The Witch Born to Burn

by Tanya Milne

  ‘What you don’t know about me is that, apart from being a witch, I’m the ill-fated Fire Queen – born with both darkness and light in my heart.’

  Ezra stared at me as though he was seeing me afresh.

  ‘My mum knows it, and even Elijah knows it. It’s probably just a matter of time before I turn to the darkness. If I’m not right for you now…then I’m never going to be right for you. It’s probably best for you…’

  Ezra knelt in front of me and placed his hands on my arms. ‘Hey, stop it right there.’

  I stopped talking as tears flooded my eyes. Placing my head on my knees, I tried to pull myself together. For a long time, all I could hear was the crackle of the timber burning.

  ‘Eva, look at me.’

  I kept my head where it was, too mortified to show my face.

  ‘Please,’ he said.

  Something in his voice spoke to me, and before I could stop myself, I found myself staring into Ezra’s green eyes.

  ‘Hey, please don’t cry,’ he said softly before wiping the tears from my face.

  I opened my mouth to tell him it was probably better for him that we weren’t together, but he pressed his finger against my lips. ‘Before you say anything…we need to clear something up. I’ve never felt anything like this before. I can’t really explain it more to you than that it’s like we fit together like two halves of a whole.’ I wiped away my tears as the truth of his words washed over me. ‘Being with you has been like waking from a nightmare to find I’m living the best life imaginable. Having you here, in my room, alone, is something I’d never dared to dream would happen. Yet here you are. And what’s more…you want me…me.’ Tears sprang to Ezra’s eyes. ‘For who I am.’ This time I wiped away his tears. ‘This is the only time in my life that I’ve been happy, so don’t you dare think for a second that I don’t want you in my life, in this room, in my bed,’ he said. Something primal stirred inside me. ‘You mean so much to me, Eva, and although I want you in a way I can’t possibly explain, I know it’s not the right time.’ He glanced up to the roof. ‘I must be completely nuts, but I want our first time to be more than just the experience. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but when it happens, I want it to be the beginning of our future.’

  My heart felt as though it’d gotten a jump-start.

  ‘Future…’ I whispered.

  ‘We’re young and we have our whole lives ahead of us. I don’t want to be just your first boyfriend, the first guy you had.’

  ‘What…what are you saying?’

  He leaned forward and undid the clip that was holding my hair together. My hair fell in waves around my shoulders, and Ezra pushed a long lock behind my ear.

  ‘I’m saying that one day, when this whole crazy situation is behind us and we are older and ready, I want us to take this next step with more commitment.’

  ‘As in…getting married?’ I whispered.

  What the hell?

  Ezra raised both eyebrows and smiled. ‘We’ll have to wait and see, but I think we can both agree it’s going to be worth the wait.’

  What? No! I don’t want to wait!

  I felt as if I’d been dumped by a wave of emotions and couldn’t find my feet.

  He placed his hand over my heart and spoke. ‘And as for being the Fire Queen, I know you – you’ll always choose the light.’

  I was truly lost for words. Fragments of thoughts came and went, but nothing formed.

  ‘You’re so beautiful, Eva – inside and out. I wanted to look at you…remember this moment…forever…’

  I locked eyes with him. In that moment, I knew two things – first, Ezra was my true love, someone who knew me implicitly and without judgement. Second, I didn’t know how I was going to be able to wait. He might have needed a bigger commitment from me to take the next step, but something had awoken inside me; I was hungry and I didn’t know how long I could wait.

  He blinked and sat back as though he’d read my mind.

  ‘I should probably get home,’ I said, putting my jumper back on and standing up.

  Ezra gathered his keys and jacket, then took my hand, then pulled me in close and whispered in my ear. ‘Wait with me.’

  My desire for him surged through me, and I ran my hand down his whiskery face before letting out a low groan and taking a step away. ‘I’ll try my hardest.’

  Lines appeared on his forehead as the truth of my words hung like incense in the air.

  A light flashed from under the window and we both turned to look.

  ‘What the hell?’ said Ezra, striding to the end of his room and opening up the door to the balcony.

  I stepped onto the balcony after him, icy wind assaulting me, blowing my hair in all directions. I shivered, but it wasn’t just from the cold. Someone had been outside, watching us. Watching me take off my shirt – watching Ezra reject me as he did my buttons back up. Someone out there had seen it all. Who would do that? What creep?

  Max! Max would do that!

  I scanned the darkness, but the pervert had slipped away. All that remained were the waves from the ocean as they rose and fell against the river water, forever changing their placid composition.

  That’s when I knew, I was the ocean and Ezra was the river and he’d turned from me, retreating into quieter waters.

  Chapter Seventeen

  The new church bell installed at the apex of the church stopped tolling as we made our way up the stairs and into the vestibule, where the priest was waiting for us. Orpheus strode forward and received the priest, who kissed him on both cheeks. Orpheus held out his hand for Gretel and presented her to the priest. He bowed at her, clearly not allowed to lay his lips on her. Orpheus then stepped aside, and the priest’s eyes widened as he saw me.

  My cheeks burned and if Ezra’s hand weren’t clutching mine, I’d probably have turned and run back down the stairs.

  ‘Eva, Ezra, how good to see you both. Welcome,’ said the priest, spreading his arms.

  ‘Thank you, Father,’ said Ezra.

  ‘Thank you,’ I said quietly.

  I glanced at Ezra, who made comfortable small talk with the priest about the miracle recoveries of so many. I still couldn’t quite believe I’d been invited to sit with the Blackthorn family, let alone agreed. It had taken some convincing by Ezra for me to accept that I’d be better off being seen publicly with Orpheus. It had been Violet, strangely, who had convinced me it was a very smart idea.

  Orpheus turned to me and smiled broadly, and I knew that I couldn’t possibly be any closer to my enemy than I was in that moment.

  ‘After you, dear,’ said Orpheus, opening the door for me.

  My breath deserted me, and Ezra gently nudged me forward. It was a full house and every person in the congregation turned towards us as we walked, hand in hand, into the church.

  I wanted to die as I took in everyone’s reactions to what they were seeing. The old ladies all smiled at me as if I were their favourite darling. Our fellow students’ mouths hit the ground. Violet winked at me. My family – sitting close to the front – appeared to be frozen. Max, who stood on guard at the side entrance, watched me hungrily. Anna wasn’t looking at me; she was staring at Noah, whose face was bright red as he clamped his mouth shut, keeping his thousand silent insults inside.

  So much had happened since Ezra and I got together, but in reality, we’d been together for only a week and clearly, word had not got around.

  My gaze flicked to Elijah, who simply shrugged. I’d assumed he’d told Anna about Ezra and that she would have told Noah, but Elijah had barely seen her since the day we picked mushrooms, and things still didn’t look right between them.

  ‘Eva,’ said Ezra quietly, gesturing to our seats at the very front of the church. I almost leapt onto the wooden bench where Ezra sat on one side and his mother on my other. I took a few settling breaths, grateful I no longer had to look at anyone apart from the priest. No such luck. Within seconds, Orpheus was standing at the front of the church, his
mouth set while his pale-blue gaze roamed the church, probing the souls of his community.

  My hands began sweating, so I let go of Ezra’s hand and placed mine on my white dress, which I was now – unbelievably – expected to wear every Sunday to Mass.

  ‘Welcome,’ said Orpheus, his smile not reaching his beady eyes. ‘If someone told me this time last week that I’d be standing here in front of a full and healthy congregation, I would have called them insane. Yet here we are.’

  I remembered back to a week ago, the day after the poisoning – the day Ezra and I went into the woods to find the plants for the potion – the day we found out Orpheus was poisoning our water supply.

  ‘By God’s miracle we sit here together as a family. For this, I will be forever grateful,’ said Orpheus.

  A murmur broke out amongst the congregation, and I turned around to see many people saying their thanks to God while performing the sign of the cross. Ezra nudged me and I followed him in the sign of the cross, my insides squirming.

  Orpheus’s smile slipped from his face and the room fell silent. ‘Sometimes, it’s our darkest days when we are shown the light of the truth. Like many of you, last week, I experienced my darkest day. The day I thought I’d meet my maker.’

  I recalled Orpheus’s face before I gave him the drops – the moments I witnessed the sickness in his soul.

  ‘It was then I was shown the truth in a vision – about who did this to us.’

  I remembered his eyes flicking open.

  My heart raced. Does he know?

  ‘Silence!’ roared Orpheus to the congregation, which had cried out.

  Ezra’s arm moved around mine and squeezed gently. I turned to him and he gave me a small reassuring smile, which I attempted to return.

  How can he remain so cool?

  I turned back to Orpheus, who’d watched our every move. He nodded in our direction before his gaze raked his audience.

  ‘The person responsible for this is the same person who poisoned our waters.’ His voice rose with every word.

  I gripped the edge of the pew as Orpheus thundered his accusation. ‘It was a witch.’

  It was as though everyone in the church took a sharp intake of breath. Ezra nudged me and I mimicked the shocked expression on his face. Everyone started talking all at once, the word witch repeated over and over.

  Orpheus’s eyes interrogated us all, seeking the witch responsible. I felt as if I was going to be sick.

  ‘There’s a witch amongst us. I can feel it – smell it – taste it. They could be here with us, right now, hiding and pretending to be one of us. They could be sitting next to you,’ said Orpheus.

  I made myself look surprised, knowing that every other person’s eyes would be flitting left to right, wondering who’d committed this grievous crime.

  ‘Hear me when I say I won’t stop until I have found them – until they have been punished for their sins – until the devil himself has been expelled from their body and our community.’

  It was freezing inside the church, but I was burning up.

  ‘Quiet!’ yelled Orpheus, his hands up in front of himself. ‘Do not distress yourselves. I have a plan to expose them. In the next three days, every man, woman and child in Melas will be tested in three ways to determine whether they are a witch.’

  I felt as though I might pass out.

  ‘Tomorrow at 9 a.m. sharp, every person who lives in Melas will be expected to meet at the town square, where we will start performing tests. Rest assured, we will not stop until the witch has been found and exorcised. Anyone not in attendance will automatically be under suspicion. School and non-essential business will be cancelled until further notice.’

  By the time Orpheus finished speaking, the congregation was completely silent. Ezra was talking to me, but I couldn’t hear a thing. All I could picture was the moment I was discovered as a witch, knowing what would happen to me.

  The priest stood and took his place at the front of the congregation, his quiet words and gentle ways bringing everyone back from the edges of hysteria. By the time the service was over, my legs were shaking. Ezra helped me stand and hand in hand, we followed Orpheus and Gretel back down the aisle and out into the pale sunshine that did nothing to warm my bones.

  Thankfully, Orpheus and Gretel were soon engulfed by parishioners, and Ezra and I made our way to stand under the shade of a large tree some distance from everyone. I turned my back to the church, finally letting my face take on the shape it wanted.

  ‘You okay?’ Ezra asked, placing his jacket around my shaking shoulders.

  ‘No,’ I said. ‘What the hell! We’re going to be tested for witchcraft.’

  ‘First I heard of it, but I’ll try and find out everything I can. I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about,’ he said, before laughing as though I’d said something funny.

  ‘What are you doing?’

  ‘Max is looking our way.’

  Even the mention of his name made me sick. I remembered back to last Wednesday night when I’d thrown myself onto Ezra, only to get knocked back, big time, and then seen someone – probably Max – had been spying on us.

  Ezra’s jaw clenched. ‘I saw the way he stared at you when we walked into the church. I swear to God–’

  ‘You what? Swear to God?’ I said, a small giggle bursting unexpectedly from me.

  Ezra blinked at me and then smiled. ‘Yes, well, that would be highly inappropriate.’

  ‘You’re going straight to hell, along with me.’

  ‘Don’t say things like that,’ he said, his face deadpan.

  ‘I was joking.’ I cocked my head to the side. ‘Do you believe in hell?’

  Ezra opened his mouth and closed it again. That’s when I knew that he believed in all this mumbo jumbo and no one was forcing him to attend church. I let go of his hand and took another good, hard look at him.

  ‘Before you judge me, hear me out,’ said Ezra. ‘I do believe in God and yes, I do believe in heaven…and hell, but I don’t believe in the fanatical version of Christianity that my father has embraced.’

  ‘But…how do you accept me?’ I asked, my question swelling up in the air between us.

  ‘The same way you accept me. I just do.’

  Ezra’s green eyes told me everything I needed to know. Finally, he broke the connection and gazed back to the thinning crowd. Before I knew it, he’d stepped forward and kissed me on the lips. I backed up, startled. ‘What are you doing?’

  ‘Kissing my girlfriend,’ he said, a smirk on his face. ‘When I said I wasn’t ready, I didn’t mean for kissing, or other things for that matter.’

  Ezra was looking beyond me again, and I turned to see him in a staring contest with a very pissed-off-looking Noah. Next to him were Anna and Elijah, who appeared to be attempting some very awkward small talk.

  ‘What are you doing?’ I said.

  ‘Letting him know you’re mine.’

  ‘Excuse me?’ I said, snapping his attention back to me.

  ‘Well, you are, aren’t you?’

  ‘Of course I’m your girlfriend, silly boy. But you don’t own me and you don’t need to act like a–’

  ‘Like what?’

  ‘Like a jerk. Poor Noah. It was bad enough that he found out the way he did, and now…this.’

  ‘Poor Noah, nothing.’ Ezra turned his full stare onto me. ‘He barely takes no for an answer, and even though you think he’s as sweet as pie, he’s not. He needs to leave you alone.’

  My mouth dropped open as I saw another whole side to my boyfriend.

  ‘Are you…jealous?’ I asked.

  ‘Am I jealous of all the guys who can barely keep their tongues in their mouths when you walk past? Absolutely. Am I jealous of guys like Jet and Noah, who would do anything to be with you? You bet.’

  ‘You…can’t be serious.’

  Ezra let out a long sigh. ‘I’ll always tell you the truth, Eva.’

  ‘You’re serious? You’re not going to go al
l psycho on me, are you?’

  Ezra took a step closer and pushed my hair behind my shoulders, then leant in and kissed my neck, his face lingering. My whole traitorous body tingled.

  ‘Am I going to have trouble with you?’ I said.

  ‘Probably,’ he said. ‘You smell so good.’

  ‘Stop it,’ I said firmly.

  He straightened, a cheeky grin on his face. ‘What?’

  ‘You don’t play fair.’ I thought about the days, weeks, probably years ahead where I would be filled with nothing but desire.

  ‘Since when did I say I would play fair?’

  I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. One thing was for certain. This jealous, infuriating, hot, sweet young man in front of me held me in the palm of his hand.

  I knew someone was walking towards us by the way Ezra stood taller. I turned to see Elijah approaching. Every day he grew stronger, and for the first time in a long time, he had a little colour back in his face.

  ‘Hi, Elijah,’ said Ezra, holding out his hand, which Elijah took. It was a sight I still wasn’t used to.

  ‘Mum thinks we should head home…for a family meeting,’ said Elijah.

  I glanced at Ezra, who’d invited me out for lunch.

  ‘You should go,’ said Ezra, taking my hand again. ‘Spend some time with your family. I’ll see what I can find out and let you know.’

  ‘That would be great,’ said Elijah. ‘Eva, you ready?’

  Ezra turned his attention towards his dad, who was striding towards us, his face unreadable. My heart pounded and Elijah turned in time to be met by Orpheus, who clapped him on the back.

  ‘Great to see you, Elijah,’ he said cheerfully.

  Elijah’s face drained of colour, but he pasted on a smile and turned to Orpheus. ‘And you, sir.’

  Orpheus smiled at me. ‘Eva, it was lovely to have you sitting with us today. I must say every time I looked down at you two lovebirds, I kept thinking what a striking couple you make.’

  My face burned, but I managed to mumble out a thank you.

  ‘Son, your mum and I are leaving, so we’ll see you at home.’

  ‘Thanks, Dad – see you soon,’ said Ezra.