Page 5 of His Blazing Witch (The Silver City #3)

I take a deep breath, and open my hands again slowly. I count to three. One, two... A flame appears in the middle of my hand, making me smile. I check my weird watch, but it's still beeping green. My body temperature is probably still on the normal spectrum... I try to focus on the flame dancing in my hand. It doesn't look like a normal fire. It's dark red, almost an odd shade of pink, burnt pink. I put my hands closer together, and slide it from one palm to the other. My heart is thumping in my chest.

I'm getting the hang of this. There is no smoke this time, just a warm, cozy, little fire bouncing between my hands. I can't help but chuckle a little bit. It feels different from the fire I provoke when I'm angry. This one isn't dangerous... I try to bring it closer to my arm, the one without the bracelet. As expected, I don't get burned from that. Even my body hair is just fine. To me, this flame is barely warm. I look around me and grab a dead leaf that’s close to my knee. I'm sitting down in some meditation pose, and my back is starting to ache a bit, but I don't care. I take another deep breath and bring the dead leaf to the flame. As expected, it starts to burn right away, until the little ashes fall in between my legs. So the fire doesn't burn me, but it's still hot to everything else. I should have asked Benjamin what colors the flames were from the fire they found me in, but I haven't seen him since.

I sigh and decide to practice a bit more. I try to have it change position, flipping my hand over. Now, it's on the back of my hand, but it's harder to control. I frown and focus on pushing it to the tips of my fingers... As soon as I try to split it, most of the fire dies down, but I manage to have some go all the way up to my index finger and thumb. I pout. Yeah, maybe the roof wasn't the best idea to practice handling fire. There is too much wind here. I put my thumb and index finger together, and the fire goes into the little circle they made.

Why am I fine while doing this? No pain, no headache. My burns are healing just fine too, and more importantly, no voices... I just don't get the voices. What the heck was that? It was my first time actually having this kind of hallucination. Before that, there was always something like a shadow inside my mind. Now, it's outside too. I let out a long sigh. I'm never leaving this place if they find out I'm experiencing that crap more and more. I wish there was another witch around to teach me what the hell is wrong with me...

"Mara! Finally, I found you!"

I jump and extinguish my fire right away. I get up and turn around to find Bonnie, her arms crossed at the doorway of the rooftop's exit.

"Bonnie!" I exclaim.

I haven't seen her in days, I'm excited just to see her red hair flying around her freckled frowning face. She looks annoyed, shaking her head.

"You have a freaking tracking watch on you and you still make me run all around the hospital to find you!"

"Sorry... I needed some fresh air, and they won't let me into the park again, so–"

"You could open the window in your room, you know!"

It's my turn to frown. So much for fresh air, those damn windows barely open enough for me to let my arm out! I walked up to her, trying to hide the fact that I was practicing my fire handling.

"It's been a while," I say while walking back inside with her.

"Sorry. My older brother suddenly asked me to come and help them at the children's hospital, they were swamped, all the kids gave each other the flu..."

"Oh..."

I hesitate, biting my thumb. Should I tell her about Benjamin? After a while, I remembered Kelsi's words. If I want honesty, I'd better make the first step myself...

"I met... Benjamin."

She nods but doesn't stop walking. We are now going down the empty emergency staircase to get back to my floor, and it's awkwardly quiet in here. For some reason, I don't like enclosed spaces like these. There could be room for ten people on each floor, but if it lacks windows and air circulation, I don't like it.

"I know, he told me. As usual, he couldn't keep quiet..."

"...Why didn't you tell me? About... the other witches, and your older brother?"

Bonnie stops, putting her hands in her white blouse's pockets, and turns to me. I see her searching for the right words, licking her lower lip.

"I thought you might feel... too pressured. Everything that happened here happened... before you, Mara. Those witches are dead now, and you're not them. I thought you might feel bad if you knew what had happened. It's not that I have anything against you because of… the loss of my brother. Everyone knows this is a weird situation. We never expected another witch to show up, we don't know what to expect from you either... I also have to watch what I say, I'm under orders."

"Selena Whitewood's orders?"

"Yeah." She nods. "Selena is doing her best right now, but... it's complicated."

I can't help but roll my eyes. I feel like I've been given the same damn excuse over and over again yet no one really explains anything except for "it's complicated!"

"Bonnie, what the heck is going on? I get no one is happy to see a witch in Silver City after what happened, okay? I really get it. However, I also get that there's a lot no one is telling me. I am basically hidden here. Even my own family…"

"Mara, I promise we will tell you things when we can," she says, as she starts walking again, "but your family is also a bit on edge with us, okay? And now that you mention it, your older sister is here. That's why I came to get you."

I stay stunned for a couple of seconds before running after her, almost in shock.

"Amy? Amy is here?"

"Yes, she is waiting for you. She just showed up out of the blue at reception when I was starting my shift, I ran to get you... Why did you have to hide on the freaking roof?!"

I apologize, but we are both almost running downstairs. Well, more like walking as fast as it's allowed in a hospital. My heart is going crazy again, making big jumps in my chest. I haven't seen Amy in at least two weeks, and she finally shows up out of the blue. I'm stressed. Our last conversation was not the best... Is that why she's here? She's mad? We have a seven-year age difference, but I feel like she's miles above me, an authoritarian figure of excellence...

I'm insanely nervous. I didn't have time to check how I look in a mirror or at least tie my hair up or something. I probably look like a damn mess. When we arrive at the entrance, I keep frantically looking around. Bonnie asks the receptionist, and apparently, my sister was already taken to my room. Oh, crap. I don't wait for Bonnie and hurry back upstairs.

I arrive so fast that I almost wreck my face on the floor. I somehow manage to just fall on my knees in front of her, though I don't feel any less stupid for that. I hear her sigh in front of me.

"What are you doing..."

She walks up to me, and one second after her pointy shoes appear under my eyes, she grabs my arm and helps me up. Amy is much taller than me. I think regardless of her being a woman, she's really tall. She has a nice long and toned build. I get back on my feet, a bit embarrassed to face her. Compared to my horrible hospital gown, she's wearing a perfect burgundy ensemble that looks like it just came out of the latest collection of an haute couture store.

Even her hair, unlike mine, is gorgeously shaped in a tight updo, her perfectly tamed curls falling on her shoulders. I probably just look like a big frizzy mess...

"S-sorry," I say.

I probably seemed much more confident over the phone. Amy is gauging me from head to toe with an unhappy expression.

"Why is your gown so dirty?"

Crap, I forgot I sat on the roof. I try to wipe a bit of the dust away, but it's way too late. Amy puts her hands on her hips.

"Clarissa, you can't just walk around like that. I flew all the way here to see you, why do you look like this?"

"You took a flight just to come see me?" I ask, flustered.

"Who else do you think I’m here to see?"

I swallow my saliva, a bit embarrassed. Damn, I didn't expect her to show up after our conversation. Moreover, her makeup and hair are perfect after the flight, while I'm here all day and I can't even manage to keep myself neat and tidy... I feel like a freaking toddler caught doing something bad! I nod and go grab some water to have an excuse to walk away from her.

She crosses her arms, though, her black eyes not leaving me for a second.

"So?" she says.

I nod. You wanted her here, so now, time to get your thoughts in order and ask, Mara...

"I... I want to get out of here. Of the hospital."

"I already said no. You don't need to. If you need anything, you can tell me, I'll have it delivered here. Proper clothes, for starters."

"It's not about some damn clothes!" I exclaim. "Amy, I need my life back. No one is willing to talk to me at all, to help me understand what happened or what's going on. Why won't you let me go outside? No one tells me a thing!"

"There is nothing you need to know about Silver City," she replies. "You’ve only lived here for a year, Clarissa. I already allowed your roommate to come here when you asked. What else do you need to know?"

"What about before, then?" I ask. "My life before Silver City. Where did I live, and with whom? Why did I come here at all if this isn't where my life was? Why is it that no one in my family cares but you?!"

Amy makes a sour face and massages her temples with her perfectly manicured nails.

"Because I already told you, our family isn't the type to care about each other, Clarissa. Father doesn't give a damn about what you do with your life, as long as you don't bother him. Even now, I don't know where he is or what he's doing. If I want to know, I read the financial newspaper. Otherwise, I'll just guess he is in one of his places with whichever new mistress he's got, alright? Honestly, I don't care either, and same for our brother, I don't care."

"...What about my mother?"

She looks perplexed for a second and looks away from me.

"I... I don't know who your mother is, Clarissa," she says. "Father never said. He just brought you home one day when you were seven or eight years old, saying your mother was dead and you were his daughter, and that was it. I spent half my life seeing him and my mother rip each other's throats apart over their divorce. I never really stopped to research which mistress of my father your mother was."

I take a second to digest it all. That... kind of hurts, even if I don't remember that unknown mother. Since Amy's skin tone is significantly darker than mine, I always figured we may only have one parent in common, but I never imagined even that was pretty much irrelevant.

I drink a bit of water despite my throat feeling tight, thinking about what else I need to ask. I'm really upset about what she just said, but... I can get upset later. I need to get as much information as I can while she’s here.

"So... I just grew up with you?" I ask.

"In the same house, yes. Father always sent you to one private school after the other, and I got my own place as soon as I started working so... We didn't have a happy lunch together every day, basically."

"Then why are you the only one here? How…?"

Amy sighs, and leans against my bed, shaking her head.

"I don't know. When you came back from your latest school, father didn't really care anymore about what you did with your life, I guess. I'm not sure what you did for a few months, I think you just stayed home. Then, all of a sudden, you called me and asked for my help to study in Silver City. You had never reached out or asked for anything from me, ever. Maybe you couldn't reach our father... I don't know. Anyway, I agreed to help you, and that's how you ended up here one year ago. I found you a place to stay, told you to let me know if you needed anything, and since then, we have exchanged a few emails, and that was it."

A real loving relationship between sisters, I guess... As far as I can tell, from a father who doesn't give a damn about one of his daughters being in a hospital, our family is really messed up.

"You don't know why I picked Silver City?"

"I think you just mentioned you liked their university program... I had no idea it was a city with half of its population being werewolves, you never mentioned it. I never asked either."

This is really not that helpful. If only Amy and I had a better relationship before... I'm slowly starting to realize how much it actually means for her to be here. If we were never close, I'm probably nothing but a troublesome half-sister to her. However, she agreed to be my legal guardian, so...

"I still want to be able to go out. I know you're negotiating with that Luna, Selena Whitewood, but..."

"Oh, for fuck's sake, who told you that?" she exclaimed. "Can't they just shut up?!"

"Why didn't you tell me?!"

"Because I don't need to tell you, Clarissa! You're supposed to stay here and rest for a while, why are you so adamant about getting out?"

"I'm an amnesiac!" I yell. "I don't remember a thing about myself! I don't remember you, our family, my mother, my friends! It has nothing to do with whether we were close or not, I'm a completely blank slate! All I had when I woke up was you and Kelsi, and this freaky fire thing! How am I supposed to find the answers if you keep me locked up here?!"

"My God, why did I ever agree to let you stay here. You're so stubborn! All I'm doing is trying to protect you, Clarissa! You have no idea how many people are furious about a witch being here! I don't know if you should stay here or leave, I don't know why everyone is trying to get to you while you're desperate to make things complicated for me by getting out of here!"

"What do the werewolves want with me, then? Why don't you just share with me what's going on?"

"Because you know something about werewolves and witches, perhaps?" she retorts, annoyed.

"Well, I get why they don't like witches, for starters, the previous ones killed their people! That much I can understand! But if I could just–"

"Clarissa, it's not just the previous witches."

"W-what?" I stutter, confused. "What do you mean?"

Amy shakes her head and walks up to the door to close it. Then, she turns to me with a big sigh.

"I lied, alright? I lied and asked everyone to shut up about it. I... It wasn't just you in that fire, Clarissa. Three people died."

...What?

For a few seconds, I'm completely stunned, staring at my sister. What did she just say? I shake my head, unable to understand. Amy is staring at me with a dark expression, making me even more scared that it is the truth. It can't be.

"No, they said I was the only victim," I protest. "They said it was a miracle that I had survived, and there was no one else in there..."

"Either they lied or they really didn't know, Clarissa. Only a handful of people were informed about it, but the firefighters actually found remains of other human bodies in there. Three of them."

Holy crap... This changes just about everything! I thought things were fine because I was the only victim in that incident. Aside from me, there was only one building burned to the ground. I mean, I could understand why everyone made a fuss about a whole damn building being destroyed, but at the end of the day, it was nothing but material damages. No one ever told me anything about actual victims!

"Do we know... who...?" I mumble.

Amy shakes her head.

"No. The remains they found were unidentifiable. The only sure thing is that they weren't werewolves, as one of the two Lunas would have felt it. The police are still investigating who those people were, though."

I stumble back, trying to take it all in. It's hard. I let it sink in, and my older sister gives me a worried look. I'm unable to say anything. After a few seconds, Amy steps toward me. She doesn't touch me, though; she stays a couple of feet away with her hand falling down in an awkward way.

"I didn't want to let you know so you wouldn't... Clarissa, this isn't..."

"You're saying that I might be a fucking murderer, and no one told me?"

Her eyes open wide in disbelief.

"Clarissa, no! Nothing, and I mean nothing, indicates that you were the one who started that fire! There are a lot of things that were... odd in this incident, alright? The reason I chose not to tell you was that you had to focus on getting better."

"What odd things?" I ask.

Why is it that as soon as I start digging a little, I feel like everyone's been working hard to hide a full mountain of lies from me! Amy sighs.

"The investigation is still ongoing, Clarissa. Until then, there is nothing you need to concern yourself with. I'm handling it."

"Amy, stop saying that! This is all about me! I need to know what's going on! I know absolutely nothing right now, and everyone is treating me like a freak! I can't go on like this, I'm going to go crazy! If I have to prove that I am innocent, let me search for answers!"

"What are you saying?" she says, shaking her head.

"I want to leave this damn hospital. I swear, if you're not letting me out, I will go crazy! You just told me I might be a freaking murderer, and half of Silver City thinks so too! You can't have me stay locked up here hoping everything is going to solve itself. Amy, I am the only person who was there and knows what happened. I just lost my memory, but if you let me look for clues, if you let me try to find out who I was and what happened, maybe I will be able to prove my innocence!"

"Clarissa, you can't be serious. You're just a teenager! You can't–"

"I'm actually twenty, apparently."

She shuts her mouth as if I had just slapped her. Yeah, I guess that's part of being in a not-so-close family, your own sister doesn't care enough to remember your birthday... Amy closes her eyes and sighs.

"Sorry, I must have missed it in my agenda..."

"I don't care much, honestly. But Amy, please, you have to let me out."

She massages her neck, looking annoyed. She suddenly starts walking in circles in my room, her high heels clicking on the floor, which is a first for me to witness. Amy avoids my eyes and keeps shaking her head slowly, though I can tell she's seriously thinking about my words. Strangely, I feel like that comment about my birthday destabilized her, I don't really know why. I start hoping, and don't dare say anything while she's pondering.

After a while, she stops walking abruptly, turning to me again.

"Clarissa, it's not that I don't want to let you out. But the humans–"

"I'll make myself super invisible and quiet, I promise," I immediately say. "I'll be careful about my fire, and I'll stay with Kelsi, alright? I want to at least be able to take a glimpse of what my life used to be. Amy, imagine for a second one day you wake up and you've forgotten everything about your past life, you can't even recognize the people you love. I can't go on like this! I swear, I'm going nuts in here, I–"

"Fine, fine!" she shouts, raising her hands to stop me. "...However, I have conditions, Clarissa."

I can't believe my ears! Really? She's really letting me out? I feel like jumping all over the place right now! However, her severe expression kind of tells me I'm not out of the woods yet. She starts counting on her fingers, reminding me of a strict school teacher, and I have to contain my excitement.

"First, you have to keep coming to the hospital for regular check-ups, as many times as they ask you to. I will know right away from the staff if you don't show up."

"I promise," I say with a nod.

"Second, if you get into even the tiniest bit of trouble with the werewolves or the humans, or I hear about a fire anywhere downtown–"

"You'll drag my ass back here. Got it."

She clicks her tongue, annoyed either at my language or me cutting her off, but making me understand I should shut up for a minute. I close my mouth.

It's hard, though. My heart is beating like crazy. I can finally get out of here! That simple thought is driving me crazy. Not only do I want to go out, but I want to see a million things! The idea that I'll be able to leave the hospital soon is making me want to run out the door right now and do something crazy, dance or shout, I don't know. I'm so excited, I have a hard time not smiling from ear to ear like an idiot. It's kind of insane with what I just learned not five minutes ago, but I've been dying to finally be able to leave this place!

"Clarissa, I'm serious. I can't be here to watch you. If anything happens, consequences will be a real pain to handle. We have an agreement with the werewolves for now, but be aware that we have no allies here, okay? So don't get involved with the humans, and don't do anything reckless."

"I promise," I say, my throat feeling a bit too dry.

She lets out a long sigh and takes out her phone, typing something hurriedly.

"I will let Selena Whitewood know you are about to leave the hospital, she might not be happy with it, though... I need to get you a smartphone too..."

"Can I meet her?"

Amy turns to me, surprised.

"Why do you want to meet her?"

"I heard she... knows about witches."

"No. I mean... Not yet. To be honest, I'm already very reluctant about you leaving the hospital, Clarissa, so I'd like it if you just stayed in your apartment with your friend for now, okay? You can take some time to decide if you want to go back to university, or–"

"Amy, I can't. How am I supposed to study with no memory of what I studied?"

"Oh, right... Well, anyway, you can do whatever you want, but please don't go anywhere without telling me."

"Yeah. So, I can really go?"

Amy waits for a minute before answering me, her eyes on her phone. I keep glancing at the little wardrobe and bathroom, wondering how fast I can get ready. I know I have some shorts Kelsi brought me, and a top I should be able to put on without ruining my bandages too...

"She says it's fine as long as you have someone with you."

"Wait, what?"

I lost the conversation for a second, but Amy is putting her phone back in her jacket pocket, and searching inside her bag, leaving me confused.

"She will send someone to stay with you."

"You were on the phone with Selena Whitewood just now?" I exclaim, shocked once again.

"I was emailing her, yes."

"You're kidding! Can I have her email? Or her phone number?"

Amy glares at me and grabs my hand, filling it with a thick bundle of bills.

"Not today, Clarissa. You can go home after the doctors have seen you, but stay there until whoever Selena sends gets there. If you take one step out of the apartment–"

"I'll be sent back here right away, I get it!"

She really treats me like I'm a ten-year-old or something! As she busily searches through her pockets, I look down at the money she just gave me, confused. She pulled it out of her wallet as if it was nothing, but after checking it a little, there’s several hundred dollars here! Before I can say a thing, though, Amy's phone rings loudly, and she looks at the number on the screen quickly with a little glare.

"Crap, I need to take this call... You stay here, okay? I will go see the hospital director as soon as my call is over, and when the doctors say you can leave, they will order you a taxi. And tonight, you stay home with Kelsi, are we clear?"

I nod, trying not to show how excited I am, but my brain is playing "I'm going out, I'm going out, I'm going out" on a loop like an anthem.

She sighs, probably not very convinced by my performance, and gets ready to leave. At the doorway, though, she stops and turns to me despite her phone still ringing.

"About your birthday... I'm sorry."

"It's fine, I wouldn't have remembered either, so..."

She seems to hesitate, then, to my surprise, she declines the call, and turns toward me. Amy sighs, a little uneasy, and talks without looking at me, her arms crossed.

"The... The first year after you came to live with us... Your school had all the children in your class prepare a present for Mother's Day. You apparently didn't tell them you... had lost your mom. When you came home on your next holiday, you came to my bedroom to give me your present. You didn't explain anything, you just put it on my desk and ran away. It... I never really asked you anything about it, but... it was actually my birthday when you did that. You were the only one who had gifted me anything that day."

Wow... I didn't expect her to bring up this kind of moment. I'm a bit uneasy for a minute. Why did she bring that up now? Because of my memories? Or as a... thing between sisters?

"Do you still have it?" I ask.

"It was a very ugly pot decorated with paper mache, blue paint, and beans."

I grimace. Oh, yeah, probably not that nice to keep around for too long... It hurts a bit, but at least, she remembered that for me. I chuckle and nod, a bit touched. Her phone starts ringing annoyingly again. It's usually like this. Whenever she came to see me, it kept ringing until she turned it off or picked it up. Damn, she really doesn't have a minute for herself.

"Thank you, Amy," I say.

"...I'll call you later."

She leaves the room while putting her phone to her ear and starts talking in a tongue I don't recognize.

I'm left alone in my room, and after a few seconds, that wave of excitement comes back. I'm leaving the hospital! I struggle hard not to scream or bounce around my room, I don't know what to do with myself! After a while, I realize I'm still holding on to the bills she gave me. I roll them up, a bit uneasy with all this money in my hand, and leave it on my bedside table for now. Then, I run to the bathroom. I take a shower, being careful about my bandages, and get my body and hair clean in record time. Once I'm out of the shower, I try hard to discipline my hair but fail miserably. Damn it, I guess I'll just leave it as it is. I should have asked Amy how she does it; her hair is perfect compared to my wild mane... Oh, whatever. I jump back into my room, grabbing a sleeveless top and some denim shorts. It feels so strange to be wearing some proper clothes after all this time in a hospital gown... I check myself in the mirror. I guess I have a tall yet bony figure, but the hospital food will do that to anyone. I grab the money and put it in my pocket just as a doctor walks in with Bonnie to check on me.

To my surprise, the check-up is rather fast, though they carefully redo all of my bandages, giving me instructions on how to take care of them, with the cream and all, and I still have to come back to the hospital once every two days so they can check on them. I'm amazed at how fast all of it goes. Bonnie seems happy for me, but we can't talk much with her superior there. When the doctor leaves, she stays behind.

"You finally convinced her," she says.

"Yeah, I still can't believe it!"

"Mara, you have to be careful, okay?"

I nod. Bonnie pats my shoulder gently.

"We have called you a taxi, you can leave whenever you're ready. You can leave some of your stuff here, though, it's still your room for now. Also, Selena will send someone to your apartment tomorrow, so please don't be reckless, before or even after that, okay?"

"Yeah. Thanks, Bonnie."

"Don't thank me yet," she sighs. "Honestly, knowing you, you're going to get in trouble soon enough, so..."

I chuckle. Yeah, I haven't exactly been very patient so far. Bonnie suddenly takes my hand, sitting next to me on the bed.

"Mara, witches are not bad people, but it doesn't mean they cannot do a lot of harm. You have to make sure you remember that at all times, okay? Even if you think you're strong, it means nothing if you end up hurting people instead."

"...Do you think I caused that accident?"

She hesitates for a second.

"I don't know... but what I know is that there are always two sides to every story, so I hope you'll find your side of the story soon."

"Thanks, Bonnie."

She chuckles and stands up, pulling my hand.

"Come on, let's get you ready to go. My shift just ended, so I'm coming over to your place tonight!"

I laugh. So she is supposed to be the one watching me for now, and they are not even trying to be subtle about it!