“You broke up?”
“We had to in the end. Marissa had a premonition about our future. She saw our relationship being exposed and more suffering because of it. We parted ways and I haven’t seen her since.”
“Do you know what happened to her?”
“She’s still alive somewhere. Every year on my birthday, I receive a greeting card from her. She never writes anything much but just seeing her name scrawled on the bottom always brings a smile to my face. She never prints her address so I can’t reciprocate.”
“It sounds like a tragic love story,” I said. I couldn’t believe these two people that were clearly in love were kept apart because of different factions. They were both still human, surely that counted for something?
“I loved my wife before she passed, we raised two beautiful children together. But I will always love Marissa in a way that nobody could ever fulfil.”
“I’m really sorry you couldn’t be together.”
Sadie took a deep breath and then came back to the present, shaking off some of her sadness. “Everyone has their own battles to fight. I was proud of Samara and Drake for being brave enough to fight for their love. Your grandmother had the courage to do what I could not.”
“I think you’re pretty brave now dealing with curses. Other witches probably don’t approve of you undoing all their hard work.”
“Indeed. Now, shall we get started? I’m sure you’ve got better things to do than sit around and talk with an old lady.”
“Just homework and that’s not exciting at all,” I joked, hoping to lighten the mood.
She patted the cushion next to her on the sofa. “Come and take a seat here. I’d like to get a reading on you, see if I can feel the curse working its magic.”
I moved to sit beside her before Sadie placed both her hands on my head. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply while I tried to remain still.
Time passed by very slowly. I desperately wanted to ask if she felt anything but I kept my mouth closed. If she could feel the curse, perhaps she could lift it too.
The clock on the wall made audible ‘clicks’ as it ticked. I tried to count all the way to sixty before started again. I did this fifteen times before Sadie took her hands back and opened her eyes.
She stared at me blankly. That couldn’t be good.
“Did you feel anything?” I asked. I chewed on my bottom lip while I waited for an answer.
“Yes, I could.”
“Was it the curse?”
She frowned. “Yes. The coven of witches that placed the curse were very strong. It’s like the spell has wrapped around you and buried into your skin. It’s like…thorns on a rose. When they dig in, they hurt and stay attached remarkably well.”
I didn’t like the thought of having a curse so interwoven into my being. What else could it possibly be doing to me? Was the curse the reason why I never won any raffles? Was always the last one to be picked for school projects? Always the odd one out in my group of friends back home?
“Can you get it off me?” It felt like a stain on my soul now. I didn’t want it lingering for even a moment more.
“I don’t know if I can,” she said in barely a whisper.
All that hope I’d tried to conjure suddenly fell flat. “But you can try, right? You’ve done it before. You might be able to try something that works?”
“The spell is very intricate. I would have to find all the ways they made it and then try to reverse each one a little bit at a time.”
“But you’ll do it.”
“I’m afraid there are limits to what I can do.”
“Please try.” I would get down on my hands and knees if it would help convince her to help me. I couldn’t just leave now and forget about it.
She slowly started nodding her head. “I will try. Although, what you really need is one of the original witches from the coven. Perhaps there is one member who regrets placing the curse all those years ago.”
“My grandmother said it wouldn’t be wise letting them know who I was. She thought they might expose me as a non-supernatural so the council would dispose of me,” I explained. I didn’t want to jump from the frying pan into the fire.
“You would need to approach them carefully. Not as Samara’s granddaughter, but as someone else. Someone completely unrelated.”
I supposed that could work. But I had more problems to contend with then. “I wouldn’t even know where to start looking for them.”
“I can help with that.”
Sadie stood and crossed the room to an old timber bureau that had dozens of little drawers in it. She went straight for the one two down from the top and three over from the side.
She pulled out a photograph and handed it to me. “This is the coven that cursed your grandmother.”
The picture was faded but nine women were standing in a line for the group photo. The creepiest part of it was that none of them were smiling. Each had cold eyes that just stared at the camera.
My hand shook a little as I took the photo from Sadie. If those were the women that I was up against, I was going to have a tougher time than I imagined.
“They are known as the Coven of the Nightshade,” Sadie said. “Very powerful. For that reason, they have been respected by all witches. Nobody would want to cross them. I’m not surprised your curse is so intricately designed. These women knew what they were doing.”
“Do you know their names? Somewhere I can start looking for them?”
“Just the coven name. That alone would have made them known. If you start to make enquires in their hometown, I’m sure you will be able to find at least one of them.”
“Where’s their hometown?” I asked. While I didn’t like the sound of going on a wild goose chase, at least it would give me something to do other than read ancient books.
“The same place your grandmother left after the Civil War—Lincolnfield.”
I mentally tried to place the town. There were signs to it on the way to Sadie’s house. I wouldn’t have to go too far to find them.
Having them so near was a little scary. If they found me before I found them, they could report me to the council as quickly as they could move.
On the other hand, it was nice and close to visit. “I’ll try to make my way out there as soon as I can. May I keep this photograph?”
“Of course you can.”
Sadie blessed me with a protective charm before I left. I slipped the bracelet around my wrist and secured it tightly. It might be the only thing working for me at the moment.
Back in the car, I stared at the picture again. There was something about it. Something familiar. I couldn’t quite place my finger on it.
My gaze went back and forth over the line of women. They were all dressed in black formal robes. They must have been at a ceremony or special event. The covens normally only pulled those out on rare occasions.
I kept going back to the one witch. She was second from the left, a little taller than the rest of them. Her expression was blank as her dark eyes looked into space. Perhaps she was staring at something, or someone, behind the camera.
It clicked in my brain. I had seen the woman before. An older version of the woman in the picture. I only caught a glimpse of her but I was certain it was her. I could definitely pick her out of a line up.
The witch had been at Shadow Academy. I’d seen her run out of the forest just before Liam pulled me away on Friday night.
That couldn’t be a good thing.
Chapter 10
They were coming for me.
That’s all I could think about as I drove back to campus. It could not have been a coincidence that one of the witches from the Nightshade Coven showed up at the very school where I was attending.
The coven must know who I was and what I was up to. I had no idea how. Was it the name? It wouldn’t have been too difficult to trace the family tree from Grandma. She only had one daughter and that daughter only had one daughter.
It wouldn’
t have taken more than a few minutes of research. For a witch, it would take less. They could have done a locator spell and Shadow Academy would have lit up like a Christmas tree.
I needed a plan. I couldn’t just continue to be a normal student and wait for the council and the Black Cloaks to get me. If they didn’t, perhaps the Nightshade Coven would. They might be planning on some serious revenge in addition to the curse they plagued me with.
In my mind, I started to list all the things I had to do. At the very top was move out of Cress’s dorm room. Being there was putting her at risk. Not just from the council now but the coven too. I wouldn’t do it any longer. Cress was too pure to get messed up in my problems.
As soon as I was back on campus, I packed up my things and gave Cress back her car keys. I gave her a brief overview of what I learned from my outing.
“Where are you going to stay?” she asked. “You really don’t have to go. Claire and I can look after ourselves. You remember we have claws and teeth, right?”
I stopped shoving things in my backpack to look at her directly—maybe then she would get the message. “Witches have much more than claws and teeth. You can’t fight them physically when they are playing a game of spells. You can’t win, despite how badass I know you are.”
Her bravado slipped a little as she frowned. “Do you really think they are going to come for you?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t be here. I could cover for you, say you had to leave suddenly because of an emergency.”
“I really appreciate that, but all Principal Dunlop would have to do is call my parents. They won’t lie for me anymore.” I swallowed down the lump in my throat. “I’ll be okay. I just have to get to them before they can get to me. And I don’t want you risking your life for me.”
“I would gladly do it.”
I gave her a one-armed hug. “And that’s why I love you. But I would never forgive myself if anything happened to you and Claire. You’ve already been way too kind to me.”
“Where will you go?” she asked, her voice resigned now but still full of worry.
“Where I’m supposed to be.”
I grabbed the last of my stuff and headed out. I hauled my suitcase up three flights of stairs and then knocked on the door of room 396.
Rosa answered after a few moments. “Have you got my homework?”
I pushed into the room and dumped my bags on the empty bed. “No. I’m moving back in.”
Instantly, her feathers were ruffled. I bet the seer didn’t see this coming. “You can’t do that. I told you I’d only keep your secret if you didn’t live here. You can’t just come back.”
“Yes, I can. This is my room and this is where I’m going to stay. You can either put up with it and I’ll keep doing your homework. Or you can turn me in now and you can do your own homework for the rest of the year. Which will it be?”
I stood up to my maximum height and crossed my arms over my chest. I hoped I looked like a formidable opponent.
Rosa’s mouth opened and closed a few times as she tried to work out what to do. I guessed she didn’t have too many people stand up to her. I wouldn’t either if I didn’t have much bigger, scarier monsters to deal with.
“Well?” I asked. “Are we going to make this work, or will you be spending all your spare time in the library catching up on your classes?”
“I guess I could report you at the end of term,” she said. Her voice had lost confidence but it was still full of bitch.
“Wonderful. We’ll renegotiate terms and conditions at the end of term.”
If I stayed alive long enough.
She flopped onto her bed and picked up the magazine she had been reading. I started putting my things away and tried to hide the smile on my face. It might have only been a tiny win, but it was a start.
When my side of the room looked like someone actually lived there, I turned my attention to what I should do next. I pulled out the photograph Sadie had given me and tried to commit all the faces to memory.
Each of the women in the picture were dangerous to me. Any of them could be reporting me to the supernatural council right now. I wouldn’t be able to deny their claims—I couldn’t do any magic. They would guarantee my execution.
I had to get to them before they could get to me. The woman in the forest was the one I needed to start with. Liam had said something about her. He’d said she was dangerous and I was to avoid her.
Liam knew more than he admitted to. He had to. Someone doesn’t see a random woman and then warn everyone about her being dangerous without knowing something.
He was where I needed to start.
I went to leave the room and then remembered something. I turned to Rosa. “I’m going to need a key to the door.”
“We’re not supposed to lock doors,” she replied, not looking up from the magazine.
“Yeah, we’re not. But you do. So I’m going to have to insist on a copy of the key.”
She flipped through a few pages, ignoring me.
“I’m not leaving until you give me one. Nor will I stop talking until it’s in my hand,” I said. I leaned against the door, making it clear I was there for the long term unless she gave me what I wanted.
Her eyes flicked over the top of the magazine and then back again. She finally sighed and got up. She retrieved the key from her desk and held it out for me.
I took it with a smirk on my face, just to annoy her. I think it really worked. She flopped back down onto her bed and faced the wall.
Now it was time I spoke with Liam. I hurried across campus to reach the boys’ dormitories. I kept going until I reached Liam’s room. I knocked.
He opened the door a moment later. He seemed surprised to see me. “To what do I owe this pleasure?” he asked.
“Can I come in?”
Liam stood back from the door to allow me entry. He closed the door behind me again once I was inside. I stood in the middle of the room, awkward and wishing I had thought of what I would say when I got there.
He sat on his desk chair and waited for me to explain my presence. I didn’t know how to get him to tell me what he knew. They needed to teach things like that in our classes. That would come in much handier than ancient history.
I guessed I was just going to have to be straight with him. “Remember that woman we saw on Friday night? The one you said was dangerous?”
“I was just joking around,” he replied.
“No, you weren’t. She is a witch from the Nightshade Coven. A group that is considered one of the most powerful covens in the country.”
Liam shrugged in response.
I plowed on. “You knew that though, didn’t you? You knew what she was doing here and just how dangerous she could be. To me, anyway. You knew she was here for me.”
He clenched his jaw, his cheek ticking with the motion. It was like he was clamping his mouth down so he didn’t say too much. I didn’t understand why he was being so secretive. If anyone had something to hide here, it was me. Not Liam.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said. His gaze looked everywhere else except at me. There was nothing about him that was being truthful.
“Liam, I know you know. You couldn’t have known who she was without knowing why she was here. I deserve the truth.”
His eyes returned to me. “I don’t know things for sure. I can only speculate.”
“Speculate then. Tell me what you think is going on here. Please,” I added. I would beg and plead with him to tell me. I couldn’t leave now without any more information than what I already had.
He stood and perched on the edge of his desk. He shoved his hands into his pockets as if he didn’t know what else to do with them. “I wasn’t sure of who you were until you told me your grandmother’s name. Everything kind of fell into place then.”
“But you suspected?”
“Yeah. Vice Principal Chandler is a seer. She told my dad that there was a student this year
that was cursed. She didn’t know what their name was but that there would be danger brought to the academy. He told me to keep my eyes and ears open for a student that fit the description.”
It was worse than I suspected. I had given information to the principal’s spy and now he would report back exactly who I was. My world started to spin around me.
I plonked down on the bed before I passed out. I couldn’t believe I’d made it so easy for Principal Dunlop to find the cursed student.
My instincts said to run now and get as far away as possible. Perhaps if everything stopped spinning, I would be able to.
“Eden,” Liam said. I hadn’t realized he had said my name several times before I actually looked up at him. He moved to sit on the bed next to me. “Eden, it’s okay.”
“No, it’s not.” My tongue felt too big to be in my mouth. Was I going to choke on it? “I’m going to be handed over to the Black Cloaks. I’m going to die. And all because of a curse made before I was even born.”
“No, you’re not.”
“Yes, I am. You just said it before—your father tasked you with finding the cursed one and you’ve done it.”
“I’m not going to tell him.”
That got my attention. I looked up and our eyes locked together. I tried desperately to see if he was lying. What tell would he have to indicate an untruth? A tick, a twitch, a change in tone? I didn’t know.
“Eden, your secret is safe with me,” he said.
He had to be lying. “Of course you’re going to tell your dad. He told you to. You did a good job of finding me. End of story.”
“No, not end of story. I could never turn you in. I will gladly keep your secret until the day I die, Eden.”
There was only one question left me to me to ask. “Why?”
“I thought that was pretty clear.”
“You’re going to have to be more specific,” I said.
There was that jaw twitch again. He was stopping himself from saying something. This time it must not have worked. “Because I’m in love with you, you stupid cursed witch.”
I tried to process everything he was saying. I could hear the individual words but it was like I couldn’t understand the way they were strung together.
Magic Bound (Shadow Academy Book 2) Page 7
