Page 30 of The Soulless Witch

This shouldn’t have happened. They should have never become this involved or met with any witches or other monsters. It could already be too late, but I had to try. I had to make them forget everything that happened today, forget ever inviting me into their home. I had to take that back and leave. I’d ask Roman to have people watch over them for a while, to make sure they weren’t in any danger. I’d…

“Please don’t!” Lily said in a shaky voice, slowly getting up from her seat. “I know what you’re planning to do and you can’t! You can’t just make us forget!”

“How did you…?” I asked, wondering if maybe Lily knew what I was even before today.

“Come on, I study the occult. Witches can wipe memories and influence people, and I saw your face the moment I called you a witch.” Lily stepped in front of my hand, her eyes swimming with tears. “I don’t know why you came to us or why you stayed, but you can’t just erase yourself and leave!”

“Lily, stop,” her mother said hesitantly, getting up. She looked awfully pale, her hands shaking as she stepped closer to us. “Celeste has the right to leave whenever she wants, and we can’t force her to stay.” Her eyes moved from her daughter to me and she pursed her lips. “But you don’t get to erase our happy memories. Leave if you want, but let us remember you because no matter the reason you came to us, your presence here made us happy. Taking that away will be cruel.”

I was too stunned to speak. We barely knew each other for a few weeks. Why were they so bothered by the thought of me making them forget me? My spell made them compliant, not dependent. They shouldn’t be arguing with me. Were they even under my spell?

“She is doing that for you.” Nym’s voice filled the room. I looked over my shoulder to find my familiar sitting on the armrest of the sofa Regina had occupied earlier. “Her presence here will bring danger to your family, so she’s leaving for your safety. Foolish humans.”

I sighed, feeling the weight in my chest lighten. Saying those words out loud would have been impossible for me because I would have been forced to accept the fact that I had grown more attached to this family than I intended to. But I was glad Nym said it so they could understand.

“Did the cat…just speak?” Julia asked in a trembling voice.

“It did,” Lily whispered, looking at the dog as if expecting it to say something as well.

“That’s Nym, my familiar.” I cleared my throat, waving at the cat that was now licking his paw while watching the two women gawk. “He can speak, among other things.” The Martens exchanged a bewildered look.

“I think I need to sit down,” Julia muttered, pressing a hand to her chest as she sank into the sofa. Kevin rubbed her back while she pulled her son into her lap when he tried to go near Nym.

“That’s why I wasn’t planning on getting you involved. I was going to leave the moment I recuperated enough. Iamgoing to leave.” I corrected myself. “Living in ignorance is much better, believe me. Once you learn about the supernatural world, aboutmyworld, there is no going back. The moment you walk out of your door, you’d be wondering who among your neighbors is a witch, a werewolf, or some other supernatural creature. You’d be taking a stroll in the park and suddenly you’d be missing minutes, hours, or even days because some Fae tricked you into making a deal with it!” Lily’s eyes kept widening with excitement at each word, so I pointed a finger at her, glaring with all my might. “No! Do not look so excited! You think this is amazing? You’re wrong! All of those creatures can kill you, and none of you can stop them. You are weak, fragile, ignorant humans. You can’t—”

“That’s enough!” Kevin cut me off, rising to his feet. “First, stop pointing at my daughter like that. Second, stop insulting us. We might not be as strong as a…a werewolf or whatever, but neither are you. If you were, you wouldn’t be here. That’s what you said, right?” I let my hand fall, trying not to sneer at his words. “Weak or not, we make our own choices, so for now, you won’t be taking any of our memories.”

“You can’t stop me,” I scoffed, immediately regretting the words when I noticed the look of disappointment in his eyes.

“I know.” He put a hand on his daughter’s shoulder and pushed her toward the rest of his family, who had risen to their feet. “But we also know that you care about us, otherwise you wouldn’t worry if we get hurt. So I ask you to let us discuss it and respect our decision. We’ll make it knowing full well the danger it brings.”

“You can’t possibly know…” I sighed, but he just shrugged.

“Well, it can’t be worse than death, can it?” he said, a dark shadow falling over his face. “We’ll go to the other room to talk. You should get some rest, you look awful.” He didn’t wait for my reply. He slid his arm around his daughter’s shoulders, taking his wife’s hand and tugging them toward the door. I watched them leave, their heavy steps thudding toward the kitchen.

My chest felt surprisingly light. I was ready to wipe their minds and disappear, but some part of me dreaded that. I knew it was likely just a delay on their part; no sane parent would knowingly put their child in danger, but it felt good to be standing in this sunny house, full of pictures of smiling faces and smelling of cookies and flowers.

“That’s an expression I never thought I’d see on your face.” Nym’s voice made me jump, realizing I wasn’t as alone as I thought. I turned to the couch, but his spot was empty. His slim, warm body rubbed against my feet as if to console me, and a pair of dark eyes looked at me with pity. “It’s been a while since you got this attached. Since Roman, actually. Are you two good now, or do I have to end his miserable existence for biting you?”

“We are…working it out,” I said, scratching him behind his ears. “What do you think I should do here?” He turned to look at the door where the Martens had disappeared, then focused those too-human eyes on me.

“I’d say leave them since they would only be a hindrance to you. They are weak and they can’t protect themselves against the things that hunt you. If you stay, you’d have to constantly be watching over them, and if they die…” His whiskers moved excitedly and he nudged his head against my hand. I nodded in agreement and was just about to get up when he spoke again. “However, ever since you started living here, you’ve been different. You smile more, you laugh, and you look content. Even when we were safe before, when we lacked nothing, and when nobody chased us, you’ve never looked this comfortable. Not even with Roman. So if you want to stay some more, stay. I will protect this family for you.”

I felt my eyes sting, so I pulled him into my arms. Nym hissed in protest, trying to claw himself free, but I hugged him tighter, so he gave up and chose to bite my shoulder instead.

“Thank you,” I whispered, rubbing my cheek against his soft fur. “You are the best cat I could hope for.”

“I’m not a cat,” Nym snarled, but the pleased purr that rose from his stomach made the threatening note in his voice ring untrue. “I just think that if this is our last life, I’d rather we do what makes us happy. We’ve run long enough.” I smiled against his fur, nodding. He could feel it too then, the urgency in every breath, the extra sharpness of every pain, the taste of our magic that wasn’t quite the same. I thought I had imagined it, but maybe I was right. Maybe this was our last life. “Now let me go or I’m going to shift, and you’d be the one explaining the damage to your family.”

Nym jumped out of my hands just when the sounds of steps made me turn around. Lily appeared first, her throat bobbing nervously, then the rest of her family. They all stopped on the other side of the couch, their expressions so serious that I felt dread squeeze my heart.

“We’ve decided…” Kevin started, looking at each of his family members. Julia stood stiffly next to him, rubbing her son’s shoulders, while Lily squeezed her hands together, rocking on the soles of her feet. “...that no danger can excuse erasing people we care about from our lives. We would like to keep our memories and we’ll take any precautions to stay safe. And we—”

“We want to know more!” Lily blurted as she ran to my side, her eyes shining so brightly that I squinted before I was blinded by her enthusiasm. “About the magic and the supernatural world and about you and—”

“Lily.” Her father cleared his throat, and the girl reined in her excitement, if barely. I tore my gaze away from her, looking at her parents, who had forgone their serious expressions for gentle smiles. “Please stay, Celeste. This home won’t be the same without you.”

“Yes, dear.” Julia nodded, her eyes swimming with tears. I opened my mouth to speak, but yet again found myself unable to form the right words. So I nodded and before I could react, the family was circling the sofa and Jake was shouting‘Group hug!’Four pairs of arms pulled me into a tight embrace and I didn’t resist.

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