Awaken

Chapter 3

The woman smiled as she lowered the knife. My eyes followed her as she moved closer to mom, circling her like a vulture with its prey. “Oh, Emily, how funny it is that they sent you to find me but I found you and,” She looked at me. “her. Do they even know she exists? Does the Council know that she belongs to Callum? I’m guessing that Charles is keeping this secret of yours also.”

My eyes moved directly to my mother. How does she know Charles? How does she know my dad? Mom shook her head and the woman pointed the knife at my mother, her eyes turned black, like the mans. “Where is he? Why isn’t Callum here to save you like he did two months ago?”

My eyes widened as she asked the last question. My mother was with my father two months ago and she didn’t tell me. Mom never told me anything when it came to him. I remembered how I found old pictures of them together. There was a picture of her and him standing in front of a building and on the back, were her name and his. I kept that picture near me every night since I found it, praying that I would see him and remember at least something. Now, I know that my mother saw him and I didn’t.

The woman’s laughter brought me back to reality as I realized she was staring directly at me. “Let me guess, mommy never told you much about daddy? That’s such a shame because every little girl deserves to know her father. Don’t feel bad about it though. Your mom never gave me the time to deal with your father either before stealing him away.”

She continued to stare at me and I shook my head at her. What was that supposed to mean? “Your father was quite a man, though. He had all the girls in the team under a spell when he was around. Mommy here fell harder than the rest of us when it came to him.” She glanced at her but mom looked away. “He was always your weakness, Emily. Still, I never expected you to have a kid with him. Tell me, does he know what she has become?” Mom looked at me and then at the woman. What did she mean? What did I become? Her sudden laughter felt like it was shaking the whole house.

“Oh, how awful!” She still laughed as she spoke. Moms long hair covered her eyes as she stared down at the ground. “Were you too scared to tell him what she has become?” The woman shook her head and smiled even wider. “Scared you two created a target for the Council?” I kept staring at my mother waiting for her to say something to clear up what the woman meant. Still, her eyes seemed glued to the floor.

“Mallory is nothing to be ashamed of.” Alex spoke softly but we all still heard.

I felt myself push back as the stranger took a step towards me. “Gail, leave her alone.” Moms voice was loud and stern. The woman, Gail, stopped in her tracks. Her smile faded and her black eyes turned red again. “I am one of them. I will not take commands from a traitor.” She turned and, in one swift movement, threw the knife in mom’s direction. I screamed and the knife froze in the air, inches from her face. Mom looked calm and unbothered by the knife and Gail did not. Her smile quickly faded as she slowly turned. Alex and Gail both looked at in my direction and I knew it wasn’t at me.

“I suggest you think again about harming the Countess, Gail. After all, we wouldn’t want you to have to bury another of one of your men, now would we?” Charles walked into the room, making his way to the knife and mom. “Actually,” He looked lost in thought for a moment. Then he looked at Gail and shrugged. “I think that is exactly what I want.”

I heard a cough before I felt the arms let go of me. I looked down and saw the man with the black eyes on the floor, blood flowing out of his stomach. Gail screeched and screamed, growing angrier and angrier. Mom took a step forward and was stopped by an invisible barrier. Charles tried to move but was stopped as well. I felt heat swirling around the room and watched as Gail’s hair turned from black to red. The floor around her caught fire and my eyes began to water from the smoke. My throat began to swell as I wiped away the tears from my eyes.

“You thought you had me, didn’t you, Charles? Well let me tell you, the High Countess isn’t the only one who likes to play with fire.” Gail raised her hand and the fire turned blue. Her hand guided the flames and threw them at Charles. Alex screamed for his father as Charles fell to the ground, engulfed by flames. Green embers fell on top of the blue and snuffed the fire out. My mother stood behind him, hands glowing in the same color. Charles laid there, not moving at all.

Mom looked at me and mouthed one word, Run. Alex was by my side in seconds and grabbed my hand. He pulled me to the door

and I glanced back at my mother, still frozen in her spot, now crying as I was leaving. I pulled my arm free and ran back to her but Gail seemed to have other plans. “Don’t worry sweetie, I’ll be coming for you next.” She laughed as she hurled flames in my direction, forcing me out the door.

I landed a few feet away from the house. I pushed myself up and ran back to it but Alex was right there. “Mal, stop. We have to go.”

“No!” I screamed. I pushed him away from me but he pulled me back just in time for me not to get hit by a piece of burning wood. I looked up and saw my house on fire. “Mom!” I kept screaming for her but Alex had me off the ground and was running with me in his arms. He tripped and we both fell hard on the ground. My arms lifted me slightly off the ground and I saw the roof cave in on the house, on my mother. More tears began to fall and my arms gave out, causing my face to hit the ground. I closed my eyes and kept them closed, even as my body was lifted from the ground. My house was gone. My mother was dead.