by Chloe Adler
Sighing, I looked away.
"Chrys? What are you thinking?"
"Well . . ." I started, looking up at the clouds growing darker by the second. "There is one way."
"I'm not going to like this, am I?"
"Probably not, and I'm not convinced that I should even try."
Jared cocked his head, waiting for me to continue, so I told him Carter's theories. "Eating a witch gorged on vampire blood or sucking drinking a witch dry."
Head shaking was his immediate response. Before he could speak, I held up my hand.
"I would not consider doing this alone," I said.
The sun poked out of the cloud, momentarily bathing us in its glow before ducking behind the next one.
Jared crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I would hope not but who in their right mind would help you?"
"I was hoping you might be able shed some light on that."
"Me? How?"
"Well, being a bartender here, I assumed you'd know more witches."
"Than you do?" He laughed. "You belong to the most powerful family of witches in the entire Edge."
"I know, but we rarely mingle with others. We've never belonged to a coven, we have our own. I certainly can't ask my family to help."
He leaned in. "You could ask Iphi."
I shook my head. "I don't want to involve her." Iphi must be protected at all times. It was the only thing the rest of our family agreed on. "She's too . . . fragile." I wanted to say important but knew he would interpret that as self-degradation.
"You can't do everything on your own, Chrys. Why would you involve people who don't even know you instead of turning to your friends and family? What are you afraid of? That they'll say no? And would that be so wrong? Sometimes other people can see the bigger picture when we can't see it ourselves."
He obviously didn't understand. Why didn't anyone trust my judgment? "Forget it." Spark. My face started heating up and I spun quickly to leave.
"Chrys, let's talk about this." His hand was on my arm. Flare. Before I could stop, my arms flew up. Behind me, something crashed, then moaned. I turned to find Jared on the ground with a trash can on top of him. The hurt on his face was more than I could bear.
"I'm so sorry." I dropped to his side.
"Please get away from me right now," he said as he struggled to get up.
"Let me help."
The front door of the club flew open and Burgundy ran out in a very skimpy outfit. She stopped, looking from Jared to me and back again.
"What did you do?" she asked me.
I held up my hands. "It was an accident."
"Go over there and cool down." She pointed to a rosebush and I nodded, stumbling over with my tail between my legs.
She knelt to help Jared up and told him to go back inside. He shot me a disappointed look first.
"First of all, where's your amulet?" she asked, crossing back to me.
"Disintegrated in the rain." I couldn't look her in the eye.
"You have to get this under control. Attacking those who are trying to help you doesn't work."
"I know. I'm sorry."
"Take some time away from everyone. Go back to Aurelia's. Talk to her about learning to control your powers. Or at the very least, have her make you a new amulet."
I nodded at her through my tears. She offered me a tight-lipped smile and disappeared back into the club.
Great. I hadn't even lasted a week and I'd already been kicked out of my new house. What was wrong with me?
Chapter Eleven
I let myself back into Aurelia's, grateful that she hadn't changed the locks. Slinking quietly down the hallway, I sighed audibly when I saw that her bedroom light was off. The entire house was shrouded in darkness, which didn't surprise me since I had waited until nearly two a.m. to enter. I'd spent the last few hours keeping myself awake and away from The V and my roomies by painting a portrait in the communal space at the art academy.
The door to my old bedroom stood open. Not wanting to wake Aurelia, I entered quietly, closing the door behind me before turning on the light.
I nearly gasped aloud. All the walls were covered with strange symbols. The bright red paint looked fresh. Dropping my bag, I walked over to a wall and ran my hand over a symbol. It smeared.
What the hell?
"I knew you were on your way back."
I spun around. Aurelia stood in the doorway, her hands on her hips. I hadn't even heard her open the door.
"What is this?" I motioned around me.
"Thanks to my crystal ball, I saw your dramatic fight outside the club."
My legs weakened and I plopped down in the middle of the empty room.
"And then Burgundy called." A condescending smile lit up her face.
My head, suddenly feeling too heavy to hold up, fell into my hands.
"You can't hide from this one."
"I don't want to hide from it. I want to learn how to control it."
"Really? Because that's not what it looked like to me."
I looked up at her, narrowing my eyes. Was that why she always treated me as the favorite? She was afraid of what I could do?
Aurelia folded her arms across her chest. "Bring it on, baby girl."
"Mom?" Hearing her speak that way took me out of the moment, my anger fizzling like an opened bottle of seltzer.
"I'm serious, Chrys, I need you to get angry right now."
"It doesn't work that way. You can't just demand an emotion from me."
"Fine, then I guess you'll just have to stay in this room."
"What?" I moved toward her but she spun around and walked out of the room. I sprinted the couple of steps to my door, which slammed hard in my face.
I tried the handle. It was locked or Mother had spelled it shut. I pounded on the door.
"Mom, this isn't funny, let me out." Spark.
"Let yourself out," she said from the other side. "If you can."
That did it. Logic fled, and I seethed. Flare. I braced myself for broken glass, splintered wood or things flying. But nothing happened. Nothing happening made me even angrier.
"Mom, please, I do not want to stand in an empty room all night."
"Are you angry, honey? You sound angry." Her voice was sickly sweet, fanning my fire.
Blaze. "Yes, I'm angry," I practically screamed while standing in the center of my old room, fists clenched tightly at my sides.
"And nothing's happening?" Aurelia's voice came back.
"Well, I may kill you when I get out of this room," I said.
She laughed. My mother, a woman I had heard laugh maybe once in my entire life, was laughing at me now?
"That is not a joke!" I screamed.
"What's going on?" It was Iphi's sleepy voice.
"Your mother has gone bonkers and locked me in my room." I did not think I could raise my voice to a higher decibel.
There were hushed whispers behind the door so I pushed my ear to it.
"Oh," Iphi said.
"Oh what, Iphi?" I asked, my anger not subsiding.
"Nothing, Chrys. I'm not going to get involved in this one. Can't."
"Excuse me? You're kidding, right? Either let me out of this room yourself, or . . ."
"Iphi went back to bed," said Aurelia.
"This is really messed up," I said. "You expect me to stay locked in here for how long?"
"I already answered that question."
"There is no way I'm staying here." I walked over to one of the windows, pulled up the venetian blinds and looked out. There was nothing in the room for me to use to break the pane so I tore off my button-down shirt, wrapped it around my fist and punched the glass. Hard. Nothing. My hand bounced back and it hurt. I tried again. The same thing. Slam. Bounce. Pain. I tried the next window and the third. Nothing.
I ran to the door and pounded on it.
"I'm not letting you out until you settle down. At least you can't hurt anyone or yourself in there," said Aurelia.
&nb
sp; "I am not happy right now," I roared.
"Good," was her curt response.
Changing tactics, I sat on the floor. Knowing Aurelia, I'd have to wait this one out. Give her what she wanted or let her think I had. Who was I kidding? She always won. And wasn't she doing this for my own good? I hadn't been able to help myself. Both Iphi and Jared had tried and failed. Even weirder, Burgundy had turned to Aurelia for help on my behalf, even though she despised my mother. I had scared a vampire more than my own volatile mother. Obviously, in the end, I was Aurelia's responsibility. My thoughts were not helping my temper and I needed to get it under control.
I lay down flat on the carpeted floor. It was the first time I was happy my old room was carpeted and not hardwood. Looking up at the pale yellow ceiling, I counted my breaths, the way Iphi had taught me to years ago. She'd studied Zen meditation to help with her circus acts. Breathe in. Breathe out. One. Breathe in. Breathe out. Two. Breathe in. Breathe out. Three.
At ten, my heart rate calmed. I was no longer seething as the crimson receded from my eyes. Thought processes were returning to normal, along with remorse.
"Mom?"
"Yes, dear, I'm still here." Her voice seemed softer, almost placating.
"I need your help," I reluctantly admitted.
"That's what I'm trying to do."
"How is locking me in my room helping me?"
"Well, the symbols painted on the walls are keeping you from accidentally casting any spells out of anger."
"Okay, that's great and all but what happens when I get out of this room? I can't imagine your idea is to keep me locked up here forever."
"For this to work, you're going to need to overcome several things."
"Like what?"
Aurelia sighed deep and long. "It seems counterintuitive, but to finally get a handle on your magic, you're going to have to give up control."
"What does that even mean?" My heart rate increased.
"It's something you're going to have to discover for yourself."
I shot up, hands on my hips. "That's just great. You're feeding me some esoteric crap?"
"Chrysothemis. Language."
I laughed, the sound foreign in my agitated state. It started as a snicker but the more I thought about Aurelia, of all people, telling me to give up control--the woman lived like a Victorian spinster stranded in the twenty-first century--the more I laughed. Soon I was doubled over, snorting to catch my breath. The silence on the other side of the door was palpable, and I could imagine Aurelia shaking her head in disgust.
"Having fun in there?" Her voice was laden with displeasure.
"Mom, let me out, let's talk about this face to face."
"What I'm going to do, Chrys, is let you have some time in there to think about how you want to lead the rest of your life. Do you want to follow in your sister Sadie's footsteps?"
"Sadie's?" I hoped I sounded as incredulous as I felt.
"You're living in her old room in her old house with her sex-craved friends. You were at The V Club earlier this afternoon when you accidentally hurt Jared. And . . ."
"And?" I was starting to get angry again.
"And someone saw you kissing a vampire." Hurt and outrage laced her voice, but instead of making me feel ashamed, it had the opposite effect.
"So now you're spying on me?"
"Think about your actions and think about how you want to live your life. You're a talented artist. Don't throw your gifts away on sex and . . . a vampire. You're better than that."
When I woke up on the floor, it was light outside. The door to my bedroom was open. I jumped up immediately and ran out into the hallway. My inclination was to escape the house, go back to my new life and ban Aurelia for hurting my pride.
Inching slowly toward the front door, I caught a whiff of something savory. My favorite cheddar cheese soufflé. My legs, the traitors, took me into the kitchen, where Iphi was sitting at the table. Aurelia was bending over, removing the soufflé from the oven.
"You made it through the night," she said as she turned around, holding the pie.
"What was the point of that?"
She squinted at me as though she couldn't believe I had asked. "Training," she scoffed.
"Training for what?" I asked as she walked the dish to the counter and started cutting slices.
"Life," she replied haughtily.
The only thing keeping me from storming out was my favorite dish. Of course, she knew that. When I was little, she'd explained love languages to me. Everyone showed love in a different way; the way I showed it was by doing service. "What does that mean?" I'd asked.
"It means cooking or doing the dishes or doing your laundry. Acts of service. Cooking for you is the way I express my love." I'd always wished she'd show her love in more concrete ways--acting like she even wanted us around, perhaps--but she was who she was.
Iphi patted the chair next to her. I plopped down with a sigh, put my elbows on the table and dropped my chin into my hands.
Aurelia shook her head as she placed a piece in front of me. "Elbows," she said.
I breathed in the delicious fragrance of egg and cheese, removing my offending body parts from the wooden slab. How she could make the dish come out so light and fluffy was a secret. It practically had the consistency of air but with the heartiest taste.
Iphi cut her piece with her fork and plopped it into her mouth demurely. She chewed slowly, almost thoughtfully. "Mmm. It's delicious."
Aurelia nodded approvingly. Then she looked at me, eyebrows raised.
I followed Iphi's lead and ate a piece. It was beyond divine. I'd often thought the English language needed new words just to describe Aurelia's cooking. The woman was amazing in the kitchen. It was the one place she truly shined.
Our mother helped herself to a piece and sat with us to eat, which was a rarity. Usually she bustled around the kitchen and ate after we were finished.
"Mama, this is incredible." Iphi sighed, a smile blooming on her face.
"Why thank you, Iphi. And I'd like to thank and acknowledge both of you girls for not talking with your mouths full."
Iphi crinkled her nose at me. It took a lot of discipline, for me especially.
"Two things this morning," Aurelia said, looking back and forth between us.
I waited, chewing slowly, trying to savor every bite.
"First, Iphi told me about the amulet she made you out of cheesecloth."
I turned to my sister, eyes wide, but she merely offered me a little smile.
Aurelia continued, "I'm very proud of her for trying."
"It worked," I said with my mouth full.
Aurelia tsked. "I know it worked," she said harshly. "What I don't understand is what happened to your proper silver amulet. The filigree ones I gave all three of you?"
Iphi and I exchanged looks.
"I know Sadie still has hers," Aurelia said, her fingers drumming on the table top.
"It was my fault," Iphi started.
Aurelia's jaw clenched.
"No, Iphi . . ." I said.
It was worse that our mother said nothing. A vein in her neck visibly pulsed.
"We gave them to Regina and Karina," Iphi said, her voice raising several octaves.
I sucked in my bottom lip and held it between my teeth, waiting.
"The twins? In your class, Iphi? But why?" Aurelia glanced back and forth between us.
"They were afraid," I offered.
Aurelia hunched her shoulders up and said nothing.
"It was the night of their performance," Iphi rushed in. "They were afraid they were going to fall."
"They're trapeze artists. Why would they suddenly be afraid of falling?"
"It was their first performance. It's different when you're in front of an audience."
Aurelia stood up and began pacing around the kitchen, shaking her head. "So you filled the amulets with herbs that did what?"
"Well, actually, Mom, we cast a spell and we used the amulets to
hold it." Iphi looked like she wanted to jump out of her skin.
Aurelia walked back over to the table and grabbed our dishes out from under us.
"I wasn't finished," I called out, my fork raised to my mouth.
"You are now," said Aurelia, throwing the dishes into the sink and turning on the water.
Iphi and I exchanged looks again.
"We tried to get them back," said Iphi.
"You can't get them back," Aurelia replied with her back to us. "Once you've used them to cast spells for someone else, they belong to that person."
"Why didn't you tell us that before?" I asked.
Aurelia spun around, eyes narrowed, teeth bared. "I didn't think I had to."
Chapter Twelve
Iphi and I remained at the table as Aurelia left the kitchen and returned with two beautiful jewelry boxes in her hands.
She placed them both on the wooden table before us. "Girls, open them."
"But which one is for who?" Iphi asked.
"You will know," Aurelia responded, giving us no definitive answer. As usual. "Let Chrys pick first, she's the oldest."
I reached out and grabbed the box on top but before I could open it, I knew instinctively it was the wrong one. I handed it to Iphi and took the one remaining on the table.
"Very good," Aurelia said, looking at me.
We opened our boxes at the same time and gasped in unison. The amulet I was looking at, cushioned on a small pillow of satin, was so beautiful that it put my last one to shame. And my last one had been gorgeous.
"But, Mother, why?" I asked her.
"Because a witch's second amulet must be more elaborate than her first. It is the way."
She stood up and walked over to the hearth, pulling a hot poker out of the fire. I hadn't noticed it there before.
"Lean forward, girls," she commanded.
"What?" I shrieked.
Iphi's eyes were as round as flying saucers.
"You heard me. Now." Aurelia's tone was sharp and yes, we both feared her. But even more alarming was the distinct possibility of her insanity.
I pushed my chair out from the table as Iphi looked at me in terror.