Witches Immortal: A Novel (DeSai Trilogy) Witchcraft of a Dark Witch Read online

Rasia swallowed her food again. “Stephan touched me. It made my stomach ill.” She resumed her humming.

  “Where did he touch you, Rasia?” Now her mother was standing next to her.

  “My chest,” the girl replied.

  Oksana nodded and took a breath. “If you are finished eating I will need your help to clean this mess up.”

  With that, the two proceeded to clean up the blood from the kitchen floor. Oksana moved Stephan’s body out of the way, placing it atop a couple of black garbage bags she had spread out. Once the blood had been cleaned up they dragged his lifeless body out the back door, and after a bit of a struggle managed to get his body across the fenced-in yard, and into the river.

  “I will take care of the rest after you go to bed tonight. There is nothing more you can do, but we must talk,” she told her daughter.

  They made their way to the dining room, where Rasia took a seat at the table and waited for her chastisement, but chastisement was not what she received. Her mother stood just inside the kitchen and began to prepare dinner, speaking to her the entire time.

  “If you are old enough to take a human life, you are old enough to know who we are. You are old enough to know our history,” Oksana began. She put a lid on the pan on the stove before standing on a stepstool and fetching what appeared to be a very old book from the top of the cupboard. She then came into the dining room and took a seat across from Rasia.

  “Rasia, you are a very special girl. What has happened here today has proven your strength and power to me. Now it is time for you to know exactly who you are so you can continue the work that must be done,” Oksana said.

  Rasia held her mother’s gaze, gooseflesh raising all over her body. “I already know what I am; you do not have to tell me that. I have always known: I am a witch, just like you.”

  “How did you know that?” Oksana asked her.

  The girl shook her head. “I don’t know how. I just know what I know in my mind and my heart, but I don’t really know what that means.”

  Her mother breathed a sigh of relief, but she continued to look at her daughter warily, as if trying to weigh out the words she had spoken. “Very well. You have an ocean of knowledge that has been gifted to you, but it is time for me to teach you about your history, as well as your future.”

  For the next several hours and well past Rasia’s bedtime, she and her mother talked about the long line of witches that Rasia had come from. They discussed the contents of the old Book that her mother had retrieved from the top of the cupboards. In it were the writings of those before her; they had recorded their lives, as well as their goals, the main one being to locate a vampire, if indeed they did exist.

  “That is your destiny, Rasia. Do you understand that?” Oksana asked.

  Rasia nodded then. “Oh, yes. I understand all you are saying. To find the vampire means we will not only have power, but we will never die.”

  Her mother’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Yes, Rasia! I have you, so my search has been very limited,” she replied. “But you do not have to be hindered by the circumstances of life if you choose not to.”

  “What must I do?”

  Now her mother told her how important it was to never trust a man, and to never allow the love emotion to dictate her choices. To have a child would slow the process, even though it would be vital if their line were to be continued. She told her she must choose a career that would make the search easier. She must gain as much education as possible, and she must feed the blackness in her soul until it becomes her master.

  Later that night Rasia lay in her bed and listened to the sounds of her mother in the kitchen tending to the blood of that scum Stephan. How bright her future suddenly seemed! Rasia knew that she had a purpose, and she would fulfill it. Her ancestors may have failed, but Rasia would succeed; she would see to it.

  If a vampire existed Rasia would find it, and she would steal its power of life eternal. She would possess it, then she would rule the world.

  Chapter 5

  As a young adult

  High school had passed pretty much uneventfully for Rasia Engres. She dated a few boys, but as soon as they got a little handy with her she had stopped seeing each and every one. She couldn’t continue to kill everyone who touched her; her mother had made sure she understood that. If she did, it would stop her quest before it even began.

  Instead of becoming emotionally invested in anyone she spent much of her free time studying her own history, as well as that of the ever-elusive vampire. Did they really exist, or were they simply the things horror stories were made of? She was determined to find out for sure, and so she committed herself to the gaining of knowledge her goals would require.

  During her high school years she also began to participate in her mother’s coven, becoming a very active part of it. Oksana taught her all the spells she would need, but Rasia took it upon herself to learn even more. Her mama was accomplished in the craft by her own right, but Rasia was determined to surpass the woman’s level by leaps and bounds.

  While one would think a mother and daughter like Oksana and Rasia would be emotionally close, nothing was further from the truth. Her mother loved her deeply, she knew, and from the woman's perspective they were very close. But the fact was that Rasia despised her mother for the weakness she had when it came to men. Her preoccupation with this type of interpersonal relationship had caused her to neglect the goals held by her ancestors for literally centuries.

  Because of her determination to succeed she focused on not only soaking up knowledge regarding witchcraft, but everything else she could get her hands on as well. Her past desire to become a journalist was fitting; it would provide her with ample life opportunities to continue her family’s search for a vampire.

  By the time she graduated high school she had chosen to attend college at Kyiv International University in Kiev, Ukraine, and she managed to ace all testing required for her admission. She would major in Journalism, with a minor in Foreign Politics, for she believed this would be a major help when it came to her search.

  She looked at it this way: anyone who would live forever, and be a murderer by very nature, at that, would come to power somewhere, at some point. This was why she believed journalism would be the best career choice even now. If she worked hard she would be able to pursue assignments involving only the most prestigious, and that was going to be vital to her success.

  Now, twenty years old, and Rasia Engres was half-way through her formal college education. While the other students partied, got laid, and had fun she was constantly busy with her studies, even taking a job at the paper in the mail room just so she could gain a bit of extra knowledge. She had no interest in off-time activities; Rasia would have plenty of time for that when it was all said and done.

  It was during this, her sophomore year that another major life event occurred for her, showing her what she was really made of. Rasia would experience true competition for the first time in her life, and the way she handled it really said it all for her. She could literally handle everything that came her way, regardless of the resistance it presented her with.

  She studied English, Japanese, and German, mastering each before moving on to the next, and then she dabbled in other languages. French and Italian seemed to come naturally to Rasia, and her dabbling proved to benefit her even further. It was during one of her language classes that she met Mahlis Porkov, another student who was determined in her studies. Mahlis was just determined enough to step on anyone who posed an interference with her own life goals.

  Mahlis was to become a physician, and she wanted to practice overseas. Where really didn’t matter, so she, like Rasia, took as many foreign language courses as her already packed schedule would allow. It was during their time studying Italian together that the two girls were assigned to a study group together.

  The main assignment for each group was to write a script entirely in Italian. It was to showcase both of their majors in a way that would detail their studie
s to any audience for whom the script was performed. Rasia felt that journalism should be the primary topic, with the medical student’s role being a bit downplayed; Mahlis wanted the focus to go the other direction.

  During the third week of the project things became a bit heated between the two. Mahlis had even given into Rasia a bit; she would take the least bit of attention, as long as her role was portrayed with thoroughness. Rasia had simply smiled and agreed.

  So the two set about writing the separate parts. They would then combine them into one solitary story together, finding the balance as they went. This was the agreement, at least, and Rasia had even given in willingly and with what appeared to be eagerness. Little did Mahlis know that Rasia really never gave in to the desires of those around her in any way that was overt.

  Two days before their script was to be turned in they met together and conferred on the assignment. They were short on time, and Rasia took advantage of this fact by not only agreeing to everything Mahlis said, but she also offered to carry the brunt of the work by melding both scripts together and preparing the final assignment. She would do all the word processing, leaving Mahlis to focus on studying for an anatomy test. They went their separate ways, both smiling.

  But Rasia sat in her own vehicle as they left the library that day. She watched as Mahlis got into her car. She watched as the girl turned over the ignition, and she watched as the car blew sky-high, taking the medical student with it. Rasia simply smiled as she pulled out of the parking lot, driving slowly through the crowd that was gathering among the wreckage that had been Mahlis’ car.

  That night she compiled the final script for their assignment, and she took advantage of the death of her study partner. Not only did she give Mahlis the majority of the attention in the script, but she managed to earn the class’ top grade. She had used her partner’s horrible death, writing it into the script to successfully bring out the emotions of her classmates and professor.

  It had worked out so much better than she thought. Rasia Engres knew that nothing in the world would be able to stop her from achieving her goals, not even a determined, intelligent classmate. Her time had not even come yet.

  Not only did her years at the University prove to educate Rasia for her future career choice, but it was also during this time that she would become more alert and attuned to the people of the world for the sake of finding a true vampire. She kept her ears and eyes constantly open to anyone who would fit the bill that her mother and grandmother had given her, but locating such an individual would not prove to be an easy task. Combined with her studies and career focus, she simply did not have the time to devote to it that she would have liked, but Rasia consistently kept her radar going, and she was very, very careful to keep this business to herself.

  She visited numerous libraries and soaked up as much knowledge about vampire history and theory as she could get her hands on. She shoved fictional accounts aside; she wasn’t at all interested in romantic fantasies about sexy monsters. She wanted to find the real deal, if it indeed did exist. If there was a vampire walking the face of the Earth, she would find it, male or female, and she would take the steps necessary to harnessing their power and keeping it all for herself.

  She did not do much traveling for the sake of her vampire studies during the furthering of her education; she just didn’t have the time. The time she was able to invest she dedicated to books and documentaries. Because of her high level of secrecy she didn’t even go so far as to track or interview so-called professionals. Any information she needed would come to her in her own time, when it would be most useful and appropriate, of this she was sure.

  She watched politicians and businessmen, but her concentration was mostly absorbed by her studies. For the entirety of her time at the University no one in particular caught her eye, though there were a couple of individuals who she would have preferred to discover as being her vampire. Something always set her right in her small suspicions, however. During her professional training, the identity of any true vampire would remain just out of her grasp.

  ∞

  The final two years of her studies actually stole even more time from this extra-curricular activity. Now she had more testing and more in-depth topics to learn than ever before. Her time became more and more consumed by needing to focus on these things, as well as internships which she desired to fill for experience. The times when she was able to delve into a bit of literature on the topic her roommate at the dorm would tease her incessantly, referring to her as a ‘lover of the horror genre’. The girl saw Rasia as being preoccupied with a pipe dream, but she herself knew better.

  She would ignore the digs. She knew the reasons that she was driven to read up and study the topic: Rasia needed to know all she could about the facts, if facts even existed. There were times she had her doubts. Perhaps her mother and grandmother were out of their female minds to even have such pie-in-the-sky ideas. Even when she became tired of searching, though, she knew in her heart that this individual must exist; the Powers had placed the dream into her grandmother’s heart. It was the responsibility of this line of women to pursue it.

  She continued with her college education, and she made sure that her future and career remained the top priority. After all, it would be along these lines that she believed she would eventually be permitted to discover this… ghost. But this did not stop her from always looking, always seeking, in one way or another, no matter how little time she had to invest.

  The answer would come. When it did, she had full confidence in the Powers that it would fulfill her every need and desire, but for the time being she chose responsibility over these hopes and dreams mainly. She would demand that patience work for her, not against her, and certainly not against the charge that had been handed down to her from her ancestors. No, she would continue to seek, she would simply take her time doing it. There would be a fine balance that would need to be carried out, and Rasia would see to it that this balance was maintained, for the sake of the Greater Good.

  Chapter 6

  November, Winter Break

  “Why France, Rasia? The last time you spoke of taking your break off campus you said you were interested in Germany. Why the change of heart?” Anastasia Malkov, Rasia’s roommate, was sitting at the foot of her bed watching her pack her single suitcase full of clothing and toiletries.

  Rasia smiled at her. “I guess taking French sparked an interest I never knew was there. Besides, they have some wonderful wine in France, and you know how I feel about that.”

  She closed her case and sat on top of it to get it to close and fasten more easily. “Will you see if my cellular phone has a full charge, please?” She bounced a couple of times on the lid before she was able to close and lock the clasps.

  Anastasia picked up the unit from the nightstand between their beds. “Yes, it’s full. Are you sure you don’t want to visit my parents with me for the holiday? You don’t always have to spend your breaks alone, you know.”

  “I know, I know. I’m not really using this time for holiday. I’m doing a bit of side… journalism work. That way I’m on top of things before finals and graduation this spring.” She moved her case to the door. “Mikhael wants to have a drink with me tonight in town before I leave. Do you remember him from Debate?”

  Anastasia nodded disinterestedly. “Are you going?”

  Rasia smiled once again. “Yes.”

  Now her roommate got a strange look in her eye. “Rasia Engres, I have never known you to date! Have you found love?” The girl grinned and got a dreamy look in her eyes. “If so, I would say it is about time!”

  The journalism major simply shook her head. “No, love has nothing to do with it. He is going to give me some information on safe places to stay at the area I am visiting. He is also going to tell me about some good places to eat there. His family has relatives a short distance from there, and he has visited the area a number of times himself.”

  Now Rasia stood at the mirror over the bathroo
m sink. She brushed her long red hair and freshened her makeup a bit. “My plane leaves at eight-thirty in the morning. I’ll be back here pretty early, so if you intend to be gone please make sure you shut the computer off.”

  Anastasia nodded and the two said their goodbyes to each other. Rasia grabbed her purse and left the dormitory room, heading to the local bar. The night was warm and breezy; she would have loved to walk, but it would take much less time to drive. She took a deep breath as she unlocked her car and gave into necessity.

  When she arrived at the small tavern her friend was already there waiting for her. She ordered a glass of Shiraz, her favorite wine, before settling in across the table from him.

  “Hello, Mik. How are things going for you?” She removed her light sweater and hung it over the back of her chair before taking her own seat. “Thank you for meeting me and telling me about France. I am anxious to go.”

  Mikhael winked at the beautiful girl who sat with him. He had already drunk three beers, so he was feeling more comfortable in her presence than he ever had before. Usually, just the sight of her was enough to make him forget his own name. He wound up stumbling over his own words whenever Rasia Engres was near.

  A blonde waitress wearing blue jeans and a cropped shirt came to their table and set Rasia’s glass of wine before her on a napkin. She paid the girl and then turned her attention to the wine and Mik. Rasia waved the glass under her nose, closing her eyes as she inhaled its aroma. A smile formed across her lips. This wonderful red would do. She lifted it to her lips and took a sip, swishing it around over her tongue before finally swallowing and speaking to her companion. “So, tell me about the place I will be visiting.”

  For the next hour Mik filled her in on the French town she would be staying in. He made her aware of just about everything he could think of, even providing her with a list of homes that let out rooms and restaurants with quality food. After an hour of friendly conversation, Rasia ordered another glass of wine and excused herself to use the restroom. While she was gone she thought about why she had chosen France for her holiday. She wasn’t entirely sure. She did love her wine, and she felt excited at the prospect of visiting the country, but there was also something deep inside that drew her, or at least, that was how she felt. She would go with the feeling. Not to mention she had read about a few rumors of an ancient vampire from the area.