The witching hour.
Goatman Forest, Massachusetts.
"Finally, it's time to claim what is mine." Valeria thought. Although her old identity Laura Miller is dead, she wished to claim her inheritance from her dead adoptive parents. The only one getting in her way was her sleazy uncle Martin Miller who tried to rape her. Luckily, the Miller secret fortune was hidden away from and for a very good reason.
Valeria, naked and sitting cross-legged in the middle of the cave, lit a homemade candle made from deer fat. Beside the candle was a plate of flatbread drizzled with honey, a glass of homebrewed ale and a bouquet of wild flowers in a vase. She started the incantation for calling spirits of the dead.
"Mot, Ereshkigal, Nergal. By the power of the gods of death, I call upon my dearly departed parents Henry Miller and Brenda Miller. Come forth and answer my queries, oh spirits!"
Two wisps began to form from the candle. The wisps grew bigger until they took the ghostly forms of Valeria's adoptive parents. Henry Miller and Brenda Miller were ecstatic to see their daughter.
"Laura? Is that you?" Henry asked.
"Yes it's me, daddy." Valeria answered.
"Oh my! We miss you so much! You're so big and pretty!" Brenda said with so much happiness at their reunion.
"Hold on. Why are you naked?" Valeria's dad asked.
"Young lady, you'll freeze to death! Wear something this instant!" Valeria's mom demanded.
"Mom, Dad, I won't get sick. I'm not a child anymore. I'm twenty-five and I'm a witch. This is skyclad. It's part of my tradition plus I have real magickal powers! The cold never bothered me anyway."
"Well, Elsa! As your parents, we are not comfortable seeing your naughty bits. Witch or not, you will wear clothes when we speak to you." Henry spoke with such firmness and authority. Valeria was intimidated because her dad was usually a soft-spoken man when he was alive.
"Ugh! Fine!" Valeria waved her hand and conjured a wooled blanket to cover herself. "There, happy now?" The witch pouted.
"That'll do. You called us and we will answer. What do you want to know?"
"Mom, Dad... what is the truth behind your deaths? Was it really a car accident?" Valeria asked. Her father's face darkened. He revealed the secret behind their deaths.
"The car itself was tampered. Pauly Bosko, our family's mechanic for twenty years, betrayed us. He sabotaged the brakes which caused our deaths. Your Uncle Martin threatened him to do it so he could get the hidden family fortune."
"Devils damn it! I knew it! Do you know that Uncle Martin tried to rape me!!??" Valeria asked with burning rage. Her teeth gritted in fury. Her mother Brenda frowned.
"Oh honey... oh my precious Laura... we knew and we were so sad and helpless to do anything. I wish we were still alive back then to protect you. It's a good thing you escaped." Brenda said with sadness in her voice.
"Listen, Laura... remember our vacation house on San Marino Beach? The Miller fortune is in a hidden compartment underneath the refrigerator. It was a suitcase filled with ten million dollars in cash, gold and antique jewelry. Your uncle doesn't know that house." Henry paused for a bit.
"Before you go claim the suitcase, you must bring my brother Martin to justice or you'll never be safe. You must find Pauly Bosko who now goes by the name Eugene Nowak and convince him to testify against Martin. After we died, he and his wife fled California and started a new life in Michigan to hide from your uncle. Please forgive him, Laura. He was scared and rightfully so. His wife Emily is now dying from cancer. If you use your witch powers to heal her, he might be more than willing to help you put Martin behind bars."
Valeria Greencraft thought hard about it. She was mad at Pauly's betrayal but she had good childhood memories of him being so kind. She also remembered his wife Emily giving her delicious homemade paczki. Valeria realized they were good people in a very dangerous situation.
"Alright, dad. Please tell me where they are and I will leave for Michigan."
-------------------
Saint Adalbert Hospital, Michigan. 9 pm.
"I'm about to lose my wife. This must be God's punishment for me and I deserve it so." Thought Pauly who just finished praying the rosary.
Inside a private room, a balding Polish elderly man was sitting by the side of his terminally sick wife lying in bed. She hasn't regained consciousness for quite some time. Her pallid appearance said it all. A knock was heard on the door. The tired and sad old man stood up and opened the door. Before him was a beautiful blonde young woman wearing a jacket, shirt and jeans. She was also holding a broomstick.
"Can I help you, young lady?" Asked the tired and sad man.
"Pauly? Pauly Bosko? Do you remember me? I'm Laura Miller. You worked for my dad Henry Miller as a mechanic years ago. You and Emily have been so kind to us."
"L-Laura? Oh... oh..." Pauly cried and embraced Valeria. The witch embraced back with tears falling from her eyes. "I'm so happy to see you! I'm so sorry... so sorry!" The elderly mechanic sobbed heavily.
"How is Emily?" Valeria asked.
"She's not awake. The doctor feared that she's not long for this world. Tonight, tomorrow or in a few days, I might lose her." Pauly answered with a bleak tone.
"Pauly, listen... I'll do whatever it takes to save Emily but you must testify against Martin Miller for the murder of my parents. I know that he forced you to sabotage their car. As long as he's free, we will not be safe." Valeria said. Pauly stared at her with a spooked expression.
"I've been dreaming about your papa the past few days. He told me that you'd come to talk to me about Martin. This must be fate!"
"Yes but first, let me try healing your wife." Valeria locked the door behind her. "You must not speak of what is about to happen in this room to anyone. Do you understand?" Pauly nodded and sat on a chair in one corner of the room.
Valeria examined Emily. It was obvious to her that she was on the verge of death. The clairvoyant witch saw orbs of light floating above the dying woman, indicating that they were Emily's ancestors and were waiting for her to join them. "Please... not yet... she's not ready to go." Valeria whispered. The ancestral spirits whispered back. "Do what you will, wise one." After accepting their approval, Valeria began to chant.
"By the infernal power of my patron Hebeninus and the authority of the water elemental king Nichsa, I call upon my water spirit servant Nyana who has the power to heal."
There was a sudden gust of wind but the windows were closed shut! A puddle of water formed on the floor and slowly rising out of that puddle was a naked gorgeous woman with long black hair and light blue skin. Pauly was awestruck by the mysterious woman. He recognized her from the folk stories from the old country told by his grandfather. Syrenka. The Polish man never knew he'd see one on this very night.
"I am here, mistress. What is your command?" The undine Nyana asked.
"Nyana, can you heal this woman?" Valeria asked. The undine examined Emily and then turned to Valeria. "The disease is heavy indeed. It will be very difficult and it will take a lot of energy from me but it can be done. I ask for one night with you as a price."
"Shall be it. Please heal her."
Nyana began to sing. The undine sang a haunting but beautiful melody. There were no lyrics but the arcane emotions behind it were powerful enough to move the heart and restore the body. Pauly cried at such an incredible soul-stirring tune. Memories of his happiest moments with his wife were evoked. From the day he met Emily when they were children to the day when they got married. Pauly Bosko remembered it all in clear vision within his mind. "This blue woman really is a syrenka!" The mechanic thought.
Emily opened her eyes. The colors were returning to her complexion. The weight she lost was regained. Every part of her former healthy has come back to her. Even her hair, which was shaved off for chemotherapy, was restored!
