Chapter 26 #2
“Marsha took me prisoner.” Mom’s voice is quiet.
“She threatened me with vaporization, and tortured me with spells to send me mad. She couldn’t get hold of the books, but the mind games were messing with my powers, weakening me.
If the magic of our coven was to live on, I knew I had to put myself into a deep, deep sleep, close to the margins of death, where Marsha’s malediction could not reach me or my knowledge.
“But that meant I had to desert my children.” Her voice breaks as she looks from me to Clem.
“Do you think I would have ever left you in that evil place if I had a choice? Before I went into a coma, I struck a deal with our angel Ariel. I made her promise me that even though I might have to sleep for many years, my children would escape from Sparkle and find love and happiness”
“And we have, Mom,” Clem says. “We really have.” She looks up at Otis adoringly.
“I am so thankful that Ariel has kept her promise,” Mom says softly.
“What about Dad? Why did he have to die?” Clem bursts out.
A tear spills down Mom’s cheek. “Being fully human, white magic held no sway over his free will. He chose to let his heart break, and although I cared deeply for him, I had no means to stop him from the choices he made. In the end, the burden of grief became too much for him, and he lost his way.”
“Rest in peace, Dad,” I croak past the lump in my throat. My gaze meets my sister’s, and a little sob escapes her lips.
Mom wipes away her tears and composes herself.
“But in the meantime, the magic was finding ways to grow here in the Labyrinth.” She holds her hands out to Traggar and Felicia.
“The mages and the wixens, you held the traditions close to your heart. Nurtured and worked diligently on deciphering the language of the runes. And started to communicate with one another again. The rifts were healing. And then, three years ago, the magic quickened once more, becoming stronger than ever before.”
“That’s when Bradley disappeared!” Sally exclaims.
“Yes, indeed Sally. He was summoned by Ariel to work with the elfen folks, to prepare for when monsters would reclaim Earth. I am so sorry he had to leave you, Sally, but he was the best man for the job.”
Sally beams at Mom. “I know he’s alive and well, and that’s what matters. And he’ll be home soon.”
“He will.”
Mom turns to Traggar, her eyes twinkling. “And soon after that, Traggar, you kindly turned my son into a werewolf.”
Traggar chuckles. “Nothing kind about it, Aurora. The magic in my texts made it clear that when a troubled human turned up in Wolftown, I had to save his sorry ass.”
“Egh, thanks,” I manage.
“My pleasure.” Traggar winks at me.
I wipe a hand over my brow, frowning. “There’s something I don’t quite get. If the Golden Book was returned fifteen years ago, why didn’t the white magic overthrow Marsha then? It would have spared us all so much suffering.”
Mom shakes her head. “It wasn’t that simple, Jax. The books had to be kept separate for a while longer.”
“Why?”
“There were deep rifts between species in the Labyrinth, in-fighting about the magic, which made the books energy unstable. It was dangerous to put them together until harmony had been restored, until all species had made peace with one another… and bonded again.
“Thus the magic had to find another path to express itself. It chose love. It orchestrated Sammy and Arlo meeting, so that they could make a youngling together, and Clem, my sweet girl, you and Otis fell in love.” Finally, she looks at me and Tippy and shakes her head, chuckling.
“Ah, dearest Jax, and Tippy, you were the hardest pair for the magic to bring together. But you knew, didn’t you Tippy, when you first saw my son, that there was someone special locked in there? ’
I glance at Tippy. Her eyes are shining as she gazes at Mom and nods, biting her lip.
Mom looks back at me and smiles. “She just couldn’t get through to you Jax, you were in such a dark place. Something more profound had to happen. It was fate that led you to the Bradens that day, desperate and alone, and seeking relief. And Traggar was waiting in the shadows.
“Traggar turning you into a werewolf saved you, Jax. Becoming wolfen allowed you to open your heart to Tippy.”
My scalp prickles. I feel Tippy’s claws flex in my palm, and I look down at her, my heart almost bursting with my love for her. She smiles up at me, and her beauty takes my breath away.
Finally, I can make sense of it all. The events that led inexorably from one to the next, the links in the magical chain of fate.
There was a gods damn reason for everything that happened. I just couldn’t see it.
“It still took us three years,” I groan. “If only me and Tippy had gotten our act together sooner, maybe the Labyrinth would be free already…”
Mom just shakes her head. “Sometimes, honey, even the most potent magic can’t hurry love.” Her eyes twinkle as she looks over at me and Tippy. “Sometimes folks just need to wake up and smell the coffee.”
And after this crazy, amazing day we’ve all just come through, those words are like a pressure valve releasing.
And we all start laughing.