by Alina Banks
“Everything right now is about time.”
“Most things.” She knelt down beside me. “You are different than Lilah. I saw it the moment I first met you, because you were out there doing what you could to learn more about the problem. She was never that kind of person, unfortunately. For as long as the coven has existed, the Conways and the Canes have worked together. I’d assumed it would be the same for me when Lilah came into her power, but she decided early on that it wasn’t what she wanted. We used to talk about it, and the more we talked about it, the more obvious it became that she was the wrong person to have inherited the Conway power. She wasn’t as strong as any of the Conways before her. It’s as though the magic knew she wouldn’t want it.”
“Last night, when I went into the sanctuary, I saw Mom talking with my grandmother, about a black spell that might be to take her power from her.”
“Yes, I remember her talking about that. She said she thought it was her only chance of living a normal life, and then she’d be able to give her power to the person who truly deserved it - her sister. I sometimes wished that it had been Gretchen who’d been born first. Even without any magic, she learned everything she could from her mother. Eventually, she had given everything she could to the cause.
“Gretchen and I were probably closer than we should have been. When she died…that was the moment I knew I’d do anything to kill the demon, to make sure it would never be able to hurt anyone again. It’s sad to say, but doing that isn’t a simple proposition.”
“One witch in the spirit realm, one witch in the ghost realm, and one witch in the physical realm.” I shrugged. “Grandmother told me last night when we spoke. Apparently, she had the sight.”
“A curse as much as a gift, that one.” Miss Cane sighed. “I know she did everything she could to save the lives of those she loved and the members of the coven. Unfortunately, it was never going to be enough. The demon was stronger than we thought he’d be, and sending him back to the demon realms took so many of us…I knew he was going to try to break through again, as soon as he had the strength to do it.”
“Do you know who the minion was before?”
“They have no currently living relatives. I already looked into that, in case it was a family thing, but it seems like that isn’t the case.”
“Whoever it is, they’re definitely using the Woods’ cabin.”
“Having checked on it myself, I would agree with that. However, that doesn't mean it’s a Woods who’s involved. Those cabins are open to anyone, so there’s a chance it could be someone else, although I have been keeping as close of an eye on them as I can now.”
“Both James and I have felt something when we’ve been around the principal. Neither of us can describe it, not really, and I don’t understand why, but maybe it means he has been using some kind of magic. I have noticed recently that I'm getting better at feeling magic than I was before.”
“Thank you for telling me. The more information I have, the better a chance we have of finding whoever it was.” I looked over at her again, and she looked back at me. “I’m not going to push you out of this, Ana. You might not have had the training, but you are still a Conway, and I know what you’re like.” She shook her head. “At least, I know what most of you are like. Lilah was an anomaly, and she still is, because I’ve never known a witch like her. Maybe this will change her, but I don’t know if that’s even possible now.”
James stepped into the garden as I was brushing the last of the soil off my hands. It was too cold for me to be out working in the garden when the sun wasn’t warming me up.
I smiled at him and looked around at my hard work. There was a chance, according to Miss Cane, that a lot of the plants would survive, even after being so badly buried. She was going to be bringing me some dried herbs to fill the jars, and when that was done, I could start learning more about herb magic. The magic she’d used on Sabrina’s back fell into that category. The herbs and Miss Cane’s incantation helped heal the damage, but the blood loss was still a problem, and that was why Sabrina was being kept in the hospital.
“Your dad said you were out here. What are you doing?”
“Getting things sorted.” I smiled. “Learning that you are something more than you thought you were is interesting.” I gestured for him to follow me. “Likelihood is, you won’t want to be here for long, but you’re the only person I can share this with, because you’re the only person who knows what I am.”
Upon reaching the wall, I pulled the ivy back and pressed my hand on the door. The door swung open. For a moment, James just stood there. Then, he took slow steps into the sanctuary.
“This is amazing.” He looked back at me. “I can feel the power in this place. It feels like it’s been gathering for generations.” His eyes met with mine. “Conway witches.”
I joined him inside and closed the door behind me. “Mom showed it to me last night, because she thought it would be helpful for me.”
“A witch who never wanted to be a witch. I can’t say I’m surprised it happens. It’s not as though you have a choice, is it?”
“We don’t,” I said. “I didn’t, but this feels right in a way I didn’t know something could, and that…” I looked at the books on the wall. “From what I can tell, Mom never had that feeling. She never believed she should have been born with magic, and she was talking about trying to give what she had to her sister.”
“Do you think she managed it?”
“Honestly, I don’t know. Logic tells me she didn’t, because she does still have magic, but that doesn’t mean she didn’t try. If she did, she was using black magic. According to one of my sources, using black magic at that time would have made the demon stronger. I was told that at the time of the incident, the demon was stronger than they thought it could be, I can’t help wondering if she did make that choice. Or if there was someone else out there who did.”
Mom got home late, but I was still reading one of the books at the kitchen table. When I looked over at her, she shook her head. “You should be in bed.”
“Probably, but I wanted to talk to you about something.”
“What?”
“Did you ever try the spell?”
At first, she just stared at me, and I knew she knew what I was asking about. Then, slowly, she stepped over to join me, taking the spot opposite me. “How did you even know about that?”
“Grandmother could see, Mom, and she was there when I walked in last night, showing me a conversation the two of you had, before talking to me. It was interesting.” I smiled. “I saw you talking to her about the spell.”
“Yes, I did. More than once. I thought it was my way out, but nothing is ever that simple, Ana, and I have to admit I’m grateful Alice managed to talk me out of trying it.” She looked down, fingers tapping on the table. The small action made me wonder if she was telling the truth. “Had I cast it…the demon was strong enough without having my stupidity to draw on.” She looked at me again. “Gretchen wished she had my power. She was so angry with me for wasting it. She told me I should have made better choices, and maybe she was right.” She raked a hand through her hair. “She was right. There’s no maybe about it. I made terrible choices when it came to my magic, and I think part of the reason I never said anything to you was because I was scared you were going to make the same choices I did. If you had…I don’t even know.”
“That’s not going to happen.”
“No, because you’re the one who should have been born when I was.” Mom shook her head. “Someone else in my position would have made better choices. I did try, after I found out about the demon’s minion, but by then, it was too late. I’d already wasted my chance to be better, and all I was doing was chasing my tail. When Dad died…that was a horrible experience, and one I will never forget. Everything about that…hurt.” Her eyes met mine. “The last thing I want is for you is to go through the same thing, and yet, I can’t help thinking that it’s the only possibility. Knowing that there
’s a minion out there…it scares me more than I can express.”
“Mom, you have another chance. This is a time when you can learn to be who you could have been before. I don’t think we’re that close to the demon trying to come out again, but if we are, we’re going to need you. I might be strong, but I can’t take the place of multiple coven members alone.” I smiled. “We have a chance to fix this, if you’re willing to try.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Sabrina was laying in the same bed she had been when she was first admitted to hospital. She looked pale and weak. James and I glanced at each other before turning our attention to her. Even though she smiled at us, I could see the pain in her eyes. “I’m okay.”
Miss Cane stepped over to us then. “Can I talk to you for a moment, Ana?”
Nodding, I let her lead me into one of the more private corners of the ward “What’s wrong?”
“The wounds aren’t healing the way I expected them to.” She paused. “I have seen this happen before. Sometimes, it means the healing won’t truly begin until the minion is dead.” She shook her head. “The problem with Clermont is that a lot of the people here are related to witches, so they have a connection to the power that others wouldn’t have, but they’re also not able to use it to protect themselves. That’s why the coven was here. Now, though, there’s no one here to protect them.”
“How do we kill the minion?”
“For now, that’s the most complicated part of all this, because we don’t know for certain who it is.” She shrugged. “Both of us have our theories, and there is a chance they’re right, but I’m not willing to do anything that would put either of us in danger. There are three witches that currently call Clermont home, and we’re all needed.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Even Mom?”
“Of course. I’ve told you before, I don’t judge Lilah for the choices she made in the past. Had I been able to, I think I would have made the same decision, but because of my duty, I couldn’t. Then, there would have been none of us here, and things would have been a lot worse than they are.” She studied me. “All we can do now is be careful, as there’s no doubt in my mind the minion wants to remove one of us. You, the youngest of us, happen to be the one who’d be easiest for them to attack. I doubt they will because of who you are, but you still need to be very careful. I believe you will be, but this is a reminder of the situation we’re in.”
“What do you suggest I do?”
“Nothing, yet. Well, apart from learning more about your magic. That’s a priority. I want to be certain you know how to protect yourself.”
“Even when that means leaving Sabrina to deal with this alone?”
“She isn’t alone, Ana, because we’re doing everything we can to look after her. We will do what needs to be done, but at a time when I don’t need to worry about any of this.” She reached out to squeeze my shoulder. “Everything will work out, in time. Just promise me you’re going to focus on developing the power to change the world around you.”
“Honestly, that’s really what I want to be doing.” I smiled at her. “I am going to find a way to do what needs to be done.”
“Good.” She gestured for me to go back over to Sabrina. “Trust me when I say you’re the one we needed.”
Those words stuck with me as I made my way over to my two friends, who were having a quiet conversation. Sabrina looked at me again, and I could see the question in her eyes, one I wasn’t sure I could answer. “Mom was friends with a lot of people back when she was in Clermont. Miss Cane was one of her friends, and she’s been checking in on me since she found us out in the forest.”
“Why was she out there, Ana? No one was meant to be out in the forest. Her being there…” She nibbled her bottom lip. “There’s something very strange about all of this. I would swear I saw something, but I couldn’t tell you for certain, and with her being there, I can’t help but ask the questions no one seems to want to answer for me. From the way you’ve already avoided the subject, it’s obvious to me you don’t want to answer me either.”
I slowly brushed a hand through my hair to give myself a moment to think things through. “If I could, I’d tell you what was happening, but what I know isn’t going to help you right now. Miss Cane was out in the forest because of a feeling that someone was going to need her help. I’m not certain I believe that, and yet, considering what I’ve been going through since moving here, I think that is the most likely explanation. Whatever was out there…I don’t know what it was, but it was some kind of creature. Maybe a bear.” I glanced at James. Fortunately, the two of us had come up with a story as to what had happened before we visited her, so we had something to tell her. “After you were injured, I remember James throwing whatever he could get his hands on to distract it, so I could try to get you to safety. Honestly, I’m really glad someone else was out there, because I don’t think we would have been able to get here had it not been for Miss Cane.”
“I remember the pain of the scratches.” She bit down hard on her lip. “They still hurt now, because they aren’t healing, but no one will tell me what’s wrong. I hate being kept in the dark, Ana, especially when I know that thing, whatever it was, is still out there.”
James and I walked out together. The silence was deafening. There were so many things I wanted to say, but I didn’t know how to say them, and then he looked at me. “They aren’t healing because of what it was that harmed her, right?”
I glanced at him and nodded. “Unfortunately.” I shrugged. “For now, there’s nothing that can be done about it, because we aren’t ready to deal with the minion.”
“We?”
“There are three of us who currently have the power to defeat the minion, and as there are only three of us…” I shrugged. “Going into a fight before we’re ready isn’t something we should be doing, because this is likely the beginning of something bigger.”
“Something bigger?”
“I don’t know how much I should be telling you about this.” I looked around, but there was no one around. “You aren’t one of the witches of Clermont, but you’re also not human, and that…”
“Does it help if I promise you I won’t pass on what you tell me?”
“Yes, and no. All of this…it’s changed my life, James, and I don’t entirely know who I am, but I know more than I did before, and that…” I shook my head and tried to stop the flow of words from my mouth. I was babbling because I didn’t know how to word everything I wanted to say. “Everything is different. It’s been different since we moved into Clermont, but I understand why it’s different now. I’m a witch. I’m not human, exactly, and I feel like I’ve always known that, but I haven’t. I know who I am, and yet I don’t.” I looked down, and then back at him. “I’m sorry for babbling. I just…” I shrugged. “I don’t know how to put everything into words.”
He smiled. “Babble as much as you need. I’ve never gone through something like that. I always knew I was a kitsune. Well, half. My mom is the true kitsune, and she decided to spend the rest of her life with Dad, even though he was human. I remember her saying it was something she knew would change her life forever, but it was what she wanted, so she did it, which is why she understood my decision to date Sabrina. I think, sometimes, she does think about what her life might have been like, but she doesn’t regret what she did. Sometimes, I also wonder what it would be like. To have been born full kitsune, rather than half, and to have grown up with others like me.”
“Occasionally, even now, I have similar thoughts. I would always have known I was a witch if it wasn’t for the choice Mom made.” I raked a hand through my hair. “Sometimes, I feel angry with her for taking that away from me, but I understand the choice, as much as it’s possible for me to understand it, anyway. Everything that happened…it sounds horrific, and I don’t know if I could have stayed if the same thing happened to me.”
“Neither do I, but I can understand why you feel that way. It’s like your mom took someth
ing away from you, and you accept that you don’t know what you would have done had you been in her position, but it still hurts that she made that choice for you.”
“Knowing what I do now, I wonder if Mom really made the decision to have me, or whether Dad wanted it enough that she gave in to him.” I sighed. “Maybe she never wanted to have a child and only did it out of love, because she knew, logically, that I was going to be born a witch. She said before she never wanted this, and I don’t think she wanted it for me.”
“Most people wouldn’t, having been through that kind of experience. She doesn’t want you to have to go through the same things she did, because of how much they hurt her. She wanted to protect you”
I nodded. “Yeah, I’m not certain I want to go through the same pain either, but in all honesty, it wasn’t her choice to make for me. I needed to make the choice for myself. I know, had it not been for the deaths, Mom wouldn’t have made the decision to come back to Clermont, and she would have kept the truth from me for my entire life. I don’t know if I can forgive her for that.” I shrugged. “After all this is over, I probably will. Right now, though, it’s still too raw.”
Grandmother’s sanctuary had become my usual place to avoid Mom because I knew she steered clear of it. As I sat there with a book in my lap, I felt more comfortable than I had for a long time. More myself. I thought about who I was. About who Mom was. About who Dad was. I was angrier with Mom than I was with Dad, but he was still a part of the lies. He’d made the decision to keep things from me the same way she had, for her, because of the love he felt for her. Love he’d let affect how he treated me. Yet, mostly, I still blamed Mom for the choice, because she could have told me. She should have told me. Knowing the truth would have made things easier. At least, I thought it would. How was I to know? All I knew was how life had been.