12
Marion
There was a time when it was me and my sister against the world. But I lost her to a trio of witches who I thought was showing me kindness. Esme and I had been on the run after our parents died and our coven kicked us out. Particularly because our family hadn’t been abiding by the rules of the coven. It wasn’t like we weren’t practicing our magic under those rules. The only problem we had was that we didn’t live with the coven, or should I say, my parents didn’t tell us about the coven. We only found out about them when they passed on and went to them for their help, but they turned us down.
In the process of finding a new home for me and my sister, we ran into the trio of witches. They proved to be helpful at first, letting us into their home and even helping secure me a job in this city. They also helped my sister to get back into middle school, teaching me a lot about being a dark witch. Little did we know they had an intention behind their kindness. They wanted to use us, or should I say, use me? I had two options: find a werewolf and help them cast a spell or they’d find the werewolf themselves and force my little sister to do it. I didn’t have an option because if twelve years old Esme, who just came into her powers not too long ago, did the spell. She would die. At first I tried to bargain with them to do the spell themselves, but they said I was a Devereux witch and the spell required someone from my bloodline. It was me or my sister, and I would do anything to save Esme. Anything, including dragging Denzel to his death. At first, it was just about finding a werewolf and manipulating him into following me into the city. But I loved Denzel and I wouldn’t let him die. I just wished he would understand why I did all these things and equally comprehend that I would find a way out of this. This was what I wanted to tell him back at the motel, but he didn’t let me.. Thank the goddess for the protection spell I did before all the chaos ensued. That was a guarantee that no matter what he would survive.
I was sitting at the bar, lost in the memories of how it all started, long enough that I didn’t notice it was almost nighttime. The sun was overhead, gently disappearing through the horizon and leaving a hue of orange and shades of beautiful purple in the sky. I looked up at it with a heartbroken smile and regret for everything I had done washed over me. Tears slipped from my eyes and my shoulders trembled, feeling the unbearable ache all over again. How could I have been so stupid? How could I have hurt him that way? He would never forgive me. Now I had to deal with figuring out a way to get my little sister back and also a way to keep myself alive. For all I knew, he must have returned to the pack.
I deserved all this for manipulating Denzel into coming out here with me, only for my original plan to be offering him up at a witches’ altar. The witches had warned me that if I didn’t keep up to our bargain that it was my sister who’d be doing the spell. The bargain was that I brought a werewolf from a powerful bloodline to help them harness the magic from my dead ancestors. As witches, we could draw in all the powers from other bloodlines as long as we went through strict spell casting to complete the process. I didn’t know why they needed it, but the truth was I had no choice. I could have found a better solution to this instead of endangering the one man who’d truly loved and cared for me.
I shrugged and wiped off the tears on my cheeks as I asked myself if there was ever a better solution. Considering that Sigrid and her sisters bound me to a magic symbol and tortured me every time to remind me of the fact that I was running out of time—my episodes. They even went as far as promising me I’d never see my little one ever again.
My phone buzzed, pulling me out of my thoughts; I reached for it from my breast pocket, surprised to see who was calling me. It was Denzel. I didn’t think I had the stomach for it to face him, not yet. I ignored the first call. He tried over and over up to a point that I knew something was wrong. I received the call, astounded to see who was on the phone. Sigrid. A feeling of foreboding twisted in my insides as I rose to my feet, alarmed by how she’d managed to get to Denzel. Could it be that she attacked and took him away? My suspicions were right. She did attack him. Now all I had to do was meet up with them at the abandoned factory house, so that I would cast the spell. These witches weren’t compassionate enough to even care about the little girl they held captive, so I had to do everything within my power to protect my family. It was me and my sister, or Denzel, and I was powerful enough to give them what they wanted.
I set off at the location where the witches had pinned me, and I arrived to see the witch sisters waiting with my mate and my little sister, Esme. “Marion.” My sister cried with a devastated look on her face, tears pooling from her eyes.
“Es, it will be alright.” I reassured her. I dropped my backpack on the floor, and she nodded at my words just in time as the trio of witches walked toward me with a smirk. “What kept you so long?” They asked, simultaneously intensifying the ominous feeling in the air.
“I took a bus. This place wasn’t easy to find.” I lied. After I left the downtown bar, I moved to the nearest alley where I casted a spell to contact Agatha and inform her that I would be sending my sister over to her using a translocation spell. She had questions, and I promised to explain everything to her.
“So let’s get ready,” Sigrid smiled with a suspicious look on her face. “Sienna and Sybil already did a great job by drawing the symbol of magic. Now get on with it.” She sauntered toward me with a spell book and shoved it into my chest.
“Hmm.” I groaned.
“Sienna and Sybil will take your sister back to the house. I expect you to be ready when they return.” Sigrid said in an offensive tone.
“Can I talk to Esme?” I proposed and somehow they agreed. I sauntered toward my sister with a brave smile and pulled her into an overdue brotherly embrace. Kissing her cheeks, I held her face as tears pooled from her eyes. She couldn't find her words, and I saw the pain in her field of vision. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t able to protect you. It will all be over soon,” I smiled at her. She nodded, and I brushed strands of her chocolate kinky hair behind her ears. I held her tightly again, muttering a quick enchantment before I let her go. I exhaled, and the two witch sisters took her away. “Make sure you keep the end of your bargain.” I asserted with a deadly serious expression.
“As you should.”
I breathed as I glanced at Denzel, who wasn’t looking at me. I stepped toward him, hoping he would cast his loving glance, but he didn’t. That feeling of hurt weighed on my chest, and I tried so hard to hide it, but it spelled doom on my face . “Denzel,” I sighed. “I should have told you the truth. They pressured me through my sister. I couldn’t let them use her for the spell. She’s still a child and would die. I hope you understand why I’m doing this.” I tried to explain, praying he would listen to me.
“You could have told me the truth,” he tried to walk closer, but the barrier spell from the circle prevented him. “I shouldn’t have asked you to leave because if they put me in the same position. All that pain from what these bastards were doing to you, threatening you and your sister. I would have done the same thing, anything, to save my family.” He explained. Saying this meant that Sigrid had told him everything he needed to know.
“Oh, please, can we stop with the lovers’ talk? Denson, or whatever your name is…”
“You’re about to kill me. The least you could do is get my name right.” Denzel interrupted her.
“Marion is manipulating you, trying to play the victim. Of course, he’s always the victim. Aren’t you?” Sigrid smirked as she walked closer. “He could have told you, but we both know he loves the drama. You can do this shit when you both get to the other side. My sisters are on their way back, and they aren’t very friendly.” She sneered. My shoulders fell at Sigrid’s words. She was right. I’d better get on with what we came here to do rather than wait for her vicious sisters to return and see I hadn’t made any progress at all. They wouldn’t be very thrilled.
I walked into the circle, scrutinizing the magic symbol surrounding Denzel. They got everything right, and all I had to do was the last part of the spell: linking Denzel as an anchor for the accession of my ancestor’s powers. I walked out of the circle and asked Sigrid to get me a glass and a blade; she conjured it at the snap of her finger and passed it to me. I slashed through my hand and let my blood flow into the cup. Once I had gotten enough of my blood required for the symbol, I healed myself with a spell.
The tension in the air grew as I cleared the distance between Denzel and me with the glass in hand, breathing slowly. My heart thumped faster under my chest the minute I was closer to him, closer until I was one foot away from him. He took my hand and jerked me toward himself, placing my digits on his chest and letting me feel his heartbeat. “Can you feel that? What is not worth dying for is not worth living for. If I will die so you’ll live, then I accept my fate. Save your sister.” He said to me with an impassioned expression as he held my gaze. I exhaled, deeply overwhelmed by the raw sparks flying between us, and stepped away from his grasp, casting a wicked glance at Sigrid.
“You should listen to the witch. This is for my family, and I don’t care who goes down for it,” I spewed each word like a venom, making sure I hurt him enough. When I saw the aggrieved look on his face, I chuckled with eerie satisfaction. I drew the symbol that anchored him to the spell and smiled at him. “This is going to hurt like a bitch.” I waved my hand over the blood on his chest, and he screamed in pain as he lost his balance, crumbling to the floor with his shrieks of torture echoing through the silent night, the symbol burned into his chest with a sizzling sound.
I turned on my heels and set torches around the circle. The other two witches returned when I was ready for the spell. I stood in front of Denzel and snapped my finger, awakening the fiery flames of the torches. I could always cast complicated spells because I practiced a unique magic from the Night Shade pack coven. A type of magic they weren’t convenient to—Dark Magic. I couldn’t believe how far I had gone in manipulating the people that took me in just to save my sister. I affirmed that for my family, I would go to any lengths to protect them. Denzel was part of my family, and these witches didn’t know what was coming to them.
“Are you sure you’re ready?” They quizzed.
“Yes, I am.”
“Good.” They commended.
I raised my hands as I stood in front of my mate. I shut my eyes and slowly exhaled a deep, long-lasting breath, letting myself feel the magic that sang in the air. Most supernatural factions perceived dark magic to be overwhelming, and yes, it was, but I had to learn discipline because it could also take our lives as well. I was powerful enough now the sisters had unlinked me from the spell that brought about my episodes, and I’d push through the spell with ease. Looking up at Denzel, I finally met his gaze. I tugged at the walls he put up between us. I wanted him to know that I loved him as much as he loved me and would do the same for him. Soon it would be over and there was no reassurance for either of our survival, but the least I could do was try.
I felt the dark magic in the air so alluring and inviting, and I tapped into its energy, letting myself feel all of it. I started by saying the spells, pushing through each word with a mighty declaration. The flames surrounding Denzel grew longer, and I continued to chant. The trio of witches surrounded Denzel with a smirk on their lips. My eyes shot open, and they turned black as dark veins moved up to my arms. I struggled with the spell as I felt immense pain, an aching Denzel sensed as well.
“What are you doing to him?” Denzel tried to intervene, but he couldn’t pass through the circle.
“Stay in the circle, wolf.” Sienna commanded, pulling her hand into a fist and forcing Denzel to his knees.
I paused and looked at the sisters with a smirk. They pulled out daggers and slashed their palms, letting their blood’s flow into the symbol. I smiled as I continued the spell, watching as Denzel clutched his chest and struggled to breathe. The trio took their opportunity and drained his lungs of air, and he slumped to the floor, losing the light in his eyes. Tears gathered in my eyes, but I couldn’t let them fall, I couldn’t show weakness—I pushed through the spell with a sudden pang of torture coursing through every fiber of my veins. The pain was unbearable through the mate bond, but the protection spell I put on Denzel would keep him from crossing over to the other side, long enough for him to come back with resuscitation.
“I can feel it. Our powers—they’re growing.” They said, completely overwhelmed by the magic I sensed in the air as well.
“We have all the magic we need now.”
“He’s very much more powerful than we expected.” Sigrid chuckled, impressed I had made it this far without passing out.
The flames suddenly extinguished and reignited, circling Denzel’s dead body. I started another spell, linking the sisters to each other. Yes, they could feel the power, but they hadn’t harnessed it at all. Since it was my bloodline, I had full access to the dark magic.
Blood dripped from Sienna’s nose and she wiped it off and asked, “What is he doing?” She clamored as blood continued to pool from her nose.
I sauntered closer to them, thrusting my hands into the air as the volume of my voice increased. Sienna and Sybil let out an ear-piercing scream and Sigrid tried to intervene; I waved my hand, sending Sybil and Sigrid across the factory. Still pinning Sienna on the floor, we both heard the powerful thud of the collision of her sisters. I saw the pleading look in her eyes, and I smirked as I made a scrunching twist with my fist and broke her neck.
“This wasn’t part of the plan.” Sigrid screamed, struggling to get back on her feet, overwhelmed by the pain of her sister’s unexpected death.
“I know. You should know that you’re the dumbest trio of witches I’ve ever encountered. The only reason I couldn't take you down was because of the spell you used against me and your threats to my sister. Now I have all the power I need, and I’ll make you pay.”
“Your sister’s life is on the line. What have you done to Sienna?” Sybil growled.
“No, no.” Sigrid shook her head.
“My sister is safe. I made sure of that when I touched her. She’ll be in the pack where you’ll never find her again.” A little translocation spell I had learned during my time with the coven witches in Night Shade.
“This wasn’t part of the plan.”
“It wasn’t. You took my sister away from me for half a year. Goddess knows what you did to her. She’s not speaking like she used to. The happiness in her is gone, and it’s all because of you.” I groaned and made a twisting motion, breaking Sybil's and Sigrid’s ankle.
“No, you can’t do this to us.” Sybil tried to retaliate, but I stopped her with a force field spell.
“See you on the other side.” I moved my arms in both directions and they flew toward the motions of my hands, stumbling and breaking their necks.
It took some seconds before my eye color changed back to their normal brown and the dark veins disappeared along with it. The darkness in the air still sang a foreboding song, and I knew exactly what to do. If I didn’t harness the magic, it would remain here, free and capable of doing things of its own. As witches loved to say, magic had a mind of its own. I shut my eyes, bracing myself for the unadulterated torture I would feel. “Ah.” I fell to my knees, body trembling as I took in all that power. Then suddenly the pain was gone.
It took sometime to understand what was happening around me, and I realized Denzel had been lying in the circle for a while now.
I hurried toward him and knelt before him. I caressed his cheeks and smiled as tears pooled in my eyes.
“Please come back to me,” I cried. “Please.” Was all I could muster.
The ring on his arms glowed, and the light diminished afterwards. I waited…