‘You can’t have a baby.’
‘Please… Toby, please… Don’t do this!’
‘I have to. You’ll die if I don’t!’
‘NO! GOD NO! STOP!’
I scream so loud, I think it’s the pain in my throat that wakes me. Not the sound.
‘It’s alright.’ Gabriel’s voice is a forced calm as he tries to stop my violent flailing. ‘Hey, hey, Lilly, it’s all okay. You’re okay, Beautiful. Wake up.’
My eyes open and fretful tears spill out. He has one hand gripping my wrists above my head, the other holding my face so the first thing he makes sure I see is him.
‘Easy, Beautiful. You don’t want to hurt yourself. You’re okay, it was just a nightmare.’ He eases his grip on my wrists so I can fling my arms around his neck and sink into his chest. ‘Was it him again? The barn?’
All I can manage is a slight nod as I remain buried in his chest. His strong arms cradle me as his warm lips kiss the crown of my head.
‘I wish I could take your pain away,’ he whispers sadly.
‘You can.’ I need him. I need his touch. His embrace. His kiss. His love. I move quick so I’m astride him and pull off his top.
He whispers my name, making it sound more beautiful than any other mouth to ever have said it.
We lock in a fiery, passionate embrace. He almost tears off my clothes, desperate for his skin to be on mine. His hands explore my every curve. They move knowingly and skillfully as he keeps me as close as possible. His fingers glide over the scars that mark my body. His smell intoxicates me. Vanilla and sandal wood. It fills me completely. But he’s not soft with me. He’s not gentle. He’s firm. Demanding. He wants me and he knows I want him too. I’m not made of glass. And he never treats me as such. Not when we’re together.
When we’re together… We’re everything we need.
∞∞∞
He falls asleep in my arms. My dear, sweet man.
My Gabriel.
The last few months, he’s started having nightmares too. Mumbling his brother’s names in fear or anger. Sobbing mine and apologising for what he did with Ava. I hate hearing her name. But I’m sure he hates hearing Toby’s which I know I scream plenty.
I have to get my head back in the game. Pull myself back together. I have to finish working. Get the journal translated and lower the Veil. Only then do we stand a chance at being free. I slide out from under his weight. He shifts and mumbles my name, but settles and drifts back off to sleep. Tonight, he seems restful. No bad dreams. Not for him anyway. I pull on one of his hoodies, a pair of my shorts, and sneak out the door to talk to Ste. He’s out on the landing with Jez.
‘Miss Hooper. What can I do for you?’ he sighs in aggravation.
‘There are some papers Grayson needs to see,’ I tell him. ‘They’re in the library. On-’
‘Not your personal postman.’ He shrugs.
‘Well… If I go and get them you have to come anyway so-’
‘Then let’s go.’ He steps aside, looking down at my bare legs. ‘I am a fan of watching you walk around in those little shorts.’
I bite my tongue, and walk ahead. Jez has to stay put because Gabriel is still asleep. I reach the library and head inside as Ste remains by the door, waiting.
Connor’s organised chaos is still up in the gallery. I pick up the papers with the intention of taking them to Grayson.
No need.
He’s coming to me.
I feel his magic getting closer with every one of his footsteps. It’s horrible and gets worse every day. It’s an aggressive and smothering sensation. Like it just wants to cover me entirely. To possess me.
I look below and see Grayson order Ste to leave the room. When the door closes and it’s just us alone, I instantly regret coming here.
Grayson heads up the metal staircase. When he reaches Connor’s corner, he stops and watches me while he leans against the stacks in a light grey t-shirt and a pair of joggers.
‘Miss Hooper. Tell me, what are you doing up so late?’
‘I wanted to show you-’
But whatever I have to say pales in comparison to whatever he has on his mind as he cuts me off completely. ‘Gabriel tells me he has a lead on your cousin.’
‘Yeah. I know,’ I reply, completely disinterested. ‘I think you should see-’
‘He thinks Junior is in Mexico, of all places.’
‘I know. Gabriel told me. Grayson, listen-’
‘Funny thing is, he’s changed his name and kept off the grid. If it is him, that is.’
‘I know, Grayson.’ I know where this is going. The same place it always goes when we’re alone. ‘Gabriel told me. He tells me everything.’
I do my best to ignore the small laugh he lets out. ‘I love how naive you are.’ He pushes himself away from the bookshelves and slowly makes his way towards me. ‘You are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen,’ he whispers longingly, ‘Do you know that?’
‘So you’ve said. But I think that when you look at me, all you see is the magic you’ve stolen from me.’
‘Your magic is within your grasp, sweetheart. I told you that you can have your Bloodstone back if you accepted my offer.’
I lean forward and look into his eyes to make sure he sees the severity in my every word. ‘I will die before I agree to give you a child.’ He reaches out and runs his fingers through my hair. I go to move but he grips it and yanks me back to him. His face hardens. ‘Move away from me and Amara Jayne loses another finger.’ His threat has me still and his fingers release their violent hold on my hair. His features soften instantly once he has his way, and he watches his hands stroke me affectionately. His other hand rests on my throat and he places each one of his fingers over my bruises with precision and care. I work hard to suppress the shudders him being anywhere near me produces. ‘I wonder, if I threatened to kill Amara unless you agreed to give me a child, what would you do?’
‘I’ve already said. I’d kill myself.’
‘Even if it meant her dying too?’
‘It would be hard for me to care, being dead and all.’ I swallow down my fear and take a breath. ‘You promised Gabriel that you would look for Junior to further my bloodline and that you would leave me alone. So how about you take a few steps back and-’ His hand tightens once more around my neck, grasping me precisely where his fingers had previously left dark marks on my skin. It’s just a warning.
‘Yes, I did promise that,’ he snarls. ‘And I will keep my word. As long as Gabriel finds him of course. It’s been three months and nothing.’ He leans in close and says in a low menacing tone, ‘So maybe you should show me some respect. I would hate for our time together, making our child, to be unpleasant for you.’
‘You’ll be fucking a corpse. I think you’re the one that will find it unpleasant. Or I dunno. Maybe necrophilia is your thing,’ I snipe, lifting my head and refusing to cower. ‘You can tighten your grip. Hell, you can snap my neck. You and I will never happen.’
I’m released with a shove, forced backwards into the armchair hard and he lunges forwards, slamming his hands down on the arms either-side of me.
‘Why is Junior hiding?’ he asks suspiciously. ‘By all accounts, after he left, your uncle was far from interested in tracking him down. So why hide? Why run? Why disappear?’
‘He stole Harry’s money and ran off. Harry was a bastard. A cruel bastard. Wouldn’t surprise me if he wanted revenge.’
‘Did Junior know about us? About his magical heritage?’
‘Maybe.’
‘Lilly,’ he warns, leaning in further and pushing me deeper into the chair. ‘Tell me.’
‘I told you everything I know, Grayson. You and Gabriel. All of it. I told you the names of the friends he had. I told you in detail what he looks like. I sat with that sketch artist for days. I looked through photos. I gave you my D.N.A. I have done everything you and Gabriel have asked to help find him. Trust me. I want him found because frankly, the alternative makes me want to die.’
He stands, but I remain sunken into the cushions.
‘Did you two get on?’ he asks.
‘He pretended like I didn’t exist. He barely looked at me.’
He watches me in silence as he always does when he’s trying to figure out if I’m lying or not. I don’t flinch. I hold my composure.
‘You know, finding your cousin is the only way I let you go.’
‘I know, Grayson.’
‘Whatever my sadistic little brother did to you in that barn, he wasn’t successful.’
‘I know, Grayson. I was there when I had the hundreds of tests you forced me to have. I heard the results.’
Toby tried to destroy my fallopian tubes after he beat me. That’s what those nasty scars are on my belly. He stabbed me and then used his fire to cauterise the wounds. But he failed, and one of them is still in working order.
There’s a chance – a very slim chance – that I can have a baby with the remaining tube. And unless we find Junior – Harry’s son – I’m having a baby as soon as the veil is down.
Grayson’s baby.
Over my dead body.
Gabriel’s too, according to him. He swore to me that he would never let that happen. And the severity in his eyes as he made that vow is something I trust implicitly. He’s been working hard to find Junior. Harder than Grayson, who has barely been looking in my opinion. It’s Gabriel who brought in the private investigators. Gabriel who has Nomads scouring the country and far beyond. If we can give him Junior, lower the veil, get my Bloodstone back and disappear, we’re hoping he’ll just leave us alone.
Who knows. Miracles do happen.
‘You do recall that Toby had a vision of my death? That I was pregnant and I died?’
‘We don’t know what he saw and until I see it for myself, I’m not stopping until I have secured your lineage. Do you not care that you may be the very last Arcane Witch ever to exist?’ he asks in sheer disbelief.
‘No,’ I reply. ‘I wouldn’t wish an ounce of the cruelty I’ve suffered, on another person. Especially my own flesh and blood.’
‘So,’ he sneers, and I know he’s about to be cruel. He gets this look in his eye. A dark kind of joy that Toby also used to get. ‘Bias did you a favour then, I suppose? Snuffing out the life growing inside of you with his boot-’
I’m on my feet and going for him before I can think twice. I strike him hard. He falls backwards, taking me with him. His back crashes onto Connor’s desk. Books and papers fall to the floor. Now my fingers are folded around his throat, and I squeeze hard. As hard as I can.
And the fucker just laughs. Which makes me scream in frustration. I want to hurt him. I need to hurt him! But I can’t. I’m too small. Too weak. Too tired. But that doesn’t stop me from trying. I whack his head into the desk again and again, bellowing without restraint. He simply takes hold of my wrists and calmly, slowly, he bends them backwards. He carries on till I fall off him. He keeps bending. Pushing. Twisting. I’m forced to my knees as he returns to his feet. His breathing is slow and deep as he tries to keep his raging emotions in check.
On the floor and grunting against the pain he’s inflicting, I wait. It’s all I can do unless I want my wrist broken again.
‘Grayson, you’re hurting me.’
‘I’ll do more than hurt you if you attack me like a feral bitch ever again.’
‘You’ll kill me? Then who will do your spell?’ I jeer.
‘I won’t kill you,’ he says through gritted teeth. ‘I will kill Amara though. And I’ll lock up Gabriel and Collins. I’ll chop them into pieces and carve up their flesh. And every day, Gabriel will know that somewhere, I’ll have you tied down with a gag in your mouth. Just as I found you. But this time, it won’t be a cellar you never leave. It will be my bed. Now…’ He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes. When he exhales, he opens them once more. ‘How about you tell me what you are doing in here at this late hour.’
He tosses me away from him and sits himself down on the chair.
‘I don’t have all night, Miss Hooper.’
I get myself to my feet and pick up the papers I dropped on the floor after I went for him. I hold out the page with the picture of the seven-pointed star and the triangle behind it and explain what we know.
After a few minutes of silent contemplation, he gets to his feet.
‘Come with me,’ he orders, taking my hand and pulling me after him. We head out of the library, past Ste, and down to his office. Once in there, he scours the shelves lining the walls before pulling out a thick leather-bound album. He places it on the desk and delicately starts looking through its pages. They’re paintings. Old portraits, judging by the gowns the subjects are wearing. Grayson stops on a page and turns it to face me.
My breath catches in my throat when I see the painting he has presented.
‘Is that Rebecca Hooper?’ I ask.
‘It most certainly is.’
Before I realise, I’ve sat down and pulled the painting close. She was beautiful. Her long red hair falls in waves down her back just as mine does. She holds herself with poise and authority. She certainly looks like a force to be reckoned with. Just as Gabriel described. Her mouth curves the same as mine does. But her eyes, they are the spitting image of my mothers, not my emerald green. Grayson leans over and taps the nape of her neck.
‘Is that your mother’s necklace?’ he asks.
I lean in closely. But there really is no need for me to do so. It’s very distinguishable. It’s a beautiful seven pointed star made of white gold with a red jewel in the very centre. Yellow gold is laced over the top of the jewel in the form of a triangle, holding it in place. It all knots together intricately. The star. The triangle. The red stone. Exactly as I remember it.
‘Yes,’ I reply. ‘That’s it.’ I softly caress the painting of the only thing my mother ever gave me as if it’s really here and I could feel it between my fingers. But all I feel is paint on canvas.
‘So, that is the heirloom Rebecca used for the spell.’ He speaks quietly and to himself.
Grayson sends for Connor with his next breath. Connor wanders into Grayson’s office rubbing his eyes and yawning, still in his pj’s.
‘What’s going on, Lilly? I was fast asleep.’
‘Well, you’re not here to sleep, Mr Quinn,’ Grayson replies curtly. Hearing his voice, Connor wakes up very quickly, looking the deer very much in headlights. He looks around and suddenly realises where he is. Part of me wonders if he even opened his eyes while he was led down here.
‘Oh, Sir, I-I didn’t realise… I thought… I apologise. Truly.’
‘Here.’ Grayson holds out the page with the star diagram and explains exactly what we have found so far. ‘Get to work, Mr Quinn. I need to know if this necklace is involved in the spell. Now.’
Connor gives a small bow and scurries upstairs. But not without a worried look over his shoulder as I remain stuck in Grayson’s office. With a flick of his wrist, Grayson closes the door and turns back to me.
‘So, where’s your mother’s necklace now?’
‘You know I don’t know that. I almost burnt to death the night we met trying to find it.’
‘When did you lose it?’
‘Sometime in the missing six-weeks I’m guessing. I had it when Toby left. It was gone when I woke up in the cellar.’
He goes quiet and disappears into himself thinking. ‘Bias must have it,’ he concludes. His eyes flick up to mine. ‘Bias had the journal for a while before you two parted ways two years ago. I bet he saw that symbol and the resemblance it held to your necklace. I’d bet this house and everything inside it that he has it now. He probably took it to try and attempt the spell himself. Or force you to do it for him.’
‘We can’t know that. The necklace could have burnt up the night you found me. Harry could have had it hidden somewhere or he could have just binned it out of spite.’
‘Well, other than Bias, there’s only one other person alive who may know where it is.’
‘Who?’ I ask.
‘You of course.’
‘But I can’t remember anything that happened. You know that.’
I feel him coming. Running. Gabriel’s magic shrouds me in a warm protective glow that pushes away the hostility of Grayson’s aura. Gabriel’s awake and he’s heading this way.
Thank God.
The door opens and he comes right on in, taking his place by my side as I remain in the chair facing Grayson. He’s a little out of breath but hides it well. Gabriel takes my hand and glares at his brother.
‘Any reason you have my girl locked in your office in the middle of the night?’
‘The door was closed, Gabriel. Not locked.’ Grayson smirks at him. ‘Tone down the dramatics, would you?’
‘You alright, Beautiful?’ he asks, not breaking eye contact with his brother.
‘Fine.’ I get to my feet and his arm furls around me so he can pin me to his side. I sink into his frame. ‘I’m fine.’
‘I’m taking her back to bed,’ Gabriel states, heading towards the door. Which seals shut before we get anywhere close.
‘Not yet.’
We both turn. I feel Gabriel go rigid by my side. Nothing good is about to happen and he’s preparing for a fight.
‘What do you want?’ Gabriel asks.
‘We need to find her mother’s missing necklace. Rebecca hinted that a family heirloom was involved in the spell. Something with a precious stone. Her mother’s necklace is the same necklace Rebecca wore. I want to know exactly what happened to Miss Hooper in those six missing weeks of hers so we can discover where the necklace went.’
My insides plummet as I grip on to Gabriel even tighter.
‘You managed to prize a glimpse of what happened to her before. You saw blood and death in that barn. So, you will do it again. I need to know where her mother’s missing necklace went. And you, dear brother, are going to search her mind until you find out.’
‘Grayson…’ I barely have a voice as I come to terms with what he’s asking. No. Demanding. ‘I can’t. Please. Don’t make me watch Toby do that to me again. I already relive it every night.’
‘And you’ll relive it every day until I find that necklace.’
Gabriel looks down at me with the solemnest of faces. We both know that we can’t refuse. Not unless we want pain and misery for our friends.
‘Okay,’ Gabriel says. ‘I’ll look.’
‘Gabriel, I can’t. Please-’
‘Yes, you can. Because you have to. Whatever it takes, remember?’ His hand settles on my cheek and he shows me his best attempt at a reassuring smile. ‘I’ll be right by your side the entire time. And-’
‘GRAYSON?!’ Connor bellows from upstairs. Grayson uses his magic to open his office door. We all turn and look into the empty entrance hall. ‘GRAYSON! I’VE FOUND SOMETHING!’ Connor’s voice is excited and has Grayson charging off out the room. Gabriel doesn’t give a damn as he returns his full attention to me.
‘Did he hurt you?’ He starts examining me, running his hands along my arms and finally settling his eyes on my throat.
‘A little. Nothing bad. He lost his temper when I reminded him that I won’t have his children. That’s all.’
‘Connor woke me up and told me you were down here with him. He said you looked like you needed backup.’
‘Remind me to thank him later.’
‘Well you shouldn’t have gone downstairs on your own in the first place,’ he snaps. ‘Why would you?’
‘I didn’t think. I can’t look into my memories, Gabriel. Last time I saw what happened, I almost gave into my Break. I can’t-’
‘We’ll look. As far as he knows, we’ll look. But we won’t find anything. Okay? We’ll lie. Simple. We’ll find the necklace a different way. I’m not risking losing you to your Break. The Veil can stay up for all I care. I am not losing you.’ He’d obviously decided that as soon as the request was made.
‘We need to lower the Veil. How else are we ever going to get away from here?’
‘Look, let’s just focus on one ridiculous problem at a time, okay? It won’t matter if we get away or not if you’re not you anymore, will it? Your life. Your sanity. Your freedom. We’ll get it all. Somehow.’ He brushes it off with a wave of his hand. ‘Come on. Let’s go see what Connor’s found.’ I take his hand and we head on up.
Back in the library, Connors talking quickly and waving his arms dramatically. Whatever he’s found must be good. His eyes land on us briefly and settle on my hand in Gabriel’s before I snatch it away, forgetting for a moment that we’re not allowed to be together out in public.
‘I’m pretty sure he knows about us,’ Gabriel whispers in my ear. ‘I mean, he did come and fetch me when he left you alone with Grayson.’
‘Well, I’m not risking it. Grayson will take any excuse to hurt us. What do you think he’s found?’
He merely shrugs and heads over, me following close behind. But Grayson and Connor are charging back down the metal staircase towards us. Papers and books fill Connor’s arms. Grayson doesn’t even acknowledge us as he leaves, his nose buried in paperwork.
‘Do we follow?’ I ask. ‘What should we do?’
‘We sit.’ Gabriel yawns, slumping down into the nearest chair. ‘Come here. Close your eyes and try to relax.’
‘Oh yeah sure,’ I huff, plonking down on a chair beside him. ‘Relax.’
Like I can relax. The spell is getting closer. Grayson wants Gabriel to dig around in my head again to look for my missing memories. And I’m being threatened to be used as a breeding mare against my will. But sure.
Relax.
‘Want me to read to you?’ he asks.
‘Not in the mood,’ I reply, glancing up at the huge seven-pointed star tapestry hanging pride of place above the fire place. ‘I fucking hate that star.’
‘Yeah. I’m getting to hate it too.’ He looks up at it, his fingers tapping the arm rest. ‘I wonder what Collins is up to?’
I hate seeing how deeply he misses his best friend, and knowing that it’s my fault he’s gone makes it even worse. Collins has been the one he confides in for decades. Centuries. Whenever he needed advice or a sense of reason, Collins was always there. Now he’s gone. Amara too. And we have no idea where they are or if they’re okay.
‘I imagine they’re together. Wondering how we are. Amara’s probably threatening to tear Grayson’s head off the next time she sees him,’ I laugh, seeing it instantly in my head. Her pacing back and forth huffing and puffing out of aggravation, swishing her hair dramatically and slamming her hands on her hips.
Gabriel gives a soft chuckle and turns his head to face me. ‘Yeah. I bet. She’s a feisty thing, your best friend. And I bet Collins is reminding her, in his usual calm and respectful manner, that there isn’t shit she can do but sit quietly and wait. Much like the rest of us.’ His hand reaches out and our fingers entwine. We both look back up to the tapestry hanging on the wall.
‘I really love you. You know that, right?’ I ask him, giving his fingers a gentle squeeze. ‘I am so sorry for being responsible for this mess. If it wasn’t for me, you would still have both your brothers and your best friend here. If Toby never found me that day by the tree-’
‘I don’t believe in God. See as much death as I have, you don’t. But that doesn’t stop me from thanking someone out there that Bias found you that day. I love you, Lilly. You coming into my life is the best thing that has ever happened to me. We just need to get through this nightmare, then we can have our happy ever after. And that’s worth wading through the crap for. We’re going to get through this.’
‘Together.’
‘Exactly. Me. You. Amara and Collins. Absofuckinglutely.’ He pulls me towards him and settles me in his lap. My head fits perfectly in the crook of his neck and his arms envelop me in a complete embrace.
‘Absofuckinglutely,’ I yawn, closing my eyes.
∞∞∞
We wake to the sound of Hendrix clearing his throat.
‘You’re wanted,’ he grunts, looking at us curled up together. ‘In his office. Now.’
‘What’s going on?’ I ask, stretching out my stiff muscles. The sun has risen. It’s morning.
‘We have the spell,’ Hendrix announces, making my heart skip a beat. ‘We know how to bring down the Veil.’
‘No way…’ Gabriel whispers. ‘Already?’
‘Yep.’ Hendrix is smiling. A real, genuine smile without the hint of sarcasm or cruelty which usually contaminates his smirks. Gabriel is on his feet, pushing me up onto mine in the process.
‘We have it? We have the spell?’ Gabriel repeats, as if he can’t believe what he’s heard.
Hendrix nods. ‘It’s time. The Veil is coming down, and magic is about to return.’ He looks to me. ‘Ready to save thousands of lives, Little Witch?’
