by Sarah Bailey
“And… that’s why… Oh gods.”
All of it began to make sense. He’d said if only one parent had the bloodline then it was uncertain if their children would inherit magic.
“Does that mean I’m a witch too?”
“It would seem so, yes, but I don’t know why your magic hasn’t manifested before.”
“Oh, oh, this is why you told me you shouldn’t want me. Oh gods! I’m the daughter of your enemy.”
“Well, I have no issue with Ophelia’s coven. However, my mother would have something to say about this, yes.”
He turned his head, looking up at her.
“I haven’t told her about you.”
“Why not?”
“Because they’d use you to get to Ophelia.”
“But I don’t know her. She left us.”
“I know that. They don’t, nor will they care.”
“Does… does that mean you care?”
He shifted, wincing as he tried to sit up. She helped him lean against the wall. When she tried to move away, he stopped her.
“I don’t want them dragging you into that mess when you have nothing to do with it.”
“But they’d expect you to hand me over.”
“Yes.” He brushed his knuckles over her cheek. “Do you hate me for not telling you before?”
“No.”
“You’re too good for me.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not special.”
She turned away, unable to meet his eyes.
“Why would you think that?”
She fiddled with the hem of her shirt.
“You must know I’m different. Josh and Amelia shielded me from the worst of it, but I still got bullied. I had panic attacks every week at school. It was difficult for my dad to cope with, but he did his best. It’s hard to feel normal or special when you grow up in a world that looks at you like you’re a freak.”
He cupped her face, turning it towards him.
“The worst part was when they’d tell me I must be worthless because my mother left my dad when I was a baby.”
“Should I hex them all for you?”
There was a sad smile on his face.
“What?”
“Well, clearly they were all ignorant and cruel. I’ll make their lives hell for treating you like that.”
“You’d do that?”
“If it made you smile.”
She bit her lip. Even though he’d kept the truth from her, she wasn’t upset with him. He could’ve told his coven, but he’d been helping her instead.
“My dad must know who my mother is. Oh gods, my dad! All this time… he’s known all this time, but I don’t understand why he never told me.”
“You’d have to ask him that.”
He brushed his thumb over her bottom lip. Why did he have to be so distracting? She had so many questions she needed to ask him, but his touch was making her think about kissing him again.
“What… what if they find out you kept my existence from them? Does… does this mean I can’t see you? You said you shouldn’t want to be with me.”
“I want to be with you anyway. Do you want to be with me?”
She didn’t know the answer to that question. There was so much she didn’t know about the man in front of her. About why her mother had left. About being a witch. She was so confused by it all
“I can’t answer that right now,” she whispered.
“Can I at least take you on a date?”
“A date?”
“Yes. As in two people going out and getting to know each other. I can make you dinner here or we can go somewhere away from people and crowds.”
She smiled. He’d listened to what she’d said about her anxieties. It made her heart flutter. He cared enough to want her to be comfortable. Oh gods! He’s too sweet.
“I… guess so. Dinner sounds nice.”
He smiled, brushing his thumb over her bottom lip again. Her eyes fell on his mouth. There were so many other pressing matters they should be talking about. She leant towards him, swallowing hard.
The shrill of her phone made her jump. His hand dropped back into his lap. She fished it out of her pocket, looking down at the display. It was her father again.
“Dad?”
“Where are you?”
“I…”
“I told you not to see that witch, Grace!”
Indignation flared inside her. How dare her father dictate to her who she could and couldn’t see? He’d been lying for her entire life.
“Dad, why didn’t you tell me Ophelia is a witch?”
There was silence on the other end. Alistair entwined his fingers with hers, his expression sad.
“Why did you keep it from me?”
She looked at her wrist where only an hour before, there had been a brand. Now, her skin was clear. She dropped the phone in shock. She tugged her hand out of Alistair’s before pulling up her shirt sleeves and looking frantically at both wrists. Where is it? Why is it gone? She looked up at Alistair, her face drained of all colour. Why had it disappeared?
“Grace? Grace? What happened?” she could hear the muffled sounds coming from her phone.
“What… why is… please tell me you have an explanation.”
Alistair looked down at her wrists, a frown appearing on his face. He shook his head. She grabbed her phone, putting it back to her ear.
“What did you do, Dad? What happened to the contract? Why is my brand gone?”
She heard her father sigh.
“I did what I had to do. You have to live, not me.”
“No. You didn’t. Tell me you didn’t!”
He’d gone back to the demon and asked him to revert the contract back to him. She knew it.
“I’m sorry.”
“Why?”
“Because if your mother found out that I allowed you to take my place, she’d kill me herself. Now they know you exist, she’ll want to be in your life.”
“But they don’t know, Dad. He hasn’t told them about me.”
She didn’t want to refer to Alistair by name, but she needed her father to know she wasn’t in any danger of them finding out yet.
“It’s only a matter of time. Even if the one you’re with hasn’t told anyone, you can’t hide forever.”
“Why did she leave, Dad?”
“She promised me she’d given up her life in the coven. When I found out she hadn’t after you were born, I made her leave. I made her promise never to contact you after she realised you didn’t have any magic.”
She swallowed. She might not have had it when she was a baby, but things had changed.
“I have to go, Grace. Please, just stay safe. I wanted to be able to say goodbye to you, but it’s too late. The only way Kobal would allow me to revert the contract is if I gave up the time I have left.”
“What?”
“I’m sorry. I love you, sweetie.”
“No! No! Dad, no!”
“I always knew you’d grow up to be such a special girl. I’m so proud of you.”
“Daddy!”
The line went dead. Tears pricked at her eyes.
“No, no, no, no!”
“What is it?” Alistair asked.
“He… I… I need to get to him, right now. I have to go. I have to save him.”
She got to her feet unsteadily. She had to get to her father. She couldn’t let them take his soul to Hell. She just couldn’t.
“Grace?”
“He… he… gods! He has no time left. He made the demon revert the contract. He rang me to say goodbye. Oh gods! I can’t let that happen!”
He tried to get to his feet, but she was already running towards the door.
“Grace, wait!”
She wrenched open the door she knew would take her wherever she needed to go. He’d told her he’d spelled it that way. She ran out into her father’s street.
“Grace!”
She didn’t look back, her feet carrying her
down the road. She pulled open the door to the block of flats and ran up the four flights of stairs to her father’s floor. She was panting, out of breath by the time she got to the top, but she didn’t stop. She pulled her keys out of her pocket, fumbling with them. She reached her father’s door, putting the key in the lock with shaky hands and bursting through the door.
“Dad! Dad, where are you?”
The flat was silent. Where was he? Where could he be? She ran into the living room and stopped short. Lying in the middle of the floor was her father. His chest still. She threw herself down on the floor, trying to feel for a pulse. There was nothing.
“No! No, please! Dad!”
Tears ran down her cheeks.
“Dad, no!”
She tried to start chest compressions. She was shaking so hard she could barely pump her hands hard enough.
“No! Please stay with me, Dad. Please.”
It only took a moment for her to realise that her attempts were futile. Her father was gone. His soul was gone. He was in Hell. She lay her head on his chest, sobbing for all she was worth.
“Why did you do this, Dad? I’d almost done it. I could’ve made this all go away. You could’ve lived.”
If only she hadn’t told him about her meeting Alistair. If she hadn’t been kissing him, if they hadn’t been distracting each other, none of this would’ve happened. She was so close to breaking the contract and yet, she’d gotten too caught up in her own idiotic feelings.
“Grace!”
She turned her head, still clutching her father for all she was worth. Alistair was standing at her father’s feet, his chest rising and falling rapidly. He looked down at her, horror on his face. He had her bag and coat in one hand and her phone in the other.
“He’s gone,” she whispered. “I was too late.”
He placed her things on the ground and knelt beside her. He reached out, tentatively touching her back. She flinched.
“Don’t. Don’t touch me.”
He retracted his hand.
“Grace, I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t. Just don’t.”
She didn’t want to talk to him. Her father was dead. Her only family.
“Dad,” she whispered. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. This is all my fault.”
She cried harder, her tears soaking into her father’s shirt. She could still smell the familiar scent of whisky and cigar smoke. She’d always hated it.
“Grace…”
“I can’t, Alistair. He’s gone,” she sobbed.
“Please let me hold you.”
She didn’t want anyone touching her. She wanted her dad back. Her heart was ripped to shreds. The only person she’d loved in the whole world was gone. Despite her problems, he’d always been there for her. Never once complaining when she’d come home and hid under her bed, trembling. He’d gotten under there with her and stayed until she’d calmed down.
She felt Alistair’s hands on her, pulling her away from her father.
“No!”
He didn’t pay her any mind as he pried her hands off her dad’s shirt. He cradled her to his chest, stroking her hair.
“Shh, shh, it’s okay. I’ve got you.”
She gripped his shirt, sobbing into his shoulder. Her grief was all consuming. There were no words left.
“I’ve got you. It’s okay. I know it hurts, but I’ve got you. I’m here.”
She wasn’t sure how much time passed when her sobbing abated a little. She’d completely soaked the shoulder of his shirt, but he didn’t seem to mind.
“I can’t do this.”
“Do what?”
“This, with you. I can’t. My dad is gone. I can’t be around this supernatural stuff.”
He was silent, his hand still stroking her hair.
“I’m never going to be able to forgive myself.”
“It’s not your fault.”
“It is. If I hadn’t said anything about my dad, we wouldn’t have gotten distracted by each other. I could’ve saved him. I could’ve broken the contract.”
“You didn’t know.”
She didn’t want to leave the comfort and safety of his arms, but she was angry with herself and him too. Wrenching away, she stared up at him with bloodshot eyes.
“It doesn’t matter. I’ve been so caught up in all these feelings I have for you, I couldn’t even save my father!”
“Grace, I—”
“No. I told you I was going to regret meeting you and guess what, I do! I can’t even look at you right now.”
“You don’t mean that.”
“I don’t want to see you again. I don’t ever want to see you again.”
She scrambled away from him.
“Just go. Please, I can’t do this. I can’t!”
She turned away from him, unable to look at the pained expression on his face. It made her chest ache.
“Grace…”
“Please, go.”
She heard him get up and take a few steps towards her. She felt the whisper of his lips on the top of her head.
“I’m sorry. I know you don’t want to hear that, but I am. I never wanted you to have to go through all this pain. I only wanted you to be happy. I promise the covens won’t find out about you from me. I don’t think I’ve ever known a girl as strong and as selfless as you are. You deserve so much more. If I can’t make you happy, then I hope you find someone who will.”
The sound of his footsteps as he walked away echoed around her head. Her heart constricted. She buried her face in her hands and cried.
Nothing was ever going to be the same again.
Chapter Nine
Alistair sighed as he knocked on his parent’s door. It had been three weeks and he hadn’t heard anything from Grace. He felt a little lost without her. He hoped she was all right. Her father’s death weighed heavily on him.
The door opened and his mother, Henrietta, stood on the threshold.
“My only child, it has been too long.”
“Hello, Mother.”
He stepped in, not stopping to embrace her. He didn’t much like spending time at his parent’s house. They were forever pestering him to get more involved in the community. He had no intention of entrenching himself further with the coven.
“As ungrateful as ever, I see.”
“Mother, don’t start. I’m not in the mood for your histrionics.”
He walked through to the kitchen. A plate of his favourite treats was sitting on the counter. He swiped a brownie before seating himself at the kitchen table.
“What’s gotten into you?”
“Other than being summoned for no apparent reason by my indomitable mother?”
“Am I not allowed to want to see my only son?”
“Of course, Mother, but no doubt I’m here because you want something from me.”
He took a bite of the brownie, savouring the dark chocolate and marshmallows.
“I only wished us to have a nice family dinner together.”
“If you say so.”
His mother gave him a long-suffering look.
“Oh, for goodness sake, go and see your father. I won’t have you in here being grumpy and sullen.”
“Gladly.”
He stood, striding out of the room. He had been irritable since the day Grace’s father had died and she’d told him she never wanted to see him again. It bothered him far more than it should have. He hated to admit it, but he missed her.
He found his father in his study, staring at a map of the surrounding area.
“Mother kicked me out of the kitchen.”
“Alistair.”
His father turned, a smile appearing on his face. They had the same bone structure and blue eyes. His father’s black hair, streaked with grey, was longer and tied back in a ponytail.
“How are you?”
“Fine. Coven business keeps us busy.”
“I’m sure.”
“Have you been butting heads with your mother again?”<
br />
“She wouldn’t admit she has some sort of ulterior motive for forcing me here.”
“You know your mother only has your best interests at heart.”
He sighed, fiddling with the jars on his father’s desk.
“She just hates that I moved away to London. If she had her way, I’d be married off by now to the right family.”
“Your mother just worries about you.”
He rolled his eyes.
“She worries I’m going to meet a girl in London she doesn’t approve of.”
“Well, have you?”
“No, and I also don’t appreciate you telling her about your visions either. Honestly, she takes it all as gospel. You know as well as I do that you can’t accurately predict if and when the things you see will come to pass.”
His father smiled at him, shaking his head.
“Yes, I am aware she ambushed you last time. She didn’t listen to my warning. I would like to discuss that with you, however.”
He put down the jar he was holding, looking up at his father.
“What is it?”
“Well, it’s about the girl I—”
The doorbell rang loudly through the house.
“Alistair. Get the door,” his mother shouted.
“Duty calls,” he said. “We’ll talk about it later.”
His father gave him a nod. He knew there would be hell to pay if they didn’t comply with his mother’s demands. He walked out of his father’s study, concerned about what his father had been about to say. He didn’t want to consider the possibility his father had seen Grace.
He pulled open the front door and stopped dead. Standing there with her bleach blonde hair, red lips and manicured nails was Lacey Lux. She had some ridiculous skin-tight dress on under her unbuttoned coat.
“Alistair,” she purred.
He was going to kill his mother.
“Wonderful, my mother has invited the bulldog,” he muttered.
He didn’t bother to say hello and shut the door in her face. He stalked into the kitchen.
“Who’s at the door?” his mother asked.
“Don’t you start trying to play innocent with me right now, I am not in the mood. Why did you invite her?”
His mother’s face fell.
“Lacey is a nice girl.”
“A nice girl? Are you kidding me?”
“I—”
“Mother, for the last time, I will never, ever marry that girl. If you think that I’m going to stay here whilst you parade her around in front of me, you’re sorely mistaken.”