“I will bring you clothing and food. You are to stay here until the full moon, five days from now. You must hide and not show yourself to anyone.” He grabbed my shoulders and looked sternly at me. “Do you understand me?”
I nodded, unable to speak from the thick lump lodged in my throat. I didn’t understand what was so important about the full moon, yet I was overcome with emotion. I was responsible for my family’s demise.
Giovanni echoed my thoughts. “Your father’s blood is onyour hands. Your siblings and mother are all dead because of you.”
“I know,” I said, tears streaming down my face. “What can I do?”
“You must leave, travel to another time, and start your life over. I will teach you the ancient scripture. You must cut your hand with your dagger as the full moon rises over the horizon and repeat the words I will teach you. The dagger will know where to take you. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, yes, Giovanni. I shall heed your warning. You were right.” I sobbed. “Balthazar is a monster. I will time travel and escape him.”
I lifted my gaze from the page and met Emily’s eyes. Tears streaked both our faces, and I hadn’t even realized I’d reached for her hand, nor that she had reached for mine.
Our gazes tangled in shared torment.
“Our poor mother,” I whispered.
Emily nodded, her expression stricken. “Yes. Her entire family… killed by that monster.”
A seething rage unfurled inside me, solidifying into a cold resolve. At that moment, I knew I would do whatever it took to destroy Balthazar.
Even if it meant my death.
Chapter 10
Olivia
Sitting in Malik’s office with my mother’s journal resting in my lap, I struggled to absorb the secrets of her past. Mom’s life had never been easy—not by any stretch of the imagination. She had fallen for a demon, a monster who followed no moral code but his twisted sense of ethics. The revelations churned inside me, too many to process at once.
“We have to read this to the end, Emily. We can’t possibly stop now.”
“Of course,” she agreed, exhaling a shaky breath. “I just need to stretch my arms and legs. I didn’t realize how tense Mother’s words had made me.” She laughed nervously and stood, arching from side to side.
I walked to the door, cracked it open, and listened for Rosie. No giggles. No child’s laughter. No cries. The house was eerily quiet.
Was she okay under Malik’s watchful eye?
I reassured myself she was fine. Malik had been nothing but gentle and attentive toward her at dinner. Why would he wish her harm? But then again, why did demons do anything? Their justifications rarely aligned with human reason.
I closed the door.
Outside, the night had deepened, swallowing the land in inky blackness. The once-howling wind had vanished, leaving an unsettling silence. A bloated gibbous moon hung in the sky, its pale glow illuminating the trees and glistening ground, still damp from the rain.
Stretching the stiffness from my back, I tilted my head to the ceiling, pressing my fingertips into the knots of tension. Then, turning to Emily, I asked, “Ready for more?”
“Yes. I’m ready.”
We curled up on the sofa, our shoulders touching, huddled together like two puppies.
August 24th, 1561
I have memorized the words and the sacred scripture Giovanni taught me. But I am very much afraid. And, to be honest, I miss Balthazar, craving him with a kind of madness reserved for the insane. The effect he has on me is profound and makes no sense. How can I long for this demon, this creature who took the lives of my family? But, hiding in the basement, everything seems surreal. Did I make it all up? Was I having a fever dream and imagining the slaughter of my loved ones?
I pressed my fingertips to my lips, a realization settling over me. Balthazar had an almost surreal hold on my mother. But wasn’t that a demon’s true nature? To seduce their victims, drawing them in just enough to get what they wanted?
August 26th, 1561
I can see the top of the moon rising over the horizon. I will sew this journal into a pocket in my skirt. Giovanni says I must be precise in my commitment when I say the sacred words. I am still scared but also resolved.
