Archive for June, 2008

Guilty From Beyond The Grave……St. Phillip’s Graveyard Ghost Encounter

June 14, 2008 | Uncategorized

Standing on a street corner near the graveyard, Sydney absorbed the energy of her surroundings in an effort to gain her sense of direction. The sun had now been down for at least two hours and the moon was high in the sky. Its brightness illuminated the perimeter making it easier for her to assess her surroundings.

Sydney listened closely in the silent night, her hearing tuning into the footsteps hurrying down the street toward her. Her hair stood on end when she peered down the street, but still couldn’t spot anyone. She glanced in the opposite direction and cautiously stepped into the street. Strange. No one was around, but she knew beyond a doubt she had heard someone. Her eyes widened when she recognized what she was hearing, it was the sound of boots and heading rapidly toward her. 

Sydney pushed the sound of the footsteps from her mind. She was only a block from the graveyard, and the streets were free of pedestrians. She knew the area would be clear of vacationers since most people didn’t hang around graveyards after dark, especially ones reported to be haunted. But she was a lone female on a dark street. What if the owner of the footsteps meant her harm? If he intended to harm her and was bigger than she was there would be little she could do, except use her wand.

Sydney pulled it from her back pocket and gripped it tightly in front of her. She knew she could magickally protect herself, and the law would legally enforce her decision to defend herself because she held a federal Magick and Envisionment license.

     

Sydney opened her mind and used her power to assess the situation. She sighed in frustration. She wasn’t happy with what she sensed. Whoever was generating the footsteps wasn’t human, but was someone who was both magickal and immortal. She wasn’t prepared to deal with an immortal when all of her energy was focused on Aiden.Without seeing the owner of the footsteps, Sydney decided she would make a run for the graveyard. Aiden would be able to help if Leonard or a demon had found her. As

Sydney hurried down State Street and rounded the corner to St. Phillip’s, she gasped. The footsteps were following her. What type of immortal was following her in the Charleston night?     

Sydney’s heart raced and her pulse quickened in her throat.

She glanced over her shoulder and caught a glimpse of a dark figure darting behind an old oak. A cold sweat formed on her brow. Instinct overruled her and she broke into a run. She sprinted through the graveyard’s ancient iron gate into the passage on the north side of the graveyard. Sydney wasn’t sure this was the section of the graveyard Aiden was in, but it was the only gate which was open. As she entered the graveyard, she couldn’t see Aiden. 

Panicked, she spun around and spotted Aiden kneeling next to an old headstone sobbing with his head in his hands. She sprinted to him and jolted to a stop beside him. Gasping for breath, she reached across a weathered headstone to Aiden. Sydney paused as she glanced down and realized it held the name Arlen Middleton. Aiden’s pain reflected in his light eyes as

Sydney divereted her gaze back to him, watching him intently. 

Thinking back to when they had first met, she now understood why she had felt drawn to Aiden. They were attracted to each other because they each held deep sadness and pain, but the difference between them was Aiden hadn’t learned to handle his raw emotions, and Sydney had learned to control hers. Aiden’s Master Envisioner status had magnified his emotions sending up a signal through the different dimensions like a honing beacon which said, “I am power, come use me.”

It had to stop.

Aiden’s pain had to cease or it would tear up him. The pain would destroy him and then possibly the team. It was a risk she was not willing to take.

As Sydney struggled to search Aiden’s mind, she knew he was more than half way headed toward destruction. Crap. She could barely use her telepathy on him, because he was in so much agony. She was able to catch a glimpse of all the medication, antidepressants and anti anxiety medications utilized in times of severe depression. He was ashamed he had taken these medications.     

Sydney probed Aiden’s mind and discovered how alone he felt. He felt as if he didn’t have a soul in the world to help him, guide him, and provide the light and hope he needed. She now knew that his sadness is what had been the final element convert him into Master Envisioner status. The raw power of Aiden’s soul had turned him into a Master.

Watching Aiden kneel in the humid damp grass at the foot of his brother Arlen’s headstone was making Sydney depressed. There was no doubt in her mind she had to help him. Sydney had to bring Aiden back to the human side of life. He needed to survive for his family, himself, and for their Envisioner team. The team needed him, after all he was an irreplaceable part of the team. Tears streamed down Aiden’s face as he leaned on his brother’s headstone. The headstone appeared to shift as Aiden’s weight touched it, but it was just an illusion. The headstone remained firm and unchanged as it had throughout the years. The graveyard was old, dating back to Old Charles Towne. Dates from the 1700’s emerged throughout the graveyard proving its place in history prior to the American Revolution.     

The scent of saltwater penetrated the air, reminding Sydney how close she was to the Atlantic Ocean and Charleston Bay. Sydney surveyed the graveyard as a thick fog began to roll in. The approaching fog held an eerie glow within its quickly changing density.

Sydney’s senses urged her to evacuate to a safer place, but she ignored them. She had no reason to fear the dead or the graveyard since she had spent many nights in them for investigations, but something wasn’t right.

She turned to check on Aiden, and watched as a young male spirit about thirteen appeared in front of his brother. Sadness hung heavy in the air like a smoke consuming everything in its path. Aiden reached out to his brother, extending a shaky arm.

Aiden called upon his Envisioner magick and began summoning the dead.

What the hell is he doing?  This wasn’t good, Aiden shouldn’t be using his power to summon a loved one who had passed over. Such actions were illegal and held extreme punishments. The vibrations Arlen was bestowing upon Sydney and Aiden clearly stated he had been at rest and resented being summoned back from death. Glancing at Aiden’s forearm, Sydney noticed a recent few inch long incision on his left forearm.

Sydney gasped. Damn it.

Aiden had allowed his blood to consummate the calling of his brother in a summoning ritual. The strong scent of herbs he had used for the ritual jarred Sydney’s senses, her eyes widened as she saw the salt and blood circle he had poured around his brother’s headstone. She shook her head in denial as she leaned down and touched the still tacky blood with her fingertips. The moment she touched the circle, a tingle spiraled up her arm, jolting her heart.

Sydney sucked in a deep breath of stifling air when she touched the remains of a necromancer ritual.

“Oh, Aiden. What have you done?” Sydney whispered as she squatted down next to the circle. 

Aiden had broken the cardinal rule of Envisionment. He would have hell to pay…literally.

The Envisioner Series…Guilty From Beyond The Grave & Incubus Illusions Update

Uncategorized

Guilty From Beyond The Grave is complete.  Woo Hoo!!

The rewrite from first POV to third POV was a challenge to complete while I have been in nursing school full time. I did meet my goals and also cut 10k words, finishing the final manuscript at 98k. I also managed to finish the final edit of the book. What am I doing now? We’ll, I’m polishing my synopsis and have been sending out query letters. I’ve also been in what I call and “create and search mode” which I use to help me polish my outline and synopsis for book two, Incubus Illusions. I changed the ending of Guilty and I have to change how I will start Incubus Illusions. I have approx 150 pages complete of Incubus Illusions, so it will be interesting to see how I redevelop the beginning. I also have a new plot line to the series. I start my summer break from nursing school July 4. During the six weeks I have off this summer, I am planning on finishing Incubus.