Caged by Damnation (Caged #2)(27)

I waited for the woman to leave before I turned back to Ash, arched my eyebrow, and waited for him to explain.

"Josephine called while we were with Diamante and said that you were in danger and we better bring backup. Liam and his mother called the entire coven to convene at our home. We got there just in time." He paused. "At first, Izzy was fine. I think she was concentrating so much on you, that our presence barely registered. But when we got here, she became difficult."

"That's why the staff had to tranquilize her and put her in a locked cell. My mother and a few members of her coven are there now. It's taking the three of them combined to retain her." As he spoke, Liam moved further into the room and sat in a chair near the bed. "Sorry, we didn't know what else to do. You had so much poison in your system and we needed to get it out. We had to put you first."

Ash and Liam stayed for a short while, explaining that they didn't have time to read the journal and left it on the table beside my bed, in case I was up for some light reading. Maye walked in soon after they left, carrying with her a tin of homemade cookies, and a small box.

"How are you feeling?" Maye handed the items to me, groaning as she sank into a chair. "Hopefully better now that we healed you."

"Yeah, I guess. My body kind of aches, but otherwise, I just feel weird being here. What was that thing that attacked me?" My hands trembled, as I remembered the black tendrils loosening from the eye of the beast and wrapping around my calf. I rubbed my leg where the hooks had punctured the skin. Although my wounds had healed, I could feel a ghostly sting, as though they still remained in my flesh.

"I didn't see it, none of us did. We could sense its presence and see the house as it shuddered, but the only piece of the beast that we saw, were the tentacles wrapped around your legs, and the evil that oozed from your injuries."

"If we don't know what it was, how are we supposed to find out why it wanted me?" I spoke more to myself than Maye, but she directed a helpless look my way and glanced awkwardly towards the door.

"Diamante might have an answer to that, but I'll leave it to her to explain. I'm sure she will be by to see you soon." The distaste was notable in her voice, but I knew she was attempting to hide it.

Diamante had become a sensitive subject for us since learning that she ordered Liam to seduce me as way of luring me into her coven. However, I was sure that Maye had to be somewhat grateful that Diamante's coven, Sacred Moon, came to my rescue without asking for anything in return. I wondered if she thought her aid would make me reconsider my decision to remain with the Meadow Falls coven.

Feeling the need for a change of pace, I decided to move on to a different subject. "What is this place?"

"Couldn't rest before probing for answers, I see." She smiled, leaning into the chair some more, and sighed. "It's a hospital that was created for all supernatural creatures. We can come here to get treatment without being judged for what we practice or what we are. It's one of the few places where we know we're safe from one another. I guess you could call it a sanctuary, but its name is The Ether."

"As in the mythological place that souls are stored? I thought that was a term that non-witches used."

"Yes and no. The Ether is real, and yes, souls are stored here, but only the ones that Death clears for reincarnation. Souls are sometimes recycled, but only in extreme cases. This place has many purposes and far too many to explain in one sitting." Maye scooted her chair closer and smiled. "Now, are you going to open that box, or am I going to have to do it for you?"

A slight laugh escaped my lips, but I peeled off a silver ribbon that had been tied around the box, along with a sprig of baby's breath. The box creaked as I opened the engraved lid. Nestled inside, I discovered a white gold ring. The surface of the band was decorated with symbols I didn't recognize, and in the center of the band lay a green stone. It was rich in color, with white lights that danced along it.

"It's beautiful! What kind of stone is this?"

"I'm glad you like it. It's called Seraphinite – it was your mother’s."

I was about to place the ring on my finger and paused. "My mother's?" My hand fell to the sheets, still clenching the precious ring.

"I'm speaking of your other mother." My head snapped up in confusion, but before I could ask, Maye continued. "You know that your mother was possessed by a winged one. This is from that mother."

"I don't understand. My angelic absentee mother gave this to you?" The knowledge gave me a mixed set of emotions. On one hand, I was intrigued by the novelty of the item, but it brought a sense of irritation as well.

"Not exactly. She gave it to your father to give it to you. I happened to find it while searching through the basement, before we sold their estate. I thought you should have it. It's rare and the saying is that the stone was originally worn by angels, because the first feather of each angel resides within their stone. I think this was her way of ensuring you would have a piece of her with you, even if she couldn't be."

"Maye, it's sweet of you to think of this, but how do you even know she wanted me to have it? I mean, it isn't as though you knew her, and I doubt my father would ever have given it to me."

Maye reached into the pocket of her wool sweater and handed me a crushed envelope. "This was also in the box."