Page 72 of The Fearless Witch

Part of me was worried that this meant I no longer controlled him, but the world was still intact, so I had to believe that he was confined and not able to hurt anyone. After all, he hadn’t come after me or my family, so…

My family. I still couldn’t believe I had a reason to use that word… They had refused to let me out of their sight for hours when I arrived. Only when some commotion brought a few hundred people to the mansion and the butler appeared to ask for their assistance did they go. Something about an Elder vampire running rampant in the woods—I didn’t get more than that before I was left alone to rest.

It had been almost two days since then and I had barely stepped out of the room for obvious reasons. Even though the people in the mansion were mostly non-warriors, with Roman MIA and Isaac having gone somewhere, they didn’t want to risk somebody coming after me for what my witches did to them. I couldn’t blame them. If I hadn’t been busy fighting for my life, I would have been one of those witches casting the spell.

Most of the shifters had left this morning after the sun came up, and just a few warriors remained to patrol the lands and search for any sign of what might have happened to Roman. The vampire hadn’t returned, and the household was concerned. For a vampire.

I was already going crazy being stuck inside. Even Lily, who was clearly still in recovery, had been up and about more than me. I needed to get out, even if it was just for a few minutes. Too much had changed overnight. Not just reuniting with my family but… the things I knew and believed in for ten years were being twisted and disproven one after another and I… I just needed to clear my head.

I stepped closer to the window, and I peeked down at the huge, budding garden behind the house. Even from this distance, I could tell it would be a thing of beauty and if I could trust my nose, it would be a heaven for herbs too. Not that it was a surprise if Celeste was living here. The others had been pretty tight-lipped about her whereabouts, even my family, but I’d gathered enough to assume she wasn’t on the property. Just my luck.

This side of the mansion didn’t have that many rooms, which meant fewer windows to be spied from. My parents should be asleep after being up all night helping the shifters prepare for departure, so nobody would even notice me gone. I just needed a few minutes of fresh air and I’d be back before anyone thought I was plotting something. Not that I had many options with the magic-suppressing binds still on my wrists.

I wondered if anyone else here had the authority to remove them aside from Roman—I didn’t want to cut my hands off to get rid of them if he was dead. As far as I knew, such charmed artifacts could be controlled by several people, but it required their blood. I doubted Roman trusted anyone in the house with such power. Maybe only Celeste.

Slipping into the corridor, I listened for any sounds before heading toward the stairs. Without my magic to check for any danger, it felt like my eyes were blindfolded and my hands tied behind my back. Still… when I watched my family earlier, even without powers, they smiled and laughed and walked around like the world outside wasn’t full of monsters that wanted them dead. Part of me envied them for that, but another, bigger part, was immensely worried it would get them killed.

I turned the corner where I thought I might find another staircase to get me out of this giant maze when I almost ran into someone. If it wasn’t for my vast experience in trying to avoid bumping into Mathias when he’d appear out of nowhere, I wouldn’t have been able to stop fast enough. Lily stepped back with a yelp and Alice caught her elbow to steady her.

“Violet! I thought you were still sleeping!” my sister smiled, and I had to remind myself that I was Violet to her. She didn’t know me as Samara and thank the Goddess for that. “Are you okay?”

“Yes, I was just going for some fresh air,” I said, forcing a smile. “How was your treatment?” My heart clenched while I studied her pale face. When I found out she had been hexed by someone and Alice barely saved her, I couldn’t believe it. At first, I didn’t make the connection and thought she must have gotten cursed when they were with the hunters, but then it dawned on me.

Meghan. Meghan had touched her that day in the vampire’s nest and whispered something. I had forgotten about it, but it made sense it would be her. Regina had issued orders to take down any of Celeste’s inner circle if given the chance, including her humans. Back then, I didn’t know her humans were my family.

If Meghan wasn’t dead, I would have killed her myself for that.

“It was fine.” Lily blushed, glancing at Alice from the corner of her eye. “Can I come? I can use the fresh air, too.” Alice pursed her lips in displeasure and Lily just smiled sheepishly at her. “Just for a little bit! Then I’m going straight to bed, I promise! Besides, there is no more green stuff coming out, so this means it’s over, right?”

“No, you still need a few more days of rest.” Alice’s eyes softened the moment she met Lily’s gaze. My sister made a very convincing puppy-eyed expression and the other woman sighed. “Fifteen minutes.” Lily beamed and despite the shifter’s serious expression, I noticed the edges of her lips lift slightly. “And if you argue, I’m telling your mother you relapsed. I’m sure she’ll be able to keep you in bed until you’re all healed.”

Lily grimaced but nodded. “Fifteen minutes.”

After looping her arm with mine, Lily tugged me back the way she had come from, with Alice silently following. She talked about the rooms we passed and the library on the first level, which she had claimed for her research on the Castles, like strolling with me was the most natural thing in the world. I was stunned and eternally grateful for how hard she was trying to make me feel welcome, but I knew she felt it too—the chasm of time between us that couldn’t be crossed with a few tears and a well-meaning smile.

We reached the door leading outside and the whiff of herbs and damp earth hit my nose, making me inhale deeply. Her touch disappeared, and I looked around in confusion, only to find her saying something to Alice in a hushed voice. I caught the words ‘privacy’ and ‘hovering’, but the rest was incomprehensible. When Alice replied, though, there was no whispering.

“I’ll wait here since the house has a soundproofing spell and I won’t hear if you call. Be back in fifteen minutes.” She shot me a quick glance before returning her attention to my sister. “I’m serious, Lily. You need more rest.”

Lily gave her a salute, back paddling toward me while Alice watched her under furrowed brows. I allowed my sister to pull me along the pebbled path until we entered the waking garden, where rows of beautiful but useless flowers and herbs—both dangerous and rare—filled every space of the place.

“Sorry about that. She means well, but she can be a bit overbearing,” Lily muttered when she released my hand to run her fingers over the vibrant petals of one of the pink roses that had wrapped around a stone statue. I was about to warn her to be careful of what she touched when she caught her arms behind her back and smiled at me.

“People who genuinely care for you are rare. When you find them, keep them close,” I said, walking a step behind, so I could watch her. I could hardly recognize the little girl from my foggy memories, but the woman in front of me was adorable and impressive in her own way.

“Yeah…” Lily laughed awkwardly, her face flushing red. I raised an eyebrow, but she didn’t look at me, too busy staring at a bright orange flower with clover-like leaves that I was pretty sure was poisonous. Herbs had never been my thing, and while I did have to learn some of the most common ones, Regina didn’t pressure me into memorizing them. She used to say that being a Head Witch had its perks, like not having to remember silly things because someone else did that for you.

Lily moved down the path, her shoulders caving in. I couldn’t see her expression, but I could see a heavy blush spreading to her ears. Even as a child, she couldn’t hide it when she was uncomfortable. But why was she embarrassed now? I didn’t want to pry—I wasn’t sure I had the right to—but with the way she looked at me, I had a feeling she wanted me to.

“Who is she?” I risked it only to be rewarded with her back.

“She is… my mate.”

I tripped and almost fell into one of the herb beds, crushing a few stalks under my feet. When I stepped back onto the pathway, I was gawking at my sister, who finally turned to face me.

“Your what now?” I asked breathlessly, looking over my shoulder at the mansion we had left behind. “You do realize she can hear us, right?”

Lily’s face flushed even harder. “Well, she is aware of that, obviously. And she’s not the one I’m concerned about.” I gave her a confused look, and she looked down. “I wanted to tell Mom and Dad properly so I could see their reaction, but it kind of happened while I was unconscious. They say they are perfectly fine with it, but I…” She waved her hand in the air like she couldn’t find the right words, then let it drop by her side. Her eyes met mine again, and she bit her lip. “And you are here now, so I thought…” She shrugged, peeking at me as if to check my reaction.

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