She woke and ate the food they brought her, and she paced around the room. She thought about everything that had occurred over and over and over until she drove herself half mad trying to figure out all that she didn’t know.
Then, on her third day after waking up, a knock came on the door.
“Come in,” she called. The Occidens witches had never knocked before; they just came in when they brought her food and emptied her chamber pot.
She almost couldn’t believe her eyes when Greya walked into the room. “Ena!” she cried, rushing towards her and scooping her in her arms.
Ena froze there for a minute, too shocked to move or speak. When she finally realized that this was, indeed, reality, and not one of her wild dreams, she wrapped her arms around Greya and felt tears instantly start to fall.
Greya’s scent surrounded her. The familiarity and the warmth of her sister seeped into her bones, buoying her when she’d been drowning. The sisters held each other for several minutes, rocking and weeping and drinking in each other’s presence.
Eventually, Greya pulled away. “Are you alright?” she asked, wiping tears from her eyes. “I’ve been so worried, Ena. So, so worried.”
“I’m fine,” Ena replied, sniffling. “I promise, I’m unharmed.” They moved to sit together on the bed as Ena asked, “Where’s Heran?”
“She’s meeting with the matriarch of their Coven. Syrelle, I think her name is. They’re discussing whether any reparations need to be made because of the breach of the treaty, but Heran is confident that they’ll let you go. They seem to understand that this was not your doing or your choice.”
Ena nodded silently, relief flooding through her.
Greya studied her in the way only a big sister could. “Ena, what happened?” she asked, as if she’d been holding this question inside for weeks. “They said you arrived with three daemons and helped them steal an amulet? There’s been a lot of consternation about that. They said…they said you used your Gift on them.” Greya spoke that last part cautiously, as if not wanting to offend Ena.
Ena took a deep breath, steadying herself. She needed to tell the truth, and pray that Greya would understand her choices. If she had any hope of redeeming herself with her Coven and her Goddess, she needed to come clean and accept the consequences.
“It’s true,” Ena replied. “They took me on the night of Samhain. They were looking for the amulet in Heran’s house, and when I found them, they forced me to come with them and do a locator spell. It led them here, and they told me if I helped them, they’d let me go. I tried to escape but…” Ena trailed off, tears filling her eyes again as she thought of how close she’d come to getting a message to her sister.
“Shh, shh, it’s okay, Ena. You don’t have to explain yourself. You did what you needed to do to survive.” Greya stroked her hair soothingly. But a pit of guilt hit Ena’s stomach.
“No, no, you don’t understand. I did use my Gift on them…and others. I know it wasn’t Gaia’s will, but I thought it would save them from violence…I thought it would saveme.” Ena buried her face in her hands as tears began to fall. She cried for all the fear she’d felt, all the guilt. All her sadness and her confusion spilled out with her tears as they turned to sobs, and through it all, her sister held her in understanding, making soothing sounds and mumbling calming words.
Eventually, Ena began to calm down. Her tears dried up, and her breathing slowed once more. But still, she could barely bring herself to meet her sister’s gaze, because there was something else she had to admit.
“There’s…there’s something else you don’t know,” Ena said, taking her head off Greya’s shoulder, her eyes puffy and swollen. “One of the daemons who took me…was Ty.”
“Ty?” Greya asked, her brow furrowed in confusion. “The mortal from all those years ago? Are you sure?”
“Yes. He’s not a mortal. That was a cover. He’s a daemon.”
Greya paused, a look of utter shock on her face. “Oh, Ena,” she said, her voice filled with anguish for her sister. Greya had been there when Ena had waited, year after year, for Ty’s return. She knew the heartbreak Ena had felt in his wake, and she knew,Goddess damn her, that a part of her had never healed, that a part of her had always been waiting for him to come back.
Greya brought her closer as if to hug her again, as if to comfort her, but Ena shook her off. She’d had enough of crying, and mentioning Ty reminded her of what she still needed to do. She needed answers.
“Did they tell you anything about the amulet?” Ena asked, pulling back to look at Greya.
“No,” she said. “Why? Do you know why the daemons wanted it?”
“No, but Greya, there are some things that don’t add up. When I put it on, I had a vision. I saw three witches, and they were doing a ceremony with the amulet. They were hurting someone. I don’t know who it was, but it felt…wrong. So wrong. I don’t know what Ty wants with the amulet, but I’m not sure it’s bad.”
“Ena,” Greya started, her brow coming together in confusion and disbelief, “you can’t be serious. This man just kidnapped you, burned Heran’s house, attacked this Coven. He can’t be trusted. He’s manipulating you. Who’s to say exactly what you saw?”
“I know what I saw,” Ena said through gritted teeth, her anger rising. “Look, Greya,” she said, trying to calm herself and speak clearly. “I can’t explain it, but somehow… I think I trust him.”
“Trust him?! Ena, are you drinking fucking psilovenom?” Now it was Greya’s turn to feel anger. “I know this is hard for you. I know you’ve been hung up on this guy for years, but you’re letting your feelings cloud your judgment. Hecannotbe trusted.”
“That’s not what this is about, I—”
Ena’s words were cut off as the door opened again and the sisters went silent.
Heran walked into the room, her gray eyes darting between the two of them. “Am I interrupting something?”
