Chapter 26 #2
Mrs Belfour looks furious. “Oh, come on, Cerci. Witches have lived in the shadows for too long. What they did to us, our ancestors, don’t you think we’re entitled to a little payment?” Helena’s eyes are dark with hatred.
My grandmother carries on dismissing what Helena has just said. “So this is what it has come to? Stealing and bargaining for a young witch to marry your own so you can claw your way back into magic?”
I look at Greg as the pieces come together in my brain. His eyes are weak and sorry as they catch mine. Greg is magic. Greg is just like me.
“You knew,” I push out. “You knew this whole time. And you made me feel like I wasn’t normal.” Greg dips his head down to avoid my questioning. I turn my attention to Helena. “We would never have been twin flames, Helena. You forced us together.”
“Oh, Harriet, darling, shut up. It wasn’t about you. It was about my family right! Our magic and our power being returned to us as it should! I don’t care about twin flames.” She slams her hands on the table.
“But you have Greg! Greg can be that power you want. Why would you go after me?” I shout back. Sam pulls me into him to calm me down.
Aradia looks at Helena and steps forwards. “Because when the Magic Society strip someone of their magic, it strips all their family line. She wanted you for breeding.”
“Oh, Aradia…” Helena smirks. “Such a clever girl. But not clever enough to notice a rat in your midst.”
Aradia stands there confused. “What are you on about, Helena?”
Helena smiles wickedly. “Money talks, Aradia, and desperate men do desperate things. I knew you’d be held up in that cottage. I just needed more information. And a man who needed money for his dying wife’s treatment.”
“Jim…” I whisper.
“He assumed I was a long-lost friend looking for the lovely Cerci and family. Oh, but he spoke so wonderfully about you all.” She looks at me. “And your new relationship with him.” She points at Sam with disgust. “It didn’t take long for me to put the pieces together.”
Aradia stands there motionless. Her face drops to stone. I can see the anger build within her like she’s about to launch over the table and strangle her with her bare hands. My grandmother extends her hand to her daughter’s and holds it.
“We are not them,” she whispers and Aradia steps back. “Helena, this needs to stop. Nobody needs to get hurt. Your own son is clearly struggling with this. Just let it go,” my grandmother pleads.
“He doesn’t know what he wants,” she says, seething. “You took my power away from me. Do you know what it’s like watching our kind being so weak and shadowed from who we are? I would have done powerful things. And you stopped that.”
“You stopped that, Helena. Stop blaming everyone for your mistakes,” Granny hits back.
“You took it from me,” Helena screams like a spoilt child, her sopping hair falling all over her, her mascara now running down her cheeks. She looks like the perfect image of a villain gone mad.
“Stop it, Mother,” Greg shouts. “She doesn’t love me.”
“It doesn’t matter. It’s not about love. It’s about restoring our family!” she barks back at him.
Greg just shakes his head and returns to looking at his feet. I pull a face at his weakness and Sam huffs under his breath. “Pathetic.”
“We made a deal,” my father says. “Harriet, I will lose everything if this deal doesn’t go ahead.” His eyes are full of fear and anger. “I will drag you down the aisle myself!”
“Oh, fuck your deal, Martin.” My mother stands up and walks over to me and grabs my hand, her eyes piercing through my dick of a dad.
“I lost myself with you. Forgot who I am. Forgot who we are. I have spent years in fear of you. When it should be you in fear of me! This stops here.” I squeeze her hand.
“Stop being such a weak little prick and just get over the fact that you’re a shit businessman. ”
My heart pounds with pride for my mother. Also never thought I’d see the day she’d call my dad a prick.
“Sit down, Cassandra,” he says in a gruff voice, embarrassed by the betrayal but she doesn’t move. She stands in force with me. With us.
“Sit down!” he spits out, his wrinkled, plump face red and puffy with anger. He knows he’s about to lose it all. He stands, almost flipping his chair to the floor with his force, and storms around the table pushing past my granny and Aradia before they have a chance to react.
He stops in front of us and grabs me by my throat causing my mother to gasp. Without missing a beat Sam’s hands are wrapped around my father’s arm as the crunch echoes throughout the room.
My father falls to the floor screaming in agony. “You broke my fucking arm!” he screams in pain.
Sam squats down in front of him, his face cold and killer-like. “Next time I’ll break your neck. You don’t touch her, you don’t even speak to her and if you ever come near here again, I will kill you.”
He stands back up and strokes my neck where my father had grabbed me and plants a kiss on my throat. “She’s mine,” he growls for all to hear.
My stomach flutters with excitement. I am his.
“This is done, Helena,” my granny says. “You can keep your wealth, you can keep your ruins. But this is a warning to you, Helena. I have played nice, but if you ever come at my family or any other witch again, I will break the Magic Society treaty. I will burn the world around you while you watch.”
My granny is kickass.
“They are twin flames.” She gestures to me and Sam. “You know what that means.”
Helena looks wild with anger. She turns to her husband who has been silent through this whole encounter then at Greg, still sheepishly looking at the floor.
My granny continues, taking pleasure in Helena’s fury. “The ancient magic has awoken within them. Witches have started to hear. Their power knows no limits together and you know they will be protected by those who choose to follow. Taking this further will result in war.”
“Get out!” Helena screams. “Get your freaks out of my ball!”
We move quickly but not in a rush. It’s obvious we need to leave, but we must remain in control. We walk down the stairs and to the back of the building.
We head out through the back door so as not to run into all the drunk wet socialites that have congregated out the front.
One of the unknown women from upstairs approaches us and speaks to Granny.
“We have people holding the fort out front. They have taken role as fire marshals, so all is quiet out the back. The rest of us will disperse and we will speak another time.” She then turns to me and Sam and bows her head.
“Twin flames… I never thought I’d see them in my time.
” She smiles then leaves quickly with the other unknown woman.
Granny turns to me. “We’ll meet you back at home, darling.” She nods at Sam then takes the hands of her daughters and walks away, pulling up their hooded cloaks as they walk. Gloria and Angela smile, do the same and walk the other way.
“They left quickly. Did we do something?” I question, confused at the sudden departure.
“I just think it’s best we don’t hang around,” he reassures.
“And how do we get home?” I look at Sam.
“Brooms?” He laughs. “I have the van and spare clothes, so come on.”
I hit his chest and smile. Idiot.
He takes my hand and leads me through an alley, our clothes still sopping wet and the cold November night now chilling us down to our bones. Sam pulls me in closer to him and I can feel the warmth of his body through his drenched suit.
His van is parked just around the corner. The streets of London are still alive with drunk stragglers who pay no attention to two soaking wet people in the middle of the night.
He opens the back of the van and helps me inside, shutting out the world behind us.
He needs to crouch slightly just to fit inside.
He leans into the driver seat to switch on the ignition, lighting the back and turning on the heat. The van has the faint smell of meat, but I’d sit in a bin lorry if it meant I was with him.
He takes off his suit jacket and throws it in the back. He grabs some towels from the seat in the front and comes towards me before kneeling down.
“Turn around.”
I do as he commands, slowly starting to warm in the now heating van.
He unzips my dress slowly, taking care to pull the straps down delicately so the dress falls at the bottom of my feet. A big fluffy towel is then thrown around me covering my skin in its warmth. Followed by his arms. He pulls me backwards onto his knees and holds me tightly.
“You’re so beautiful, Harri.” He smiles, kissing my forehead. “I love you.”
“I love you too.” I pull my arm out of the towel and wrap it around his waist. I feel so safe with him. He snuggles into me, letting me hold him for a moment.
“I’ve just got you some of my clothes. They’ll drown you, but they’re dry.” He chuckles, lifting me back up to reach for a bag to his right and breaking the silence.
He pulls out a T-shirt and joggers which he helps me put on under the towel. They smell like him. Deliciously woody and spiced. I move to the passenger seat in the van to give him room to change.
He unbuttons his shirt and throws it to the side. I stare longingly at his body, biting my lips trying to compose myself, watching him dry his dark hair.
“Eyes to yourself, London.” He smirks, peeking out of the towel.
He throws on a hoodie and climbs into the seat next to me.
“Home?” he questions.
“Home.” I smile.