The Beta's Witch

Chapter 18: I'm a What?

ADRIANA’S POV

I stared at Taylor, too shocked to move. My Uncle’s murderous glare snapping back and forth between her and I.

“What did you say?” he seethed, leaning forward in his chair.

Taylor cringed, looking at me guiltily. “Adriana I’m so sorry,” she pleaded. “I shouldn’t have said that. I don’t know what came over me.”

I turned to Joseph, trying to gauge his anger. “I have a mate.” I announced.

“Wolves only mate with wolves.” His voice trailed off as he eyed Taylor again, this time curiously. Seconds passed by as he connected the pieces. Once more he leaned back in his chair.  “A vampire and a werewolf,” he mused. “And I thought I’d seen it all.”

Taylor rolled her eyes. “No stranger than a witch and a werewolf.” She countered, repeating the same thing she had said to me not too long ago. The tension was slowly easing from the room. I heaved a sigh of relief, hoping things would go this smoothly when Carson and his friends woke up.

It took a few more moments of contemplation before he once again looked at Taylor as if seeing her for the first time. He whispered an incantation, waving his hand at her feet. I grabbed her arm as she stumbled slightly, pulling her up.

“A truce?” I suggested, tugging Taylor over to a chair by the table. The three of us sat facing each other, the moment we settled I felt something click into place. It was like the universe had allowed every event to take place so that the three of us may come together. The looks on Taylor’s and Joseph’s face told me they felt it too.

We could trust each other.

It didn’t take long to bring my Uncle up to speed. With Taylor’s help we explained everything involving Aiden, his ex, and how we suspected the shewolf had some witch friends. Our theory was that their magic triggered the seal to crack, releasing some of my magic and my old memories in the process. But something still wasn’t right with me. I shoved the though aside for now.

“So,” Joseph intoned, looking annoyed. He rubbed his temples, processing. “This woman has been faking the mate bond with the Beta of Midnight, and now that she knows you are his actual mate she plans on destroying you.”

“Pretty much,” Taylor shrugged, she was surprisingly nonchalant about the whole thing. Especially considering her back up was still passed out on the floor. “Sofia was never really subtle.”

“Sofia,” he murmured, making me tense. My family knew that Sofia was my friend but not that she was a wolf. I wasn’t sure why, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell them the connection yet. It would make Sofia’s betrayal all too real. “Well that’s certainly a mess we need to clean up pronto.”

“Agreed,” I said. “In the meantime, why don’t you fill us in on what you’ve been doing for the past six years.”

He winced at the tone of my accusation. All those years ago when I asked him to take away my memories it was because I couldn’t handle them on my own. My Uncle had found me a mess. He had wanted to go back home and figure out what the hell happened, but I couldn’t bring myself to be functional, let alone useful, and someone needed to keep Daniel out of harms way.

When Joseph figured out what Nana had been planning, he promised to come back and break the seal. I was desperate to understand why he hadn’t.

“You have your memories back now.” He began, studying me intently. “Can you tell me what you remember. I’ve been waiting a long time to hear what exactly happened that night.”

“What do you mean?” Taylor demanded.

“Adriana wasn’t capable of telling me anything when I found her six years ago. I was resolved to finding out as much as I could on my own. It was why I didn’t think it wise to give her her memories back. Though it seems I was mistaken.” He explained, eying me with intense focus.

I began tracing the rough divots in the wooden table, feeling uncomfortable. As briefly as I could I explained the ritual to him. Leaving out as many gruesome details as possible. I feared their screams would forever haunt my nightmares.

“And then what happened?” he asked impatiently. “After you ran away from the woods, what happened.”

Taylor looked between us, bewildered. I couldn’t bring myself to face my Uncle. He knew me better than I knew myself when I was younger, and right now I felt like I was a teenager all over again, trying to hide some trivial issue from him. It had never worked then, and it didn’t work now.

“I don’t know,” I said finally, shoving away from the table.

“You’re joking right?” Taylor exploded, leaping up after me. She suddenly appeared in front of me, searching my face. Then she looked past me to Joseph. “I thought you said you gave all her memories back.”

“I did,” he said calmly, I heard his chair scrape against the floor. “Do you want some tea?”

“You’re joking right?” Taylor said again, fighting her frustration. “You witches are so damn annoying.”

I laughed, though there was little humor to be found. “You’ll get used to it. I imagine in the few minutes I was passed out my Uncle managed to dig his way under your skin.”

She made a disgusted noise, leaving me to plop back down in her chair. My uncle sat a fancy looking teacup and saucer in front of her, before going back to retrieve his own.

“First of all, ew. Second of all, that doesn’t soothe my irritating desire to kick his ass.” She leaned her elbows on the table, flipping her hair over her shoulder before it fell into the tea. “Why don’t you remember what happened after the ritual?”

“Because she doesn’t want to.” Joseph replied casually, placing a plate of biscuits and two more cups of tea on the table.

“What?!’ she said angrily, slamming her hand on the table. My uncle, with his quick reflexes caught his tea before it sloshed all over the table. Mine wasn’t so lucky. He glared at Taylor before patting the table dry with a napkin. “Sorry. But how is that even possible!? They’re your memories, you can’t just press pause on your experiences.”

“That’s exactly what I can do.” I said firmly. “I didn’t fall apart when I remembered what happened in that clearing, which means whatever happened between that time and the time I left for Maine, was traumatic. I’d rather wait until I have time to deal with it.”

“There could be something important in your memories that we don’t know yet Adriana,” my uncle said gently, beckoning me to come sit back down. I obliged reluctantly, taking a sip from the tea. Chamomile. It was my mother’s favorite.

“My parents’ aren’t here.” I said unexpectedly. “I don’t want to know why they aren’t. It hurts enough already.”

My Uncle and Taylor both remained silently for a moment. I was only blocking out a few hours of memories after I escaped the ritual circle. I doubted that in that time I would have answers to the questions I really wanted to know. Though the important thing is I knew how Sofia had found me. She was the one who helped me leave.   

I flexed my fingers, feeling a shaky connection where my magic should have flowed unencumbered.

“What did you find out?” I demanded. “Why let me stay blissfully ignorant for six years, and in the company of werewolves no less.”

My Uncle scowled, sipping his tea reflectively. “That wasn’t my intention. I went back home and discovered the remaining family members of the girls who had died were at a loss as to what happened as well. It wasn’t long until they discovered that your body wasn’t among the fallen. I did everything I could to console them, but they were stricken with grief. Eventually they were hellbent on revenge. They believed you were responsible for what happened that night.” He looked at me sadly. “I told them I did not know where you or Daniel were. They annexed me from their circle. By the time I came back you had already begun to carve out a life for yourself. You enrolled in school, got a job and Daniel was happy. You took on the roll as his mother so perfectly.”

“When did you realize she was in working for the Midnight pack?” Taylor asked smugly, taking pleasure in my Uncle’s mistakes. It seemed she was not ready to drop her irritation with him, but I enjoyed her attempts to annoy him.

“About three years later,” He explained, ignoring her goading. “I had long since fallen into the habit of disguising my nature, so it isn’t a shock you lot hadn’t sensed me throughout the years. It wasn’t until that one,” he pointed at Carson sleeping soundly on the floor near my chair, “followed her home, that I recognized his scent.”

My attention fell on Carson, disbelief shooting through my chest. “But I was always so careful.” I stammered. Why had Carson followed me home? How much more had he figured out?

“There wasn’t much more for him to know,” Joseph soothed, picking up on my distress. “If he looked into you as thoroughly as I believe, he wouldn’t have found any records prior to your arrival in Emberton. Nothing on Daniel. I made sure of it.”

“Carson is overprotective and curious by nature. He looks into everyone who works closely with the ranked members. So, you were protecting her from these witches?” Taylor asked, bored with the topic of Carson.

“Warlocks,” he corrected. “And yes, I’ve been hiding them here. Most of the matriarchs didn’t continue with the vendetta. But the men were furious, besides, we aren’t confined by the rules of the Accords. One man from the thirteen families, ours excluded, swore vengeance against Adriana.”

“I didn’t do anything wrong!” I exploded, the teacup shattering in my hand as my magic sparked irritably. “And what the hell is wrong with my magic!” I yelled, dropping the glass onto the table.

My Uncle hummed, staring at the broken pieces. I focused on them too, sweeping my hand back and forth. As soon as I finished reciting the spell to repair what was broken, the pieces crashed together with so much force that they shattered into even smaller shards. Taylor and Joseph leaned away.

“What is going on?” I asked miserably, feeling as broken as the stupid cup.

“You said you thought the ritual was meant to strip your power away, right?” Joseph asked abruptly.

I nodded, unsure of where he was going. “You think the ritual is why my magic doesn’t feel right?”

“Wait you never said anything about your magic being off,” Taylor complained. I smiled at her apologetically, remembering I had used it in our fight. I vowed to be more careful moving forward.

“If the spell they used was meant to split the thirteen sources of power between three witches, it’s a miracle you survived it.” He looked at me strangely. “Unless of course the goddess gave her blessing.”

He jumped up and sped across the room. His vampire speed making him a blur of movement. He shuffled through several shelves of books before finally finding what he was after. A rather old grimoire on the very top shelf.

“The family grimoire,” I breathed, staring at it in awe. Joseph nodded, equally as transfixed.

“This,” he opened the book, flapping at the dust particles. “Is similar to the ritual you described. And it states that ‘If the Moon Goddess so permits it, the witch born from sacrifice will be reborn as the Phoenix Witch.’” He looked up excitedly. “The blood you consumed must have linked you to the others.”

I gagged, not particularly found of that memory. For two vampires I’m sure it was as normal a topic as the weather. “The what?”

“Phoenix Witch,” he replied gruffly, trailing his fingers across the ancient pages. “However you die is how you will remain for 13 lifetimes. Like a Phoenix your body will burst into flames and you will be reborn from the ashes.”

“Hold on I minute!” I yelped, panicked. “I have to die?”

He nodded, not as freaked out as I would have expected. “According to this it should have been done as the final step in the ritual. I imagine you have yet to tap into the full extent of your powers.”

“I can barely control what I have now. No. No way.” I argued, crossing my arms. There was no way I was completing the ritual and taking advantage of the lives of the poor girls who had died for my grandmother’s selfish gain.

“If we kill you now, you’ll remain young and beautiful for many lifetimes, Chica,” Taylor joked, hiding her sniggering behind her hand.

“This is not funny, Tay. I never wanted this. I don’t want to be some special super witch.” I moved to drop my head on the table but, remembering the glass, thought better of it.

“Mom always taught me that witch magic obeyed the Law of Balance. Nature is going to try to correct the wrong that was committed when I became what I am.” I couldn’t bring myself to say the name. “Which means I may not survive long enough to figure out what’s going on between me and Aiden, let alone enjoy it now that I have my magic back.”

“You don’t know that Addie.” Joseph said gently, grabbing my hand.

“The alternative is that Selene allowed this to happen because a great evil is coming.” I countered, feeling tired. I slumped in my chair, feeling hopeless. Neither of these scenarios boded well for me.

“It’s no use worrying yourself over. Let’s focus on what we can do now. These warlocks, they call themselves the Coven. A bit of a middle finger to the Accords. If who your wolf friend there saw outside my shop is indeed them, we will need to take some precautions. In the meantime, you need to focus on stopping this Sofia character.” He frowned slightly. “If you can convince the Alpha that I’m to be trusted. I’ll make a plan to stop by next week and create a scry safe room for you and your friends to use. There’s a powerful one on this building.”

“I didn’t even think of that,” I slapped my forehead. “Sofia’s witch friends would know everything that’s going on in the pack territory if they had someone to scry for. They had access to all my stuff when she broke into my home. Or she could have something of Aiden’s. I don’t think I have enough control on my magic to do it myself.”

“Why next week?” Taylor demanded. “Why not come back with us now?”

Joseph glanced at the unconscious wolves on the floor. “I think it may take some time for you to convince your friends that I’m trustworthy. And I need to find the Coven. Just because they have no magic doesn’t mean they don’t have tools at their disposal. Until then, don’t say anything about this Phoenix business. I want to do more research to see if anything like this has been attempted before.”

Taylor and I nodded in agreement. Nothing good would come of the Coven or Sofia having that knowledge.

“But what about my magic?” I asked hopefully, showing my palms to my Uncle. It was stupid to hope for an instant solution, but I couldn’t help it. He pushed my hands back to me.

“You’ll need to practice. I believe that the ritual needs to be completed in order for you to have complete control over you magic, as well as full access,” He became very serious. “I won’t lie, Adriana, I think you will need to prepare yourself for the possibility of finishing what was started all those years ago.”

I nodded bleakly, rubbing my arms for comfort. Completing that cursed ritual was the last thing I wanted.

Taylor shifted in her chair to face me, a rueful smile emerging from her lips.

“At least one good thing came from all this.” She said cheerfully. I looked at her warily, not sure of her definition of good. “We will all be hot and single a hundred years from now, maybe then we can have some fun, eh?”

We all laughed. It was a bit morbid, but it felt cathartic after the heavy subjects we had just covered. Carson groaned at my feet, rubbing his head. We all froze.

“That’s my cue,” Joseph said quickly, then disappeared. I scowled at the spot where he had just been moments before.

“Sneaky bastard.” Taylor whispered, then turned to the other two wolves slowly coming to their senses. I kneeled down next to Carson, propping his head up on my knees.

“Joseph,” he growled weakly, head lolling to the side. I pressed my hands on either side of his head. My uncle had said I needed to practice and that was what I intended to do. I sent a quick zap of energy into Carson, letting it flow through him. He shot up quickly, almost knocking his head into mine.

“Hey!” I complained, moving out of the way just in time. Carson rolled to his feet, eyeing the room warily. When he caught sight of his men on the ground, he stalked over to them, dragging them up. They stumbled but managed to stay on their feet. Taylor folded her arms.

“Some help you were.” She said hotly, tossing her hair carelessly. Carson scowled at her.

“Where is the warlock?” he demanded, a low growl creeping up from the back of his throat.

“Not here.” I said shortly, getting to my feet as well. “We can leave now.”

I approached the two wolves who were still struggling to hold themselves up. I gestured toward their chests. “May I?” I asked politely.

They looked at me warily, then both glanced at Carson as if asking him what to do. He nodded, and they straightened as much as they could, bracing themselves. I pressed a hand to each of their chests and zapped them as well. They each stood at attention, looking a lot better than they had before. I beamed up at them, proud of myself. Until I realized they looked a little too good. I frowned, studying their faces.

“How do you feel?” I asked nervously. Carson and Taylor leaned around one to get a better look for themselves. Both wolves were vibrating slightly, a side effect of my magical caffeine shot.

“What did you do?” Carson demanded, staring at his men in bewilderment. He stepped in front of them trying to get a better look at the damage.

“We’re fine Cap!” the one on the left proclaimed all jolly. His friend guffawed, bouncing on his toes, like he was preparing for a run.

“I may have given them too much,” I stammered, unsure how to fix it. “It should wear off in a few hours.”

Taylor doubled over, laughing so hard she wobbled slightly. “This…is…so great!” she wheezed in between fits of laughter. Both men were radiating with excited energy, they could barely sit still, even when Carson commanded them to.

“No more practicing on my men,” he said sternly, shoving the two wired men toward the door. As he passed, I swear I saw a smile peaking its way through his hard features. Three more wolves lingered in the doorway, waiting to escort us back.

I wasn’t looking forward to going back there. Especially since there wasn’t much we could tell them until Joseph came to protect the house from scrying. Everything we said outside of these walls could be heard by our enemies.

Taylor linked arms with me, pulling me toward the door. Just before we stepped over the precipice, she turned to me. “You’re not alone anymore, Dri. I’ve got your back.”

Carson stared at us curiously, signaling the men to close ranks around us. “Do I even want to know what happened in there?”

“Failures don’t get details,” Taylor said airily, winking at me discreetly. I smiled back, grateful to have her at my side.

We would have to tell them something, but until then what Joseph, Taylor and I had discussed would remain a secret. Something about the three of us being in this together felt right. I only imagined it meant we would be getting into more trouble in the future.