Page 10 of The Curse

“Fuck, man! Are you afraid of me?” He gasped in disbelief. “If you’re who I think you are, I’d never hurt you. Hell, I’d give my life to protect you.”

Of all the things I might have expected to come out of his mouth, those words were absolutely nowhere on the list. Who in the hell did he think I was? Nobody worth giving two cents for, much less their life. What was up with this guy?

“That’s some strange-ass talk coming out of your mouth,” I said. “Here’s the deal, between talking to you and Morgan Goodheart, I’m about as confused as shit, and I don’t know whether I should laugh at you, feel sorry for you, try to get you some help, or, the very last option on the list, believe the hocus pocus tumbling out of both your mouths. One minute I think you’re drunk-ass crazy and the next minute you have me wondering if there isn’t some smidgen of truth to what you’re saying.” I ran my fingers through my hair in frustration and then pinched the bridge of my nose. “It’s just that I got some strange information about my family history awhile back and it’s completely knocked me off kilter. When I start adding what you’re saying into that mix, I sure the fuck don’t know what’s going on.”

“Okay, Nico,” Alastair said. “I’m not the most diplomatic or politically correct person in the world, so I’m sure I’m going to fuck this up. I apologize ahead of time. I’m going to tell you why we’re here and then we’ll talk. I need to know what you know about your family tree, and I’ll tell you what I know. Fair enough?”

I felt queasy again, but tried to play it off with a joke. “You never struck me as the politically correct or diplomatic type, so no worries. Okay, go ahead. Let’s hear the craziest witch tale you’ve got.”

“Well, first of all, you’re a witch, but you shouldn’t be…or, at least, Nicodemus Bailey was all human, all mortal, all male hottie. He, from everything I’ve read, didn’t have an ounce of mystical power in him. You, on the other hand, are buzzing and sparking all out of control. One minute you’re sending nothing out and the next minute, you’re overboard with that weird vibe you’ve got going on. It isn’t anything too strong, or at least I don’t think so, but there’s definitely magic flowing in your blood.”

I remembered what my great aunt Hephzibah told me and nodded at Alastair “I have reason to believe my mother was a witch. But I don’t have any magical powers, Alastair. Trust me on that one. I’m about as boring and down to earth as a guy can be. Hell, I probably couldn’t even perform a magic trick after taking a magic class taught by Houdini himself!”

Frowning, Alastair said, “That’s not funny, Nico. Houdini was a charlatan. He didn’t have any magical powers but tried playing games. He made our kind look bad.”

I felt my eyes shifting to the left and then the right, unsure of the proper way to respond to his comment. Should I apologize?

“Forget Houdini,” he said in exasperation. He waved all around him and asked, “What do you feel when you’re here? Does this place mean anything to you at all? Do you feel something calling to your spirit?”

I thought about lying because the minute I said something that sounded remotely like I was agreeing with him, I would officially be as crazy as he was. Yeah, I thought about lying but opted for the truth. “I was drawn to the house the moment it came into view. That energy you keep referring to? It went wild as we got closer. I’ve never wanted anything so much in my entire life. I felt…like I was home. I felt like it was mine.” I frowned. “Does that make any sense?” Answering myself before Alastair could, I said, “Hell, no, that doesn’t make sense. That was stupid to say, right?”

“Not at all,” he answered quickly. “You being drawn to the house doesn’t surprise me at all. Your ancestor Nicodemus spent a lot of time here…in the bedroom, if you know what I mean!”

That might have been too much information, even if it was about a relative I’d never met or even knew existed until a couple of weeks ago. I looked back at the house, and that warm feeling washed over me again. My legs automatically started wanting to walk in that direction. Something or someone was calling out to me, begging me to come closer. I stayed right where I was.

“Are you implying that my old grandfather Bailey had him a woman tucked away in this secluded wonderland?” The words, meant in jest, left a bad taste in my mouth. It was as if I was being disrespectful to something that was beautiful and majestic.

“No, not a woman,” Alastair answered. “His lover owned the house, but nary a woman was involved in what went on between Nicodemus and Corbin.”

My head whipped around to look at him. “Whodid you say?”

“Corbin Hargreaves,” he answered sadly. “Corbin was the high witch of the Marblehead coven many, many years ago. He protected and took great care of his coven and made them all proud to be members of a group that was not only powerful, but good and pure, as well. When Corbin was alive, the coven in Marblehead was one of the strongest in the country.” He looked around and then whispered, “When he disappeared, the coven fell apart. Most of the families moved away, and the ones that stayed behind were and still are harassed and tormented by Morgan Goodheart on a damned regular basis. She’s a bitch of the highest calling. Unfortunately, she’s the most powerful fucking witch I’ve ever encountered or read about in this area…next to Corbin, of course.”

My head was spinning. “So, Corbin and my ancestor were…lovers?” I looked around. “Here? This was their place?”

“Not exactly,” he floundered. “I mean, yes, they were lovers. More than that, they were very much in love. They hadn’t moved in together, but it was going to happen. The more time Corbin spent with Nicodemus, the stronger his craft became. It often happens that way with a soul mate or a true love. With Nico at his side, there was no stopping him.”

My eyes wandered over to the edge of the cliff, some twenty yards away from where we were standing. All the pieces of the puzzle started sliding into place—the incredible witchcraft filled puzzle that made no sense whatsoever and was totally unbelievable.

Yet, I believed it.

Of course, believing the magic part of what Alastair was saying also meant that I might end up having to believe the whole family curse thing…which was really bad for me.

“Is this where Nicodemus died?” I stammered on the last word. “Is this the place where he took his own life?”

“Yes, this is where Nicodemus committed suicide,” he answered solemnly. “It destroyed Corbin. He disappeared exactly seven days after they recovered the body of his lover. Without any trace. Eventually, he was presumed dead. Nobody ever understood why Nicodemus killed himself, or what drove him to walk off that cliff, and, as far as I’ve ever read or been told, Corbin never told another living soul why he thought his lover would have done such a thing.”

I felt like I was shutting down. Everything that had been dropped into my lap today was just too much. I felt the need to find someplace private and have myself a good cry, which was way out of character for me. Being brought up in the system had taught me early on not to waste my time on tears. They accomplished nothing. The small cottage I was renting didn’t feel anything like home, but I wanted to be there. I looked at the huge Gothic structure out of the corner of my eye. No, that’s where I wanted to be.

“I want to go inside the house, Alastair,” I declared. “Can we? Would we get into too much trouble if we broke in? I don’t know why, but I’ve got to get inside.”

Alastair shook his head from side to side. “Sorry, Nico. It’s restricted.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m not really worried about the law right now, okay? I want in. You don’t have to be a part of it if you don’t want to risk getting into trouble, but don’t try to stop me. I’m going in.”

I took one step before he grabbed me by the arm. “Fuck the law, Nico. That’s not who I’m worried about. Somebody, probably Morgan, cast a spell on the house, and no one can enter. Trust me, many have tried, and while some survived and were only injured, some didn’t. When I say you can’t go in, I seriously mean you can’t go in. I’m not going to risk something happening to you.”

“I’m not understanding this strange obsession you have with trying to keep me safe. You realize we just met last night, right?”

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