The Possession of Anna Drake

6 - Short-lived Romance

My first date with Justin was the following Saturday. We had agreed to a dinner at my house followed by a movie in the living room. I was glad he understood my fear of the outside community. It made the dinner much more comfortable.

“My mother was pleased I was coming here tonight,” he said as he took a drink from his glass.

“Oh?” I asked with only slight interest.

I did not want to spend the whole evening talking about mothers and what they expected from us. One evening away from the matriarch would be perfect.

“You ok?” he asked, noticing I was pushing a pea around my plate with a fork.

It wasn’t that he was boring me. It was I had no idea how to act with a boy. Do I shovel the food in my mother? Or do I eat only half? Do I make eye contact and bat my eyes? Or do I avoid it and play hard to get? I had seen so many romance movies I had no idea which one was considered the normal way to be on a first date. Justin was the first boy I had seen and spoken to in eight years. That says a lot about how confused I was.

“Yeah, just not as hungry as I thought.” I smiled innocently.

“Nervous?” He laughed softly and put his fork down. His whole attention was on me, and it made me mildly uncomfortable.

“Yes,” I admitted softly. “I’ve been confined to this house for so long talking to anyone outside of Anna feels odd.”

One thing I had learned through my whole experience was not to lie. Lying only led to bad things, which usually kept you in the same four walls for years on end. I didn’t want to be a hermit, even though I spent more and more time away from everything as each day passed.

“I can respect that.” His reply caught me off guard.

I had expected him to be upset over the fact I had no idea what to do.

“Do what?” I breathed.

“I understand things are different for you now. They are harder probably than it has been before now. You haven’t had independence for nearly a decade. I can respect that you are hesitant to start a new life.” He gave me a warm smile, and my heart began to pound.

Every time I thought I had said something to push him away, he found the right words to prove he was interested in me - not my story or autobiography.

“Can I ask you a question?” I stuttered.

“Of course.” He obliged with a nod.

I took a deep breath and thought carefully about what should be my first question.

“Why me?” I asked. I had decided to forgo the basic questions and head straight into uncharted water.

He looked uncomfortable with the question, but I had a feeling he would be straight with me.

“Honestly,” he began. “You are nothing like I had pictured. I was expecting someone hateful and vindictive, as all the stories said. Instead, I found you vulnerable and lost. After we first met, I took some time to think about everything.”

“Like?” I pressed.

So, he had thought I would be a bad person.

“Like how much of the stories were true. Then I realized if I was ten and my gift appeared out of nowhere, it would have given someone a heart attack. I mean, who is not going to run for the boy who can’t die.” He laughed softly. He was still uncomfortable with the conversation, but at least he was putting me at ease.

“Is that why our parents think we are compatible?” I queried. I had wanted a night without discussing parents, but I had to make an exception in this case.

“Probably,” he answered with a nod.

“Did something happen?” I asked.

“No, not at all. Regeneration is a very common gift in my family. It tends to frighten human’s though when you cut yourself in public, and your body fixes itself almost instantly.” He laughed softly.

“Yet they think you and I make a good match because of our gifts. Is it because I killed Nidia?” I looked at my plate.

He sat there silent for a bit and then smiled at me.

“To be honest, yes, it does have to do with the fact your gift has already killed a human. Your mother wants an heir, and the other boys would have perished if you were to reach a full charge.” He blushed.

I didn’t get it. What would I be fully charged have to do with providing an heir? Why would they be afraid? Eight years in shackles, and I was still incredibly innocent.

Disappointingly I fell asleep during the movie. When I woke up, I was covered with a blanket and a note placed on the coffee table in front of me.

Had a great evening. Meet me tomorrow at the creek.

I was a little sad I didn’t feel a warm flutter in my stomach. Justin seemed like a nice guy, but it appeared the only part of us that connected were our gifts. He was attractive, but I couldn’t see myself waking up next to him for the rest of my life.

If he were the only way I could escape my mother, I had a feeling I would take it. I was not too fond of the idea of marrying to get away, but I had to do something. I sat up and rubbed my eyes. I had no idea how long I had been out. It wasn’t normal for me to pass out on the couch. I took the note and crawled up the steps to my bedroom.

I reached for the doorknob and a chill passed over me. I had never once felt like I was being watched until that night. I turned and looked over my left shoulder and shook my head. I could have sworn I saw a shadow moving out of the guest bedroom.

I figured it was all due to the fact I was still half asleep. I entered my room and fell face-first onto my bed. That night I had the scariest dream. When I woke up, all I remembered was how rattled I had been. No other memory resurfaced, but I had a feeling the shadow brought it on.

“You fell asleep?” Anna laughed into the phone.

I had called to inform her of my devastatingly horrible first date. I had a feeling if anyone could give me tips on how to communicate with the other s*x, it would be her. She had been on several first dates in her own home. There had to be some secret I missed.

“In my defense, I was tired,” I mumbled.

The last thing I wanted was for her to laugh at me. Then again, what else did I expect? She was going to find anything I did freakishly stupid.

“If it makes you feel better, Justin Miller, as cute as he is, has been living a pretty sheltered life. The only difference between you and him is he had the right to go out in public. He doesn’t have the most outstanding reputation, but it’s not the worst either. His family is at the top of the list, but they have made some serious errors over the years. They were hanging on by a string, if you ask me. The only way they will be able to maintain their slipping hierarchy is if Justin marries you. From what I understand, it’s the last resort for them.” Anna always had so much information on the others in the Coven. I couldn’t wait for her to be free from her shackles so she could save me from my lack of social skills.

“I doubt it’s that bad,” I muttered. She did have a way of making things sound worse than they were.

“Your mother has done an excellent job of tearing apart all the things your grandmother put together. For a Coven once in black, we are treading close to dropping into the red. It doesn’t matter how talented your mom is with her magic. Her business technique is all sorts of messed up. Ever since your dad left, things have been going downhill.” Anna coughed.

The Drake family was on the lower end of the totem pole. It always had been, but there was nothing wrong with being at the bottom. Some of our most powerful witches came from those families. They were the administrators, the bookkeepers, the website technicians, everything none of the upper class wanted to be. Those at the top coasted on the money made by their family. The Drakes may not have a lot of money, but they had plenty of substance, in my opinion.

“Sounds like I have my work cut out for me when I take over.” I sighed and laid back on my pillow.

“It won’t be long, and the two of us will be able to get out of this town.”

I loved it when she spoke like she wasn’t going to leave me. Anna was my everything. I adored her more than I did my own family. When things had been bad, she had kept me afloat. By the time we were seventeen, I had forgotten just how scared she had me when we were ten. She didn’t come across as the black-hearted witch she did when my gifts surfaced. In fact, up until that moment, I had almost forgotten about her ability to speak telepathically.

I looked at the clock on my nightstand and gagged.

“I need to go! I’m supposed to meet Justin at the creek this afternoon,” I squealed.

I had let the time pass me by, which was nothing new. I was very good about forgetting anything that had to do with time. I was still growing accustomed to having a schedule or being able to make my appointments.

“Go, have fun.” Anna encouraged me as I clicked the button on the phone and began rummaging through my closet.

It didn’t matter that Justin wasn’t able to make my heart skip a beat. It didn’t bother me in the least that I didn’t find him spousal material. I had been raised that when you meet someone, you make sure you look your best. He had cut me off guard the day we had met, and our date had been relaxed, but something told me I needed to step up my game. If I wanted out of the house before I lost my mind, Justin was going to be my one-way ticket to normality.

Once I had decided on a black sundress and a pair of flats, I tossed my hair up in a ponytail, grabbed my sunglasses, and ran down the stairs.

“Where do you think you are going?” My mother asked with a bit of anger.

“Meeting Justin, no time to talk.” I reached for the doorknob to the backyard.

“Have fun,” she replied all traces of disapproval out of her voice.

I should have known she would be all right with me stepping out to meet the boy she swore I was going to marry.

I raced through the backyard, down the path to the creek, and came to a halt in the exact spot I had met Justin only a few days earlier. Only instead of my suitor, I found someone else. I had no idea who this boy was, but he was older, with a sour face, and the way he looked at me was similar to how my mother had all the previous years.

“You must be Lizbeth Dupree.” The boy stated as he placed his hands on his hips.

My heart sank. Had Justin set me up? Had he been playing me? Had I been far too blind to see he was never genuinely interested in me, just my rank? My head was reeling with questions. Who was this boy?

“Yes, and you are?” I asked with a cough. My throat had dried out, and my stomach was swirling in sickening motions.

“Lance Miller, I’m Justin’s brother,” he stated with a growl. “I would shake your hand, but I prefer to live to see tomorrow.”

“Where’s Justin?” I asked softly.

Lance looked a lot like his brother once I took in his face. However, his eyes were not as soft and sensitive as Justin’s were, and his lips were curled up in a wicked smile.

“He couldn’t make it,” Lance replied with disdain. “My parents may be for this arrangement, but I must admit I’m not too keen on the idea of my brother marrying a woman charged with murder. I mean, what would happen if your children didn’t have the same gifts. He would never be able to forgive you if your daughter were electrocuted before her first breath.”

Lance was mean-spirited; I could tell that much. He had read into the rumors of my sentence, and he wasn’t going to let his little brother fall into the wrong relationship. Maybe I was the wrong type of person to be with his brother. Then again, maybe I was the best.

“I don’t understand,” I muttered. Every bit of happiness I had felt twenty minutes before had dissipated into a cold sweat and a pounding heart.

Lance took a step forward and looked me in the eyes. “I suggest you stay away from my brother, or I will make sure you never see the light of day again. Even if it means I have to sacrifice myself to save my brother.”

It took me a moment to grasp what he was saying. When it clicked, I felt like I was going to cry. Lance was willing to give his life to prove I was the wrong woman. To him, it didn’t matter about how high his brother could marry. It had to do with what was safe. He was right. There would never be a way to know if our children would be able to survive my gifts.

“What does Justin have to say about this?” I asked curtly.

“He doesn’t exactly have anything to say but heed my warning. I will take you out if I need to, and then your poor dear mother will have no other option but to pass the honor to another young witch or warlock.” Lance winked and turned his back to me.

I could feel the current starting to surge, and I knew I was moments from exploding. My emotions were too far gone, and Lance would get his wish if I didn’t move from where I was standing. I would take another life and wind up in prison with no windows.

I did what I knew was best, I turned on my heels, and I raced home with Lance laughing behind me. He had known I wasn’t a vindictive woman when he met me at the creek. He was playing on my emotions, but I wasn’t going to stick around and see just how right he was.

I pushed through the back door and was halfway across the kitchen when my mother stopped me. By stopping me, I mean she put a force field of some sort up and held me in place until she could get to me. She’s crazy like that, but this was the first time she had ever done it to me.

“What happened?” she demanded.

I could see the vein in her forehead starting to pound. She knew something horrible had happened, and I was certain she knew it wasn’t Justin who had hurt me.

“Why did you have to meddle in my life? Did you want them to hurt me?” I growled through the frustrated tears.

I may not have seen Justin as a perfect match in any way other than power. But to be humiliated in such a way was the worst feeling I had felt. It only proved that the world outside had not accepted me as the legend Justin made me out to be.

“Did I want who to hurt you? Lizbeth, tell me what happened.” This was the most motherly she had acted in my whole life.

“Lance,” I cried.

I allowed my mother to wrap her arms around me. As a child, I had never been one who cried. Even when they sentenced me to house arrest, I hadn’t shed a single tear. It wasn’t that I was not sorry for what I had done. It was because I had no way of comprehending the situation. It was like Anna had put so much fear in me that I had forgotten what it was like to feel bad. It didn’t’ help that I was ok with any punishment they gave me. To me, I had deserved the penalty.

Something told me she had always wanted to see a vulnerable side to me. I had blamed her for my father leaving, for meddling in my life where she shouldn’t, and I never gave her the chance to be a mother. That day she held me while I cried, and once the last tear had fallen, I watched her leave the house in a fit of anger. Tornado Larissa was on its way to the Miller household.

She never told me what happened when she confronted the young warlock. She apologized for allowing Justin into my life and left it at that. My first relationship was short-lived and not as romantic as the movies. I learned from the Miller brothers that there were two types of people who lived in Evergreen Falls. Those who understood, and those who thought they could protect the weak.