Family Feud: The Witching Hour Series Book 5

by Joanna Mazurkiewicz

  "Oh, Kelsie… no," Kate whispered, looking horrified.

  "As you can imagine, that tripped him over the edge. He went slightly mental and told me he was going to make sure that I never found employment in London ever again. Then he called security. I was resistant, so they had to force me out."

  I could no longer pretend that I understood any of it. I’d known Nathaniel for over five years. He’d never behaved this way. He had no reason to fire Kelsie. What had gotten into him?

  "This isn't happening. Please tell me he’s not doing this out of spite," I said, wondering what I’d done to anger him so much.

  Then we heard the door again and Rufus walked in. My stomach made a funny jolt. He didn't look too good either. His hair was sticking out and he was flustered, like he ran all the way to the agency.

  "La Caz pulled the contract. We just lost fifty percent of the business. All the investors are panicking. I have no idea what to do."

  I kept staring at him, unable to comprehend what was happening. These words hit me like a storm. My perfect world was falling to pieces. Nathaniel would never do anything to harm his business. We were the only agency in London that was able to supply thousands of temporary workers in order for him to sustain the work, so his business decision didn't make any sense.

  "Rufus, I—"

  "Let's talk, Julia, in private," Rufus requested, not letting me speak in front of my friends. My magic was going crazy, my pulse was skyrocketing. I was going to be sick at any moment.

  "Julia, I normally don't do this, but tell me what’s going on between you and La Caz. I’ve read the papers. The engagement is off, right?"

  What was I supposed to tell him; that Nathaniel couldn't handle the fact that my ancestors had signed a contract that mated me with a complete stranger? That I was weak, and let Jasper into my life, hoping he would help me? That Nathaniel had been acting strange since my grandmother had passed away? No, I couldn't tell him any of that.

  I pressed my fingers to my temples, trying to think of what to say or do. Nathaniel and I had chosen a life together and now he was ruining my life. We were done with breaking up and getting back together.

  "He called off the engagement, Rufus. My father punched him when he disrespected me in front of him. I can't explain why he’s doing this, but it's clearly some sort of revenge."

  Rufus stood up, running his hand over his face and looking around anxiously.

  "You broke up before. God, Julia. I don't mean to get involved with your personal life, but this is huge. The agency will go bankrupt and we’ll all lose our jobs. I’ve tried talking to him, but he refused to see me."

  My blood ran cold. Of course, Nathaniel’s exclusive contract had produced a massive revenue. The agency cash flow was in jeopardy. I never thought about what would have happened to the business if we hadn't met.

  "I don't know what to say, Rufus. He hasn't been himself in the past few months. We were having dinner at my parents and then suddenly he started saying all these horrible things. I can't explain any of this," I said, feeling incredibly guilty. "Maybe if I talk to him, he’ll change his mind. Surely, he needs to give himself a bit more time."

  "We were very fortunate that we managed to get that contract in the first place. La Caz is making a mistake. He won't be able to find another agency in such a short space of time. It's the wrong decision and he must realise that. Let's hope he’s bluffing, and things will get back to normal soon."

  I didn't want to crush his dream. I knew Nathaniel: he was doing this because he was punishing me. There wasn't any other explanation.

  "I’ll try to make an appointment with Lucinda and get to the bottom of this, Rufus."

  He leaned over and placed his hands on my shoulders.

  "The investors are packing up. I can't do anything. La Caz has money in other businesses, too; it's not just London. He’s pulling the plugs everywhere. This will cost him, but he doesn’t seem to care. This whole thing is like a game to him, Julia. It seems to me that he’s trying to destroy us."

  I promised Rufus that I would to try to solve this, but I had no idea where to even start. I had never felt so hopeless. Rufus was on the phone to the director when he left. When I went back to my desk, I heard Kate on the phone with Lucinda. All the orders for tonight were cancelled. Sara was running up and down the office with stacks of files. I didn't need to look at my emails; I knew what this meant to the agency. We were screwed without sustaining a long-term work force.

  "Julia, what the hell is wrong with him?" Kelsie asked. I’d forgotten she was still here.

  "I have no idea. You heard Rufus. Nathaniel pulled the contract. We’ve broken up before, but he’s never done anything so drastic."

  "Well, this time he’s doing everything in his power to hurt you. Maybe he learnt that from Craig," Kelsie added. She was right. Nathaniel was using his connections, money and power to let me know that this was just the beginning. He had a lot more cards up his sleeve.

  Chapter 26

  Magic bounds.

  "I need to speak to him. This is the only way. I can't let him ruin people’s lives just because we aren’t together," I told the girls, knowing this was going to be one of the most difficult conversations I ever had.

  Kelsie pulled a face but didn't throw any snappy comments at me. She probably realised that this was very serious. Later on, she offered to stay and help us with answering the phones. Some of the creatures had already been turned away when they arrived at their shift, so the phones were ringing constantly. My heart was slowly breaking when I had to tell them that we didn't have any work for them this week. After thirteen weeks, Lucinda normally drafted the contract and took them on permanently. I wanted to believe that the workers who were taken on permanent positions were safe, that Nathaniel wouldn't make such a poor business decision and fire them, but after this morning I wasn't so sure anymore.

  At eight, after a long and exhausting day, we went home. I finally understood Grandma’s distress with me and Nathaniel. She won. She achieved what she always desired. We were no longer together.

  Kate wasn't happy with everything that was going on. She didn't want me to see Nathaniel. He’d humiliated me in front of my parents again, broke the engagement, and now he was on some sort of vendetta against me. I still didn’t understand any of it.

  I drove home, feeling as if my magic was pulling and stretching inside me, tingling all over my whole body. Tron was most likely the only person I could ask for help, but I didn't know how to get in touch with him. Last time, he just showed up.

  The next couple of days were hectic. Nathaniel not only fired the contracted staff, but also creatures from other departments who had been there for years. Literally everyone who had gotten jobs through Paranormal Personnel were let go. Rufus asked me to get on the phone and start selling the agency. We needed to gain some new business pronto. He knew himself that these things took time and it wasn't going to be easy. On Friday night I was officially done with being the ‘nice Julia.’

  Nathaniel had pushed my patience and I really didn't need to worry about my job right now. I needed to speak to Dannika about the contract and royals. Then again, everyone’s livelihood was cut—because of me. Dad was fuming, and he was threatening to go to the factory himself and demand an explanation from my ex-fiancé. Everyone knew what was going on. I noticed the looks from some of the clients, snippets in the agency when I was dealing with phone calls and paperwork. People read the gossip magazines, and they were intelligent enough to put two and two together.

  On Thursday of the following week, I swallowed my pride and decided to go to him. My plan was simple: I needed to politely ask him to stop whatever he was doing. I couldn't let my emotions dictate what happened between us. Nathaniel was a vampire, after all, and he was running a business.

  I felt my stomach contracting with nerves and sorrow. Only a few days ago we were happy together, and now I was on my way to beg him to stop whatever he was doing in order to hurt me more than
he already had. During my drive, I ran over and over in my head what I was planning to say to him. I didn't use a cover charm, he needed to smell the real me, realise what he had lost and what he was doing to the people that I cared for. Jasper had used black magic to tear us apart, but this time it was just life. I parked my car in the visitor’s car park. Todd was still at the desk, guarding the entrance. He saw me walking in through the glass door.

  "Let me just call upstairs and let the secretary know you’re on the way, Miss Taylor," he said with a smile.

  I concentrated and sent the spells, freezing him for a moment, knowing what Nathaniel’s secretary was going to say. I wasn't allowed upstairs. There were cameras everywhere, and I didn't have much time. My hot magic was rushing up and down my body as I moved closer to seeing the man who I’d thought I loved.

  Several minutes later, the elevator door opened, and I walked into a family lobby, which led to my ex-fiancé’s private office. Emily was sitting behind the desk. I didn't have an appointment, and she didn't look too happy seeing me there. I hoped that at least he would be willing to hear me out. We hadn't spoken since that day when my father had kicked him out of the house.

  "Miss Taylor, you can't go in there. Mr. La Caz is in a board meeting," she said. "I have been given specific instructions not to interrupt him."

  I sighed. She was most likely going to lose her job over this, but what choice did I have?

  "I'm sorry, but I have to do this, Emily. This way, you can tell him that you tried to stop me," I said, and then sent a wave of energy, blocking hers. She was a fairy, probably much stronger than me, and my spells were illegal. She flinched, froze and then slid to the floor. That gave me enough time to stop Nathaniel’s meeting.

  I barged through the white door into the large conference room that used to be Nathaniel’s office. He was sitting right opposite the door. Several other sets of eyes turned to look at me. Emily was telling the truth: Nathaniel was having a meeting with a group of investors. I instantly forgot what I wanted to say. Seeing him melted my insides, reminding me how much I loved him.

  "Well, well, well, who do we have here?" he asked, smirking sarcastically. The warmth that had once been in his eyes was replaced with superior coldness. There were about eight other paranormals sitting at the table. I couldn't move, my legs were rooted to the spot, my magic scorched around the room. I needed to remember why I came.

  "Can we talk somewhere in private, Nathaniel?" I asked, keeping my voice even and strong. All sixteen eyes were still on me, prying with intensity and open curiosity. I swallowed hard, aware of how my body reacted when he was close. He dominated the space, this room and now me.

  Nathaniel brushed his thumb over his sexy jaw, as his piercing hazel eyes washed over my body. He checked me out with a cold and calculated look. I had never known that cruel side of him.

  "We have nothing to talk about, Julia. As you can see I'm in the middle of a very important meeting and you’re interfering," he said, not even trying to act like he gave a fucking damn. Fury rose in me and the papers on the table started levitating. Several shifters were trying to catch a few. There were other vampires in the room and I was aware that they could smell me, as they shifted on their chairs, closing their eyes.

  "Fine, we’ll talk here if you insist," I said and closed the door. "Can you tell me what the hell you’re doing?"

  "I'm sorry, I don't think I understand. It's you who barged in here without an appointment." He chuckled.

  "You ended the contract with Paranormal Personnel. I don't understand why you made such a poor business decision that can only hurt you. Why now? Why do you need to punish so many people because of what happened between us?"

  His eyes went darker, moving over my body. This wasn't the man who I had fallen in love with. He wasn't the creature who I was ready to marry.

  "It's my company, so I can do whatever pleases me, Miss Taylor. Not everything revolves around you anymore, you stupid bitch. The contract doesn't suit my business needs anymore and all good things must sometime come to an end."

  My heart practically stopped. He just insulted me, and I was incapable of understanding why. Tears pushed their way into my eyes, but I kept telling myself that I couldn't let him see me as weak. That’s what he wanted, to humiliate me in front of his board.

  "No, you’re trying to punish me, but please, tell me, for what? I didn't do anything to you. We had a disagreement. You ended our relationship, not me. This isn't fair, Nathaniel. You fired Kelsie, and all these people to get to me," I shouted, wanting him to apologise, to show me that he hadn't turned into a monster.

  "Gentleman, as you can see, Miss Taylor here, is truly pathetic. She can't control herself around me. Her magic is useless. I was blind, thinking that I could marry such an ordinary paranormal, someone who is simply a whore."

  I started hearing some laughs and snickers in the room. I was shaking with anger and bitter disappointment. He was enjoying trashing my spirit, humiliating me further.

  "Please, Nathaniel, if you want me to beg, I will. You know that this whole thing is about me. These people need jobs. You’re ruining the lives of thousands of people, their careers and families," I continued, unable to understand why he was so cold and indifferent.

  "Listen to her. This one time she let me screw her at a banquet in one of the bathrooms, when her boyfriend was in another room." Nathaniel chuckled and the whole room laughed.

  I needed more air; my lungs were tight. His voice was suffocating me. I didn't want to believe that he was airing our dirty laundry in front of his board members, drowning me like that. I brought my sparkling fingers to my forehead massaging, attempting to take control of my energy, but the heat was too much to bear. It spread down my body, burning throughout as they were laughing.

  "Stop it, just stop it! Why are you hurting me so much?" I shouted, hissing for some air and relief.

  "I was engaged to another creature a couple of years ago, but that didn't stop Julia from advancing on me. I have finished—"

  I lost control at that point. I lowered my head and pressed my hands over my ears as hard as I could. Every part of me wanted to hurt him, the same way that he hurt me—this wasn't about passion and love anymore. My magic had turned against him.

  Some powerful force made me shut my eyes, as waves of energy shot out of my pores. I created a wind, strong and wild. I opened my eyes, blinded by hatred, and pushed the magic out, attacking whoever and whatever stood in my way. Balls of multicoloured light started jumping in the room and I screamed at the top of my lungs. I felt movement on my right—two vampires were ready to attack me. They didn't get far. I waved my hand, and they crashed over to the corner roaring with pain as magical dust streamed from the ceiling. Papers were flying everywhere, pens, stationary, and even chairs. A blast of electrical current exploded, lifting up my hair, flowing and connecting with raw power that was circulating through my veins. Nathaniel kept shouting to the others, but I couldn't hear him.

  I was lifted a few inches off the floor and crashed a chair into one of the werewolves who was trying to get to me. The whole room vibrated, the lights exploded, then the windows. No one had ever hurt me like that; no one had ever made me feel so worthless. The noise was unbearable, and I thought it was the end of me.

  I don't remember what happened to me next. Maybe someone escorted me out or I just walked out, leaving the mess and injured paranormals all over the room. The walls were covered with bloodstains, the air was soaked with magic. Nathaniel was still close to my heart, but then I didn't think about him. The last thing I recalled was the cold wind and fresh air outside the building.

  I kept walking, knowing I had done something very terrible. Once I opened the door to my car and turned on the engine, my heart felt like it was going to explode in my chest.

  Someone knocked on my window and I flinched. After a few blinks I realised it was Karina. The Scandinavian fairy who I had spoken to couple of days ago. She went around the car and slid into t
he passenger seat, smiling. She looked different, or maybe she was using her magic to cover her real appearance.

  "You have used your powers. Dear Lord, you’re very skilled," she said. "I have information for you, but we can't talk here. Drive."

  "Where?" I managed to say, still pretty shaken up by the events from a moment ago. I could only hope that I didn't kill anyone. I had lost control when he started saying all those horrible things to me.

  "I need to get out of this polluted space. I need to be close to the fresh air, to nature, and feel the earth’s energy inside me," she requested.

  I put my foot down and drove away, leaving Nathaniel behind. The pain didn't ease, it only grew. As soon as we left the Brunel Industrial Park, my head seemed clearer, my mind sharper. The excess magic was gone, and I felt better. I didn't want to feel guilty, but I did.

  “What's going on?" I asked, not even sure why I asked. I knew Karina wasn't going to hurt me. We were safe together.

  "I wasn't supposed to cross over. Someone followed me here from the palace. You need to keep driving, I'll tell you when to stop."

  I felt relief from pain and light as if my troubles were melting away. I had nothing to worry about. The traffic in rush hour was terrible and Karina didn't like being stuck in the same place for a while. I felt her anxiety and panic being surrounded by tall buildings. She calmed down as we left the busy streets. Another hour passed before we reached the outskirts of London and followed the stream of cars.

  The calm feelings and warmth faded. All of a sudden, I remembered what happened in Nathaniel’s office, his hurtful words, and my outburst. I left the building, but how and what happened to Nathaniel? Did I hurt him?

  It took me a moment to realise that we weren’t on the road anymore. Karina must have directed me towards the country lanes. We were walking in the forest. The sky was grey, but the air was fresher, lighter.

  "What did I do? God, Karina, please tell me? What happened?"