Chapter Four
Feeling the familiar ‘vibe’ of the manor settle over her, Emberlyn let out a long breath. It was like having a warm, weighted blanket tucked around you. Nostalgia crashed down on her in the best way.
‘I missed this place.’ She could see the glitter of her magick everywhere; it was still in the process of saturating the walls and flooring.
Kage and Paisley were glancing around the grand entrance hall, their expressions awed.
‘I always wanted to come inside, but my parents made me promise to only go as far as the porch,’ said Paisley.
Kage nodded. ‘I think they were worried that Millicent would sacrifice us in a ritual or shove us into another dimension, never to be seen again.’
Snorting, Emberlyn placed her purse on a circular table and brushed her fingers over a plant that rested on it. While Emberlyn doubted that Millicent would have harmed the twins, the old woman would have delighted in scaring them for the fun factor.
Much as the twins’ parents Ethel and Thad weren’t fond of Emberlyn, they hadn’t protested the friendship for two reasons.
One, Paisley was weak in magickal terms, and they knew that Emberlyn protected her.
Two, the twins weren’t very popular among the coven either, purely because Chilgrave witches tended to consider multiple births a bad omen.
Still, Emberlyn hadn’t been welcome at the twins’ home, and their parents hadn’t wanted them to come here, so there’d been no sleepovers or tea parties. Restrictions had been put on their friendship, and yet it had survived and remained strong.
‘I just knew that the manor would let you in,’ said Paisley, smirking.
Kage frowned at her. ‘No, you didn’t. You hoped it would.’
Paisley’s brow lazily lifted. ‘Is there much difference?’
‘Yes.’
Emberlyn’s heels clicked along the parquet flooring as they walked further inside. ‘I never thought I’d live here again. I thought Grams would stick with tradition and pass the place along to one of her children. It never occurred to me that she’d do anything different.’
‘She might have left it to either Gill or Dez if it weren’t for their plans to give it up,’ said Paisley, using her heel to smooth out a slight kink in the rug. ‘Speaking of those plans . . . Want me to come stay here with you for a few weeks?’
Surprised by the offer, Emberlyn tilted her head. ‘Stay here?’
‘You having this place has put a halt on many people’s plans,’ Paisley pointed out. ‘They’re likely gonna want you out of here. It might be better if you’re not alone.’
Touched, Emberlyn gently waved her offer away. ‘I’ll be fine.’ Plus, she didn’t want to drag her friend into this issue.
‘Uh, Em,’ Kage began, pointing at a sheet of paper that had been tacked to the grandfather clock. ‘You might want to take a look at this.’
Frowning, Emberlyn strode over to what turned out to be a letter. She recognized the handwriting as Millicent’s. It read,
Emberlyn, if you thought I wouldn’t know that the manor would choose you then you’re a fool. It’s meant to be yours. A disappointment or not, you’re currently the strongest of the Vautier line. And the manor should only ever belong to someone who will love, treasure and protect it.
I’m well aware you’ll now have some fires to put out, but you can handle it. Still, take what aid the wolf offers – it’ll make things run smoother.
P.S. They’ll answer to you now.
P. P. S. Do reconsider trading pieces of your soul for power – I promise you won’t miss them.
Emberlyn did a slow blink. ‘She knew. She wrote this note because she knew how things would play out. No, she maneuvered things into playing out this way.’
‘What did she mean “they’ll answer to you now”?’ asked Kage. ‘Who’s “they”?’
‘You don’t want to know,’ Emberlyn mumbled. ‘As for the wolf she mentioned . . . she’s talking about Ripper. She didn’t only leave the land to him so that Reena couldn’t have houses built on it, she did it so that I’d have an entire clan of werewolves for neighbors.’
Paisley nodded. ‘It makes you less vulnerable. It also means that anyone desperately wanting the land needs to go to him, not you.’
Kage bit his lip. ‘I can’t go as far as to say she loved you, Em. Sociopaths don’t experience love – and Millicent was a sociopath for sure. But she valued you in her way. And I think leaving you to Ripper was an attempt to protect you.’
Emberlyn frowned. ‘He’s not going to take that seriously.’ She wasn’t taking it seriously.
‘Of course he won’t,’ Kage agreed. ‘But your family might. That would be good because people are reluctant to do anything that might poke at Ripper.’
‘She’s dragged him into one hell of a messy situation,’ Emberlyn muttered. ‘I’m sure he’s thrilled about that part.’ Ripper wasn’t stupid; he’d surely see that Millicent had used him.
‘Going by how intent he seems on keeping the land, I don’t think he’ll hold it against her, so he shouldn’t give you problems,’ said Paisley.
‘Others will, though,’ Kage tacked on. ‘It doesn’t matter that all you have is the manor. Reena will still want it.’
Emberlyn nodded. It had once been Lilith’s home, and she’d weaved much of her magick into these walls. That made it a huge prize.
Kage rubbed at his nape. ‘If Millicent wanted you to have it, why didn’t she just leave it to you in her will?’
Emberlyn sighed. ‘Millicent never did things the easy way. Plus, she was all about making people “prove” themselves to themselves.’
‘The earrings were a lure, then,’ he said. ‘A way to ensure you tried to gain entrance to the manor. Leaving you the cat was extra insurance.’
‘Yup. I don’t think she wanted me to have the manor merely because I’m the strongest of our line.
I think it was because she knew I wouldn’t sell it.
She was resolute that Reena’s plans wouldn’t come to fruition.
And she was mad enough with the rest of the family for being willing to sell it that she kidded each of them into thinking they’d be her sole heir and that I’d end up with nothing.
’ Emberlyn sighed again. ‘She really put the “wicked” in “wicked witch”.’
Paisley snickered. ‘I always liked that about her.’
Funnily enough, so had Emberlyn. Millicent had been unashamedly herself, and there was something admirable about it.
Paisley clasped her hands together as if in prayer. ‘On a less serious note, can I take a look around? I’ve always been curious about this place.’
‘Go for it,’ Emberlyn invited. ‘Better yet, I’ll give you a tour.’
As she led the twins through the first floor, lamps turned on by themselves. Fires roared to life in the hearths. The overall temperature adjusted, becoming not too cold nor too warm.
It was the manor’s way of taking care of its owner.
As they walked, Emberlyn ran her hands over the rich fabrics of the sofas, the ornate fireplace mantels, the intricately detailed woodwork and the smooth surfaces of the stunning antiques.
She drank in the nostalgic sights of the patterned wallpapers, lush drapery, opulent rugs, interesting artwork, gilded wainscotting and the chandeliers hanging from the high ceilings.
There was an abundance of large-scaled rooms throughout the manor, including the living area, parlor, study, dining room, kitchen, utility space, music room, two-floored library and multiple bedrooms with en suites.
The rich color schemes of each room featured reds, blues, greens, black and even pomegranate.
Weirdly, though . . . ‘None of her personal touches are around. No altars, no jar spells, no broom, no nothing.’
Kage blinked. ‘Huh. Could the manor have put them away somehow to make room for your witchy touches?’
Emberlyn pursed her lips. ‘Maybe. Though I wouldn’t have thought so.’ Shrugging it off for now, she asked, ‘Ready to see the first floor?’
‘Are we not gonna look at the basement?’ asked Paisley.
‘Nope,’ Emberlyn replied simply, smoothing her hand along the banister as she ascended the winding staircase.
Paisley followed. ‘And you’re not going to explain why?’
‘Nope.’
‘You’re only making me more eager to check it out.’
Emberlyn snorted. ‘It won’t let you in, anyway.’
‘Wait, what?’
As they reached the landing, she turned to the twins.
‘This house . . . it’s special, but not always in warm and fuzzy ways.
Some parts of it are better left unexplored, trust me on that.
Now, come on, I want to go see my old bedroom.
I left a few things behind, like furnishings and stuff.
I hope they’re not in a crumpled heap on the floor. ’
After a long walk down a hallway, Emberlyn arrived at her destination. She swung open the door. And sighed, her shoulders slumping. It was empty. Nothing that had once remained of her room was here. ‘Millicent probably burned it all,’ she mumbled.
‘Uh . . . Emberlyn?’
The odd note in Paisley’s tone had Emberlyn snapping her gaze to her friend. ‘What is it?’
Paisley didn’t look at her, but focused on the end of the hallway. ‘We ain’t alone.’
‘What?’ Kage tracked his sister’s gaze, swore beneath his breath and then pointedly looked away. ‘I don’t see dead people, I don’t see dead people, I don’t see dead people.’
‘You’re totally seeing a dead person.’
Peering down the hallway, Emberlyn noticed a partly transparent dark-haired woman in an old-fashioned blue gown, pointing at a certain door. She smiled. ‘Don’t worry, that’s just Betty. She’s one of the nice ones.’
‘Nice ones?’ repeated Kage. ‘So there are bad ones? Hey, you never said this place was haunted.’
‘Because it isn’t,’ Emberlyn told him. ‘Mostly. Some ghosts do hang around, but none are bad. It’s the others that you have to watch out for.’
‘Expand,’ he urged.