His mom got in and turned the truck on, setting the heat dial to high. Air blasted through the vents. It was still warm from her long drive. I leaned back, taking a small bit of comfort in the warmth that surrounded me.
“Do you believe me?” Eric asked me. His mom faced us curiously, but he wasn’t budging. His eyes refused to leave my face until he got an answer.
“Yes,” I muttered.
My cheeks were icy cold from the tears that graced them, and I pressed my hands to them, trying to speed the warming. Valarie watched Eric intently, waiting for him to spill the beans, as if there was much more to say.
“I don’t know where to start,” Eric confessed.
“Start at the beginning,” she suggested.
“Which beginning?” he dared with a sly glance at me. I snorted. There was plenty of dark humor in our history, and surviving meant taking advantage of that. Eric had said that purely for my benefit. I knew and appreciated that, though it didn’t change how incredibly angry I was with him for this sudden turn of events.
“If your name is cursed, then why do you say that it was you each time?” his mom asked.
“Reincarnation,” I muttered.
She didn’t seem shocked by my explanation, and that shocked me.
“Cassandra and I met a long time ago. We’ve lived… four lives together?” Eric said, looking to me for confirmation.
“That we know of. Five if you count this one,” I added.
“How do you know? Do you remember them?” she asked. The idea of us remembering seemed to shock her more than the reincarnation.
“Cassandra more than I do,” Eric answered.
I shot him a warning glance. Valarie, unfortunately, didn’t miss it. “Is she a witch?” she asked him.
“Cassandra? No,” he answered quickly.
Her eyes narrowed. “Then how?”
“That’s another story,” I sniped.
She took a deep breath, looking away from me. “And Aurora knows about all this? Who you are? The reincarnations?” she asked.
“Knows? She’s responsible for it. It’s all her doing,” Eric snarled.
“Aurora’s the witch who cursed you?” she asked urgently.
I huffed angrily and looked out the window. “She sees it more like a gift,” I muttered. “One from hell.”
“We knew her in our first life. I… befriended her,” he reluctantly admitted.
Eric continued on, explaining how Aurora fell for him and tried to save his life-news we had just discovered the true depth of. When he told his mom that I killed myself to be with him, the truck suddenly seemed too small. I couldn’t breathe in there. I clambered out quickly, slamming the door behind me. Eric watched me storm away through the windshield, but I didn’t stray far. I leaned back against a lamppost a few paces away, lowering my gaze as he continued to talk. The cold metal burned down my spine.
The lives I lived were my dirty secret. Something I kept close. It was killing me that Eric was telling his mom-the one person I wanted to think that I was a normal, well-adjusted girl. Daughter-in-law material. I was, in fact, the complete opposite, and now she knew.
I crossed my arms for warmth and watched my feet like my sneakers were the most interesting thing in the world. I tried not to think about Valarie’s reaction to my past and tried not to fear having a future with a witch for a mother-in-law. Eric hadn’t proposed or anything, but I couldn’t ignore that she would be in our lives-however short they might be.
Rose had been open with me about what she was from the very beginning. Valarie was not, even to her own son. Her secret had been as well kept as Aurora’s. As mine had been. And that made her dangerous.
Eric watched me through the glass as he spoke. He watched the parking lot too, searching for threats. He did that a lot lately. His warrior instincts were becoming cemented into his new personality, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about the changes in him. It was like I was losing him to the warrior I never truly knew.
Once I’d cooled down, I went back to the truck. My numb fingers could barely close the door behind me, and Eric instinctively reached back to take my hands. He was warm, almost too warm. I leaned my forehead against the back of his seat, listening to the steady sound of his voice as he divulged our secrets.
The version he gave his mom was the skeleton version. It was practically as thin as the story I’d first told Eric in the cottage. He was just finishing telling her about my tumor, the one that started everything in this life. It started my memories and the removal of it had ended them… temporarily.
Valarie’s eyes were filled with sympathy as they fell to me. I could see it slightly from the corner of my eye, but I could feel it too, heavy and unwanted. I turned my head away until my hair cascaded over my face, shielding me from her pity.
Eric told her about the journal we’d found in the cottage, the one that informed us of Aurora’s spell books and prompted my trip to Virginia. Then he told her the truth about what happened there. How Mike hadn’t just busted my shoulder, but that it happened while he was force-feeding me a potion.
Eric’s mom gasped in horror, prompting a biting shiver to race over my skin, prickling the tiny hairs on my body.
“The potion gave her visions again,” Eric explained.
I wasn’t sure what more Eric intended to say, but I cut in, eager for the end. “We followed them and found the books,” I told her.
I reached into my oversized purse, trying to ignore the ghostly look on her face. She had a lot to process, and maybe she needed a minute, but I couldn’t wait. I handed my copies of the spell books over the seat. “But now Aurora has the originals, and we have no deal.”
She took the photocopies and flipped through them slowly. “These are actual real spells,” she said, her voice filled with awe—awe that confused me. Her fingers traced the handwritten lines of a page carefully, like it was a treasure she’d been searching to find.
“Mom, we’ve told you. Now you need to tell us,” Eric said firmly.
She looked up quickly, still pale, but now there was fear in her eyes. She lowered the books to her lap, and I wondered if I would have to fight her to get them back. Another fight, especially with a witch, was the last thing I wanted.
“I’m sorry to say that Aurora and I aren’t much different,” she said.
My heart leapt into my throat, and I clutched Eric’s fingers tightly, surely cutting off his circulation.
“You don’t need to fear me, Cassandra,” she said understandingly. “I knew there was something supernatural about you, I just didn’t realize… When you came to visit over the summer, I recognized you. I’d seen you before; the girl in the painting in the manor. I felt a change in the air around you, and I thought you might be our family’s curse. I know Eric was shocked by how I let Ryder behave at dinner. I allowed him to say things to upset you. I even encouraged it. But it was a test that you passed. If you were a controlling force in Eric’s life, you would have stopped Ryder yourself. You noticed his scars-the obvious crack in his defenses-and you did nothing. I decided then that you were no threat, but at the hospital in Virginia, I saw that you were far from normal. You were clearly suffering from a spell.”
“You could see that?” I asked, amazed.
She nodded solemnly. “I thought it was a spell gone wrong, so I altered it. I gave you back the control. Now I understand why. By its design, you never were supposed to have control over it.”
She gave me control over the memories? Was that how I was able to see Eric’s as well? And Tony’s now too? Because she gave us a way?
“So… did I only wake because you used magic on me?” I asked, slightly afraid knowing that she had used magic on me without my knowledge or consent, despite the fact that it had helped.
“Yes. I don’t know many spells. My learning has been very… limited.” She shifted in her seat and reluctantly handed the books back to me, looking sort of relieved when I took them from her hands. Relieved, yet sad. I felt
my heart drop with that action. She was giving up. “Please don’t judge me for what I am about to tell you.”
The air felt charged, crackling with tension. She stared down at her lap, her long, dark lashes fluttering nervously. “I’m what some others call a siren. It’s an unfair label that makes me sound like something I’m not.”
Siren? Why did that sound familiar?
“I thought you said you were a witch,” Eric stated.
She nodded. “Most witches just use spells, but others are gifted with magic on another level, born with abilities that set them apart.”
“A spark,” I said softly.
“Yes. They’re called natural witches. I know one who can find anything or anyone. It’s really amazing the variety of gifts. But there are some gifts that are too powerful, feared even by other natural witches.” Her voice trailed off, and she looked into Eric’s eyes. “My ability is the same as Aurora’s. I can enter a person’s mind and control them.”
I backed toward the door, trying to slide my fingers out of Eric’s grasp, but he wouldn’t let go. I shifted back, pulling desperately. “Eric,” I called in panic. Was he gone? Did she have him? Terrifying memories rushed me, and I gasped in pain as I twisted my fingers free.
Eric’s eyes leapt to mine. “Cassandra, it’s alright,” he soothed. His face was a pale white, his eyes wide. If he was frightened, why shouldn’t I be?
“I can’t control him, Cassandra,” she told me.
My wild nerves settled back until I no longer felt like a lion trapped in a cage. More like a scared little bunny in a pet shop with eager watchers leaning over me. My back pressed against the door, and my fingers curled around the latch. I was ready to run if I had to. “But you just said-”
“He’s my blood. I can’t control my family, not a single one of blood relation to me.”
“But you could control me,” I said.
She sighed heavily. “Yes, but it would take time and effort. You’re well guarded. You keep yourself secret even from yourself.”
She could tell that?
She faced Eric again, trying to gauge his reaction to her confession. He wasn’t taking it well. I’d seen him conquer far worse truths, but this… “Eric, I used it on your father,” she confessed slowly.
He swallowed hard, his expression strained. “When?” he asked carefully.
“High school. We were dating, and I got pregnant with you. I didn’t mean to use my ability on him. I just… I loved him so much that I didn’t realize what I was doing,” she explained urgently. “Winnie McLeary recognized the signs, and her family intervened. They took him away from us and taught him to resist my gift.”
The last part snapped me out of my fear. “Resist? There’s a way?” I asked urgently. Finally, hope.
She nodded. “It took time, trial and error, but we found a way.”
Eric was quiet for a moment, and I could sense a dangerous shift within him. “Why didn’t you ever tell me? Teach me this?” he questioned, his voice hoarse and his eyes low.
“My ability is very rare. I never met another who could do it. I didn’t think you would need protection from it, and that would mean telling you about me. You have such respect for your grandmother… I was afraid of what you might think of me, and what you might think of her. She knows what I can do. She made me feel like a monster for years because of it,” she explained bitterly. “I learned that the magic follows the women in our family, from the Marwick line—your grandfather’s side, not hers. Most Marwick women had natural magical talents, though I’m the only woman in our line right now.”
I was speechless with wonder. This magic followed the women in Eric’s family… all the way from his very first mother.
“Eric, it’s possible that Aurora doesn’t realize what she’s done to you. Let me talk to her. Maybe we can sort this all out,” his mom said gently.
My jaw dropped. How could she say that, after everything Eric told her? What had he actually told her? I mentally cursed myself for fleeing the truck earlier.
“She knows,” Eric said quietly. From the choked sound in his voice, I knew he hadn’t gone into much detail of how Aurora finally took him over. He never talked about the wine cellar. Any time when I tried to bring it up, he’d either pretend not to hear or change the subject.
“Are you sure?” his mom asked. “I didn’t, not until-”
Eric opened the door and got out of the truck without letting her finish. He opened my door and waited for me to slide out of my seat, then shut it behind me. I looked tentatively up at him. His jaw was hard as stone as he clenched his teeth tight. He draped his arm across my shoulders and led me away.
“Eric,” Valarie called, standing beside her truck. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”
He spun to face her. “You’re a witch!” he exclaimed. “So what? Big freaking deal! It would have been nice to know why my dad abandoned us for years!” he screamed at her. “All this time, I thought it was me!
“Do you have any idea how different things could have been for me? For us? Do you have any clue? My life could have been so different. The past three years could have gone so much better,” he stated. A fire had lit in his eyes. Rage churned there, and his grip on me tightened. “I have been ripped up and thrown around by Aurora. She had me by a string for years.”
Valarie paled, her face grim with regret. “I didn’t know.”
He stepped forward, letting me go, and leaned toward his mom, his hand moving with anger. “But I would have if you had just told me! Cassandra wouldn’t have to be afraid of me, and I wouldn’t be watching over my shoulder every second, waiting to lose my mind again!” He turned away from her, pressing me close again.
“Eric!” she called desperately.
“I need some time,” he growled hatefully, pushing me along as he moved for his car across the lot.
When we got close, I took the keys from his hand. “You shouldn’t drive like this.”
With an agitated shake of his head, he let me take them and went to the passenger side. He slid into the seat and slumped back. I got in and started the engine.
“Are you alright?” he asked.
Me? Was he for real?
“I’m fine. You’re the one who just…”
I couldn’t finish. He had learned in a matter of minutes that his life was a lie.
“All this time,” he muttered. “I hated my dad for nothing. I thought he…” His words trailed off. He looked caught between breaking something and crying. “I thought he abandoned us. I thought…” He shook his head, as if clearing it.
“I thought I could trust her. Aurora’s right. I trust all the wrong people. Her, my mom, Mike… How could I have been so stupid? I’m always so stupid!” he roared, smacking his palm against the dashboard. “It was right there, all along, right in front of my face. Her and Aurora. They’re the same. She… I…”
He couldn’t finish the thought, caught in a loop of emotion. Anger ruled his eyes. He looked like he needed to punch something and was struggling to keep control. I could give him one better.
I leaned in and kissed him hard. He jumped at my touch, stunned, but I wasn’t backing away. I pressed closer and he grabbed me, pulling me forward until I was draped over the armrests. His hands pushed under my coat and shirt, groping at my bare back. His fingers threaded under the band of my bra. Our teeth knocked as we kissed wildly, like two feral animals, my broken lip stinging from the intensity. I nipped at his lips, and he dove to kiss my neck. Instantly, our passion ground to a sudden halt. He stopped what was sure to have been a mind-blowing experience under different circumstances, just before touching my tender bruises.
He slowly backed away, as if caught in rewind. His hands brushed through my mussed hair, and he kissed my throbbing lip softly, reminded once again that I was breakable.
Our foreheads touched. “I never know what to expect from you,” he said softly.
“Is that a good thing?” I asked hesitantly.
&nb
sp; “The best.”
He pulled me closer until I was on his lap. My arms wrapped around his neck, and I looked into his blue eyes. He was in turmoil. His life had flipped upside down.
“She can teach you,” I reminded him, brushing the bridge of my nose along his unshaven jaw. “I know you’re mad. You have every right to be, but you can learn to protect yourself.”
He sighed, and I could see the heavy weight he had carried for over a year lifting off his shoulders.
“I know it feels bad right now, but this is good.”
Good? Hell, it was very good.
TODD:
Sandy… Amelia… Sandy… Amelia…
Sandy… Amelia…
Their names repeated over and over in his head. Sandy… Amelia…
Both of them. He could think of nothing else. His mind could go no further, process nothing more than their names. Echoes of his crappy choices.
Jameson… Don’t forget her.
Sandy. Amelia. Jameson. Sandy. Amelia.
He abandoned his car at the side of the road and stumbled in a haze up the icy curb.
Jameson…
Sandy…
Amelia…
He didn’t want to be alone anymore. He couldn’t stand another second of his own shitty company.
CHAPTER 33
SEPARATE WAYS
It took close to an hour before Eric was ready to talk. Until that point, he held me in his car. I’d listened to his heartbeat against my ear, tracking the steadily slowing pulse. I could almost hear the gears turning as his mind struggled to work through the information dump he’d just suffered.
He slowly climbed out of his car, and I followed a few steps behind. His mom had been waiting in her truck and got out when she saw him approach. She looked hopeful yet vulnerable, wringing her hands as we came closer.
“Can you teach Cassandra too?” he asked.
She sighed. The hope that had brightened her expression died out. “Eric, it’s going to be hard enough to teach you. She doesn’t need protecting from Aurora, so I just want to focus on you.”
Envious Deception Page 35