Page 16

CHAPTER 16

CHARLIE

E lizabeth howled with laughter when she saw what and who we’d brought her. It was so scary and unexpected that I froze and exchanged worried glances with Zaide as I placed my birth mother’s cousin on a chair in Winnie’s witch garage and tied her to it.

As Elizabeth wiped away tears and chuckled, she pointed to the ropes and said, “Someone spell those so she can’t use magic and escape.”

Arabella did so since I was still a witch noob, and she also gave the council member a wide-eyed freaked-out glance.

“Are you going to share the joke?” I asked and crossed my arms. I hate not knowing what’s going on.

She smiled, tears still in her eyes. “You don’t realize how perfect it is that you dragged June back here.”

“Only because you won’t tell us.”

“I found a phone hidden in a spelled drawer in that house. I was going to get you to look through it, but I figured out the passcode myself, and when I looked at the messages, I realized it was June texting her friend for a place to stay to escape Fafnir. She wanted to take her daughter, Maeve, with her. Her texts said she thinks the situation has gone too far and it might have been a lie.”

I raised a brow as I contemplated the sleeping witch. “So, she won’t be hard to convince to help us.”

“Out of all of them, I think we’ll have a better chance with her.”

“Explains what you meant about hoping someone was going to switch sides.” I held out a hand. “Give me the phone anyway, and I’ll look through it while we wait for Sleeping Beauty to wake up. Maybe I can find something about the friend.”

She pulled it out and handed it to me. “While you do that, Arabella and I will look through this book you’ve found, Zaide. I think it will be enlightening.” He nodded, his arms wrapped around Clawdia like a blanket as she fiddled with the ends of his braid, her eyes half lidded.

I couldn’t really tell what she was feeling since our bond was still weird, so I wasn’t sure what was making her anxious enough to play with Zaide’s hair, but I was trying not to freak out about the bond or worry too much about Clawdia because it would only set Dralie off. The last thing I needed was him distracting me.

“I’ve got a wake-up potion ready,” Lydia announced proudly.

I wasn’t sure what Elizabeth had told her when they’d gone for a walk, but she was full of “save the realm” spirit now, and it kind of pissed me off. She’d vetoed a lot of my ideas on how to get tech to work with magic and better warn supernaturals earlier too. I didn’t know enough about magic, and she didn’t know enough about technology, so we were both mostly arguing with no clue either way. I was glad Zaide had interrupted with a new mission, because the one I had with Lydia sucked.

Lydia continued, “Also, with some of Charlie’s suggestions, I think I’ve created something we can get the witches in the safe houses working on.”

“Really?” I asked, surprised.

“I think using a sensor around the feather to know when it turns red and creating an app for supernaturals to be warned when the light changes is clever.” She smiled, but I distinctly remember her telling me she thought it was the dumbest thing she’d heard only two hours ago.

I side-eyed Clawdia and noticed her jaw clenched and her eyes narrowed like lasers on Lydia. Ah. All right. Well, if she wants to wind up Clawdia, it’s her funeral.

“I’ll get you the name of an app designer.” I made a note on my phone. “But just warning people of portals coming in won’t help unless you know who is coming in. Your supernatural task team might need a recruitment drive to get people checking others into the realm. Making sure they aren’t going to kidnap anyone. Tracking them.”

“One step at a time, Charlie,” Elizabeth replied absently as she poured over the pages of the magic book, Arabella peering over her shoulder and muttering.

I replied, frustrated, “Yes, but from a development side of things, it’s easier if you have even a basic plan for those things rather than add them on later.” But no one was listening. I sighed and turned my attention to the phone Elizabeth found. I picked up Isaac’s laptop, which he was letting me borrow; plugged in in the phone; and started looking through it.

“Why can’t you make the app?” Lydia asked. She leaned over the counter and fluttered her eyelashes.

I glared. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I only have so many hands. Someone else can do it.”

From the corner of my eye, I spotted Zaide picking Clawdia up. He mouthed, “bed,” and I nodded, knowing her exhaustion had just hit her.

The messages were between June and her friend, April Tomlinson. I really hoped it was a code name; two month-named people being friends felt wrong. Like if a woman named London and was friends with someone named Paris and they made a Capital City WhatsApp group. As I clicked on the green button, I gagged as I found the Monthly Catch Up group. Oh God, it’s even a pun.

The messages were thankfully not punny, but incredibly soppy. April wasn’t just a friend, it seemed. And April wasn’t a witch. She was, by the sounds of it, a wolf shifter who had offered June and Maeve sanctuary within her pack.

Walking into the living room with the laptop and phone, I found Isaac lounging on the sofa with Alcor. “Hey, Isaac, you know a woman called April Tomlinson?”

“No, why?”

“She’s a wolf shifter.”

His eyes narrowed. “I don’t know every wolf shifter in the world. Do you know all the witches?”

“I don’t claim the witches, and I’m the only dragon now,” I replied smugly.

He just raised a brow and asked, “Why are you asking?”

“She’s offering to save June and Maeve from Fafnir by letting them hide with the pack.”

His lips twisted. “She’d need to have permission from the alpha.”

“How can I find out whose pack she belongs to?”

He smiled and waved me over. “We have a directory.” He dragged the laptop over and brought up a website listing names and pack members before handing it back to me.

Baelen charged into the house, his hands holding an axe and a bowl, and Isaac and I jumped at the sight of him.

“What the hell’s that for?” I asked him, eyeing the axe.

“Mother gave it to me to break bonds.” He raised a brow. “I don’t suppose you have some use for it?”

“You know.” I tapped my chin. “I think I do.”

Armed with knowledge and a magical axe, and once Elizabeth had looked through the magic book, we were ready to talk to our captive. It was kind of full circle for me.

When I first met Elizabeth in the dreamscape, she had me tied to a chair and interrogated me for information, and now we were the ones about to do the same to her cousin. Must be a family tradition.

Lydia splashed some of her potion on June’s eyelids, and within seconds, June fluttered awake. Having done her job, Lydia left to work with Arabella and Baelen on the portal warning system for supernaturals.

“Good evening, June. Welcome back,” I cheered.

“Where am I?” She blinked and then glared at me. “Who are you?”

“June,” Elizabeth said softly, gaining the attention of the captive witch.

She gasped. “Elizabeth. You’ve kidnapped me?”

“Kidnapping is a strong word,” I said. “Let’s call it … relocated.”

Elizabeth cut me a sharp glance. “You sound like a movie villain.”

“This isn’t your cottage…” June was saying as her head lolled to look around. Then she realized she was tied and panicked, her eyes widening. Her frantic movements to pull her hands out of the ropes only made her chair wobble."

“Calm down, June. I won’t hurt you. We just want to talk.”

“You want me to tell you about Fafnir and his power, but I can’t,” she spat, wriggling in her ropes. “We are committed to his cause. Not just verbally, but magically. We vowed to support him.”

I wanted to punch the air. Fuck yes. I knew this would happen, and for once, we weren’t on the back foot. I had a sparkling golden axe to easily solve this issue. Baelen might not like visions, but it was definitely helpful having Fate on your side.

Elizabeth continued the interrogation. “How have you vowed? What are the consequences for breaking it? What can you tell us?”

“Why would I tell you anything?” June sneered.

Oh! My turn. My turn!

“Because we found your secret phone. We know about your texts with April and how you don’t want to follow Fafnir anymore. You might not talk about certain things, but it’s clear you can say you don’t want to support him.”

“You read my—how dare you!”

I just needed a mustache to twirl as I paced to really complete the evil villain look.

“But the thing is, April didn’t ask her alpha if you guys could hide with her pack, and now that he’s aware, your invitation is rescinded. So, if you want you and your daughter to get out alive, you need to tell us everything.”

“You’ve—you’ve put her in danger. Her alpha?—”

“Has promised April won’t be reprimanded but will be reminded that guests of the pack need to be okayed with him first. Nice guy.”

What I didn’t say was that he wouldn’t ever give sanctuary to witches who’ve orchestrated the rise of the biggest threat against supernaturals outside of humans. Which is fair.

She spluttered, looking from me to her cousin. “Why—why have you done this? Elizabeth, we are family.”

“We are, but I can’t ignore what you and the others have done in order to support Fafnir. Working with hunters. Capturing witches. Destroying the library holding some of our oldest records. I even heard that you influenced Karin and taught her the dark magic she needed to drain the wards of power. You know this is wrong, June. You know it’s gone too far. So, please, answer my questions: What, specifically, was in your vow, and what are the consequences?”

“We vowed to support Fafnir in all his endeavors. If we betray him, we’ll lose our power.”

Only lose power? Even Debs had Winnie’s vow meant her death if she didn’t survive.

Then it hit me. Fafnir was an evil that wouldn’t want a vow to punish betrayal so easily. He’d take their power and then make them regret they were ever born before killing them.

I raised an eyebrow. “Betraying him doesn’t include leaving him while you hide in a pack? How were you going to do that?”

“I can support him from a distance.”

“If you are telling us about him in order to persuade us to join him, that would support his endeavors…” Elizabeth straightened, lifting her gaze to the ceiling to think.

But I already had a better plan.

“Or you can let me break your vow with Fafnir, and you can tell us everything without the mental gymnastics.” I smiled.

June rolled her eyes, clearly getting far too comfortable as our captive. “You can’t. You might as well kill me.”

“Contrary to popular belief, we don’t go around killing people,” I muttered, crossing my arms. I could feel Elizabeth’s eyes burning a hole in my head, but I ignored her.

June scoffed. “The familiar killed Mary, but I expect you are on her side.”

“What?” Elizabeth asked.

I froze. Had we forgotten to tell her of her niece’s death?

Oh, fuck. We didn’t tell her.

But honestly, we’ve had a lot on our plates, and she’ll have to get in line if she wants to make this an issue. Mary was the worst.

Unable to ignore June’s revelation, I turned and muttered to Elizabeth, “You know she wouldn’t have if she didn’t have to. Mary tried to kill her. She’s felt awful ever since.”

Elizabeth swallowed, took a shaky breath, and replied quietly. “We’ll talk about it another time.”

It didn’t stop June from hearing and shouting, “She killed your niece, and you want me to help you? She’s a murderer.”

“Mary killed her witch to make that enchanted blade on your mantelpiece,” I retorted. “Let’s not throw stones from glass houses.”

“Not to mention how many supernaturals have died because you’ve supported Fafnir,” Elizabeth added softly.

The silence was heavy, and June looked at the ground as she fidgeted in her bonds. Elizabeth and I seemed to be on the same page about letting her stew as she considered her choices. I scrolled through my phone while Elizabeth scribbled in a book like we were monitoring an exam rather than questioning a captive.

Maybe I wasn’t as good at being evil as I thought.

“You won’t let me go, will you?” June eventually asked.

I let Elizabeth take the lead. June just needed a gentle nudge over to the good side, and we’d get the answers we needed. I could feel it.

“You were trying to get away from him, June. Trying to protect Maeve. We can help you. Why won’t you work with us?”

She sighed. “What do you want?”

“Information on how this has happened and what he promised and knowledge on how to work dark magic against him.”

She bit the inside of her cheek and shifted her gaze from Elizabeth to me and back. “They are going to think I’ve betrayed them. Or worse, that I’ve died.”

I picked my nails. “It would be better if he thought you were dead because if he knows you’ve told us anything, he’ll kill you in far worse ways than we could. You know that.”

“What if he is able to find me? What if the dark magic connects us?”

“Is that your way of telling me it does?” I raised a brow before shrugging. “I can’t say I know much about dark magic, but I know the magical axe I have breaks bonds. The bond you have through your vow or a bond you have through dark magic should be broken. And even if he still finds you, we’ll protect you like we’re protecting all the other witches you captured from the island. You will be safe.”

“This is one of Baelen’s artifacts?” Elizabeth asked as she picked up the axe to examine it.

I nodded but warned, “Be careful with it, though. I’m not sure how much swing it needs to break a bond, and I need mine.”

June eyed the axe fearfully. “Does it really break bonds?”

“That’s what I’m told. I’ve never used it before, so you’ll be the experiment.” I winked, and her eyes widened enough that I had to turn around to stop from laughing and ruining the effect.

“Elizabeth … what about the others?” she asked.

“What about them?”

“If I agree to letting you break my vow and telling you all I know, I want you to ensure no harm comes to Maeve. The others … they are far too gone. They believe too much. They can’t see him for what he is, no matter how badly he treats us, but still… They are my family, and I don’t want to lose them like we’ve lost Mary. Can you promise you won’t hurt others if you come across them?”

“I won’t hurt them. They will be taken into council custody and put on trial. If sentenced, they’ll go to prison.”

“It’s better than death.” Her eyes cut to me, and she asked, “And you?”

I put my hands up and shook my head. “I can’t promise anything. This isn’t a vow, and I won’t make one to you. I don’t want to hurt anyone, but I will defend myself. If they attack me because they think you are dead, I will fight to protect myself and my family.”

She considered that for a few moments before nodding. “If after you break my vow with Fafnir, you vow to rescue Maeve, I’ll tell you everything and even help you create something to work against his magic, if there is such a thing.”

Ignoring that strange caveat, I shook my head again. “I won’t vow anything because you don’t need one. By the time you’ve told us everything, you’ll see our plan to get Maeve and know you’re on the right side.”

She pursed her lips but couldn’t argue. “Fine. Do it.”

“Great! I don’t have a clue how to work this thing, so let me know if you feel a bond breaking, okay?”

I swung the axe in front of her as if I were chopping wood, stopping before the blade could hit the floor. I looked up at the witch expectantly. She blinked, looking bored, and I assumed it didn’t work.

“I wish this thing came with instructions,” I muttered, getting pissed off it didn’t work on the first try. I turned the axe over, examining the blade and the handle for some kind of how-to guide.

“Vows are often made when touching, like a handshake, and settle into the skin, remember?” Elizabeth remarked, reminding me of the vow we made when we first met.

June huffed a laugh. “Teaching a male witch basic magic when he’s already so old is rather embarrassing, Elizabeth.”

“Old? You’re calling me old?” I gaped at her.

We’ve completely lost the respect and fear a captive should have for their captors.

“Charlie, try to imagine the bond glowing in the skin of her forearm. Imagine you can pull it out, like Clawdia, Zaide, and Baelen can see threads, and pull on it.”

I frowned. “Thanks for making me feel left out.”

“Focus.”

I sighed and moved behind the chair, to where June’s fingers wiggle nervously outside of the rope pinning her to the chair. Shifting the axe in my grip, I closed my eyes and did as I was told. I imagined the silver glow of June’s vow under the skin of her arm and then imagined it shifted to the outside of her skin, wrapping around her wrist like a chain with a lead that moved past me toward wherever Fafnir was.

Then, without opening my eyes, I brought the axe down, slicing through the silver bond. Its glow died, and it melted away.

“Ahhhh, my hand! You cut off my hand, you lunatic!”