Chapter 19: Levenach
953 Words
Cole Matheson lives near a river in Wolf Creek. I found out from Neeve’s brother. His help in this investigation is invaluable. I trust him. He’s one of the few people I’m giving it to in this case.
Cole’s house is nestled between the trees. I can barely see the door when I teleport near its entrance. It is dark, and no light comes through the windows.
Dreading his absence, I close my eyes and inhale. Magic flows through me. I then feel a presence behind these walls. It’s late, so I guess the owner must be sleeping. My steps bring me to the door on which I drum my fist. After a few seconds, I hear:
"It’s good, I’m coming, damn!"
I suppress the smile that threatens to bloom on my lips. The sorcerer, barely twenty years old, his brow furrowed and visibly annoyed by this nocturnal visit, opens the door. When he recognizes me, his eyes widen, and the blood drains from his face.
"Amnistral?"
I nod my head in greeting and walk into his shack uninvited. He is forced to move away, his gaze still bewildered by my appearance.
"I need to talk to you, Cole."
I have known him for three years since I took up my duties as director of the Wiccard Academy. The youngest director of all time. A function that I obtained the day I inherited the title of Amnistral. Because who would be better placed than a man endowed with so many powers to administer a school of magic? My curriculum was spotless, at least until that night… Thinking about it, a tic distorts the features of my face. Neeve…
"I swear I didn’t turn that goat into a bear on purpose," Cole says, panicking. I trained!
"I’m not here for these trifles, I asserted, while taking place in the only shabby chair in his living room.
Matheson, flabbergasted, offers me some tea which I refuse with a curt wave of my hand. Then he sits on a chair, waiting curiously for me to explain the reasons for my visit.
"I’d like you to tell me about Kyle Summers," I said.
"Kyle?" he repeats, surprised.
"Yeah, Kyle."
"Uh... He’s my friend, but I haven’t seen him since... I don’t know, I would say for a fortnight."
My magic feels his racing heartbeat. I instantly guess he’s hiding something from me, and from the colour of his cheeks, it’s not hard to guess.
"Your friend or your lover?" I ask, placid.
His face turns scarlet this time.
"I’m not judging your morals, Cole," I reassured him. "And if you want that information to stay between us, I’ll respect that. Although I don’t see where the harm is."
I read the relief on his face.
"That’s not it," he said. "It’s… Well, Kyle had to tell his mother in hopes of introducing me. But I haven’t heard from him since, so… I don’t really know if we’re still together."
"You didn’t call him?"
"Yes. I couldn’t stand it any longer, I left several messages on his cell phone, but he didn’t answer me. I guess it didn’t go well."
His eyes drop to his hands. I read the pain these thoughts cause him.
"Were you two happy?"
He raises his head, his eyes cloudy.
"I thought we were, yes."
Silence stretches as I reflect. Kyle has been in the area for a year, at most. The next question should enlighten me.
"Where does his father live?"
"Around Cliffwells, northern Virginia, as far as I know."
"Have you ever seen his mother?"
"No. I know his parents are divorced, but nothing more. She lives there, too."
"Hmm…"
Many members of the Shadwe branch live in Virginia or North Carolina. This information is not of much help, I am not much more advanced. I get up from the chair, ready to go. Of course, I can’t avoid the questions that burn Cole’s lips.
"What has happened? Why are you here, Amnistral?"
A sigh rises in my throat before I turn to him.
"Kyle’s mother died in a tragic accident."
"An accident?"
No, of course not…
"Yes, an accident."
"But when?"
"Two weeks ago. It looks like she committed suicide."
Cole’s face changes to deep grief. The horrified look he gives me lets me guess all his concern.
"And Kyle? Kyle!" he cries.
"I couldn’t find him. But if he contacts you, tell him to come see me as soon as possible. Is that understood?"
Cole nods, his eyes brimming with tears.
I leave his house with a heavy heart. Not that I’m a romantic, but I have the idea that Kyle is no longer in this world. And as I know the devastation that the loss of a dear soul causes, I can’t suppress the strange feeling that gnaws at my insides.
But Neeve is not dead. Even though I still lost her.
My thoughts take me back to the wolf den, where two ebony-skinned men, with predatory smiles on their lips, stand ready to join her.
She’s not going to… No.
Then I realize I’m wrong. It’s Neeve. Her behaviour differs from that of other women. Other witches. And I am to blame. It was I who pushed her to become what she is. And her nature did the rest. My memories take me back to that night, that nightmare that changed everything.
I chase away the tear that threatens to fall from the backhand. It’s not worthy of a man like me. And especially not worthy of her. A long investigation awaits me, so I have to stay focused.
But I know… or think I know.
And I fear… I fear for her.
And for the sorcerers.
- Writer
