CHAPTER. ELEVEN
Eden was up at sunrise for her run with Clark. She got dressed into a pair of dark blue yoga pants, a long sleeved gray shirt, and put on her running sneakers. She washed her face and put her long hair into a loose ponytail. She found Clark's leash on the large desk next to her laptop and they both went downstairs.
Can we go and run on the beach? Please? (Clark)
"Let's just run to the end of Morgan Hill today. If it's a private beach, I don't want to get yelled at."
Okay. (Clark)
Eden hooked the leash on Clark's collar and they slipped out of the house. It wasn't that cold out and she warmed up more as she ran with Clark at her side. It was a nice September morning and Eden could hear the leaves crunch under her feet.
They stopped at the end of the road and pulled off to the side to look out onto the ocean. Her focus went to the colorful leaves of reds, browns, oranges, and yellows; New England was breathtaking.
In Seattle, Eden was used to running into other runners at this hour, but here there was no one out. There were no distractions, just the sound of her feet on the pavement.
She walked back into the house and could hear commotion in the kitchen. She closed the door and Abigail emerged in the doorway.
"You're up early," her grandma said. She had a mug in her hand and Eden could see the steam coming from the hot beverage.
"I always get up early and go for a run with Clark."
"I bet he likes that."
"He wakes me up for it. I'm going to go take a shower and then I'll be back down."
"Okay, I'll start getting breakfast together. Do you like waffles?"
"I haven't had them in a long time, but yes I do" Eden smiled.
"Excellent. I put your mother's urn in the living room on my altar if that's okay with you."
"Yeah, that's fine."
"Good. Come on Clark, I will fix you your breakfast." Clark didn't object on that notion and Eden went upstairs to her bedroom.
She started the shower in her bathroom and picked out a pair of dark denim jeans, a deep red Hollister tee shirt, and a dark denim jacket to wear.
She took a ten minute shower, blow dried her auburn hair, popped in her contacts, and applied a little make-up. Eden grabbed her sketch book and box of utensils and went back downstairs.
She walked into the kitchen and saw a pile of homemade waffles sitting on a plate on the table. Eden draped her jacket over one of the chairs and grabbed a handful of grapes out of the fruit bowl.
"Do you want to make the orange juice?" Abigail asked.
"Sure." Eden stepped in front a bowl of oranges and Abigail took out a juicer from one of the many cabinets.
As the juice was being made, the table was set and the butter and maple syrup was distributed. When Eden finished, she poured the orange liquid into a glass pitcher and sat down diagonal from her grandma.
"Are these little beaches private around here? Clark and I want to run them one morning."
"No, they're public. A lot of people don't hang out down there."
"That's okay with us" Eden chuckled.
"You said you were going to check out the island today, right?" asked Abigail.
"Yeah, I'll call Nina in a little while. I would feel bad if I woke her up. Maybe I'll draw something in the meantime or if you want to show me some things that would be great."
"I would love to show you my garden quickly."
"Okay." The garden wasn't exactly what Eden had in mind, but once they had finished eating and did the dishes, Abigail led Eden out back. There was a large greenhouse and a pathway with wildflowers along either side.
They went inside and Eden was amazed at all the different kind of plants.
"A lot of these you will know, like basil, oregano, dill, and thyme. I grow everything and sell them to markets and I even use them myself for healing, in teas, and I put some in salads. Sometimes I just come out here and talk to them. You know that plants react to human stimulus right?"
"I didn't know that."
"Well now you know. If you need anything, come out and take what you want."
"Thanks. Do witches have to cast spells?"
"Of course they don't. In a lot of cases they can just make things happen without reciting a chant or calling a circle."
"Calling a circle?"
"A circle is typically made up of twelve witches, but I have seen some as low as four witches. You draw a circle with the athame and each witch stands on it at arm's length. Spells are more powerful when cast by more than one witch."
"Athame?" Eden questioned. Abigail chuckled to herself.
"I keep forgetting that you were not brought up knowing the basics. The athame is a ritual dagger with a black handle and a steel double-edge blade. You use it to trace the circle."
"Oh, okay. Are there more tools to be used?"
"Of course there is. The pentacle, or pentagram, is also one. It's used to charge items, like amulets and tools. There's the wand, which is made of wood and is used to evoke the Gods and spirits. I don't use one, but there are some that find it useful. The censer is what you put your incense in when they are burning, but you can make one out of anything. The chalice is the cup you use to hold blessed water or wine during a ritual. A bolline is another type of knife which is used for cutting herbs and it has a white handle. A bolline can be just any mundane knife really. I'm sure you're familiar with the cauldron, right?"
"Potions, right?"
"Not just potions Eden. It's also used for scrying, or foretelling. The bell is used to banish negative influences. You know what the Book of Shadows is already."
"What about a broom?"
"Good question! A broom is used in a variety of different ways, but mostly to cleanse and protect. Before performing a ritual, a witch would sweep the area of negative energies. Traditionally, the broom was made up of three types of wood: Ash for the handle, Birch twigs for the brush, and Willow for the binding cord. Ash is protective and has command over the elements, Birch purifies and draws spirits, and Willow is scared to the Goddess the witch worships. By Goddess I mean Aphrodite or Diana, whomever you choose."
"Who do you worship?" Eden asked.
"All of them" Abigail smiled. Eden smiled back and she felt her phone vibrate.
"One second Gram." Eden took out the cell phone and answered it.
"Hello?"
"Hi Eden, it's Nina."
"Hi Nina, how's it going?"
"Good. What time did you want to check out the town?"
"Anytime you're ready is fine with me."
"I can be there in twenty minutes and we can go out to lunch or something."
"That sounds good. I live at 8515 Morgan Hill Drive."
"No way! You live with Mrs. Gregory?!"
"She's my grandma."
"That's awesome! I will see you both soon."
"Okay, bye." Eden hung up and turned the ringer back on.
"She's going to be here in twenty minutes."
"I have to bring some herbs and spices to her parents' store after you leave. Is Clark okay by himself?"
Tell her I'll be fine, just as long as I can go out in the backyard and have food and water. (Clark)
Eden smiled and said, "He said that he'll be fine, but he just wants to be able to go out back and have some food and water."
"I'll just put the food and water out there and he can stay out back. I won't be gone more than an hour." Eden looked at Clark for a reply.
Perfect.
"He's all set."
"Good. Have you ever made your own perfume before?"
"No, I haven't. Is it easy?"
"All you need is a teaspoon of oil and one hundred proof vodka."
"That's it?"
"That's it. I've made a few in the past. I make teas and I've made candles. When I was younger, I used to make this one fragrance that attracted this boy I really liked. I would wear it everyday," said Abigail.
"What happened?"
"I married him" she smiled.
"Don't be offended when I say this, but is the perfume the only thing that kept you two together?"
"Oh no. The night he proposed to me I told him who I really was and I told him that if he feels the same after a week to ask me again. I stopped wearing the perfume and he still asked me."
"That's romantic. He didn't mind you practicing magic?"
"Not at all. When Diana was young, he enjoyed watching her practice. Sometimes he became the guinea pig, but under my observation just in case." Eden and Abigail both laughed.
"When did he pass away?"
"Three years ago. He died of pancreatic cancer."
"Mom never told me that."
"She left you with Lucy and came for the funeral. She was heartbroken; they were very close at one point. After she left he lost his faith in people. He lost his faith in life. When he was diagnosed with the cancer, he called your mom everyday."
"She shouldn't have shut you two out like she did. That wasn't right."
"I agree, but there's nothing I can do about it now. I do have you and I know your grandpa is watching and now Diana is with him, watching over both of us."
"I believe that too."
"I bought your mom a plot when your grandfather died. Two days after I got the news, I had the headstone made up for her."
"I'd like to look at it sometime."
"It's gorgeous. I had her graduation picture put on it with her full name, birth date, death date, and it says 'Beloved daughter and mother'."
"That sounds wonderful."
"Maybe after you get back today we can go to the cemetery."
"Yeah, I would like that. I'll even pick up some flowers." The doorbell rang and Eden jumped in her seat. Eden walked to the front door and opened it. Nina was standing there with a large smile on her face.
"Come on in. I just have to run upstairs and grab my purse."
"Hello Nina" Abigail greeted.
"Hi Mrs. Gregory! You never told me you had a granddaughter."
"You never asked dear."
"That's true." Eden went upstairs, grabbed her purse off her desk, and went back down. Nina was petting Clark's head and he was soaking up the attention.
"I'll see you two later and have fun."
"We will, bye Clark. He's so cute Eden!"
"That's my boy, huh Clark?" Clark barked and Nina giggled.
"Is there a place around here where I can buy a GPS?" Eden asked her new friend.
"Pride's Crossing has a ton of shops. We can go there after I show you around the island if you want."
"You don't have to buy one Eden, you can have mine."
"Seriously?"
"I never use it and I always know where I'm going" Abigail laughed.
"Thanks Gram. Can we can still check out the shops though?" she asked Nina.
"Yeah! I have to pick up some supplies for school anyway and I'm sure you do too right?"
"I almost forgot! The school sent me a letter in the mail and there's a small list of the basics."
"Don't worry Mrs. Gregory, I'll tell her what she needs."
"Thanks Nina. Do you have enough money?"
"I have plenty Gram" Eden laughed.
"I'm just making sure."
"I'll see you later." The two girls walked outside and hopped into Nina's red Ford Taurus.
"What year is your Malibu?" she asked Eden.
"2007."
"I love it!"
"It's a great car."
"I think I'm going to start the tour from where we met since its right by the bridge."
"Sounds good." Nina backed out of the driveway and they headed down Morgan Hill.
From the end of Page Road, they took a left and started back towards the little convenient store. Instead of going through the three traffic lights, they took a right at the second. They passed Suri Park, which was beautiful and Eden saw tons of kids playing on the large wooden playground.
"Where's the cemetery?" Eden asked.
"Gero Island Cemetery is down here a ways."
A few minutes later they were driving past it. The cemetery was large and she read on the sign that it was founded in 1696.
"Admajorem Deigloriam" Eden repeated.
"I have no idea what that means and I've read that saying on the sign so many times. Honestly, I couldn't even read it." Eden laughed and said, "It means to the greater glory of God."
"That makes sense for a cemetery. At the end of this road, which is Yarrow Street, we take a left onto Dell Lane. It leads right to the restaurants and stores. The high school is about ten minutes from the plaza."
"Thanks for showing me around today. I would have gotten lost tomorrow, I know I would." Eden had a piece of paper and pen out; she was writing down all the addresses so she could program them into her Tom Tom.
"No problem! I had this crazy feeling I would see you again after we bumped into each other at the airport two months ago."
"Really?"
"Yeah and I kept thinking about your eyes. They are so awesome!" Eden laughed.
"I get that a lot."
"I've seen a yellow ring around the pupil before, but yours are bright gold!"
"No one that I know of in my family has eyes like mine."
"They are definitely unique. Okay, since we are going into Pride's Crossing, I'm going to just drive by the plaza. My parents' store is in there called Hargrove's and it's the island's grocery store. Dad expanded it last year, so now we make triple the money. There's also a few restaurants, a flower shop, and Baxer's, which is our version of Wal-Mart. Gero Island is mostly composed of restaurants, gas stations, and liquor stores."
"Sounds exciting." Nina laughed and she turned onto Heart Street, which seemed to be a bit more productive than Dell Lane.
"The high school is just down here and there's a few more restaurants down this street, which are the better ones in my opinion. There's a Wendy's and a Taco Bell. Also, there's Webster Park, which is where all the kids from school like to hang out. It has basketball courts, tennis courts, a large pool, volleyball nets, gazebos, and places to have picnics and barbeques. There's a large pergola where a few dances have been held and the haunted house is set up there every year. It's great you came here in time for that! We may run into friends of mine if you don't mind stopping."
"I'd love to meet people!"
"Great!" Nina made a left turn to enter the park and she parked by the tennis courts. They both got out with their purses in hand and started walking towards the basketball courts.
"This park is so nice. I love being outside. I should bring Clark here so we can run."
"There's an awesome trail that goes up the mountain and there's also a track."
"I'm definitely going to check that out."
"I give you kudos, I hate running. I'll only do it if I have to."
"What's the fun in that?" Eden chuckled.
"Running is supposed to be fun?" Eden burst into laughter and Nina joined her. She couldn't help but notice that a lot of the guys were good looking. It was like she stepped onto a movie set where there are only beautiful people.
"Well, I found one out of the bunch," said Nina. They sat down on a bench and watched a group of guys move a ball around.
"Which one are we watching exactly?" Eden asked her.
"All of them" she smiled. Eden grinned and she heard one of the guys yell in excitement.
"That would be him, come on." Eden and Nina stood up and started towards a guy with his shirt off and he had a backwards baseball hat on. He was a couple inches taller than her and was cute.
"Where's your cousin?" Nina asked him.
"She took off for the beach with Aunt Tina. What are you up to?"
"Trent, this is Eden Pogue. Eden, this is Trent Whitten."
"It's nice to meet you Eden. You have some crazy eyes girl." Eden laughed and said thanks.
"I mean that in a good sense" he added.
"Oh I know. People tell me all the time that I have wild eyes."
"They sure stand out."
"So do yours. I like the gold."
"Your gold is brighter than mine" he laughed.
"Where's everybody else Trent?" Nina asked him.
"Who knows, they all bailed on me. I have a feeling they went to the beach with Rowan."
"Probably. We're going to go to Pride's Crossing and do some shopping. I wanted Eden to meet you guys before she starts school tomorrow."
"I'm all you need to know seriously. I'm the life of the party" Trent smirked.
"He isn't kidding either" Nina laughed.
"I love guys with a personality and a good sense of humor."
"I'm the only one with both of those things."
"Oh shut up, you are not!" Trent rolled his eyes at Nina.
"We'll see you tomorrow."
"Okay, sounds good. It was nice meeting you Eden."
"You too" she smiled. Eden and Nina walked to the car and got in.
"He's so nice."
"He's awesome. Let's go to Pride's Crossing."
"Sounds good." They made their way back to the Taurus and left Webster Park.
