Elf's Affection: The Witching Hour Series Book 3

by Joanna Mazurkiewicz

  "He’s going to leave Meredith, but I need more time. Quentin—"

  "You fuck guys like Nathaniel and end up with guys like Quentin and that’s all I’ve got to say," she said. "Now I have to go. I have a date with Michael."

  "Hold on, what about—"

  She didn't even let me finish because she flew across my living room and was out the door. I threw my shoe across the room thinking I’d feel much better if I punched someone, but I didn't, instead I just went to bed.

  The next day was my day off, so I spent it trying to make Quentin feel special. He didn't answer the phone at all that day. I couldn't not see him and even though our relationship was pretense I had to at least show him that I cared. The guilt was eating me up.

  I went to his house instead of trying to talk to him over the phone. He didn't look too happy to see me. Gomez wasn’t helping much when he asked if I was planning to ditch Quentin because he wasn't satisfying enough. After that comment Quentin threw Gomez out into the garden and didn't let him back in until midnight. By that time, he’d already forgiven me for ignoring him. We spent a nice evening together and the subject of moving in together remained unresolved.

  On Wednesday I walked through the door reluctant to tell Kate about Sunday and my recent blackout. Kate deserved to know but I was scared that she might be the next person I would hurt.

  Thoughts about the fire, blood and the recent murders were on my mind all day. Even though I had no idea how to prevent what was happening to me, I tried to find an answer online in a digital library that specialised in old school spells. Tron kept telling me it was my dark side that was taking over my energy, but I failed to understand why I continued losing long hours of my life. I was afraid that I would have to get my grandmother involved. After all, she was a talented elf and her power never let her down.

  I didn't find anything in the library, and my energy kept pressing down on my forehead, causing me to lose concentration. I was losing faith in Tron and Alex’s training. Nothing had changed since I started seeing them, on the contrary, everything was falling apart. Living with the knowledge that my power was only going to get worse, that I would continue to hurt people who were close to me? I hated feeling so useless and wondered if there was anyone else who could help me.

  Kate went home early; she had a doctor’s appointment, and when I was left alone with Sara, I couldn't even concentrate on the emails Lucinda was sending through. Later that evening I discovered that the mermaid murder had been leaked to the media. I squeezed the remote control tighter watching as my father talked about Cheryl Kazemi.

  "The entire community is in shock. Cheryl was quiet girl who worked as a recruitment consultant in North London. She was brutally murdered in the early hours of the morning. Unfortunately, the suspect disappeared from the crime scene. We are appealing to the public for any further information regarding this case."

  Dad was probably under a lot of pressure. Dead bodies were piling up on him, so I needed to stay away and let him deal with the crisis, praying that nothing was linked to me. This new knowledge was going to kill me one day, but I wanted to protect the people that I loved.

  I listened to the rest of the news, munching on a peanut butter sandwich wondering if my life would ever get back to normality. Food tasted like sandpaper and I knew it had something to do with the fact that my stomach was in knots. Nerves were slowly eating me away, as the images of Jennifer and that mermaid girl moved in front of my eyes.

  In order to deal with overwhelming anxiety, I started cleaning the house. I went to the wardrobe and took out my massive Hoover. If my grandmother could’ve seen me, she would’ve disapproved, saying that I should use my magic, but I was too self-conscious to even think about using my lethal energy for a basic duty such as cleaning. My excess magic caused too much destruction.

  After swearing several times, I heard a knock and jumped losing my balance. I ran on my tiptoes to the door and looked through the peep hole. When I saw Ella on the other side of my door, my anxiety came back. I turned around and tried not to move, wondering what Ella was doing here.

  I’d stayed away from her after I put her into a coma. She kept asking about me, but I decided it was better to keep her away, just in case my energy went out of control.

  "Julia Taylor, you open this door right now. I know you’re inside!" she shouted with her usual high-pitched voice. I started to panic wondering if I knew any kind of spell that would stun her temporarily, but despite regular training my magic wasn’t stable, and I couldn't risk hurting her.

  Taking a deep breath, I unlocked the door trying to think of what I was going to say to her. It had been weeks since she ended up in the hospital and I didn't even call. I felt like shit.

  Ella looked like her old self this time around. Her red hair was flowing freely around her shoulders, her spray tan was back along with her fabulous nails.

  "Hey, Ella, what are you doing here?"

  She marched through the door with her head held high, so I closed the door hoping that none of the neighbours heard her banging.

  "You’re kidding me, right?" she asked, narrowing her eyes. "I'm here to find out why you all off a sudden decided to ignore me. I thought we were friends!"

  Okay, maybe that statement was a bit dramatic, but it was the truth, and knowing Ella she wouldn’t understand.

  "Ella, please—"

  "No, no more lies. I know I turned my back on you when you told me you could do spells or whatever, but I’ve kind of accepted that "other creatures" are in this world. Then you show up at my house and I wake up in hospital. The doctors are confused because they have no idea why I passed out and then the only person that I think I'm friends with doesn't even bother to visit me," she yelled throwing her hands in the air.

  I wiped the sweat from my forehead trying to tell myself that I was in control and Ella was safe around me.

  "It’s not what you think. I did it to protect you," I said wondering if I she would accept such a lame excuse.

  "Protect me from what? The doctors told me that I was stressed, and I had an anxiety attack. Nicky came to visit me. She explained that I don’t have to worry about anything, that paranormals didn't interfere with humans’ life anymore."

  I wanted to scream, Nicky tried to help but, in the end, she complicated everything. Ella was still fragile, she had no memories of her father, and he wasn’t even planning to tell her the truth.

  "Nicky was right, but I was trying to protect you from me. Oh, God, Ella, this is really complicated, and I can't tell you anymore. Just leave before it’s too late," I pleaded.

  Ella was stubborn, but she was also careful, and she rarely took any risks, but I was surprised to see that she wasn’t planning to leave.

  “I'm staying here and you’re going to tell me what’s going on. For weeks, I’ve been trying to get through to you. I even went to visit you a couple of times, but you were never in. I wasn’t comfortable going to your office."

  I paced my living room floor, flexing my fingers. My mind was working hard but I was sick of all the lies. Ella wasn’t too bright, but she’d know straight away if I tried to sell her some crap about “it’s magic business.” I thought about Tron. He could figure something out, he was an elder or whatever that meant, but then I knew he wouldn’t want to get involved. Ella was eyeing me suspiciously tapping her foot against the floor, and I had no choice. It was time to put her through another shock.

  "All right, I'm going to explain, but first we need to go somewhere."

  Chapter 24

  The truth.

  "I told you, I'm not going anywhere."

  "I can't explain here. I have to take you to someone. If you don’t want to hear anymore lies, then you have to trust me on this."

  She pursed her lips looking around my apartment like she was afraid I was fooling her. Reluctantly, she agreed. I called for a taxi chewing my bottom lip. I was improvising. After all, I had no idea if Tron was home. Alex forbade me to talk to Ella about he
r real family, but I promised her that I wouldn’t lie, and he needed to understand that.

  No one had ever heard about a royal line within the fairy community except for Nicky. Although there was a possibility Alex wasn’t Ella’s father, I knew I needed to be careful.

  Ella didn’t talk to me in the cab and it was fine with me because I was trying to think about my strategy. Alex had revealed such a massive secret, expecting me to just stay quiet and away from a friend I’d known since kindergarten.

  The ride felt like the longest of my entire life. By the time we arrived at Tron’s home I’d run out of ideas and my magic was driving me insane, to the point where the front mirror in the taxi cracked.

  The taxi driver frowned and nearly crashed the car, but Ella didn't even notice. I paid the heavy fine and told my friend that we’d arrived.

  "Why did you bring me here? If you think bringing me to some posh party will earn you points, then you’re wrong."

  “It's not a party and please let me talk. I told you this is complicated," I muttered looking around anxiously. The darkness covered the streets and I sighed with relief when I noticed all the lights were on in Tron’s home.

  We marched across the road and approached his dark wooden doors. It felt like I had piles of bricks tumbling around in my stomach. My strategy was risky as hell but after so many unexpected events in my life I refused to be the bad guy again. I knocked, avoiding looking at Ella. After a long moment of silence, I felt like I was wasting my time, but then we heard footsteps and soon the door opened. My face fell when I didn't recognise the person standing in the entrance.

  "Eeee… hi, I'm here to see Tron. Is he available?" I asked stuttering. The guy looked bored but at least he wasn’t paranormal, he was a pure human, wearing a blue shirt with black trousers. He looked to be in his forties with bushy eyebrows and faint grey hair.

  "Mr. Krescen. Yes, he’s in the library. Would you like to come in?" Ella made an odd growling sound next to me, but didn't say anything.

  "Sure, thanks."

  We walked through the door and my heart started thumping faster and faster until we reached familiar surroundings.

  Ella looked around, pretending like she wasn't impressed but her already flushed cheeks were giving her away. The man I presumed was the butler, told us to sit down on a black sofa asking if we wanted any refreshments. Ella asked for wine and I declined feeling like I was ready to throw up. In any other circumstance my best friend would ask me a ton of questions about the owner of the house, but she was quiet, and this was simply worrying me.

  Tron took his time; he showed up ten minutes later wearing a white archery uniform. It was obvious to me that he recognised Ella, but the expression on his face didn’t reveal anything.

  "Julia, I didn't expect to see you here today. I believe our meeting is set for Friday," he said. Ella was looking from me to Tron, bewildered.

  "I'm sorry, I can't lie anymore. You have to call Alex and tell Ella what’s going on. I promised that I’d be honest with her," I said getting straight to the point without any introductions.

  Tron raised his left eyebrow and put his helmet on the floor. He nodded to the butler who left in an instant.

  Ella opened her mouth to say something, but no sound came out. The air had gone dense in a matter of seconds.

  “I've been telling Alex for years to get in touch, but he’s too old fashioned. Let me summon him, so he can decide how to resolve this."

  My jaw dropped. I surely wasn’t expecting him to say that. I thought he would start shouting, threatening to stop teaching me.

  "Julia, he isn't a vampire, is he?" Ella finally asked, moving closer to me. It was easy to guess that her bravery was wearing off and her old fears were back.

  "Listen, you wanted to know, but we can leave and forget about this. I kept it from you because I know how the news about me affected you."

  "No, no, we’re staying. Whatever it is, I can take it. I just don’t want to be around vampires."

  Tron wasn’t paying much attention to us. He went to a stylish cabinet and took out a bottle of brandy. My mind started racing through some odd scenarios. I’d only known those two for a few months, and only when they were on their best behaviour. How was Alex going to react without knowing that I brought Ella?

  "So, Ella, tell me a little about yourself. Do you enjoy your human life and the simplicity of this world?" Tron asked, suddenly throwing me off guard. Ella obviously didn't expect to be addressed, but she sipped her wine and smiled.

  "I like having fun, I like my job and my boyfriend. I'm planning to open my own salon in the future," she said confidently. My stomach churned, and I wished that I’d ordered a drink earlier, because now I really needed to numb myself.

  Tron was smoothing his chin watching Ella closely. Something was off, and I couldn't say why I felt so trapped being around him. He was just too clam and I had no idea where Alex was.

  Soon enough Tron engaged in conversion with Ella about beauty products she’d been using. I couldn't believe it, folding my arms together looking at the two of them with bewilderment.

  Then around ten minutes later we heard footsteps coming from the long corridor and then Alex appeared looking grim.

  "Julia, what are you doing here?" he asked with surprise but when he noticed Ella sitting on the sofa, his face fell, going pale in an instant. I stood up trying to cease the magic stirring inside my core like fireworks, feeling as the air around us became dense.

  Alex was dressed in an immaculate suit, looking like he’d just left a business meeting. His eyes were focused entirely on Ella who was still sipping her wine, forgetting about her questions.

  "Alex, come here, I think this young lady deserves an explanation," Tron said putting a cigar between his lips, lighting it up.

  Then Ella stood, slamming her glass of wine on his antique wooden table. Tron flinched but didn't say anything, whereas Alex lifted his hand whispering something fast under his breath. I felt magic crawling over my back, hitting me hard like a fast-moving train. We all expected something to happen, but after a moment or so, nothing came.

  "If something happens to her, then it’s entirely your fault," Alex said, narrowing his eyes. His voice was thick and hypnotic, but he was angry, in a fury almost. My stomach made a growling sound.

  "She’s immune to your magic, that’s interesting, don’t you think, Alex?" Tron asked, inhaling smoke from the cigar.

  "Julia, what’s going on? Who are these men?" Ella asked all of a sudden.

  Alex approached me, breathing hard, still muttering the memory spell under his breath, but I knew that whatever he was trying to do to Ella wouldn’t work. After the incident during the networking event her immunity to spells had only become stronger.

  "No, you have to stop—just tell her, tell her the truth. I promised that I wouldn’t lie. Ella deserves to know," I said stepping in front of Alex, who looked torn and completely furious with me. I understood he was trying to protect her, but I’d learned from my own experience that lies only caused more harm than good.

  "You don’t understand anything, you stupid half breed. They’ll come for her, and either way, you’ll lose her because you couldn't keep up with a simple request," Alex continued. The vein on his forehead throbbed and I could feel tiny sparks of magic stab me in my chest. My breath became shallow and the world around me began to spin.

  “That's enough, Alex. Julia’s only looking out for Ella’s best interests. You have been protecting her for years, but nothing good has come from it. It’s time to change the course of your actions.

  "I shouldn’t have listened to you, old man. My brother will sense her, she’s already been marked."

  "Stop whining, Alex. It’s time to put the past behind you. Tell her or I will." Tron raised his voice. A cold chill ran through my spine, the air in the room was so thick with tension it was difficult to say if we were going to leave the house alive. Ella kept opening her mouth to ask more questions, but then Alex or Tro
n kept interrupting her.

  Ella’s father stood in the middle of the room clenching his fists. Magic evaporated from his strained body and his power clashed with my own. His eyes left my face and he focused on Ella.

  "I'm your father, child, that’s what they’re trying to tell you. I knew your mother in the past. She had no idea who I was and by the time you were born I’d created new identities for you and your brother."

  I swallowed a giant lump in my throat glancing back at my best friend, who didn't seem to take any notice to what Alex had just told her.

  There was a long, long silence that stretched for about a minute. Tron kept smoking his cigar watching me and Alex making no attempt to cover his unease.

  "What’s he talking about, Julia?"

  "He’s actually right. I’ve seen his memories. It’s true that your father left, and you don’t remember him. It’s because he created a new life for you, Matt and your mum," I explained walking up to her. God, I hated that I had to be involved with this. My place was with Ella, but this was a private matter and she deserved some space.

  Ella smiled widely giving me the same crazy look she did when I told her I was magical, and I’d been lying to her all these years. Then slowly the atmosphere around the room started shifting and tension began to rise fast. Ella’s face fell. A dark shade crept over her face as she looked at the man who’d just revealed he was her father.

  "No, no, no, you can't be my father. He left, and he was never interested in us," she kept saying, stuttering, moving around the room. "And maybe you’re going to tell me that I have some magical powers like Julia, that I'm also a freak?"

  Okay, that hurt a little. I thought Ella kind of accepted the fact that magic was part of me. She was supposed to understand that even though I had half magical genes she didn't need to be afraid.