Page 127 of Plug and Drain

Susie repressed a snort. “Cheers,” she said, lifting the jug awkwardly and drinking from the spout.

“You’re welcome,” Molly answered serenely. “Is there anything else I can get you?”

Susie shook her head. “No, you’ve done more than enough. Thank you.”

Molly turned to go, but a thought struck Susie, and she called after her.

“Where did you grow up? I don’t think I ever asked you.”

Molly wrung her hands. “In the old vampire territory, just past the old border. My father was a merchant. That was before Henrikk’s conquest.”

Susie noted that Molly didn’t use Henrikk’s title of ‘King’.

Molly continued. “After Henrikk seized control, things were…difficult for my parents. And for me. I was orphaned and never lived in one place for very long. I even lived with humans for a short while.”

Susie’s eyes widened. “Did they know what you were?”

Molly gave a small smile. “Not at first. But it mattered not. I was moved on shortly after that.”

“Moved on by who?”

“By fate.”

It was a strange answer, but Molly seemed earnest. Suddenly, her expression tightened as if recalling a painful memory, and she added sadly, “I’ve been alone for a long time.”

Susie regarded her for several moments, taking in the woman’s face and slight frame. She looked tired. There were faint crinkles around her eyes that a young wolf ought not to have. Like Arken, there was silver streaked through her hair, more than Susie realised there had been.

“You’re not a wolf,” Susie said slowly, peering at Molly carefully. “Are you?”

Molly looked both nervous and shy as she fidgeted with her long sleeves.

“You can trust me,” Susie pressed. “I can keep a secret.”

Molly nodded. “I know. It’s just…I’ve never told anyone before. I’m…a…”

Susie leant closer, waiting.

“A witch,” Molly finally said.

Susie propped herself up on one elbow. “I thought all the witches were wiped out…?”

Dead. Deceased. Extinct. Eliminated. Exterminated.

Words that had appeared in official propaganda, along with various explanations as to why it had been necessary, depending on the year of publication.

“Henrikk’s army attacked the witch covens before he came into power,” Susie said. “All the witches died.”

Molly nodded solemnly. “I thought so too. I think…I think I’m the last one left. I tried to stay hidden, but the recruitment officers from the academy found me. I always disguised myself as a wolf, so when they found me, they assumed that’s what I was. It seems I did too good a job with my disguise. I was unregistered, but I looked older than eighteen, so they brought me here.”

Susie sat up, wide-eyed. If the vampires had realised Molly was a witch, they would have killed her. Witches were illegal—a law that had always seemed strange to her, given that the entire race had supposedly been wiped out by Henrikk. She’d always thought it implied that Henrikk expected there to be some left in hiding.

“How do you make yourself look like that?” Susie asked. The amber eyes…the darker skin tone…full lips…

“Just a basic illusion charm. But I get so tired from maintaining it all the time…” Molly fiddled with a silvery curl strand, twisting it around her fingers. “Using magic ages me.”

“That’s why you spend so much time in your room,” Susie realised.

“Exactly, dear. When I’m not resting, I’m hiding. But I don’t like being cooped up. I…I was tempted to come to your book club. But I didn’t dare take the risk of being discovered. I can hardly transform into a wolf—even a brief transfiguration would require considerable energy. And I’m trying to get my energy up before I try to escape from the academy. Leaving is easy, as you know. But going back into hiding, with a new identity…It all takes so much effort. And I’m just so exhausted all the time.”