Birthright

Chapter 16 - she’s fae - Ephy pov

I watch as Margie and Maggie move around their kitchen, gathering ingredients with effortless grace as if they’re dancing, each step and gesture perfectly in sync.

The witch twins live on the outskirts of town. It took us nearly forty minutes to get here, sneaking through Slavers Bay, skirting the castle walls near the cliffs, slipping through Locks Wood, and climbing Pike Hill. They like their privacy, far from prying eyes. I suppose it helps when people come to them desperate for their magic.

Their home is a wooden lodge, weathered but strong, with a bunker hidden beneath. Inside, it’s dim and heavy with the scent of herbs and smoke. Most of their rituals happen underground, where they perform their spells, the air hums faintly with old magic.

“Now, we don’t have your mother’s blood, dear, so you’re the next best thing,” Margie says.

Maggie steps closer, her expression calm but unreadable. She presses a shiny, sharp blade into my hand and gestures toward a pan suspended over the fire, held aloft by invisible magic.

“We’ll need a few drops,” she says softly. “Squeeze them in.”

I glance back at Jake and Raven. They’re sitting in stunned silence, eyes wide as they watch the sisters move with impossible precision.

Turning toward the fire, I step closer, feeling the heat lick at my skin. The air hums with power.

I draw a breath then drag the blade across my palm. The sting is sharp, clean. Clenching my fist, I squeeze until droplets of blood fall into the pan suspended above the flames.

Each drop hits the shimmering liquid with a hiss, sending ripples of color swirling through it, deep crimson, violet, and black, twisting together like smoke in water.

“That’s it, my dear,” Maggie says softly. “Now leave the rest to us.”

Margie comes over with a steaming cup in her hands. “Drink this,” she says. “It’ll help your wolf heal the wound quicker.”

“Thank you,” I murmur, taking the cup. The tea smells of mint and earth, warm, grounding.

But as I drink, a sudden pain flashes through my neck sharp and hot, then vanishes just as quickly. I blink, breathing hard.

An emptiness stirs inside me, cold and hollow. For a moment, it feels like something has been pulled away, leaving only darkness and quiet. Then, just as suddenly, it fades.

“Sweet Ephy,” Margie says gently, her voice trembling. “We..we can’t seem to find your mother with our magic.”

Maggie quickly interjects, frowning. “It’s not our magic, there’s nothing wrong with our magic.”

Margie smacks her sister lightly on the arm. “What my sister means,” she says, giving her a sharp look, “is that we cannot find your mother’s soul. It’s as if she’s not here, not in this realm, my dear.”

“What are you trying to say?” I ask, confusion twisting in my chest.

Maggie suddenly jumps up, eyes wide. “She could be dead or banished to another realm!”

“Dear Goddess!” Margie snaps, glaring at her twin. “Will you ever learn to keep that mouth of yours shut?”

My world tilts and spins. The air feels heavy, the room swaying around me as Maggie’s words echo in my head. My heart shattering as the word ‘dead’ plays over like a broken record.

Then, light. Blinding, pure light.

I blink, confused, searching for the source..until I realize it’s me.

A glow pours from my skin, pulsing like liquid sunlight. The warmth hums through my veins, growing brighter, stronger, alive.

Maggie looks to her sister in shock, “can you feel that power Sister” she speaks with a twinkle in her eye.

Margie gasps, her hand flying to her mouth. “She has of fae blood” she whispers.

I can’t stop my head from spinning. The emptiness inside me deepens, cold, hollow and the darkness starts to take hold.

Is that what the pain was before?

My mum?

No, it can’t be.

The light grows even brighter, so intense it burns behind my eyes. I squeeze them shut, gasping, the world dissolving into white.

A strange, fuzzy heat ripples beneath my skin, spreading outward like wildfire. My heartbeat pounds in my ears.

Have I awakened my fae side?

But I’m not eighteen until tomorrow.

Maggie’s trying to edge closer to her while feeling burn sensations from the light illuminating from Ephy.

“Try to control it!” she shouts, her tone trembling with both fear and command. “Don’t look for the darkness, find your happy space, Ephy!”

Muffled voices echo around me, distant and warped, as if I’m underwater. I can’t make out the words.

Someone’s hand finds mine, fingers trembling but firm, trying to pull me back. I can’t move, can’t breathe. All I can think is Mum. I want her. I just want my mum. The memory of my mother’s face slipping further away.

The noise inside my head swells until one voice breaks through it all, gravelly and commanding:

“Control your emotions. Think of something that brings you peace.”

I try. Goddess, I try.

And then, through the chaos, an image surfaces..his face. Jackson.

The man I barely met through the night, yet something about him stills the storm inside me.

The heat begins to fade. The light dims, pulling back into my skin until only a faint shimmer remains. I can finally breathe again.