He studied my half-eaten plate, as if to decide if he would accept that answer. I guess he did, because he didn’t push further, taking another mouthful.
Nausea filled my stomach as I watched him chew the remnants of a person. As soon as I thought it, he tossed the arm into the fire with an expression like a toddler who changed their mind about what they wanted.
My curiosity peaked. As soon as I was grossed out, he didn’t want it anymore, and I suspected the majority of people who went missing here were personally digested by him. Exactly what was the nature of this link?
“You asked me a question yesterday. I get to ask you one now.” He brushed his hands against each other, like he was trying to get rid of human crumbs.
“Yeah, cause that went great.” The sarcasm radiating from the words couldn’t be helped.
But he chuckled and helped ease the sudden nerves gathering in my chest. “I’m sure this will go just as well, but I guess sometimes it has to happen. If you need to storm off and calm down, that’s fine.”
His words sliced through a couple layers in my defenses, that I didn’t realize needed to be protected. Conflict between us was okay.
Not punishment worthy.
I wouldn’t end up locked in a closet.
He’d leave room for me to be mad.
Could that be real? Guess there was only one way to find out. I scratched the back of my neck nervously. “What’s your question?”
“Rinah witches take care of their own. Where is your family?”
“My mother was killed when I was five.” I remembered the shadows and the screaming, but I couldn’t recall much morethan that. I couldn’t remember much from her at all. “The reports say an unidentified wild animal broke into the house.”
“Probably someone like me,” he said casually as if it was the most realistic answer. “I’m not the only monster out there.”
“You think my mom was like Levicy?” My voice grew small. But that would explain the sounds and weird shadows. That could be explained by something that wasn’t animal or man.
The few memories I had she was warm and kind. She talked about doing the right thing and not abusing power. Her memory held me together in weak moments. But I was her daughter, it was possible she was someone else entirely.
Hell, Levicy was a mom trying to protect her children.
“Maybe.” He shrugged. “I can smell a Rinah witch before she even enters the swamp. It’s possible something just caught wind of her.”
His red eyes went over me with irritation. “Or you.”
“How did you know I was related to them? The eyes?”
“It’s a giveaway.” His finger traced my eye, then pulled away as if he hadn’t realized what he’d done.Then he pointed at my pendant. “So is that.”
I grabbed the obsidian necklace, feeling the smooth, warm stone. “My mom gave it to me. It makes me feel safe.”
It was one of the only constants in my life.
“It wards off evil spirits,” he answered easily. “It does keep you safe. Especially here. The humans say this place is haunted.”
I chuckled, dropping the crystal back against my chest. Maybe. But one thing it definitely didn’t do was keep evil humans away.
“Levicy used to tell me a story when she was feeling kind.” He stared across the swamp as if he were remembering something far away. “That your line is cursed to attract evil in all its forms, because the ancestor, Eleanor, who came over from the old world, tainted your blood.”
“How?” I glanced at my arm as if I’d be able to see what he spoke of. There was no surprise that my veins looked like everyone else's.
“Eleanor cast a spell that was unforgivable and would be punished generation after generation.”
I snorted, “What kind of spell does Levicy consider unforgivable?”
“It was so unspeakable that the family doesn’t even speak about it. The knowledge was lost. But whatever she did created the first monster and gave you the Rinah name.”
