Deadly Witch: Cinderella Reimagined with Witches and Angels (Seven Magics Academy Book 4)

by RaShelle Workman

  “There was nothing in the library. Shall we go?”

  I quickly tucked the lyre back behind the books and spoke the words to hide it. Emotions radiated from the lyre—anger, sadness, fear. For some reason, the lyre didn’t want Leo to find it either. “Please don’t say anything, Mr. Henry. I don’t know why, but I can’t tell him.”

  “I won’t say anything.” He still looked to be holding something back.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “Nothing, Cindy. You’d better go.”

  “If you’re sure.” I walked over to the stairs. Turned back to Professor Pops. “I’ll be back for it when I can,” I whispered.

  He nodded. “That’ll be fine.”

  Chapter 24

  When I reached the top of the stairs, I gave Leo a sideways glance. “Can I meet you later?” I didn’t know where he would go and in that moment I didn’t care. It was obvious Gabe still wanted to talk.

  Leo scrunched his brows together. “I thought you were through with him.” He threw his hands in the air, frustration oozing from his pores.

  “Please,” I added.

  “Sure. Whatever.” Leo walked out of the kitchen and I heard the front door slam.

  Professor Pops came up the stairs and cleared his throat. “I’ve got some work to get done. If you need me, I’ll be in my office.”

  “Thanks, Professor Pops,” I said, suddenly feeling nervous Gabe and I were going to be alone together.

  “Of course.” He disappeared inside his office, closing the door.

  Gabe came forward and wrapped me in a hug. “I hoped to see you again.”

  I clung to him and tried to forget everything he said to me that night not so long ago. But I couldn’t. I stiffened. “I’m here,” I said, but stepped back, pushing against his chest. “But has anything changed?” I crossed my arms. “Did you decide you still love me?”

  Gabe’s face contorted and he ran a hand through his hair. “I never stopped loving you,” he whispered. “I lied. Your spells don’t work on me.”

  “But you’re still not supposed to be with me.” Fatigue overwhelmed my body and I went over to the kitchen island and collapsed on one of the stools.

  “What I said… There was no excuse.” He ran a hand over the scruff on his face. He hadn’t shaved, and it looked good on him. “Forgive me.” He put his hands out, pleading. “Nothing has changed, including my feelings. Please don’t lose faith in me, Cin,” he said softly.

  “I don’t want to,” I admitted, wishing my heart didn’t hurt so much.

  He leaned down and kissed me lightly, but full of feeling. “I love you. Whatever happens, know that.”

  “You mean it?” I asked, blinking back the tears.

  “I’m fighting against the ruling, though to a degree I understand why the command was issued, but I can’t be without you. I won’t.” He ground his teeth together. “I need you to know that.” The way he looked at me, with so much love, for the first time in a long time, I believed him. I saw how much he loved me by the way he looked at me.

  “I don’t want to be without you either,” I admitted, touching my hand to his chest.

  Gabe let out a huge breath of relief. “I brought you something.” He reached into his pocket.

  “You did?” Gabe wasn’t the kind of man to bring gifts. At least I hadn’t thought so.

  He held up a bracelet. Made of leather with a pair of silver wings attached. “May I?” He held it out and I brought my wrist up. Once it was on, he turned over the wings. Carved on the back were our names and the word forever. “This is beautiful, Gabe, and so thoughtful,” I said, touching it lightly. The wings were cool against my fingers. “I love it.”

  “And I love you. I always will.” He leaned down and kissed me. It wasn’t a marriage proposal, but it was more than Gabe ever gave me before. He wanted to be with me forever. It said so on the bracelet. I wanted him. I wanted to wrap myself around him and show him how much I loved him, but he stiffened as though hearing something I couldn’t.

  “What is it?”

  “I’m being called,” he said. “I need to go.” His body seemed to move toward the exit of its own accord.

  I clung to him, desperate for him to stay.

  “I’m sorry,” he said, frustration evident on his features. He glanced away before giving in to the pull and walking away.

  I pushed down a cry, willing myself to stay strong, my fingers tightening around the silver wings like a lifeline. At least he hadn’t wanted to leave. That much I could tell. “Gabe,” I whispered, wishing I knew a spell that would fix everything between us. When I heard the front door slam shut, I jumped.

  Come to me. The words shook me to my core. This time I knew they came from whatever was inside the lyre. Alone, I used the opportunity to go back downstairs. The secret room was locked so I used magic to get through. At the shelves I paused, taking a deep breath before removing the instrument from its hiding spot. “Revealith,” I said like before, and it appeared. Now that I had it, I was unsure what to do next. The words to a spell entered my mind. “Forathua escapa revealantha fortimbrania.”

  Once I finished speaking the words, the lyre began to shake. It left my hands and floated into the air. The shaking got faster and faster until it became a whirling blur.

  There was a twinkle of light and then it disappeared. In its place stood a guy. I gasped. He looked just like Leo. I squinted, taking him in. “Leo?”

  He straightened. “You know my name?”

  “Do I?” This guy was thinner than Leo, his cheeks hollow. His clothes hung from his body, as though he hadn’t eaten a good meal in a really long time. His hair was much longer than Leo’s and his hazel eyes were more golden around the outer rim. “You aren’t Leo, but you look like him.” I took a step toward him. Wow, he smelled terrible. “Plus, you stink.” I pinched my nose.

  He smirked. “Let’s see how you smell after a decade stuck in limbo.”

  “Limbo?” I pursed my lips together, confused.

  “That’s right.” He rolled back his shoulders and stuck out his hand. “My name is Leolas Loyalor. Thank you for saving me, Miss… Cinderella?” A smile splayed across his lips.

  I waved his hand away. “What the hell? How is that possible? I just saw him a few minutes ago.” I rubbed my eyes. “You can’t be Leolas.” My heart raced with surprise and frustration. There was so much about my own land I didn’t understand. This guy had similarities to the Leo I knew, but I sensed he wasn’t the same man.

  The guy’s features turned angry. He let out a frustrated growl. “You must be talking about my traitorous twin brother, Lawson.”

  “Lawson?” I said the name, feeling like I was in a dream.

  He went over to the bean bag chair and sat. Then he let out a giant sigh. “Oh, wow, this feels like heaven.” He placed his hands behind his head and closed his eyes. “Why didn’t I have this in limbo?”

  Confusion settled over my features. “Will you please explain what the hell is going on?” I shook my head before pinching myself. It hurt. I was awake.

  “Where are we?” he asked, glancing around the room.

  “Adam Henry’s house.”

  He gave me a once over and then asked, “This isn’t Polonias?”

  I shook my head. “No, this is Earth.”

  “Earth?” He shook his head. “My brother is a coward.”

  “Why?”

  He ran a hand through his hair before shaking it. “Have you heard of Polonias?”

  “Yes,” I huffed. “Apparently it’s my world too.” I wanted to say more, but now wasn’t the time.

  “Right. I knew that.” He smiled, a bright smile that reached his eyes. “Excellent. Surely, you’ve heard the story of the twin princes?”

  “Um, no. I haven’t.”

  He gave me a strange look. “But you’re Cinderella?”

  “Cindy,” I corrected. “I’ve only recently found out I’m from Polonias. I was actually raise
d by humans on this planet.” It still felt crazy saying that.

  “It’s true then. You are the—” He didn’t finish.

  “I’m what? What do you think you know?”

  He held up his hands in the universal sign of I surrender. “Let me tell you a story.” He sat up and leaned forward, scooted over and patted the spot on the chair next to him. “Have a seat. This is going to take a few.”

  I turned back to the locked door and sighed. “Sure. Why not? What’s one more thing?” In truth I was more interested than I pretended to be.

  Once I was situated, he smiled. “Many years ago my mother gave birth to twin boys, a feat unheard of in our land. She died not long after we were born. My father raised us to become the future rulers. He didn’t give us a lot of love, the queen’s death seemed to have sucked all of that out of him, but he taught us the necessities. As we grew, Lawson developed a knack for cunning. He was shrewd and more willing to make choices I thought were wrong. My father favored him. They started excluding me from trainings and outings. By the time I turned seventeen, my father and brother were more like friends than father and son.

  “One night, Lawson came to my room and asked if I wanted to go hunting. I was excited and packed in a hurry. It was so long since the two of us did anything together.” He shook his head. “Looking back, I should’ve seen something was wrong, but I didn’t. All I saw was an opportunity to spend time with my brother, the way we had when we were younger.”

  He paused and I leaned forward, caught up in the story. “What happened?”

  “We snuck out of the castle and made our way into the forest. It was fun, like old times. At a stream, we set up camp and swapped stories over the campfire.” He stopped, and I knew he was reliving that time in his life. “Near midnight, Mizrabel showed up. Have you heard of her?”

  I shivered at the name. Of course I heard of her. She claimed to be my mother. “I have,” was all I said.

  “Right, well, apparently Lawson conspired with her to kill me. As soon as she appeared, he overpowered me and tied me up. I tried to use my magic, but the cords around my wrists nullified my magic. Fearful of what would happen, I pled with my brother and with Mizrabel, but they wouldn’t listen.

  Mizrabel conjured the magic needed to kill me. As the spell left her hand, one of my trusty friends, an amifox called Vale, sent his magic firing into hers as it reached me, making it so I didn’t die, but became trapped inside the glass lyre.”

  “What’s an amifox?” I asked, knowing I couldn’t follow the story completely unless I had a visual.

  He snapped his fingers and a creature that looked like a fox, except it was green with grass green eyes, appeared in his palm. “Amifoxes used to roam Polonias freely. They were everywhere.” A shadow crossed over his face. “After a year without being able to release me from the lyre, Lawson made a deal with the shadows within the witch mists and the amifoxes vanished from Polonias.” The magic he conjured to show me the amifox evaporated and he let out a sad breath.

  “Did you want to eat something? We can finish this later.”

  “Not yet. I need to get my story out. I’ve been alone for too long. Talking to someone feels good” A wry smiled lifted his lips.

  “Then please continue.”

  He nodded, crossing his hands over his stomach. “Mizrabel said her debt to Lawson was finished and she left him and me alone.” He shook his head. “Those within the witch mists betrayed my brother as well. They took the lyre from him and cursed the land of Polonias into a deep sleep.” He looked at me. “You understand the time difference between Earth and Polonias?”

  “Kind of. A day here is a hundred days there.”

  “Right,” he said, closing his eyes a moment. “After a while, I lost track of who had me or why, but I’m pretty sure I stayed on Earth. If I’ve been trapped in the lyre a decade here, how long have the people in Polonias been asleep?”

  “A long time,” I said, thinking their land was like that of a fairy tale from childhood. “It was Mizrabel who told me to find the glass lyre,” I added, softly.

  He nodded. “That’s only a little surprising. She’s a sorceress of great power and she has no ties to the kingdom. Before everything happened, she and I were friends. If I had to guess, Lawson discovered her secret and threatened her.” He turned away. “It’s the only reason I can think of for her to betray me.” He tilted his head, giving me a strange look. “She didn’t seem particularly thrilled about killing me.” He held my gaze. “I know Mizrabel’s secret. Do you?”

  I wrung my hands together, thinking I might, though I didn’t know why it was a big deal. “Do I what?” I asked, feigning innocence. But truth blew through my mind like the spells that were coming to me recently.

  He took me by the elbows. The stench of him nearly knocked me over. “Come on. Don’t play coy. You must know.”

  I crossed my arms. “What do you mean?”

  “You are Mizrabel’s daughter.” He said the words matter-of-factly.

  I pulled away. “How would you know that?”

  “I told you, she and I were friends.” He looked down. “I knew she was pregnant. When she delivered you, I helped her. Minutes after you arrived in the world, you glowed like the sun and we thought you might burst into flames.” He smiled at the memory. “It was scary at the time, but then you settled and looked the same as any other child of Polonias.” He winked. “But you aren’t like anyone else. You know that, right?”

  I pulled from his grasp. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  He shook his head. “Even though I considered her a dear friend, she never told me who your father was.” He went back over to the bean bag and fell into it with a sigh. “I helped her get you into the human realm.”

  Fury roared through me, so strong it made me a little afraid. “Why didn’t she want me? Was I so awful?”

  “Dear Cinderella, no. But you were the answer to an ages-old prophecy that bespoke of a fiery girl destined to save Polonias. The king, my father, believed that meant he would be overthrown. He kept a careful eye on every child born in the land as did his father before him and so on back for many generations.” He heaved a deep breath.

  He looked pale, but I had another question. “Why would he take on your name, though? Why not just say you died?”

  “I was born first. That means I’m the rightful heir to the throne. Also, I was well loved by the people. The people didn’t like Lawson. They knew him for what he was. Corrupt, cold-hearted, and unfeeling. They knew that I, on the other hand, cared a great deal for everyone—from the tiniest water sprite to the biggest tree troll.” He squeezed his eyes shut.

  I needed to get him some food. And a shower. “So they would’ve been less upset to see Lawson go? Is that what you’re saying?” I was glad we moved away from Mizrabel being my mother and the prophecy. It was still too weird. I had a mom and a dad here in Salem. They weren’t perfect but I loved them.

  “Basically,” Leo answered. He pressed the palm of his hand against the side of his head. “Whoa, now I’m out of limbo, I’m really, really hungry. Does Earth still having amazing burgers?”

  “I’ll make you something,” I said, not fully listening. My mind went over his words and I recalled the way Mizrabel looked at me with a mixture of happiness and worry. The king didn’t seem to like me. I wondered if he knew the truth about what Lawson had done. If I had to guess, I would say he did. “Do you think the king knows?” I took Leo’s hand and helped him stand.

  He leaned on me. “I hope not, but it’s certainly possible. We’ll have to broach the subject with care.”

  I opened the door and led him through the Museum of the Supernatural and up the stairs to the kitchen. “If that’s true, the kingdom is going to be a mess.”

  Leo sighed, “The kingdom is probably already a mess…” He paused and closed his eyes.

  “Has it really been ten years since you ate anything?”

  “I think so, which was fine
when I was in limbo, but now?” He put a hand to his stomach, and I could tell he was woozy. “Let’s just say I could eat.”

  “Sit,” I said, pushing him onto a stool. “I’ll be right back.”

  “Sure.” He looked like he might pass out. There was a bowl of fruit on the granite countertop. I grabbed an apple and set it in front of him. “Eat this. It’ll help until I can whip you up a burger.”

  He took a huge bite. “Thanks,” he said as apple juices leaked down his chin.

  I smiled and ran down the hall to Professor Pops’ office. I slid to a stop, surprised the door was open. Professor Pops looked up.

  “Tell me.” He took his reading glasses off his nose and tucked them into his pocket.

  I stepped into his office and quietly shut the door. “There was someone in the glass lyre. It’s—” I shook my head. “Have you heard of the queen of Polonias having twins?”

  Pops’ face broke into a smile. He leaned forward, clasping his hands together. “As a matter a fact I have.”

  “Why didn’t you say anything before? I might’ve been a little more cautious.”

  He gave me a skeptical look. “Really?”

  I shrugged. “Maybe. I would’ve at least asked about it.”

  Professor Pops nodded. “I’m sure you would have, but it wasn’t my story to tell.”

  Always a teacher, I huffed inwardly. I sat in the chair, even though I knew I needed to get back to Leo—the real Leo. “Mizrabel is my real mother.”

  Professor Pops let out an excited laugh. “Good. This is good. You’re finally beginning to understand and see your real life.”

  I stood, shocked. “You knew?” I sputtered. “You know. You…you… Does Snow know?” Did he know who my father was too?

  He nodded. “As soon as Snow became the vampire queen, she learned about Polonias, including the land once had twin princes, but one was lost, even believed dead.”

  “Holy merde. I’m going to have to have a serious effing conversation with Snow the next time I get a chance.” I crossed my arms. “Right now I need to feed a starved prince. Is it okay if I use your kitchen to make him something?”