“Please, don’t put me back to sleep. Talk to me. I promise I’ll behave. If I’m an asshole, then put a spell on me, but not… now, please.”
“Fine, what do you want to know?”
“My… mother… You said she killed Jodelle?”
“Yes… Don’t you remember?”
“No, well… Bits and pieces, my dreams have been strange, sometimes I feel she’s right beside me, and other times I try to reach her, but I can’t, and it… The agony consumes me, even though the sensation is slowly numbing… It feels as if my soul is torn apart, ripped from my body, over and over…”
Caria glowers at me, her hatred for me crackles through the silence like static.
“I don’t know what you want from me, Fynn. Keeping you in a slumber was the nicest thing I could have done for you, because Idon’tlove you, not the slightest bit. You are a means to an end. That’s it.”
“Why did you have to interfere between Jodelle and me? Why?” I ask, tears welling.
“Because you have something that I want, and she was simply in the way, call it collateral damage.”
She crosses her arms as she stares me down.
“Why would I willingly give it to you now? You just confessed to me that all we had, all the shared moments, were false.”
“Who says you need to give it to me willingly? Have you forgotten the most important part about blood witch magic, Fynn? That’s disappointing.”
I stay silent for a brief moment, recalling what Caria had shared with me during one of our intimate moments. Blood witch magic only works if blood comes from those who refuse to hand it over; it needs to be violently obtained. I gasp and stare at her in horror.
“Why do you need my blood? For what?”
She grins at me maliciously.
“You’re a witch, too, Fynn. Surprise!”
“What?”
“I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of seeing your stupefied face.” She laughs loudly.
“Your bloodline, Fynn, was cursed by Blood witches because you are a descendant of the White Witch, who was responsible for creating Aurum in the first place. She was the leader of the White Witches' coven. It was because of her that we darklings didn’t stand a chance against humans, why vampires were starved until their dried remains fused with the soil, and why we had to abandon our beloved magic. All because of that treacherous cunt, Nuria. It was because of her that the Witch War started, because she and her damned circle of Light gave the fucking humans Aurum. But they were callous and arrogant, and when we were sure we outnumbered them all and had recruited enough humans on our side, we finally destroyed it all.”
“None of this makes sense,” I look at her, bewildered.
“You know what, it doesn’t matter. I admit, when that witch from the Waning Gibbous coven told us that was what your mother had bargained with, I hardly believed it myself, but theywere sure. I was a bit skeptical at first, but when I met your sister after her soulmate was murdered, all I could smell on her was her mate, the Umbra; the Aurum was gone, but there was this hint of sunshine, bleak, but there. That’s when I knew that the old hag was telling the truth and she wasn’t playing us.”
“Your blood was already useful to us, because it was cursed, but once you are purified, it’s going to be perfect.”
“You can’t use me like some magical blood tap,” I say with disgust.
“Watch me,” she says, the smile on her face diabolical.
The door opens and closes, and my eyes land on the male witch. He barely acknowledges me; instead, he wraps his arms around Caria, his hands twisting those long strands of red hair as he gives her a kiss that elicits a moan from her. My cheeks flush, and I clench my fists. I feel like a complete moron, and I wonder how often they mocked me together, the foolish little boy who cheated on his soulmate, false or not, who let himself be ensnared by a witch’s charm. All she had done was butter me up, seduce me, and I fell for it with eyes wide open. I let her beguile me with words as sweet as poison, and I believed every word that slipped from her lips, because I wanted to, because I trusted she was sincere. Even when my darker thoughts took over, there was still that silver lining, that tiny voice that shouted to me that I loved this woman, her essence deeply engraved in my heart.
Watching them together, I can’t believe I’ve been so blind to it all, as memories begin to flood my mind. The small winces, her pushing me away, never telling me complete stories, but always only what she allowed me to know. The more I think about it, the angrier I become.
I stand up, and that’s when I hearhisvoice, the male witch, and before I can take a step, I collapse to the floor, and everything around me darkens.
Forsaken Compassion
Caria
Chapter 17
