Black Curses Brewing, page 1
Table of Contents
Title Page
Newsletter & Book Description
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
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
IGNITING THE WITCH
Books by Erin Richards
About the Author
Copyright
Newsletter
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BLACK CURSES BREWING
If boredom were a potion, Aspen Wilde would be a master alchemist.
Aspen risks a “jailbreak” to snag herbs for her witchy arsenal and collides with her high school crush, the gorgeous Lucky Lorenzo. Problem is, he's a black warlock, enemy of her coven. Talk about a forbidden fruit cocktail! Before she can savor the thought, a brutal attack shatters her security.
His denial of innate magic is thinner than spider silk.
Aspen was Lucky’s high school kryptonite. He might not trust witches, but he can't resist her allure. Burying his secrets, he whisks her away, plunging them into a cauldron of trouble.
A second chance, or their ultimate end?
Trust is a fragile herb in this situation, but Aspen's drawn to Lucky's mysterious charm. As they navigate their rekindled feelings, a garden of evil sprouts on the covenstead, targeting Aspen. The coven, clueless about the source of the twisted magic, faces escalating attacks. Is Lucky's chivalry a smokescreen, or is something more sinister at play? Aspen races to untangle the truth before the dark magic takes root and spawns a deadly showdown.
Chapter 1
Aspen Wilde held a spoon over a fat candle flame, melting fishing weights into oblivion. Molten lead spread across the spoon, and she dripped the contents into a spelling pot. The lead hit the cold water, sizzling and popping. Excitement sped up her heartbeat. Her first lead casting shattered the monotony of her day, an escape from her uber secret magic brewing. Both created an escape from the boredom of her luxury prison.
The door kicked open, and her cousin Brianne plopped onto a rolling stool, exhaling an exaggerated sigh. Aspen hunched over the copper pot and blew out the candle, hiding it from Brianne. Aspen, Brianne, and Brianne’s twin sister, Marina, had all grown up together on the Wilde covenstead. More than cousins or sisters, they were best friends. Since Brianne was a water witch like Aspen, the pair held more in common than other witches on the covenstead. Except Brianne had no natural inclination toward herbs or brewing magic.
Her cousin twisted strands of her long blonde hair around her fingers, something Marina did when nervous, not Brianne. Aspen gave her the hairy eyeball. Her cousin flipped her hair behind her shoulders. “Give me something to do before I go cray cray.” She leaned forward, scrunched up her face. “What are you hiding?”
“Nothing.” Aspen looked away, avoiding eye contact. At least she’d stashed her black magic books. Brianne would have a field day if she understood the real magic Aspen brewed. Rio, her seagull familiar, squawked derisively from its nest atop her bank of cabinets near the ceiling. She shot Rio a death-ray stare.
“Baloney. You have all the fun in your mad science lab. Why didn’t I inherit your alchemy and healing abilities? Instead, I can make rain.” Water sprinkled from below the ceiling and misted their hair. “Big whoop.” She peered in the pot Aspen attempted to cover. “Unpack it for me. That doesn’t look like a potion or a gummy. Holy hell, I need a super energy gummy. Or CBD. Something!” She flailed her arms above her head and water misted the entire room.
Thank the goddess Aspen wasn’t brewing a black curse. “Fresh out. Can’t leave for supplies. So much for two-day deliveries. And I have webstore orders to fulfill that’ll be late.” Curiosity besting her, Aspen pulled away from the tiny cauldron on her stove. Two hard blobs of lead floated around the edges in the pot. “What do they look like?”
Brianne tapped a fingertip on her chin and pointed at the lead on the right. “Kinda resembles a tiny layer cake.”
“Really?” The lead resembled a blob. But Aspen could make out a cake if she squinted hard and twisted her head to the side.
“What’s it supposed to be?”
“Beats me. I’m getting weird vibes in my dreams, symbols of vines and purple flowers and stuff. I’m trying this ancient divination to see if anything meshes with the dreams. The lead shapes are supposed to mean something.” She stuck her spoon in the pot and swished the blobs around. “The other one looks like an old-fashioned bomb.” She leafed through her notebook. “A cake means a festivity is coming.”
“I wish.” Brianne slouched on the stool again. “No Spring Solstice festival since we’re on lockdown.”
“Sucks green donkey ass.” Aspen snapped a photo of the lead blobs. “Give it time to manifest. Maybe Sage will bend her orders on the lockdown. Party time. Here we come.” She snapped her fingers in Brianne’s face. “Think positive.”
Brianne grinned and tapped the lead. “Did you dream of gorging on cake?”
“Nope.” Aspen refused to confess her actual nightmares, or how she bolted awake, her heart thundering in her chest, sweat dripping off her neck every other morning over the last month. The fear was so palpable, she’d set extra wards at her bedroom windows and door. Especially after her nightmares revealed the shadowy image of a man, and plants and vines growing rampant in the backyard.
With the tip of her finger, Brianne swirled the water into a tiny whirlpool, her magic keeping it spinning. The lead blobs spun around the pot’s perimeter. “What does a bomb mean? Gotta be bad.” She pulled her hand up into a claw shape and lifted the claw. Water rose with it, then waterfalled into the pot with a splash.
Aspen stuck her finger in the pot to stop the water. She examined the round lead ball, a tiny ignition wick sticking off to the side. She scrolled down the list in her notebook, and her fingers trembled. “A bomb means escaping danger.”
“Great. You’ll escape danger at our next party in the year 3001 if Sage has her way.” Brianne snorted, and Aspen had to stop her from misting the room again. “I can’t believe you’re making fake prophecies.”
Wiping the water drops off her face, Aspen nudged her gladiator sandal against Brianne’s foot. “Beats moping around like a lame duck.”
“I need to escape this covenstead. I’m dying without the ocean.”
Aspen hung her head. “Yeah. Me too. Water witches need their water. I need the grounding and cleansing from actual salt water before my spells kick me back to Sunday.”
“Exactly. Can’t you talk your sister into bending her rules? It’s been a month since Imelda kicked the bucket and disbursed her black warlock minions. No more black warlock attacks, and that turd Andre Charlemagne’s imprisoned here. No one can get in or out, or anywhere near him. This lockdown’s gonna kill us.”
“It’s the ‘out’ she’s worried about. There have been minor skirmishes with other covens and black warlocks.”
“But you need supplies.” Brianne buried her face in her hands. “We need water.”
“She’ll kick us to the creek and tell me to order online.” Aspen sank to the floor and crossed her legs. Not all her supplies were available online. She needed to visit her favorite local compounding pharmacy and apothecary shop. The creek didn’t always cut it, especially during California drought-land days. At least the water flowed deeper and faster than a trickle this year from a good winter rainfall. But the lack of salt water provided little relief to a water witch who needed the cleansing of negativity the ocean provided.
“Then we all gang up on her. I’m for real having water withdrawals. That mist you saw minutes ago. That’s all I can muster.” Brianne pulled her phone out of her pocket and texted, nearly punching her finger through the phone hitting the send button.
“What did you do?” Alarm skittered across Aspen’s shoulders. She didn’t want Brianne to mess up her own plans of escape, two weeks in the making.
“Rallied the troops. We’re going full smackdown on your big sis if she doesn’t unlock the gates. I don’t care if she sicks Rafael on us. Willow gets to leave whenever she wants, and she’s toting a bum ankle. You and I are hitting the beach if it kills us.” She sucked on her bottom lip. “Have there really been black warlock attacks?” Fear grabbed hold and weakened her voice.
“Willow’s allowed to leave because she’s bonded to a freaking black warlock.” Aspen huffed out a breath. Hell to the no. Black warlocks weren’t necessary in her life. No warlock period. Not after Marty. She sniffed her grief. Her one and only warlock had died a month ago during their skirmishes with the Helwig coven. His aunt Imelda had him killed to prove her badass-ness. Even though Aspen and Marty weren’t romantically involved, they’d enjoyed a fun friendship, and he was a decent, if scatterbrained, warlock. She stroked the tail feather of Marty’s for
“The San Francisco and Silicon Valley covens have reported recent attacks, including black curses,” she continued. “Nothing major, but they’re escalating. Like black warlocks are testing the witchworld waters, seeing where they can infiltrate, the way they infiltrated the Helwig coven.” She smirked at Brianne. “Uh, sorry. Did I just roll my eyes out loud? Weren’t you paying attention to the council briefing last week?” Aspen knew Brianne had suffered a hangover after boredom prompted them to a challenge on who could create the best mixed cocktail.
Her cousin stuck her tongue out at Aspen. “I’m tired of hearing about the black warlocks.”
“Well, you better buckle up, buttercup.”
Witches had abolished the black warlocks over a hundred years ago during the Witches and Warlocks War. Black warlocks held innate magic and didn’t need witches to bond them to gain magic. A black warlock spell could mark a witch, boot her under his dominance for life, and stop a witch from using magic. He could coerce a witch to do anything at his discretion, all the while strengthening his magic with hers. Some black warlocks had survived the war, and their bloodlines had made a recent resurgence. Their leader, Andre Charlemagne, had tried to kidnap and bond Willow, among other dastardly deeds. The reason the Wildes had incarcerated him on their covenstead. It was one of the safest covens in the U.S. because of the ley lines running beneath the earth that aided in their ability to protect the property. Although, the lines and wards had fallen when the stupid Helwigs aligned with black warlocks and attacked the Wildes a month ago.
Chaos had targeted the witchworld, and everyone teetered on the edge of paranoia.
“Why can’t we recruit more Ravenwood warlocks or their minions? Another Ethan or Evan Ravenwood for me.” Brianne licked her lips, plumped her not-so-insignificant breasts.
“Eww. No, thanks. Sage and Willow can have the Ravenwoods or any black warlock, for that matter.” She preferred the old ways where witches dominated black warlocks, instead of the new equality Willow and Evan Ravenwood were touting. With Marty’s recent demise, she wasn’t ready for another warlock, and certainly didn’t want a love connection with one. Or a hit-and-run as Brianne alluded to. She had too much to do in building her healing and alchemy knowledge before she allowed love to interfere. And learning more about black curses and how to defeat them.
“Dude.” Brianne’s eyes rounded. “A warlock’s a warlock, if you know what I mean. They all possess the same appendage. And I’m dying for one. The appendage at least.”
“Jeez, Louise. What’s gotten into you? You need a freaking lot.” Aspen tossed a towel over her copper pot and accessories. “Let’s gang up on Sage.” Anything to distract Brianne and get her off Aspen’s tail.
Rio swooped down and landed on her shoulder, dissolved into a tattoo, and took a perch on the skin of her neck. She grabbed her stuffed fanny pack, and after one last scan of her sanctuary, she locked and warded the door behind them. Didn’t need anyone snooping around. Danger, Will Robinson, danger.
Brianne flicked her fanny pack. “I like how you’re projecting our escape into the universe.”
“You never know.” Regardless if Sage grants them permission to leave or not, Aspen was escaping. She had things to do, see, and, more importantly, buy. And she didn’t need her tagalong cousins.
They met Marina and the twins’ older sister, Eden, in the hallway outside Sage’s office. Not one of the four witches had a bonded warlock. An unnatural conundrum Sage was desperate to fix. Only thing, not enough warlocks in their sphere, and they feared a door to the black warlocks would open if they invited any warlocks in. Already happened once when Evan Ravenwood infiltrated the Wilde coven, gained Sage’s trust to the point she bonded him, and then he revealed his identity. Good news, he was trying to protect Aspen’s sister Willow, instead of handing her over to Andre, the Black Tide leader. The Ravenwoods sat on the good side of the black warlock coin. Other good black warlocks existed, but Sage was uber paranoid. Any new warlock in their midst now needed vetting to the nth degree by Sage, Rafael, and the Ravenwoods.
“What are you three doing if Sage grants you a hall pass?” Eden asked. Eden would pay to hole up on the covenstead until they pried her fingers off her keyboard or off a book. But she’d expressed a desire to surround herself with books at the library or a bookstore. As a successful novelist, Eden’s jam was none other than books.
“I’m hitting the beach,” Brianne replied. “Aspen and I need the ocean and not that stupid babbling trickle.”
Marina shrugged. “I wanted to follow a ley line that extends past the property line and try a few spells on it. Rafael said he’d hang with me, but Sage didn’t want her head security witch and warlock off the grounds together in case crap tipped sideways.” As an earth witch, Marina had an affinity to the ley lines. They were one of the few covens in California on such hallowed ground.
Footsteps intruded upon their moment. “Trouble times four.” Rafael approached from behind. “What do I need to fix?” Sage’s First Warlock, fiancé, and second-in-coven-command stood tall and gorgeous in his dark business suit, which he wore when meeting clients on the outside. Aspen fanned the heat blooming on her face. She’d always carried the hots for Rafael, as did most witches in the coven. But none would ever make a play for him, since he and Sage were starstruck over each other. And engaged.
“Why do you get to leave the covenstead and we don’t?” Brianne rounded on Rafael.
“You’re going there again.” Rafael twisted the knob on Sage’s office door. “Try that line on someone who isn’t a black warlock and can hold his own.”
“Did you just insult us?” Eden whacked Rafael’s shoulder. “And you’re a black warlock newbie. So don’t get all ego-centric with us experienced witches.”
“Yep. Insult.” Brianne wiggled her fingers, and water misted Rafael’s slick, dark hair.
He opened the door, trying to deflect the water with his newfound powers of air magic. “Sage, call your witches off me.” A tiny typhoon whipped the mist into a decorative bowl on a sideboard in a mini whirlpool.
Sage sat behind the desk and laughed. “You’re good with your air magic, my love.” Aspen’s blonde-bombshell sister and coven leader rose from her chair behind their mother’s former desk and gave her attention to Aspen.
“Don’t look at me.” Aspen waved her hands in front of her face. “Look at the other blondie. Brianne’s the one ready to fly over the cuckoo’s nest.” Brianne and Marina weren’t identical twins, and Brianne had lost the Wilde auburn-hair gene to the shimmering gold and blonde Sage also sported. Although Marina had darkened her hair to a shade of night.
Rafael sidled around the desk and kissed Sage’s cheek, gloved her hand in his own. “They want out. Should we take them on a field trip?”
Sage scowled. “No.”
“Come on, Sage!” Brianne blasted her. “Marina can kill the gate ward and let us out. Would you rather we went on a jailbreak?”
Sage sighed and melted against Rafael. “I wish you all had warlocks for protection.”
Marina scoffed. “A witch’s magic is stronger than a warlock. How ’bout we agree to pair up, sign in and out, three-hour increments?”
Brianne beamed sunshine bright. “Now I can wrap my head around that.”
Sage straightened, pushed away from Rafael. “Two gone at one time, and on-the-hour text check-ins.”
The whoops and screams deafened, and Aspen covered her ears.
“Come on, Aspen, let’s hit it.” Brianne bulldozed through the noise.
“Wait, what about me?” Marina stood, hands on her hips, the light freckles on the bridge of her nose deepening.
“You two go,” Aspen shot out, her glee racing her heart. “I’ll go next. I just got a delivery message from the gate, and I’m gonna make energy gummies.”
“Please make your cherry gummies.” Rafael drooled at the gummy mention. He’d eat them like candy if she let him.
“Go.” Sage waved her hand through the air. “Before I change my mind. Stay safe, stay together, and watch your backs. Don’t use magic.”
Brianne and Marina scattered like embers on a windy day.
“Our turn tomorrow.” Eden hooked her arm in Aspen’s, and they left Sage’s office.
