Page 93 of The Demon's Delight
Realization dawned, a flush running through me, first cold, then hot. These were my parents. The people responsible for bringing me into the world. The ones who vanished, leaving me with Sal.
And I didn’t even know them well enough to recognize them.
There was an odd rumbling noise, and the woman touched her collar, where a necklace chain disappeared under the fabric. I heard the sound of wood cracking and looked over just intime to see the front and back halves of my horse carving fall in opposite directions on the wide windowsill. What looked like a black rock fell out from the center.
My gut swooped and I took another step backwards as the portrait began to lose integrity. I was thankful that there hadn’t been much to our meal on the road as I grappled with what exactly any of this meant.
“Well. That answers that.” Ophelia dashed her arm through the remaining smoke and opened the window wide, retrieving the black stone that had fallen out of the carving.
I was grateful at least one of us understood what had just happened, but it certainly wasn’t me.
“I believe this belongs to you.” Ophelia dropped the smoothly polished obsidian into my palm. It was on a chain, set in a band of plain silver.
“A necklace.”
“Hernecklace, I’d wager,” Ophelia said sagely, watching as I retrieved the two halves of my little horse. My heart hurt, the little item one of the only things I’d maintained from my childhood that had always brought me comfort. It had been taken from me in that horrible house, and I couldn’t have been more grateful to have found it in the lockbox. “Perhaps we can find a way to mend it.”
We reconvened in the living room, the three other gargoyles quiet as they watched the whole situation unfold.
“Those were my parents.”
“Yes, yes.” Ophelia reached forward and refilled her tea, making a face as she discovered it was lacking whiskey.
“You didn’t know them at all?” Lovette asked, expression empathetic.
“No. I was left with my Aunt Sal by my mother when I was three. She never spoke of my father at all. I don’t remember either of them. I was too little I guess.”
“That’s unfortunate,” Magnus said. His voice was deep and resonant, even when he was speaking softly. “I recognize your father. I’ll have to search my memories a bit better to be sure, but I believe he has roots in the grotesque house. I can check the records, of course.”
“Thank you. Sal said my mother’s name was Wyn. That she had some demon lineage.”
“The perfect marriage of all the bloodlines is required for a null to be conceived. It’s why there’s so few of you. People get very uncomfortable when magics mix that powerfully.” Ophelia nodded sagely as though this statement explained everything.
“All the bloodlines?”
“Human, stone kin, witch, demon, angel, and fae.”
I attempted to process this information but found myself stumbling. “You’re saying that I’m… all of those things?”
Ophelia smiled. “Yes, dear girl. There’s no telling how much of any of those elements is needed, but yes. Your mother clearly has demon genes, and your father some fae. I can hear the stone kin blood in you as well. You’re a healer, so that likely accounts for the witch part. The angel bit gets tricky, but it’s a requirement too. No null can exist without them all being present, at least somewhere down the line. A null has the ability to balance the magic of the world outside themselves by being composed of a perfect balance of magic within themselves.”
Except I wasn’t balanced. And I had no control over that terrible power.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized, head spinning. I put a hand to my forehead, willing the dizziness to stop. “I’m not feeling well all of a sudden. I’m not going to be very good at answering questions or puzzling much of anything out right now. I’m… tired.”Tireddidn’t quite convey how much it felt as though my brain might start to leak from my ears soon, but it was the best I could do. I’d rested in the carriage, but even my bones felt weary.
“Of course, of course. It’s very late, after all. Let me get you set up in my guest room, dear.” Ophelia got to her feet and disappeared into the back of the hut. I hadn’t expected there to be more than one bedroom in the little building. After sleeping on the ground so much, the soft couch would have been perfectly wonderful.
“We’ll be back in the morning,” Lovette assured me as they prepared to leave. “Unless you want one of us to stay?” She and Imogen exchanged a look, and I could see a whole conversation passed between them in a matter of seconds.
Imogen nodded. “This is all very unusual, I’m sure. A lot to take in. But you’re safe here. Ophelia might be one of the oldest of us, but nobody crosses her. She’s still very capable.”
“Thank you. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
Lovette squeezed my hand, making sure I saw the reassurance in her face before stepping away.
Ophelia came bustling back in. “Your room is the one to the left. The bathroom is the center door, and my room is to the right.” She gestured vaguely.
“I appreciate your hospitality.”
