me, shaking her head. “You have nothing to feel weak over. It wasn’t your fault.”
“It attacked you in your home, too,” I remind her. “And you didn’t move out.”
“Not in my bedroom,” she replies. “And not in the same way. So, you just stop that right now. If you’re happy here for now, fine. We won’t argue.”
“Much,” Lorelei adds with a grin. “What are you making today? I love all your creations. You’re so freaking creative.”
“I found the cutest little crystal teacups at an estate sale,” I tell them, gett
“You’re so clever at the repurposing thing,” Lucy says with a grin. “Are you adding the dried orange slices to them, too?”
“Yes, along with a cinnamon stick and a couple of whole cloves. I think I’ll add some crystals, too.”
It always makes me so happy when my cousins like what I’m making. They’d say I’m too much of a people pleaser, but I can’t help it. It brings me joy. It’s my whole purpose in life, and I stopped apologizing for it a long time ago.
“Did you two get a text from Giles this morning?” I ask, trying to sound nonchalant.
“Yeah, he said he found something he wants to show us all later,” Lorelei says. “I wonder what it is.”
“Knowing Giles, it could be anything.” Lucy sniffs another candle. “But he invited us all to his house, and that doesn’t happen often. We usually meet at Xander’s because he has the most space.”
“I guess we’ll find out in a few hours,” I reply. “How’s Jonas, Lucy? Anything odd happening lately?”
“No, and he’s fine. He says everything in Hallows End has returned to normal—for them, anyway. He goes every morning to walk around town and make sure he’s seen. Checks in with everyone. But so far, there’s been nothing odd since Samhain.”
“Good.” I sigh with relief. According to the history of the thing that comes into Salem every year to kill a witch, it only happens in the fall, during Samhain. But I can’t shake the feeling that something’s still off, despite it being several months later and nearing Beltane.
Spring is here. We should be well out of the time frame of anything sinister happening in Salem. This is the time we should be preparing for the next Samhain so we can defeat it once and for all.
Maybe I just have severe PTSD and need some intense therapy.
But what do I tell them? “Hey, an evil entity of some sort held me prisoner in my bedroom, kept my family and friends away from me, and hung me to death. The ward on the back of my neck brought me back to life.”
Yeah, that would go over well.
“You know, I don’t want to sound like a broken record here, but you really should consider moving in with Giles,” Lorelei says as she continues to survey my space.
“We already covered this.”
“Not really. You changed the subject,” Lucy replies. “And I agree with her. He has a big place, all to himself, and if he offered…”
I shake my head, but when I turn to walk to the kitchen, another stack of boxes falls.
Truthfully, they’re right. I don’t thrive in chaos. Every square inch of this tiny one-bedroom apartment is covered in stuff. I don’t have a living room because I need the space for work. I barely have space in the bedroom for the bed to sleep on.
It’s a pain in the ass and makes me feel claustrophobic.
But I don’t want to be a burden to anyone.
Ignoring the fallen boxes for now, I continue into the kitchen to fill a pot with water for the stove. However, when I turn the nozzle, nothing comes out.
Spinning, I pin my cousins with a glare.
“I know you’re doing this.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Lorelei’s eyes are wide with feigned innocence.
“Turn my water back on.”
“I don’t even have a wrench on me,” Lucy says, patting down her pockets and handbag as if looking for one. “It’s not us.”
“Right.” Not giving them the satisfaction of thwarting me, I march over to the fridge and take out a bottle of distilled water. I pour it into the pot and set it on the stove, but nothing happens when I turn on the burner. “Come on, you guys.”
“It looks like this place is falling apart.” Lorelei turns to Lucy. “I guess she’ll just have to move out. But wherever will she go?”
“Hmm.” Lucy taps her lips in contemplation, and I cross my arms over my chest, watching them. “I suppose she could move in with Giles. I mean, his house is pretty big for all of her stuff and everything.”
“You know, I heard through the grapevine that Giles mentioned that Breena should move in with him. That’s so convenient.”
“Super convenient,” Lucy agrees with a vigorous nod. “Problem solved.”
“Ha ha.” I narrow my eyes, glaring at them both. “You’re hilarious. You should start your own show or something.”
“There is a lot of talent here,” Lorelei agrees. “But, alas, the world will just have to miss out on the clever antics of Lora and Lucy. Seriously, though, think about it. Now, enough procrastinating for me. I have to write today, and I’ve been putting it off all morning.”
“How’s the book coming along?” I ask. Lorelei spent several years in California teaching folklore at a university, but she came home for good last year, right before all the craziness started.
“It’s coming. My publisher wanted to publish it this fall, in time for Halloween, but that’s not going to happen. There’s too much research involved, and I want to make sure I get it right. So, they pushed it out to next year, which gives me some breathing room. However, that doesn’t mean I can pretend like I don’t have to do it. So, I’d better get to my desk.”
“Thanks for the coffee,” I say as I walk them out. Just as we reach the door, the faucet in the kitchen comes on. “And thanks for fixing my sink.”
“No idea what you’re talking about.” Lucy winks.
“I baked cinnamon rolls,” I announce as I hold the pan high and walk into Giles’s house several hours later. I’m the last to arrive, which is unusual for me. But, well, I didn’t want to come.
Which is also not like me.
I’ve been in love with Giles Corey since I was a little girl. For a long time, I kept it a secret, and then in a moment of weakness when I was nineteen, I confided in Lucy and Lorelei.
But Lorelei spilled the beans last fall. Now, he knows, and I’m still absolutely horrified.
Giles is the kindest man I know, so of course, he tried to offer me help. And he’s my friend, so he’s protective.
But I hate that he feels obligated now because he knows about my crush. I hate it. I just wish we could go back to the way things were before.
Not to mention, I absolutely love the home Giles moved into about five years ago. It’s a big, old house on the edge of town, with a water view, and within walking distance of all my favorite shops and restaurants. So, not only is it in the perfect location, but the house itself is also just dreamy. An old, Puritan-style, two-story home with a white picket fence and a tiny garden in the side yard. It’s adorable.
And, yes, it’s plenty big for anything I could ever want or need.
But it’s not mine. Giles isn’t mine.
And it’s best if I remember that.
“Cinnamon rolls are the best thing in the world any time of day,” Lorelei says as Giles takes the pan and smiles down at me.
Gods, he makes my knees weak with that crooked grin and those green eyes behind his black-rimmed glasses. Not to mention how his lips tip up just a bit higher on the left side than the right, and how he smells like pure, unadulterated male.
“Thanks,” he says with a wink. “I’ll get some plates.”
“I think you should tell us what you have to say first,” Xander, the leader of our coven and a dear friend to us all, chimes in from across the room. Xander is a big, imposing man of close to seven feet tall, with black hair and eyes that can be incredibly disarming—or soothing, depending on his mood.
He’s also Lorelei’s soulmate.
