Daughter of the Thirteen: Bourbon Street Witches Book 1 by Lorraine Kennedy Read Free Book Online Page A

kind of price?” she asked, intrigued by what she’d just seen.
    Arlene shrugged her dainty shoulders. “It would depend on what magic you use. Maybe nothing for what I just did, but lets say you want to win the heart of a certain gentleman. That could cost you a lot because you would be taking that person’s free will from them.”
    “So it would be safe … as long as you don’t do anything that would influence someone else?”
    “Well also you wouldn’t want to do black magic,” Arlene told her. “If you did, you would have to deal with dark entities, and they aren’t good.”
    “Why would someone with powers like yours, be here?” Laurel asked.
    “No where else to go.” Arlene frowned. “Just like you, Mora took me off the street. She thinks she is some kind of angel of mercy. Mora might seem a little rough around the edges, but she has a good heart.”
    Laurel smiled. “Yes, I think so.”
    “Show me what you can do,” Arlene urged.
    “I can’t do anything.” Laurel shook her head.
    “Sure you can. Just concentrate,” she said, pointing to her head. “Envision the power of the earth and the moon. That is where you will get your magic.”
    Arlene pointed to the closet door. “You shut it.”
    Though she had her doubts it would work, Laurel focused on the closet door. Thinking about the moon, she imagined pulling the moonlight into herself and forcing it out through her finger.
    The door slammed with a loud bang.
    “Fantastic!” Arlene exclaimed. “You did well … for it being your first time. But you’ll have to learn to control it.”
    Laurel slipped into silence, contemplating what this all meant.
    She was a witch!
    “So what’s your story?” Arlene asked. “What are you doing here?”
    There was something about Arlene she liked, and she really did want someone to talk to.
    Laurel told her about the convent, and about Marcos. She didn’t even leave out any of the embarrassing details.
    She needed help, and she felt if anyone could help her, it would be Arlene.
    When she finished, she saw a frown was tugging at the corners of Arlene’s mouth.
    “What is it? What did I say wrong?”
    Arlene shook her head. “Nothing. It just reminds me of something Mora told me. She said I should stay away from the covens because they were big trouble. According to Mora, there’s a coven that made a pact with the devil to give birth to his children … and that one of the witches ran away. They hunted her down and killed her.”
    A band of grief tightened around Laurel’s throat until she could barely breathe. She’d already had the idea that her mother was probably dead, but hearing it made it real.
    “You two look as if you’ve seen a ghost.”
    The voice came from the open bedroom door where Mora was standing. “What are you doing?”
    “Close the door,” Arlene instructed.
    A funny look crossed Mora’s face, but she came in and closed the door. “This better be good. If Madam notices I’m gone, she’ll be after me in no time … you too Arlene.”
    Arlene turned to Laurel. “Tell her what you told me.”
    She didn’t feel quite as comfortable with Mora as she did Arlene, but she told her everything.
    Her eyes seemed to take on a distant quality, as if she’d stepped out momentarily.
    Suddenly coming back to the moment, Mora blurted, “Us coming together can’t be a coincidence.”
    Leveling her eyes on Laurel, she asked, “And this guardian … he knows you’re here now?”
    Laurel nodded. “I just saw him from the window when Arlene came in.”
    This news seemed to trouble both girls.
    “You need to stay away from him,” Mora declared. “He has to be a demon. Only demons can plant visions in your head like that. Witches are that good at it.”
    “But I always thought witches could make you see thing,” Laurel interrupted. It wasn’t that she didn’t believe St. Claire might be a demon, but that she really had no idea what a witch’s limitations were.
    Mora shook her