Witch's Promise : The Witching Hour Series Book 4

by Joanna Mazurkiewicz

  That was enough. He kept talking, but I wasn't listening to him anymore. Violent images moved through my mind. I stopped believing him. He was never truly committed to helping me. I couldn’t comprehend that I had been so stupid.

  "After failing to find the white witch, you were so upset and lost. I should have realised that…"

  That was it. My mind wasn’t making sense of anything he was saying to me. A lethal, dark and most vicious energy, took over. I needed to get away from him, as far away as possible.

  I thought about all those lessons with Tron and pulsation, the way I could control the weather.

  The light came unexpected, moving throughout the room with enormous speed. He realised too late that I diverted my entire energy on him. I didn’t give him a chance to think about a protection spell. I was risking my own life, toying with dangerous power that I didn’t even understand. At that moment Jasper realised he was totally at my mercy, and I didn’t have any left. He was going to die.

  CHAPTER 22

  BREAKING POINT.

  T he energy that lashed out of me was raw and the deadliest that I’d ever created. I wanted to hurt him and for the first time in my life I was fully aware of what I was doing. Masses of blue and red light evaporated from my hands, hurling towards the opposite wall. Whizzing and hissing sounds filled the room all around me. I felt the power deep in my bones. All this time I had been careful, vigilant, but Jasper broke me with his deceit. Hatred sparked every ounce of my energy and I attacked.

  "Julia! What the hell are you doing?" he shouted, widening his eyes, trying to get up. His magic wand was on the table. He glanced at it, but he wasn't quick enough. I pushed my hands forward, releasing infinite power. It felt good being in control, wonderful knowing my abilities could take care of him.

  "Stay away from me forever, you useless piece of shit!" I roared and ordered my magic to hurt him.

  The thunder and lightning hit the sky as my magic wrecked the space, draining the oxygen and Jasper’s power out of the room. He was pinned down to the floor, and without his wand he was useless, trapped in a circle of my damaging energy. I grabbed my stuff from the dresser, put my clothes into the bag, ready to get the hell out of the there, as far away from him as possible.

  The door slammed, and the frame flew from its hinges, thrashing on the other side of the corridor. Then I left, hearing screams of the hotel staff running towards me. I reached the stairs and with rigid breath I ran down, not caring about the mess I’d left, hoping that Jasper was now well and truly dead.

  It was early morning when I rushed through reception and jumped into a taxi that was parked outside.

  "Where to, love?" the older driver asked. He was a hundred percent human.

  "Train station. Fast," I hissed.

  He rolled his eyes like it was a joke and put his food down on the gas. I’d taken Jasper by surprise and in any other circumstance he would’ve probably killed me, but I used everything I had, so he didn’t stand chance. I didn't care if he was going to come after me or even if he was still alive. We were done. I never should’ve went to him for help. I should’ve suspected that the white witch wasn’t there. Everything fell apart. From there on I was on my own.

  I felt sick to my stomach, thinking about that poor dhampir girl who I hurt. At least I gave her freedom, but me? I had to do yet one more thing that would strip away what dignity I had left. Now my dad and Kate were going to die. I had nothing I could take back to my mother. Thinking of her disappointment hurt like hell, and I didn’t know if I could face her with the real truth.

  I held back my tears, because the human taxi driver was staring at me and the tingling wouldn’t stop. It was becoming worse when he dropped me at the train station. I couldn't afford to be seen like that. Jasper mentioned that it was a small community; paranormals were everywhere, spread throughout the villages. I needed to be careful.

  An hour passed, and I caught the train to Bristol, then back to London. Crushing pain between my ribs reminded me about the night I’d spent with Jasper. The voices in my head whispered that I was a failure. Jasper’s oriental cologne was on my skin and with each breath the memories flashed in front of my eyes. I needed to wash it away, forget that we were close just a few hours ago. He’d taken advantage of me in the worst way. I wasn’t sure if would ever be able to wash away those terrible memories.

  Obviously, we were never meant to find the white witch. She was still somewhere out there, and all my effort had been for nothing. She was still lost. My only other option was to find the bitch who ripped away my father’s soul and force her to undo the spell.

  Teaming up with my mentally unstable, psycho ex-boyfriend was a bad idea. Nathaniel had been right all along: people like Jasper couldn’t change. I needed him, so he used me to get to Julian and get whatever he lost years ago. He obviously needed my blood the whole time, lying to me, pretending that he wanted to help me, but in the end, I was just his toy.

  When the train reached London, it started raining. On the way home, I bought wine. Maybe it was wrong for me to drink, but for tonight I needed to forget the past few days. The next day I would start over and carry on.

  Jasper was probably going to wake up tomorrow in a human hospital and then he would come after me. I didn’t care. Let him come.

  I was going to be ready. My magic was under control and if he was clever enough he would stay away. The nice, respectful Julia was gone. Now I had to toughen up if I wanted to survive in this cruel world. I was ready for another round if that bastard dared to show his face.

  The wine was going down nicely, and by twelve I passed out on the sofa. That night I had dark, twisted dreams: monsters, crawling, hairy and gut-wrenching spiders were all over me. Jasper was sitting in my kitchen laughing at me.

  He then changed into a woman, a witch. I woke up in the early hours of the morning soaked with sweat. It was around six. Then I called Rufus letting him know that I was back, and I would be at work tomorrow. He was fine with it, and luckily, he didn’t ask any questions.

  Next priority was to see my mother and then visit Dad. This was going to be the hardest part of my day. My heart ached. Mum was expecting good news; I couldn’t imagine telling her that I didn't find who I was looking for.

  To keep myself busy for the rest of the morning, I did some laundry, cleaned the apartment and charged my phone. Nathaniel hadn’t called, and I was surprised that I hadn’t heard from him. I thought about what Kelsie said and shook my head. There was no way Nathaniel would throw money away to a witch coven, knowing what happened to Dad and Kate.

  Around ten o’clock I took a shower and dressed, then headed to the hospital. I hid my face in my hands and just breathed for several minutes before I turned on the engine. I felt like I’d disappointed everyone. I was so close to the white witch but searching for her in London was like looking for a needle in a haystack. It took me an hour to drive to the hospital and the whole time I was trying not to be sick.

  I felt demonic, invincible with my new magic that I could finally control, but deep inside I knew my magic was worthless, because it hurt people.

  The nurse in my dad’s ward informed me that Mum had been sitting by his bed almost every day. Remembering my grandmother’s words, I didn't want to drain any power from Dad, so I stood by the door watching him from the corridor. He looked worse than he did only a few days ago. His skin was so pale that it was almost white, and it looked like he’d lost a lot of weight.

  My heart nearly stopped in my chest—in a couple of weeks he wouldn't be around.

  "Julia, oh, my, hon. Are you all right?" Mum asked.

  "Yes, Mum, I'm fine." I sighed.

  "You look exhausted."

  “Don't worry about it, Mum. Unfortunately, I don’t have any good news. I left London for a few days, hoping to find the person who could help Dad, but the whole trip was a disaster."

  Mum’s eyes shimmered with tears, but she didn’t let go of my hands.

  "The doctor… tha
t healer said that your father hasn’t got much longer," she choked out. The colour drained from my face and my knees went a little weak.

  "How long does he have, Mum?" I asked in a hushed whisper.

  "Less than two weeks."

  I couldn’t hold my tears any longer. Mum hugged me, and I sobbed, feeling like it was all my fault. I hated Jasper for using me, and I hated myself for believing the worst scumbag in the world.

  Mum and I talked over a cup of coffee. Mum told me that my grandmother and the rest of the family spent the entire Saturday out in the corridor. Grandma wasn't happy that I vanished and didn’t even come in to talk to her. I didn’t have time to deal with her humours. I might not have found the white witch yet, but there was still the new coven in town. It was just the case of tracking them down.

  I left the hospital an hour later in a miserable mood. I had an early morning shift with Sara.

  I went to the office before my shift started and picked up a few files. I needed to keep busy, so I worked my arse off until late at night keeping my mind away from trouble. Tomorrow I was planning to visit Kelsie and possibly Nathaniel. I wasn't going to sit around and wait for Kate and Dad to die.

  "SARA, for goodness sake; where are those forms?" I shouted at my useless co-worker for the fourth time. It was midafternoon and there was a very long queue outside the office. It was four weeks before Christmas and the production line at La Caz Pharmaceutical was the busiest it had ever been.

  Lucinda needed more people in twenty-four hours, as the factory was bursting with orders. Apparently, Nathaniel had launched a new product last week.

  “It's here… I'm—"

  She didn’t finish, because she landed on the floor, tripping over the carpet in front of a number of paranormals. Some people laughed, another helped her out. I wanted to stab myself.

  With her red face, she finally delivered the necessary forms. Surprisingly, a group of witches had been moving through the queue. They all seemed eager, and I had no choice but to waste my time and register them. Lucinda was kicking off; every day more witches weren't turning up for their shifts. She extended the probation period, but that didn’t make much difference.

  I wasn’t feeling any Christmas atmosphere at all. Every part of me wanted to be with my father in the hospital, but I needed to check something in Nathaniel’s factory to make sure I hadn’t missed something completely obvious. I didn't even have enough time to use the loo. Finally, several hours later, Alexandra and a few vampires took over our shifts in the evening.

  I grabbed a sandwich, pushing my violent magic back in my system and drove to Brunel Industrial Estate. It was odd that Nathaniel hadn’t called to check if I was still alive. He lost it when I told him about the money and Gordon, but it had been days and he hadn’t even tried to contact me. I needed to remember that he had a new woman in his life, so maybe he simply didn't care anymore. Kelsie was probably right. I rejected him, refused his help, but would he really turn and support witches? It was time to have a conversation with Kelsie. I had asked her to keep her ears open and I wanted to catch her before she went home.

  It was six o’clock when I left the agency and then it took me two hours to reach Nathaniel’s factory. In the car park I spotted a few of my clients walking, chatting away, probably getting ready for their shifts.

  Kelsie was finishing late today, probably just after eight, so I was right on time. It was a shame that someone killed Shaun. I wished that I’d rushed him to answer. Michael, Kelsie’s boyfriend, had many contacts in London. I needed to ask them for help one more time.

  Nathaniel was in the factory today. Lucinda mentioned earlier that he was coordinating all the orders, but I wasn't ready to see him. I didn’t want to be spotted by his security cameras either. His guys probably already knew the plate number of my car. It was dark, so I drove to the back and parked my car on the other side of the factory. This way I didn't have to worry about being seen by his people.

  I switched off my lights and put my mobile on silent. Kelsie took her time, so I had at least ten minutes before she would leave work.

  I rubbed my tired face wishing I had more time. Now Dad only had two weeks. When I was just about to get out of the car I saw a man sneaking out of one of the side exits.

  It was Nathaniel himself. He stopped, looked around, and then began walking to the right. Luckily for me he didn’t notice my car. From the other side, four women appeared and moved quickly towards him, like they had been waiting for him. My heart skipped a beat, then raced triple time. Indeed, the group met, and Nathaniel handed them an envelope, saying something to them.

  I hardened my vision making sure that I didn’t miss anything. He spoke to them briefly, waved his hands like he was frustrated and then went back inside the building. I sank back in my seat when the women started walking towards me. They were paranormal, witches who worked in the factory. It looked like Nathaniel had made some sort of deal with them.

  CHAPTER 23

  TOGETHER AT LAST.

  M y mind was going through a number of scenarios. There was no way Nathaniel could’ve been dealing with witches directly. What the hell was in the envelope? Why didn’t he want to be seen by anyone?

  There was a simple solution. I could ask him what was going on. He wouldn't hide the truth from me. Would he?

  I had no idea what to think. We had a pretty solid connection. Yes, he let me down in the past when it came to his own feelings, but he had been protecting me. He hired people to keep an eye on me, and now all of a sudden, he was one of the bad guys? I just didn’t want to believe it. My heart demanded I go and ask for an explanation, but we weren’t together. I had my own problems. My family was falling apart. Nathaniel was an arse sometimes, but he wasn't a traitor.

  No, there was nothing I was sure about anymore.

  When the witches disappeared, I dialled Kelsie’s number and told her I was waiting for her outside the factory. Ten minutes later she showed up at the main door. She looked tired, wearing only a blouse at the end of November, her high heels pounded loudly against the frozen ground.

  “What’s up, party girl?" she asked, hopping inside my car. "I didn’t know you were back already."

  "I came back unexpectedly yesterday. We didn’t find the witch. It turned out that Jasper hasn’t changed at all. He used this trip to deal with his own affairs."

  Kelsie slapped herself in the face.

  "Used you? What the hell do you mean?"

  Then I had to tell her everything, starting with Julian, the blood, Carla and the whole tea business. Kelsie was certain that Carla wasn't just some human woman. She poisoned me, knowing who I was. I also told her what happened when Jasper and I went back to the hotel.

  "The bastard!" she shouted with white-hot anger in her eyes. "What a—"

  "Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if he staged everything, pretending he didn’t know what was going on. My energy went off the rails. I fucked him up and I don’t think he’ll be able to move for the next couple of weeks. I want nothing to do with him. The white witch is somewhere in London, but we’ll never find her. The new coven is more important. There isn’t any other option. These witches are the only ones who can undo the spell."

  “You're right, but I have my own theory about this new coven," she said confidently.

  I wanted to tell her about Nathaniel and his unexpected meeting with suspicious looking witches, but in the end, I decided to keep it to myself. If he was really working against me, then I wanted to be the first to know.

  "What are you talking about?" I asked.

  "Drive. We’ll talk about this in your apartment. I have an idea."

  Normally it was Kate who had ideas, well, dangerous ones, but she wasn't with us and now Kelsie had taken over. I needed all the help I could get, and my friends always had my back. On the way to my apartment, Kel was trying hard to distract me from gloomy thoughts. She kept talking about her day, moaning about Lucinda and Michael. Apparently, her boyfriend was so busy with
work that they hadn't had sex for over a week.

  The traffic a few weeks before Christmas was terrible. It took us over two hours to finally get back to Croydon. When we arrived at my apartment, I spotted Ella pacing around outside by the entrance. My best friend looked good. It was chilly out there and I kept wondering why she didn’t call to say she’d been waiting for me.

  "How long have you been standing out here?" I asked her.

  "Ten minutes. My battery died, but I guessed that you were finishing work, so I took the tube," she replied and smiled when she saw Kelsie. "Hey, Kel."

  "Hey, love. Come on, Julia, get the girl inside. She’s going to get the flu standing in this freezing cold weather," Kelsie said, hurrying Ella inside.

  I was glad that Ella popped in to see me, but I didn’t want to drag her into any of my plans, especially after what happened with Daniel and Ludwig during the networking event from two years ago.

  We all went upstairs, and I made them a cup of tea. Ella was in a good mood, asking me about Dad and Mum. We were discussing what might have happened to Alex and Tron. They were gone, vanished from the face of the earth and I was afraid that other fairies might have found out about Ella’s existence. We needed to be careful. At least Ella’s confidence was back, but everything seemed so unresolved.

  "All right, I think we covered the usual chitchat. Let’s get down to business," Kelsie announced, placing her cup on the table.

  "Business?" Ella asked, her green eyes studying me closely.

  "Kelsie, I'm sorry, but I don’t want to get Ella involved with any of this. These witches are dangerous. Look what happened to Kate!"

  "Excuse me, I can speak for myself and I want to get involved. I'm not a child." Ella scowled, folding her arms over her chest.

  “I'm fully aware that you aren’t a child, darling, but you don’t have experience in magic. We don’t want to put your life at risk. Remember the other fairies, your “family” that might still be after you? You’re magical, but at the same time your spells could be unpredictable,” I explained, thinking about Alex and Tron. This was when we needed them both but neither of us had any idea where they were or how to reach them.