Witch Hunter Olivia

by T. A. Kunz

  “Sleep well?” he asks with a yawn.

  A small laugh seeps out. “Maybe a little too well.”

  He counters my laugh with one of his own. “There’s nothing wrong with that.” A grin stretches across his lips as he squeezes me close with the arm wrapped around my shoulder.

  My happiness is interrupted when I remember I still have quite the mess to clean up. I hug Heath close, trying to cling to this moment right now before I have to face reality again and the situation that’s bearing down on me.

  “I told you this bed was much more comfortable than those damn university mattresses,” he jokes before yawning again.

  “This bed is amazing … but unfortunately we can’t stay in it all day,” I reply with a somber tone.

  He groans. “Yeah, I know.”

  “We should probably go check on Tara,” I say against his chest after resting my head on it again. I love the feeling I get when I touch him. It’s one of those feelings that anyone would be crazy not to crave once they got a piece.

  “Well, this cuddle was nice while it lasted,” he comments before placing another kiss on my forehead.

  He releases his hold on me and slides from underneath the sheets to get out of the bed. The view is nothing less than spectacular as I watch his highly toned back, ass, and legs strut toward the closet to retrieve something to wear.

  I roll over and snatch up the clothes I had gathered and thrown onto the chair next to the bed last night. After slipping on my bra and panties, I raise up from the bed in order to finish getting dressed. I pull on my skinny jeans and slip into the blouse before turning around to face Heath. He’s standing there already dressed, since it takes almost no minutes flat for a guy to get dressed, staring at me with a longing look.

  “It’s a shame those clothes have to hide the beauty underneath them.” He moves around the bed to stand in front of me. “I can’t explain what you do to me, Liv. When I’m not with you, I’m thinking of nothing but you, and when I’m with you, all I can think of is kissing you.”

  I have to rein in my emotions since we have business to take care of, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to jump into his arms and have him ravage me again on the oh-so-inviting bed next to us.

  “You need to stop,” I say with a little laugh. “You know we have things to take care of. Very important things. And you also know we can’t accomplish them in your bed,” I explain. “As much as I’d like to.”

  “Fair enough,” he replies, stealing a kiss before I can say anything else. “Sorry, must have slipped out.”

  “Uh-huh,” I say while pursing my lips.

  “Ladies first,” he states, moving to the side and gesturing toward the open bedroom door.

  The entire drive to Jack’s has my stomach tied in knots thinking about what I’m going to say to Tara when she finally wakes up. If she wakes up. None of the scenarios I come up with in my head end well, especially since I know how she is and how she deals with stress. She blows things up with magic.

  “We’re here,” Heath announces as he parks the car in front of the chained gate.

  “If we never have to make this trip again, it’ll be too soon,” I comment while opening the door and stepping out. I hear Heath’s laugh over the top of the roof as I shut my door.

  The woods are quiet, sans the few random nature sounds that echo amongst the trees as we trudge through the dried mud. This long stretch of land gives me way more time to spend in my head than I’d like to, especially with all the thoughts whirling around up there. I catch Heath glancing back at me every once in a while, and the little smiles he sends me cause the butterflies to flit around in my stomach like some lovesick teenager. It’s refreshing how he makes me feel, even in the midst of this shitty situation.

  Before we know it, we’re standing in front of the clearing and Heath goes straight for the pile of stones to do the blood ritual. I follow suit, and like every time before, Jack’s place appears before us. The snowy scene was weird last night, but now in broad daylight with the sun shining through the canopy of trees overhead, the frosted ground looks even more out of place.

  As we make our way up to the front door, an odd feeling hits me, and I can’t shake it. The door hasn’t opened, and it has me a little worried. A loud scream resonates from within the cabin, and I rush the door, grabbing for the handle. Turning it, I throw it open with the help of my shoulder and hurry inside to find Jack and Tara having a standoff in the living room. Jack has a bright red glow pulsing around her, and Tara looks the same, except her light is blinding white.

  “Tara!” I shout, and her eyes pan over. They lose all of their sense of anger as she sees me, and her glow fades away almost instantly. Jack relaxes her guard as well.

  “Livie, where am I? Who is that?” Tara shouts back, pointing at Jack, who scrunches her lips and raises an eyebrow.

  “That’s Jack, the Jinn I told you about, and you’re in her home,” I explain calmly, trying to defuse the situation.

  “I tried to tell her that, but she decided to flip out on me instead,” Jack chimes in snidely. “You’re lucky you came when you did. I almost had to knock her out again.”

  “What’s going on? Why do I feel like I’m overheating?” Tara looks out of it, but that’s to be expected for someone who’s been in a coma-like state since yesterday.

  “You need to relax, and I’ll explain everything, okay?” I say in the calmest tone I can muster.

  Tara’s eyes shift from mine to Jack’s and back to me as she eases herself onto the couch behind her. I take a seat in the recliner next to the couch in order to get on her level. I hear Jack call Heath over and out of the room in order to give us some time alone to talk.

  “What is going on, Livie?” Her eyes and voice plead with me to tell her.

  I sigh, feeling like a million bricks have been lowered onto my chest. I don’t want to tell her for fear of what will happen, but I’ve got no other choice.

  “Tara, what do you remember from last night?”

  “I remember us being surrounded by werewolves and then my body overheating, but it all gets fuzzy after that,” she answers. The worry increases on her face the longer it takes me to say something. “What is it? What’s wrong with me?”

  “Your family wasn’t killed in a car accident, Tara.”

  “What?”

  “Okay, what I’m about to say isn’t easy for me. So please try and remain calm, because what I have to tell you isn’t something you’re going to want to hear,” I explain, making her brow furrow as she studies my face. I draw in a deep breath before beginning again. “Your father was a … witch, and your mother was mortal … making you and your sister Blenders.”

  Seeing her expression change to one of disbelief, I continue, “Wait. Before you go all postal, please let me explain.” It seems the anger that was building up in her eyes and flushing her face fades slightly, but I don’t know how long that will last. “Your father was dealing in dark magic, and I was the one who reported him, thinking it was the right thing to do. I wanted to protect you and the rest of your family. I thought they’d only take him in. I never imagined the Guild would do what they did.”

  “Why are you saying these things?” she asks, confused.

  “Because they’re true.”

  Tara goes dead silent with a dumfounded look on her face. That look soon shifts to one of confusion mixed with anger. “What? This can’t be happening.”

  Her somber tone rips at my heart and makes me want to wrap her up in a hug. “Tara, I brought you back because I hated what happened to you. It was all my fault, and I couldn’t live with myself because of the guilt,” I try to explain, but it seems to fall on deaf ears.

  “No … you’re lying. None of that’s true. Why are you doing this to me? I’m your best friend,” she says in a more agitated and hurt manner. A few tears roll down her cheeks. Her body begins to pulsate with a bright white light.

  I clench my jaw and lean forward, placing my hands
on top of hers, which are folded in her lap. The pulsating light surrounding her seems to slow down and isn’t so erratic anymore. I never take my eyes from hers so that she knows I’m not lying.

  “I know I can never make this up to you, but I need you to understand what happened,” I say, feeling the load on my chest become heavier, brick by brick. Her pulsing bright light has all but faded away now.

  “Why did you wait so long to tell me?” she grinds out with so much emotion, shaking her hands free from being underneath mine before bringing them to rest by her side.

  “I was afraid. I was afraid of this moment, right here,” I reply.

  Tara stands up and moves toward the fireplace. I can tell she’s trying so hard to not explode right now, since her glow fades in and out every couple steps. She spins around to face me, tears streaming down her face.

  “You’re my best friend, Liv. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me this sooner. I trusted you,” she cries, her intensity ramping up. The light around her flashes violently, reacting to her emotion.

  “I’m so sorry, Tara. I didn’t know what to do. You were the reason I left the Guild. I couldn’t be a part of something that could do this to someone I cared so much about. I—”

  “Stop,” she yells, cutting me off. “I can’t hear this right now. My head feels like it’s going to implode from the pressure, and I’m trying not to have another outburst. The more you talk, the harder it is.”

  I make my way to my feet and walk over to her. “Tara, please hear me out. This is breaking my heart. You must see that,” I say, hoping to get through to her.

  “Breaking your heart? Breaking your heart? You stand there and have the nerve to say something like that to me? You’re not the one who has lost her entire family and then died yourself only to be brought back into a life that isn’t worth living.”

  “But that’s the thing, you didn’t die. We thought you did, but you were alive when Heath performed the resurrection spell. That’s why you have your powers still,” I explain.

  She scoffs. “And that’s supposed to make me feel better?” Her eyes pin mine. “The Guild is going to pay for what they did to my family and me.”

  “The whole Guild isn’t responsible for this, Tara. I told on your father, and it was Tobias who ordered the hit on him behind the Guild’s back. We’re to blame, no one else,” I reply, feeling like utter shit. “Tobias is dead, Tara, so the only one left is me.” Tears form in my eyes, and though I try to fight them back, I fail miserably. “Whatever revenge you want to take out, it will have to be on me. I’m the only one left.”

  “Olivia,” she begins to say, but stops. She takes in a deep breath and refuses to make eye contact with me for a few moments. “Olivia,” she starts again, but with more force, and then her body begins to glow bright white. Her eyes are fixated on mine as the light surrounding her pulses in a crazy fashion. Before she has a chance to say anything else, I wrap her up in my arms and squeeze tight.

  “I’m so sorry … for everything,” I whisper over her shoulder.

  I feel her energy subside and dull away. She stiffens, and I fear this is it. This is the end of us. She’ll never forgive me after what I’ve done. After what the Guild has done.

  I’m surprised when her arms encircle my frame ever so gently, and I hear sobs next to my ear. I keep holding onto her, fearing that if I let her go, this moment will end, and I’m not ready for that yet. Any trace of her energy has diminished. All I feel is Tara standing in my arms.

  When we separate, I immediately lock eyes with her, and a tired smile fills her face. It strikes me as odd, but a smile is much better than tears any day.

  My cell phone begins to ring and I ignore it, waiting for Tara to say something--anything.

  “You can answer it. I’m okay,” she says in an unusually calm manner.

  “No, it can go to voicemail. This is way more important to me than some silly phone call.”

  When the jingle ends, I go to say something and am interrupted by my phone ringing again. “It must be important,” Tara comments.

  “I’m going to see who it is, and then we’ll get back to us, I promise.” I take out my phone to see the caller’s name flashing across the screen. It’s Topher’s phone.

  “Who is it?” Tara asks, swiping away the few stray tears from under her eyes.

  “Topher. He’s probably got info on my brother,” I answer, feeling conflicted now since this is an important phone call.

  “Answer it,” she says softly.

  “Are you sure?” I ask, and she replies with a nod.

  Swiping the phone to answer the call, I press the phone to my ear and say hello. I face away from Tara when I hear Topher’s voice come through on the other end.

  “Olivia?”

  “Yeah, I’m here. Do you have any news about my brother?”

  “I just saw him. He told me to tell you that if you ever wanted to see your little witch bitch, you should be at the bonfire tonight. Does that mean anything to you?” I can tell he’s confused.

  “Unfortunately, it does,” I reply.

  “He was not himself, Liv. I’m worried about him.”

  I sigh. “Me too, Topher. Me too.”

  “What’s going on?”

  “I’m still in the process of figuring that out. It’d be best if you stay far away from my brother until you see me in person again. If you see me, then you’ll know everything’s fine.” He tries to say something, but I cut him off. “I’m sorry to cut this convo short, Topher, but I’ve got something to attend to. Thank you for relaying the message.”

  “Of course. Be careful, Liv, with whatever you’re about to do.”

  After we say our goodbyes, I turn my attention back to Tara. “Sounds like we’re going to the bonfire after all,” she says in a somber tone, almost like she’s in a daze.

  “No, we’re going back to the dorm so you can rest, while Heath and I go to the bonfire,” I reply, to which she sends me a wan smile. “Are you sure you don’t want to talk about this?” I gesture between her and me.

  “I think I’m pretty tapped out on this subject right now.”

  “Okay. Just know that I’m here whenever you need to talk.”

  All Tara does is nod slightly before panning her eyes over my left shoulder. I follow her line of sight and see Heath standing there with Jack by his side, both looking apprehensive.

  “Everything okay out here?” Heath asks.

  “As good as they can be, considering the circumstances,” I reply, and look back at Tara for her agreement.

  Her absent stare has me worried. Her eyes are glossed over from the tears pooling up in them, and she’s looking even more like a shell of a person than she did before. She’s in deep thought, and I can’t blame her in the slightest. She just had a bunch of info dumped on her, and none of it was positive. That has to take a toll. Hell, I’m an emotional wreck right now, so I can’t even begin to imagine what she’s feeling like.

  “You know what I’d love right now?” Tara asks, surprising me. “A nice long shower back at the dorm.”

  “I think that can be arranged,” I respond with a half-smile.

  Sitting down on my bed, I watch Tara pick up her shower caddy and load it up with her stuff before heading to the bathroom.

  “I shouldn’t be long. Just want to soak a bit,” she says, her eyes looking tired, red, and swollen.

  She had broken down into tears a few times during the drive back to campus, but that’s to be expected with everything she’s gone through. It probably didn’t help that I felt compelled to tell her everything we learned about her condition when she was in her magic-induced coma. I couldn’t keep anything else from her, and wanted to tell her everything I knew. No more secrets. To say she didn’t take that well would be putting it lightly.

  After she closes the door behind her, Heath joins me on the bed and places his arm around my shoulders. “How you holding up?”

  “No offense, but it doesn’t matter how
I’m holding up. Tara’s hurting, and there’s nothing I can do or say to help her. And tonight I have to face my brother, or whoever it is, in order to help Angelica. I’ll let you know how I’m holding up after all this is over,” I reply, which causes him to release a heavy sigh.

  “I’ll be right here with you through it all,” he says, taking my hand in his. He brings it up to his mouth and places a soft kiss on the top of it, then brings both to rest on his leg. A smile forms on my lips at this sweet gesture, and I relax my head against his shoulder, feeling content in this moment.

  The shower shuts off and I put a little space between Heath and me for Tara’s sake. I’m sure the last thing she wants to see right now is our happiness. I don’t want her to feel any more uncomfortable than she already does. I’m surprised to see our next-door neighbor, Michele, open the bathroom door and enter the room.

  “Uh, why did Tara come through my room a few minutes ago and run out my door?”

  “What?”

  “Yeah, she came through and went right out. She didn’t even say anything.”

  I spring to my feet and rush to the door, flinging it open. I look up and down the hallway, but see no sign of her anywhere. Running to the end of the hall that leads to the other half of the floor, I still don’t see her.

  “Tara!” I cry out, hoping and pleading she’ll answer, but deep down I know she’s gone. “Tara!”

  I feel Heath’s hand take hold of my arm. “Any sign of her?” he asks, peering down the hall we’re standing in.

  “She’s gone, Heath. She’s run away.” Emotion grips me and I fight to hold back the tears that are incoming. “We have to find her. She’s a danger to herself and everyone around her while she’s in this state.”

  “I don’t mean to sound harsh, but do you really think she wants to be found? Especially after what you told her?” Heath asks. He’s not helping the situation.

  “I don’t care. She’s all alone now, and it’s all my fault.”

  “What about the bonfire tonight?” he asks. “You’re going to have to decide which is more important. You know that, right?”