“She’s alive. They won’t,” his father said. “I need a minute with her.” He sounded stern.
Both younger men walked out, staring over their shoulders at me, looking confused. I did not want to be alone with this man. I brought up my knees and hugged them to my chest as the door locked behind them.
He looked at me. “My name is Luke. You’re safe with us, Danielle. We won’t hurt you.”
“What?”
“You are the key to get back what was taken from us. Eli and Marick? You’re part of their family, and they both think you died in a fire ten years ago.”
“No, I was part of Brolin’s group of victims ten years ago. I was trapped for five years in the basement—tortured, raped.”
He shook his head. “I promise you, you weren’t tortured or raped.”
Tears filled my eyes, and I shook my head again.
“You don’t remember those five years, do you?”
“My mind…”
“It’s not your mind. It’s a curse. A potion that was never supposed to be given to you. My son is right—telling them this? They would think we are behind this. They will kill us.”
“Potion? You’re living in a fantasy.” I spat the words out. They were just as bad as my mother. I was shackled to a bed. If I wasn’t in danger, why did they shackle me then?
“Still the same feisty Danielle. You haven’t changed one bit. But your past is not the one in your head. You were simply at the wrong place at the wrong time.”
With that he got up and walked out the door.
He came back an hour later with a plate of food and something to drink.
“You must be hungry.” He looked completely different now. His eyes were softer, his smile kinder. I didn’t understand any of it.
The door opened again as I drank the water that was in the glass, and a woman in her forties entered. She was wearing jeans and a T-shirt, her hair was tied up into a bun, and she was carrying a first-aid kit in her hands.
“Why you have shackled her is beyond me,” she said to Luke and gave me a soft smile.
I didn’t reply with one. I was still so confused about the entire thing.
She unlocked the shackle, cleaned the bruises around my wrist, and put an ointment on. It felt better as she left the wound open to breathe.
“How does that feel?”
“Better, thank you.” I watched her chuck the shackle behind the bed. It clanged to the floor.
“Eat, please. We have a few things to speak with you about,” said Luke.
“You’re not going to kill me?”
“No.” He smiled. “No one is going to kill you. We simply needed Marick’s attention and to show him that you’re still alive.”
“You didn’t have to use fear,” the woman said.
“Danielle,” Luke said, “this is my daughter-in-law, Francine. She’s the caretaker of this household and has loads of compassion.” He teased her by bumping softly into her.
The corner of her lips tugged upward, and she shook her head.
“Sorry for the drastic measurement, but we had to make Eli and Marick listen. They accused us of something we haven’t done, and we simply want to go home.”
I nodded.
“They will listen when they see you.”
Francine smiled. She was beautiful with blonde hair and the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen. Her face was friendly and open, like you could see the love and compassion that was in her, but I knew better. What people portray and who they are sometimes are two different things.
“When you are done, you can go take a long bath, and then we will show you to your room. Please, I’m begging you, don’t try to leave the house. You’re safe in here, but out there, it’s dangerous and you will die.”
I had to swallow hard at the lump of food in my mouth.
She smiled and left with Luke right behind her.
I didn’t know if I should trust this or not. They didn’t lock the door this time. I could escape.
They were insane. Potions….
I took a few more bites of food and decided to make a run for it. I put down the half-eaten plate of food and, while chewing on the food tucked in my cheeks, walked slowly to the door. I opened it and climbed up the steps.
The stairs opened into a kitchen of an old home, and it felt as if I was back in Grandma Evangeline’s home.
I hated Grandma Evangeline’s home. I was so miserable there.
Nobody was in sight, not a single human, but I did hear faint voices in one of the rooms close to the kitchen where a TV was playing.
I turned in the opposite direction of the sound and found the back door. I slowly opened it and slipped through. It led out to a street in a city. Which city, I had no idea.
I ran down the street, yelling for help, but nobody I passed paid any attention to me. They would either shrug me off or keep on walking.
Not one of them stopped.
What was this?
I ran farther from the house. A pain in my stomach made me stop. I crouched down, placed my hand on my stomach, and watched how the color of my skin start turning a dull gray.
I looked up and saw colors starting to leave the world in front of me. The colors from the buildings, the light, the street, the cars—they all started to turn into dull grays.
The pain grew stronger and stronger, and I cried out. Then the tips of my fingers felt as if someone was chopping them off. The pain was so unbearable that a scream left my lips.
I watched how my fingertips began disappearing.
What was this horror?
A firm hand grabbed my shoulder, and I found Sebastian.
“What is this?” I looked up at him.
“Magic, Danielle. Didn’t they warn you that it’s not safe out here? We need to go back inside.”
I screamed again. My other hand ached, and I watched as my fingers started disappearing on this hand too.
He put me over his shoulder and ran with me back to the house.
More screams as my hands started to vanish.
It felt as if I was losing my mind.
Then I stopped. This wasn’t real.
This was my mind changing things around so I could perceive things differently—to cope with all this afterward.
What the hell were they doing to me in that basement?
I was getting tortured—that was for sure.
Chapter 4
I entered the house, screaming out in pain.
“What happened?” Luke shouted.
“She left the house. I thought you told her about going outside?”
“Francine?”
“I told her not to go outside. Let me see.” Francine crouched down so she was below me. She wanted to see my hands, but I shrugged her off.
“Stay away from me!” I yelled, knowing that what I was seeing right now was not really happening. Something more horrendous was busy taking place in that basement.
“You’ve got to be shitting me?” another female voice said.
“Katia, please, just make the potion.”
“You’re kidding me, Sebastian. She should not have gone outside.”
“She doesn’t trust us. Please, we can’t let Marick sees her like this.”
“Marick? I don’t give a fuck what Marick wants. I’m not fixing something she brought on herself!”
“Enough,” Luke said. Francine stared at me.
I could feel a fever rising. I was in so much pain.
“Katia,” Francine said, “Sebastian is right. You need to help her. We can’t give her back like this to Marick.”
Back to Marick? I don’t know a Marick. I’m not going anywhere with anyone.
The woman who I assumed was Katia exploded into a fit of words as she stomped downstairs.
“I need cold water and some cloths,” Francine said. “She’s burning up.”
I felt as if I was going to lose conscience. The pain was starting to settle, but I felt hot and so out of it.
When was the real images o
f me being strapped and tortured on the bed going to jump back?
These people didn’t want to take care of me. This was all in my mind.
I blacked out, and when I woke up again, I was made to drink something that tasted horrible.
I wanted to spit it out, but Francine put a hand in front of my mouth. “I know it tastes horrible, but you have to drink this, Danielle.”
I swallowed—I had no choice—before I passed out again.
During the next day or so, I kept waking up in cold sweats or searing pain, before everything finally felt normal.
I wasn’t in the basement, but the room was dark.
I could see the outline of the window, hear the noises happening in the street outside.
I felt for the nightlight and switched it on.
I looked down at my hands, wiggle my fingers. Color was back, and both my hands had healed fingers.
What is this?
Francine opened the door and came in.
She smiled, but her smile didn’t reach her eyes this time.
“Good, you’re awake and well put together so I see.” She put down the tray of food.
“I don’t understand.”
She came over, took both my hands in hers without saying a word, inspected them thoroughly first before she put my hands down. She touched my forehead. “You’ll be okay.”
“Please, what the hell is going on here?”
She sighed. “Something I don’t know if your human mind will be able to process, Danielle, but know this was part of your life ten years ago.”
“What was?” I started to get agitated. Brolin Maartin was part of my life ten years ago—horrible life, I might add.
“Go take a shower. Sebastian would like a word with you when you are done. I think he might be able to explain it better to you. After all, the two of you were really great friends back then.”
She turned around and walk out the room.
Sebastian was my friend?
I ate the breakfast and went to take a shower.
I was so confused and knew whatever was happening, escape was not possible. I had to hear what Sebastian had to say.
When I was done, I found a pair of jeans, clean underwear, and a T-shirt on my bed.
“Fuck!” I forgot about Noir.
I got dressed and put on my shoes and rushed out the door. I ran into Sebastian.
“Danielle, calm down. We’re not going to hurt you, and I’m not going to let you exit this house again, as if last time wasn’t proof enough that you will die outside.”
“It’s not that. I have a cat who needs food. His name is Noir. He’s the only thing in this world close to what I call a friend. Please.”
“You named your cat Noir? Let me guess—he’s black?”
“I’m not good with names, okay?”
“Okay, I’ll get him, but you promise to stay put, inside the house, until I get back. It’s not safe out there, Danielle. Not here.”
I looked at him. The way he said “here” made it sound as if I wasn’t in Paris anymore or even in the real world.
I nodded.
“Promise.” He was adamant.
“I promise. Just get Noir.”
He nodded turned around as I went back into my room.
I paced for a while thinking how stupid I must have been. How long have I been here? Is Noir alright?
When the pacing didn’t work, I stood by the window and looked out into the street.
It looked like Paris. Nothing was making sense.
Sebastian finally walked in with Noir.
I rushed to him, relieved that Noir was still alive. I took the cat from him, my trusted friend, and hugged him tight against my chest.
“Thank you,” I said softly.
Sebastian smiled. “Still have a thing for cats I see.”
I frowned. How did he…? I remember Francine’s remark. We were friends. “Did he eat?”
“He ate like a dog.” Sebastian tickled him by his ear. “He’ll be okay, Danielle. Cats can basically live anywhere.”
Anywhere?
“What is going on here? I don’t understand any of it.” I sat on the bed with Noir still in my arms.
Sebastian pulled up a chair. “I know Luke told you that you were not part of the Brolin case.”
I nodded. It was still so hard to believe that, so unreal.
“You can’t remember anything from those five years?”
I shook my head.
He stroked his face hard. “We think that someone gave you the Forgotten potion, Danielle.”
“The what?” The dullness in my voice reflected my inner emotional exhaustion.
“I know what it sounds like, okay? We’re not crazy. Humans aren’t the only beings that roam this earth. Other things go bump in the night too—monstrous things that humans can’t see, or don’t want to see.” He let out a huge breath.
“Like what?”
“Witches and warlocks for one. Magic is real—it’s just contained.”
I shook my head.
He smiled. “Marick didn’t seem to have this hard of a time making you believe in all this.”
“Marick?”
His face went numb. “He’s going to be so pissed off that you don’t remember him.” He spoke softly. “He loved you very much, Danielle, and he had been living the past ten years thinking you were dead.”
“What?”
“You married a warlock, and not just any warlock. He’s going to become the next in line to rule over the witching race.”
Royalty? My heart started to race slightly. I laughed and looked around. “My mother put you up to this.” I got up. “Haha, Mom.” I tried to look for the hidden cameras but couldn’t find anything.
“Danielle, this isn’t a prank.” Sebastian said. “I’m dead serious.”
“Witches and warlocks?” I asked. He was insane thinking that I would accept this.
He nodded.
“They don’t exist.”
“Then what do you think happened to you outside?”
I thought about that again but couldn’t explain it.
“I don’t know, but it’s not magic.”
He nodded slowly. “Okay, humor me.”
I sat down again. This guy cannot be real.
“Ten years ago, you went with the queen to the coven in Russia for the yearly meeting.”
I started to laugh again. “A queen? So what? I’m a princess?” I mocked him.
“Sort off,” he said casually.
“You’re worse than I am.” I got up and walked to the door.
“You can’t leave, Danielle, and I promise you, my sister is not going to brew that potion for you again this time.”
I paused. I looked at my fingers. Did that really happen?
Noir looked at me, and our eyes met. He meowed. It sounded like he was begging—like he wanted me to stay. “Not you too,” I whispered.
“Please, I’m not pranking you, and I’m not lying to you. I’m telling you the truth. There is more to this world then you know.”
I looked back at Sebastian, and I sat back down on the edge of the bed.
“You assisted Marick’s mother in many ways, but you came back early, told her you were tired, and you went to lay down on Eli’s couch.”
“Eli?”
“Marick’s dad, the ruler of the witches and warlocks.” He smiled. He really believes in all of this? “You loved his study. It carried so much of our history on the walls. The walls were lined with books that dated back to the Salem witch hunts and Marick always found you asleep on that couch with one of the books on your chest.” He stared at the carpet at the memory that must have been playing in his mind. “They didn’t know that you came back early. His mother went to another meeting, left you in that study. You must have fallen asleep. That night, we all found the castle in flames, and when the queen came back from her trip, she told everyone that you were still inside.” He had tears in his eyes, and I gaped at him.
“I have never seen Marick break down like the way he broke that night. He went after you—Minaut got him out in the nick of time. They found a severely burned corpse in the study, wearing his ring. He never got over it, Danny.”
I got up from the bed. “No, no.” I struggled to breathe. “I would’ve remembered a husband. I’ve never been married in my entire life.”
“You can’t remember that, Danny, because of a wretched, forbidden potion. My family got the blame because someone planted evidence in my father’s home, and we got banished from our home, from our world—living like this, trapped in a house. I’m the only one that can go outside without being affected the way you were. I found a loophole back into Europe, mostly Italy, but that day I saw you in the streets, I had to follow a lead, because whoever burn down that castle wanted us to take the blame and they are still planning to do something bad. What it is will end in more deaths than just yours. They wanted to break Marick because of what he can do.”
“What can he do?”
“He’s a rare warlock. He’s been blinded by grief the past ten years, not paying any attention. We didn’t burn the castle down. We need to get back and solve this. You’re the key, Danielle. Please, you need to help us.”
“What if you are wrong?”
“What if you’re a doppelganger? I know, but one that has your exact name, and age, and surname, and that has no idea what happened to her ten years ago? It doesn’t exist. You’re Danielle Laurent who became a Young, you didn’t die that night, but someone went through great lengths to making the rest of your family and friends believe that you had. We need to find that someone, and maybe two curses might be broken, and not just one.”
I took a deep breath.
“Fine, where did I meet this Marick?”
“In the US.”
“I came back. It was on a flight, two years after I went to America.”
“You remember that?”
“No, there is paperwork on that.”
“You did come back,” he said matter-of-factly. “It was when you discovered Marick was a warlock, that he lied to you for two years. But he came after you, Danielle. He begged you at the airport when you climbed off your flight. You changed your mind and went back home with him.”
“What?”
“You were not captured, Danielle. We think that whoever gave you the potion dropped you off in front of the police station the exact time that they caught Brolin and his wife and freed all those victims.”
Playing With Fire Page 23
