Chapter 44 Gaetano
Gaetano
Earlier That Evening
It’s almost too good to be true. The thought flickers faintly as Nicole’s taxi pulls away to the event where she’s supposed to gather our guests. But just because it’s too good doesn’t mean it can’t become the only unwavering truth I have.
The misty, invisible tether between us stretches taut the moment she moves out of range.
Only a little longer to go. I’m a powerful witcher. If anyone’s capable of casting a spell of this magnitude—taking eleven souls at once—it’s me. I’ve done it before.
Back then, there was no emotional stake, whispers the voice of fear in my mind. ‘Rage feeds black magic, love weakens it. It clouds your mind, dulls your senses, steals from your power.’ That’s what Madeline always said. I hope she was wrong.
The moment I step into the castle, the cold rushes over me, crawling through my skin like icy waves. It’s become a common presence lately. If not for Nicole, I might have seen it as a warning. Now I realize it’s just my blood racing faster, filled with anticipation and the tension of what’s coming.
It’s complicated, yes, but it’s not impossible.
I force my heart to stay still, even as it threatens to swell with visions of a future with Nicole.
There’s so much I could show her. I could give her the world, drown her in love—and gold—or whatever the hell her heart desires.
But not yet. Not until it’s done. My mind needs to be sharp. Besides…
Every part of me turns to ice. A mirror stands in the center of the main hall.
Tall, upright, resting on two clawed feet.
Solid black wood, twisting into countless serpentine patterns, forms its frame.
I edge toward it on unsteady legs. From its surface, a ghost gazes back—my own face, pale and drawn.
For years, I’ve fortified myself with wards and defenses, and now, at the very end, I’ve become careless. I thought she had forgotten me. I used my magic to buy more time with Nicole… instead of protecting myself. Protecting us.
Power stirs feebly in my fingertips. I’m spent. And honestly, would my magic make a difference, pitted against the mirror’s owner, now that she’s arrived?
“Madeline…”
An invisible wave moves through the room. The mirror’s surface ripples. A thin crack runs across the center of my forehead in the reflection. Gradually, it widens, as if someone on the other side is tearing it open from within.
The crack expands into a black abyss, with Madeline seated at its center.
My lungs turn to ice as I take in her image, perched on a cracked stone throne, its back as tall as a gravestone.
Her hair flows like cobwebs down her bare torso and vanishes into the folds of her orange skirts.
Dark runes cover her skin. They’re more than I recall, denser too, resembling lesions rather than simple markings.
In her right hand, she clutches a staff made of living roots. Her left arm dangles from the throne’s armrest, holding the severed head of a wolf. Its fur looks scorched, its eye sockets empty. Bile rises in my throat.
I force myself to look at her face. The features are the same—high cheekbones, a sculpted nose, and that sharp curve of her lips that once could break a man’s will.
But now, lines stretch from her temples down to the corners of her mouth.
Gray shadows hollow out the area beneath her eyes.
If it were just old age, Madeline could reverse it in an instant.
This isn’t age. It’s decay. Magic has started to consume her.
A fate we witchers whisper about, never believing it could happen to us one day.
Madeline knew how to protect herself, yet magic managed to gnaw at her, anyway.
“Aren’t you happy to see me, Gaetano?” Her voice slices through the air, echoing from every direction in my castle.
I gesture around us. “You cursed me, Madeline. Surely you didn’t expect a warm welcome.”
She laughs—a high, piercing sound that triggers my gag reflex. How did I ever sleep with this woman?
She shifts on her throne, and the wolf’s head droops loosely in her hand. “You call it a curse. I call it a gift. When you return home, you’ll value everything I’ve given you much more.”
I grit my teeth to hold back what I really think of her idea of “home.” Madeline leans forward, her rune-scarred chest rising above the orange folds of her skirt.
“Strange things are happening in the world, Gaetano. Immortal species are falling ill. Unusual events are on the horizon, and I don’t intend to end up on the losing side. ”
“I’ve heard about the sickness… But as you can see, that’s not my concern.” I spread my arms wide.
She curls her upper lip into a vicious smile. “It will be soon enough.”
I nod toward the wall. “I still have eleven souls to reap, and finding them is no small feat. Believe me, I’ve been doing this for five centuries.”
Her narrowed eyes lock onto me with irritating intensity. “You’ve devised a plan to finish much sooner than expected, haven’t you, il mio giullare?”
Under different circumstances, the way she addresses me would’ve set my blood on fire. Right now, my heart slows. She can’t possibly know. My wards should’ve kept what I did within the castle walls hidden.
“I used to think pretending to be in love was beneath you. I have to say I like this new version of you. I’ll admit it’s a brilliant plan.”
That knocks the air out of my lungs. She knows about Nicole and me.
If I deny it outright, she’ll sense how desperate I am to cover something up.
Though my throat thickens with dread, I manage to say, “Centuries later, and you’re still stalking me, Madeline? I suppose the men in your coven aren’t quite as endowed in the arts you appreciate?”
Her smile widens. “And yet, I managed to break through your barriers.”
Fucking idiot. I’m a goddamn fool. Why would I ever believe Madeline had forgotten me?
“Last night, I sent out a little astral projection while you and the human cuddled up in bed. I suppose preparing for the grand harvest is draining your power?”
Why didn’t I notice the breach in the castle?
Because all you were listening to last night was Nicole’s heartbeat, my subconscious whispers.
My mind scrambles through our conversation from the night before. Did I mention Madeline? I don’t think so, not until morning. We spoke of the souls and how to collect them. Then we were quiet.
Whatever she overheard, I can’t have her believe I allowed that breach out of carelessness. Let her think it’s because I was conserving power.
“Or maybe,” she adds with a sly smirk, “your feelings controlled you?”
A rush of cold washes over me. I brush off her last words with deliberate indifference. “I was just starting to think you’d forgotten about me. Didn’t see the point of wasting magic on wards anymore. And here you are—in all your glory.”
A faint smile touches her lips. “Why did you build those wards in the first place?”
I raise an eyebrow, pointedly smug. “To annoy you, of course. I know how much you hate being kept in the dark.”
Her laughter tears through the room, echoing from the mirror and the stone walls around me.
My insides curl in disgust. “You know how to light my fire, don’t you, Gaetano?
You’ve always been my favorite. Still are.
That’s the only reason I’d even consider letting you back.
I had to move the coven to Alberobello, but despite the changes in the immortal world, we’re stronger than ever. ”
I cross my arms. “What makes you think I’d come back?”
She leans forward again, as if she might climb out of the mirror. “You belong to the dark arts. It’s in your heart. You were meant for great things. No matter what path you take, you’ll always return to it. And tell me, where in this world will you find black magic stronger than mine?”
My magic reacts, but not like before. This time, it trembles differently. It hears the promise.
“I expect you tomorrow after midnight. Three hundred souls. Three hundred bodies. Then, we’ll celebrate the way we always did. But first, to prove to me you haven’t strayed from your purpose, I want the soul and body of that lost little girl. Nicole, isn’t it?”
My vision narrows into a tight tunnel with Madeline at the center. Her staff in one hand, the wolf’s head in the other. Nicole’s name, on her lips. Inside me, fury flares, and terror so profound it leaves me speechless.
Madeline lifts the wolf’s head and swings it like a grotesque ornament. “And no tricks, Gaetano. If you don’t show up at the coven, I’ll hunt you through hell until I find you.”
My jaw locks up. I can’t speak. I can’t breathe.
Madeline leans in until her face fills the entire mirror. Her lips peel back into a vicious snarl. “Don’t make me regret not destroying you five centuries ago.”
And with that, she vanishes, mirror and all. Not like my magic, which dissolves and reshapes itself in smoky threads. She disappears with the speed of lightning—one second there, gone the next. A stark reminder of how powerful she truly is.
I close my eyes, unable to move. How did I ever convince myself I could walk away from this unscathed?
Gaetano. The sound of my name travels along the energy cord connecting me and Nicole. Gaetano, I’m ready!
Gaetano…
For a heartbeat, I resist the pull, the tug in my chest. Have I lost my mind trying to chase happiness?
Gaetano, where are you? The last whisper trembles, as if she’s suddenly afraid.
I teleport in an instant, skipping the invisible-to-visible transition. I materialize before her, solid and breathing, desperate to ease her fear.
It has the opposite effect. She jumps off the bench, startled by my sudden appearance. Her eyes widen—but then, her expression softens. “I thought something had happened,” she says.
I force a smile as I brush a strand of hair from her forehead. “Everything’s fine, my Baroness. Forgive the delay. My magic still hasn’t fully recovered.” That, at least, is true.
Nicole kisses me. Her warm lips press against mine in a soft, brief caress before she pulls away. “Gaetano, is there something you’re not telling me?”
I’m not as good at lying to her as I am to everyone else, so I wrap the lie in part of the truth. “I’m worried. I’ve never been this close to the end.”
That seems to relax the tension on her face. Her gaze lights up with that familiar glint. “Then you should know the plan is working flawlessly so far. Tomorrow, we’ll have more than eleven guests.”
Once again, the ground shakes beneath my feet. I had started to hope she’d fail. That I’d simply let her win the final trial. And then I’d be imprisoned in the castle forever.
But who will protect Nicole from Madeline if I’m locked away? My chest tightens with dread. No, I can’t allow that to happen.
“And you won’t believe who I ran into. Boyana and the twins!”
I pull her down with me onto the bench. “Tell me everything.”
She dives into a recap of the night—who she invited to our event, how she cut ties with her old friends. Her smile is wide, her gestures animated as she talks about the relief of shedding the performance. She was real tonight, bold, a little ruthless. A little cruel.
Is it a sin to have let myself dream, when this is the creature before me? She’s made of everything I’ve ever secretly longed for.
Love clouds the mind, dulls the senses, steals from your magic.
Nicole squeezes my hand. “Let’s go home.”
She means the castle—the one place I can’t bring her to. “Nicole, I want you to spend tonight away from my castle and the shadows. Take in the fresh air here. See your friend. Breathe… Because after tonight, nothing will be the same for you.”
She shakes her head. “Nothing’s been the same since you walked into my life.”
The ghost of a smile grazes my lips. “Please. For me. I never had a last night to say goodbye to my old life.” The lie twists in my gut.
Under different circumstances, I wouldn’t leave her for even an hour.
But my castle is dangerous, and my strength is far too drained to stay outside its walls.
Not until I’ve fully regained my power. “After that, we’ll have all the time in the world.
” I lean in, hiding my hesitation with a kiss. A liar, down to the marrow of my bones.
Nicole reaches into her purse and pulls out the prepaid phone we got yesterday for a hotel contact. “I was texting Daria earlier. She said she’ll be home if I want to stop by…” She frowns. “I guess you’re right. There are some things I’d like to tell her before I disappear for good.”
“Should I take you there?”
She nods, and I fight to hide my relief.
Moments later, I leave her with her friend and teleport back to the castle. I listen into the darkness for the crackle of unfamiliar magic, for the vile tendrils of Madeline’s presence. The black walls greet me with silence and emptiness.
And all the while, I keep my senses locked on the thread that binds me to Nicole. She’s safe.
A single tear escapes my eye. A real, salted one.
Is this how it all falls apart?