His Fated Queen

Chapter 10

The brothers of Lucifer’s daughters are just as important as the sisters. Lucifer cast a spell on Ruth’s brother Jared while he was still in Eve’s womb. The spell has grown more powerful with each generation. Over the years, fewer and fewer generations of the brothers have gone on to have families of their own. Even when they do have children, it is usually only one and the child does not have the strength or power of their father. Though the brothers’ lines are not usually followed, and I am unsure how accurate that information is.

Many believe it is a curse that Lucifer placed on the brothers. But every brother takes their role very seriously. Each brother, once they are old enough to hold a weapon, is trained by their uncles to fight and hunt. They are trained to be warriors. This was no exception with my brother Ethan. He was bigger than my uncles, he was stronger, he could run faster and always caught his prey when he hunted. My mother believed Ethan was like this because I am the prophesied one. Ethan needed to be stronger.

There is always a close bond between brothers and sisters. However, the connection between my brother and I is greater than in previous generations. My family don’t talk about it, but I have heard my grandmother and mother thinking about it. It is hard for us to be separated for long periods of time, and it is not something that has been seen before. Ethan is best at calming me, helping me control my powers and at controlling himself around me, so I am not overwhelmed. His greatest gift, however, is when he holds my hand, the whole world disappears. I can no longer hear or feel everything going on around me. It is enough to slow things down and calm my mind and stop me from losing control.

It is such a blessing when he is near. When I was ten years old, Ethan was taken to our London home to spend some time at court. He was gone for two months. I never noticed how overwhelming everything was when he was around because he was there. When he was gone, it felt like everything came crashing down on me. I rarely left the house, and when I was at home, I stayed mostly in the locus sacer. The power in that room provided a barrier that stopped the world coming at me. When my mother couldn’t stand it anymore, she brought my brother home. When he arrived, it was the first time I had left the room in over a week. I felt him before I knew he had arrived. I ran down the stairs and down our drive to meet him. He had felt me too and had pushed his horse until he saw me, jumped down and ran to me. Catching me in his arms as I leapt to him. He stroked my hair, and immediately I felt at peace. We were not separated again for lengths of time. Instead, my uncle moved into our country house full-time to train with him there. My mother had to stop taking in lost and abandoned witches. My grandmother took them to her London home. Grandmother had powerful witch friends in London to take on the lost children. Even though it was harder to keep everyone hidden in London, it was the only option now as I grew more powerful and closer to Ethan.

My mother, grandmother and uncles did not understand our bond. But they no longer kept us apart, even though it scared them to see us so reliant on the other.

‘What are we going to do when she marries? She will have to marry at some time. I also think Ethan should be married. It will keep up appearances, and perhaps we can find a girl from a prosperous family that will advance his standings.’ My grandmother stated one night after Ethan and I went to bed.

‘I agree sister. I don’t understand their bond; it could be dangerous. Their bond is closer than any marriage bond I have seen. No one will understand this except us.’ My uncle Matthew usually agreed with my grandmother, his sister.

‘I’m not sure. I agree about Katherine. She must marry and have children. But Ethan, I don’t think I can force him to do that. No girl will ever live up to his sister. What if they can’t be separated like that?’ My mother started shaking her head while staring into the fire. She was already going to lose her daughter in a few years. She didn’t want to lose her son either. My father sat beside her. He did not involve himself in the conversation knowing he was not a part of it, but he wanted to be there while they discussed his children. He would always be the outsider. He had no real understanding of their world, but these were his children they were talking about, his blood. He would not be kept away. He took his wife’s hand and gave it a squeeze to remind her he was still there. She looked up at him, into his eyes as she so often did and gave him a reassuring smile and turned back to the fire.

‘I understand Margaret, but we need to protect Katherine any way that we can. If that means Ethan must marry, then, perhaps we should plan it.’ My uncle always tried to be the diplomat between the generations. His uncle had been a hard task master, but he always seemed to know the right thing to do. And although neither he nor his uncle were married, they were all in agreement that Ethan should be married.

Peter’s thoughts drifted back to a time long ago, when he was just a boy of fifteen. It was a quiet summer at the country house. His uncle, strong and steadfast, had been his mentor for years, guiding him through endless hours of training. Though his uncle towered above him in strength, Peter could feel the ache of time still stretching ahead—he had not yet reached his full potential. But in that moment, a quiet doubt stirred in his heart, as if he could never match his uncle’s power.

His uncle, ever the taskmaster, had sent him on an errand to the village. The sun hung low in the sky as Peter walked, the weight of the new sword a comforting presence at his side. And then, as if the world had shifted beneath his feet, he saw her.

She was a young girl, no older than him, but there was something about her that made her seem timeless. Her beauty was not of the ordinary kind; it was otherworldly, like something spun from moonlight and dreams. She walked beside her mother, their path leading them past the blacksmith’s shop. She was dressed in the fashion of the court, her attire elegant but tempered with an air of command, as though she came from a family of great power.

But it was her smile that caught him, as if the very sun had found a home in her face. In that instant, her eyes met his, and it felt as though the entire world held its breath. The universe seemed to pause, and in the depth of her gaze, Peter saw his future—a life entwined with hers, a life he would give anything to have.

The moment passed, but it left him breathless, longing for a future he hadn’t yet dared to dream of. Her scent lingered in the air, sweet like sunshine dancing on wildflowers, and Peter knew, in the very core of his being, that he would follow her anywhere, through any storm, into the unknown. But just as swiftly as it had arrived, the magic of that moment faded, leaving him with nothing but a memory—a fleeting dream he would never forget.

Her mother turned at the same time and upon seeing the young man her daughter was looking at, she gasped and grabbed her daughter’s arm, slapped her across the face and dragged her back down the lane. It was enough to knock Peter to his senses, shake his head and turn back for home. He had his sister and his mother. He was needed to protect them. Though every visit back to the village had him looking for the young girl, but he never saw her again.

Matthew had been different. He had never found a woman he wanted to marry. He was perfectly content to serve and protect his family. His mother had been very hard on him and his uncle just as tough. It was a huge loss to the family when his uncle died. He had been killed while fighting for King Ferdinand of Spain. He had wanted to serve his country for a time before coming home to finish training his nephew. Unfortunately, he never made it home, and it left a great hole in their family.

There would be greater responsibility on his great nephew Ethan. He agreed with his sister that Ethan should marry. The relationship between us was much closer than he had ever seen. It was almost as though we were twins. We looked so similar; we had the same hair and eyes and with Ethan often responding for me when we were younger. While looking at us together you would almost think we were one person. Matthew knew we could talk to each other in our minds so no one else could hear us. It was my gift, but we shared so much, it was the only time I would let someone else in. But as Ethan grew, he grew taller and broader, and soon we were much more distinguishable even though Ethan continued to answer for me.

The adults weren’t sure if Ethan being married would change anything, or how his wife would react to the relationship with me. It was also possible that neither I nor Ethan would agree to it. It was possible that I would be as possessive of my brother as he was of me and not allow him to marry. I was so powerful now that any kind of tantrum might set me off and who knew what would be left standing. They never saw me get angry, but sometimes my eyes would darken, and you could see the storm brewing behind them. It was intriguing to watch, but no one wanted to see what would happen if the storm was unleashed.

I would need to be the one to be convinced. If I agreed to it, then Ethan would agree. Once I had mastered my power of empathy, I was very difficult to read. My mother could no longer see her daughter. My grandmother could no longer see my future. I was able to block everyone and everything. It at least meant I was protected from other witches trying to see me. But it meant I had to shut myself off from my family, the ones who loved me and would do anything to protect me.

My grandmother sat down with me one day to talk about Ethan marrying.

‘My darling Katherine, we feel that it is time for you and for Ethan to be betrothed.’

‘I know, I have heard you talking about it. I will not fight it. Have him betrothed. Please let her be a pleasant girl though. I don’t want him to marry one of those boring, quiet, uneducated girls in the village.’

‘Are you sure Katherine?’ Elizabeth was taken aback, not expecting me to agree so quickly.

‘Yes grandmother. I know Ethan and I are very close, and that no one understands our bond. I know what others would think of our connection if the outside world saw it. Even if he marries, it will not change very much. She will move here when they marry. And I will be here when I marry. I don’t see the future as clearly as you do yet, but I do see him with a child of his own. I will try to separate us more. I think I can make a spell; I see how everything is connected, I see the strings that bind us, and I think I can manipulate them, but he must be willing as well. I know his mind and I don’t think he will, but we may be able to convince him.’ I looked up at my grandmother and smiled.

‘Ok, thank you, Katherine. We will try to find a good match for him and for you.’ I smiled and nodded. I then went in search of Ethan to train out in the forest. Well, that was what we told the adults. I needed time to reflect on everything. I needed to be in the river underwater and Ethan just needed to be near me, as always.