Scrolls and Schemes: Keeping the Faith, #2

By Kit Bladegrave

Meet Faith.

A girl who finds out she's a wizard. And so much more.
Faith travels to a small town to uncover the truth about her mysterious past and discover the secrets surrounding her parents' death. Plagued by memories and nightmares, she's determined to find the truth no matter the cost. Along the way, she encounters old allies and new enemies, and must navigate a world filled with magic and mystery to uncover the reality about her past and protect her future. But as she delves deeper into the truth, she realizes that everything she thought she knew was a lie, and she must confront the darkest aspects of her own identity to uncover the truth and claim her place in the world.

With shadows and threats coming from friend and foe, she must navigate her way through this dangerous new world, always on guard and ready to defend herself. Strolling through the town of Rolling Hills, she is suddenly halted by the sounds of a struggle in an alleyway. Confronted by a towering demon, she must make a choice between her pistol and her wand, while battling demons who try to take her to hell. With crackling energy and magic, she must face the demons and safeguard the world from the forces of darkness.

Enter Ronin.

The wrong demon. Or maybe the right demon. Correction. Half-demon. He's here to help her with her new assignment. And so much more.

Add Donovan.

After surviving a traumatic encounter with a demon, Donovan starts to piece together the events that led him to this point and uncovers the truth about the wizarding world. With Faith's help, he must navigate a dangerous supernatural landscape and unravel the mystery of the relic that drew the demon to his family all those years ago. When Donovan's friend Zack goes missing, he sets out to uncover the truth about the demon that is terrorizing their town and taking the youth. But as he and Faith delve deeper into the unknown, they come face to face with unexpected danger and the threat of becoming the next target.

Will they be able to put a stop to the evil terrorizing their town or will they become its latest victims?
In this thrilling tale of magic and survival, Faith, Ronin, and Donovan must learn to embrace their power and face their fears, or risk losing everything they hold dear.

• Language: English
• Publisher: KitBla
• Release date: Nov 8, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223527688

Book preview

1

The icy chill of the day was starting to seep into the truck. I’d been sitting in it for the last three hours now, wondering what I was even doing. I’d left Rolling Hills this morning, not entirely sure why I’d thought coming here would be a good idea.

But here I was in the tiny town of Withers, staring out over barren fields. In the summertime, according to the website, they were abundant with sunflowers reaching all the way to the horizon. Now, they were empty and cold. Withers was even smaller than Rolling Hills. I was sure if I stepped out and asked anyone walking down the sidewalk about the Tilson family, they’d know about them. They’d know about my parents.

That was why I’d come here, after all, to see if I could find out anything about my parents, Kendrick and Eric Tilson, before they’d wound up on the run from Amari, an evil bastard hell-bent on destroying them for reasons I had yet to understand.

Before the Church abandoned them.

Before they were burned alive in our home in Idaho.

The faint echoes of their dying screams whispered across my ears. I scrunched my eyes shut, waiting for the noise to fade. When I opened them, I took another long look around where I should’ve grown up.

This was the main road through town. There were no traffic lights, just one lonely four-way stop. To the right was a small cafe. Two boutiques flanked it, one for clothing and one for artisan crafts, both with holiday displays in the windows surrounded by soft, white lights. Across the street was a grocer, and next to it, a bank.

It was a quaint place. Cute, almost. The sidewalks were lined with gorgeous, vibrantly painted planters and matching streetlights. Holiday decorations had already gone up in the form of pine garlands speckled with pinecones and bows. A tree lot had been erected at the end of the road where it dead-ended. It being a Saturday, the lot was busy with those out shopping for their Christmas trees. Others were putting up lights on their homes or carrying shopping bags while they meandered from one place to the next. The few houses that clustered around the heart of the town were painted in an array of bright blues and warm, rustic greens and browns.

Had one of those been my home? I’d asked Leo if he knew anything about the specific house, but he hadn’t been able to find me an address.

So he says, I thought, hating the bitterness that welled inside me with the thought.

After what I’d gone through to get the damn Crown and Thorns to the Church, I’d hoped Leo would’ve been more inclined not to keep shit from me. But any time I mentioned my parents and how they died, he lied. He knew far more than he was telling me. Why keep secrets? What was he so worried about me finding out?

As if you can complain. You’re keeping secrets, too.

Scoffing at myself, I slumped lower in the driver’s seat. It was true, but what was I supposed to do? Tell Leo that I was still having nightmares of the woman trapped in the ring of lightning? That I’d seen the wizard outside of my nightmares three more times now, staring back at me from whatever window or mirror I’d walked past? That his voice sounded in my head every now and then, too? Or that thanks to the witch Ronin and I had encountered, I was convinced Amari was alive?

Or that I missed Ronin as much as I hated him.

Remembering how he turned that wicked smile on me right before he walked out the hotel room door sent a jolt of magic bursting from my hands. It lit up the inside of the cab in a bright flash of blue light. An older couple walking by glanced my way. I turned the key in the ignition and pulled out onto the road.

I’d stayed too damn long anyway.

For weeks, I’d replayed my final conversation with Ronin over and over inside my head. He claimed to betray me because he was evil, and that’s what evil did. He was full of shit. Something else had happened that night. It had left him unsettled and angry and afraid. Instead of telling me, he’d run.

And it all tied back to that damn dagger he’d stolen instead of the thorn we’d been after. Seeing that blade had thrown him off his game and screwed up our plans. He wouldn’t have done that unless it was that important. That’s what instinct told me, and I was going to continue to believe it. He’d saved my ass too many times for him not to be a good guy, albeit a thief.

Then there was why he’d gone after the Crown and Thorns at all. He’d said it had been for a payday, but I’d sensed the lie in his words. There’d been another reason, one far more intricate than getting money. What he’d said and how he’d acted weren’t adding up, which only increased my frustration.

He'd even returned to Rolling Hills to check on me the same night I’d handed over the last thorn. That didn’t add up either, not if he cared nothing for me and had been using me, right?

Though if he was still in town, I had no idea. After seeing him that night outside my window, I’d given in and gone to the hotel. I’d knocked on his door, but there’d been no answer. I’d even texted him. If he saw the message, I had no idea. My anger for him constantly shifted to confusion, then worry, then right back to anger. It wasn’t merely that we’d had a deal, and he’d broken it. It wasn’t even that Ronin had stolen the wrong item.

He hadn’t trusted me enough to tell me the truth. I’d trusted him, and I’d thought he did, too. That’s what cut the deepest. I’d put my life in his hands, had told him so much, and he’d run off instead of offering me the same.

With the town of Withers in the rearview mirror, I aimed for the two-lane highway that would take me the few hours east to Rolling Hills. Maybe if I got up the nerve to come back, I’d get out of the truck and ask around about my parents. Driving out there had been hard enough.

I’ll come back, I told myself firmly. Might be the only way to get the answers I’m looking for.

Blue sparks crackled around my fingertips. Mixed among them were tiny flickers of shadow. I curled my hands tighter around the steering wheel and drove faster toward home.

Footsteps scuffed over the floor near the stairs. I cringed, knowing that I was about to get my fourth lecture for the week. Or was it the fifth? I’d lost track at this point. Tiredly, I rubbed at my eyes and smothered the yawn that wanted to explode out of my mouth. It was the day after I’d visited my hometown of Withers. I’d managed to avoid Leo yesterday and had hoped to do the same today.

Looked like I was out of luck there.

Still?

I jumped, then turned to the end of the aisle with a glare. Seriously? Do you have to use your super sneaking skills on me?

Leo had his arms crossed and wasn’t eyeing me but the pile of books on the floor around me.

Don’t, okay? I know what you’re going to say. I have to do something, though.

Training would be doing something.

I’ve been training, I retorted and dropped another book atop the stack to my right.

It was true. I spent a good chunk of my days in the pocket realm here at the church, honing my magic with and without my wand, as well as working on my non-magical skills. I was on the fourth level of the obstacle course and kicked its ass twice just this morning. It’d been over two weeks since we’d handed over the five thorns to the Church. No word had come yet for my next assignment, and there had been no unexpected or unwanted visits from Abraxos. That was more than fine by me. Merely thinking of the angel sent a shiver of fear skating down my spine. I shifted on the hard floor and returned to examining the shelf of books in front of me.

Where did you go yesterday? Leo asked.

A drive. I needed to clear my head.

Anything you want to talk about?

Nope.

He muttered under his breath. Why wouldn’t you have simply told me you wanted to go to your hometown?

I scowled up at him. I was going to ask how he knew but stopped. He was Leo. Somehow, he always just knew shit, even when I tried to keep it a secret. I wanted to go alone.

And?

And what? I went and sat in the truck like a moron. That was it. I dropped the book I’d been thumbing through and snagged another one at random.

If you want to go back, to talk to someone, I can go with—

It’s fine, alright? I have more important issues to spend my time on than mourning a childhood home I don’t even remember.

Issues like Ronin?

Sparks flickered at my fingertips until I smothered them.

Have you heard from him? Leo pushed.

I tapped my fingers on the open pages of the book in my hands. The words blurred while my eyes became unfocused. A pair of light grey eyes flashed before my face. I shut the book in a hurry and set it down. No, but I’m sure that’s just fine with you.

Faith—

Please save whatever you’re about to say. I don’t want to talk about it. Not tonight.

He sighed. Don’t stay down here all night again. You need sleep. Actual sleep in a bed. Crashing on the couch in your magical sanctuary doesn’t count.

I nodded but said nothing else. There was no way I was about to confess to Leo that sleeping had been damn near impossible since I’d returned from my failed attempt to retrieve the fifth thorn. The nightmares about the woman surrounded by lightning weren’t the only images stalking my mind at night. Sometimes it was Abraxos. I’d dream of him breaking into my home and stabbing me through with that damn spear of his while his eyes blazed with radiant light behind his mask. Sometimes the dreams involved the first demon I’d killed, resurrected and coming to get his revenge.

And if that wasn’t bad enough, the rest of the time, most of the time if I were being honest with myself, I was seeing a certain half-demon’s face. He wasn’t trying to hurt me or kill me. Oh no. This was a hundred times worse.

Ronin would step into my apartment. He wouldn’t say anything, but what he wanted was in those silvery eyes of his. He’d come to me and kiss me as he had in the hotel room. His arms would wrap around me. We’d tumble into the bed, laughing and touching. He’d growl my name, and just when it would start to heat up more, I’d wake up in a damn tizzy remembering what the bastard had done.

Faith? Are you alright?

Damn it. I’d forgotten Leo was still standing there. Cheeks burning, I nodded. I’m great, I muttered through gritted teeth. Why?

Leo looked at my hands, and I followed his gaze. Tiny bolts of lightning bounced around my fingertips. Talking about everything might help with that.

I curled my hands into fists, worried more than blue sparks were going to appear. If Leo saw shadows in my magic, he'd really lose it. About which part? What part of my messed up shitty life would you like me to delve into?

You’re being a bit overdramatic, don’t you think?

I thought you were turning in for the night.

He was tugging on his beard so hard I expected him to pull a chunk of hair free. Then he shoved his hands in his pockets, mumbled something too softly for me to hear, and walked away. I held my breath until his steps reached the stairs leading up and out of the archives. Only then did I sag against the shelves behind me and bury my face in my hands, still crackling away with energy. My unstableness right then had nothing to do with Abraxos or the Church or thinking about my parents.

No, it all had to do with Ronin.

Since returning from my disastrous trip to Colorado, I’d been scouring the archives for any hint of the knife Ronin had chosen to steal over the final thorn. Too bad trying to find mention of a dagger I didn’t know the name of and only had a vague memory of what it looked like was turning out to be impossible. Aggravated at finding no information yet, I shoved aside the stacks of books blocking me in, got to my feet, and meandered down another aisle. The Archives reshelved the ones I’d been tearing through, and I thanked it. As much of a mess as I’d been making the place, I was surprised it was still putting up with me.

I’d tried several times to describe the dagger aloud in hopes the Archives would know what I was talking about and drop a book in front of me. Since that hadn’t happened yet, either my description wasn’t good enough, or I’d have to admit this wasn’t the right place to find that intel. If I wanted to know, the only source that might give me something was Ronin himself. His lack of response to my texts so far was the only reason I hadn’t tried to push him for the truth.

It was obvious he didn’t want to talk to me. I grumbled about pain-in-the-ass half-demons and moved down another aisle. At the end of it, I glowered at the rows and rows of texts, scrolls, boxes, and all manner of materials. Somewhere down here, there had to be answers.

And not just about the dagger. I hadn’t told Leo about the strange writing that had appeared on my arms twice now. The first time had been after fighting off the witch with Ronin. The second had been after jerking awake from the nightmare with the woman in the lightning. I’d been anxious to see it again so I could try and jot some of the words down. Nothing I did, though, made the words reappear.

Then there was the other, other thing I was doing and keeping to myself. I needed a way to track down wizards. Not just those who worked for the Church. Leo had said he’d reached out to a few, but those were under the angels’ command.

After hearing Ronin and the witch talking about how not every wizard worked for them, I was determined to find those who’d successfully stayed away. Leo had said they’d all been hunted down and eventually killed. That had been, surprise, another lie. If these other wizards weren’t part of the Church, had they never had their magic bound? Or had more than a handful managed to break the curse that limited our magic? Either way, I wanted to find at least one of them and get the other side of the story. I needed to understand if corrupting my magic was the only way to destroy the binding magic or if there was another way where it didn’t end up damning myself.

Maybe I’d get lucky and find someone who knew my parents, too.

Maybe they’d help me figure out how to escape before Abraxos did more than threaten me.

Eventually, it became too hard to focus on the written word, and I gave up my search for the night. I thought of sleeping on the couch in my magic sanctuary again, but a bed would be a good idea. The hope was that I was exhausted enough I’d pass out and not be woken up by nightmares.

Or dreams of Ronin showing up at my place.

I gathered my heavier fleece-lined long leather coat, tucked my wand in its holster at my right side, and flipped off the lights to the Archives. After everything that went down lately, I’d taken on the risk of always keeping my wand with me. The other priests and Abraxos might’ve said they’d leave me alone until they had a new assignment, but I didn’t believe them. Somewhere in this town, they had eyes watching me.

I wasn’t going to be caught unawares and unarmed.

I opened the door