Page 13

Chapter 13

The Secret Life of Natalie Zacharias

F inally, the truth. While I dump socks and underwear into my suitcase, Natalie gathers my textbooks and laptop, and my brain frantically works in the background to process this bombshell.

“That was magic you were doing?” My words come out sharp as urgency tightens my throat.

“Yes. I’m sorry you had to see it.”

“I’m not. It saved both our asses.” I grab all my clothes, hangers included, and throw them into the open suitcase. Reality crumbles around me, leaving everything cracked and distorted. She’s a witch. I just witnessed magic.

But it all fits. When she opened the vial to get rid of Rebecca, the amber goo floated out without her touching it. The utter weirdness was overshadowed by everything else going on, but the way her palm hovered over the substance to draw it out…

She was controlling it with magic.

While we race around, Ethel watches from the bed, her tail swishing.

“Freddie can do magic too?” I ask .

“No. But the Madsen family has been trying to get their hands on curses for decades.” The floodgates have opened, information spilling out of her lips. About time . All it took was me nearly getting abducted.

“That’s why he was there?” I ask.

“His family has a knack for showing up to sites where we’ve been called to neutralize one.”

I sit on my luggage to close it, my heart pounding hard. “When you say we ... How many witches are there?”

She stuffs Ethel’s food, bowls, and toys into a cloth shopping bag, stalling. It’s like her instinct to deflect my questions is fighting for dominance. “Known? A few thousand around the world. The real number is higher because some choose to live in secrecy.”

“Unlike what you’re doing, living like an open book?” I say sarcastically.

“Keeping ourselves hidden from the public is another matter. My career is dedicated to regulating and controlling dangerous forms of magic. Same goes for everyone I work with.”

I gather my plants, which I refuse to leave here to die. I can’t believe I’m abandoning my place. But after what I saw, what I felt, I can’t stay here alone. My arm throbs where Freddie grabbed it, my cheeks tingling where Wyatt’s hot breath washed over me.

I want to be skeptical. Witches aren’t real. But nothing can explain the way Natalie made the ground quake and split. And it was clear Freddie couldn’t retaliate the same way.

“If the Madsens have been trying to get their hands on cursed items for so long, have they ever succeeded?” I ask.

“Enough to keep us on our toes,” Natalie says tightly.

“But…” I shake my head, bewildered. The memory of the boils all over my skin hasn’t faded, along with the scorpion, snake, hatching spiders… “Why would anyone want that?”

She takes a moment to answer. “Magic has its temptations. ”

“How vague of you.” I dump the basket from the top shelf of my closet, where I keep scarves, mittens, and hats, and race to the bathroom. Filling the basket with toiletries and makeup, I shout, “It just doesn’t make sense that they would want something that brings bad luck and like… health problems.”

Natalie pauses. “You’ve only seen the start of a curse. They’re a force in themselves, and the Madsens don’t have anything good planned with that power.”

I guess I can buy that wherever there is something harmful or powerful or both, there are people plotting how to use it for their own agendas.

I return to find that Natalie’s gathered the photos from my shelf and placed them on top of the stack of textbooks.

“We can leave those,” I say, scanning the overflowing luggage and shopping bags. How on earth did I manage to move everything to Vancouver on one flight?

“No, you should take them,” she says firmly. No room for argument. “Anything else we need?”

My throat tightens as I look around the room. I’m leaving a lot behind, but I can survive without it. I think. It might just be covered in a layer of dust by the time I return… If it’s ever safe to return. How long will I have to stay in hiding?

Jitters rise inside me. “No. Let’s go.”

Natalie grabs the heaviest items, including my textbooks, grunting under the weight of it all. Chivalrous as ever.

I wonder if she’d normally use magic to make this kind of thing easier.

Her admission has me wondering a lot of things.

I grab Ethel. With a quick kiss to the top of her head, I stuff her into her kennel, where she meows.

We fumble out the door and onto the back porch, moving my whole life to Natalie’s car in one trip. The cold night air nips at my face and neck, sending shivers down my spine .

“Did you see the way Freddie looked at you? Like you were a prize to be won? That’s how they see curses—power to be exploited, no matter the cost.” Natalie looks cautiously around the empty street. There suddenly aren’t enough street lamps, and too many shadows lurk on all sides.

“What if you just let them have one?” I say, pressing closer to her. “Let the curse finish them off.”

The side of Natalie’s face tightens into a deep scowl. She waves a foot under her car’s bumper, and the trunk opens. She puts her armful inside and lifts my overstuffed luggage with a grunt. “It’s not that simple. There are dangers beyond anything you’ve seen… Beyond what the Madsens understand. I can’t explain right now.” She glances over her shoulder, tense.

Maybe a small part of me gets it. Twice, curses have lured me in like promises, making me want to adopt Lucy and buy the doll. Are the Madsens victims of this allure, unaware of how dangerous it would be to keep a curse on them?

I strap Ethel’s kennel into the back seat with a seatbelt. Too much information is swirling around in my brain, and at the same time, not enough. I don’t know what to think about all this—the dangers she’s not telling me about, the fact there are witches living in secrecy, and the world of magic I’ve only just glimpsed.

Again, part of me just wants to abandon my belongings and run—away from Natalie, away from the Madsens, away from all the curses and dangerous magic I don’t understand. I could go all the way back home to Toronto, where I don’t have to worry about any of this.

But if the Madsens have been after curses for years and Freddie knows I can sense them… then something tells me it won’t be so easy to walk away. I’ve waded into quicksand, and there’s no getting out.

An engine roars, and headlights shine into my eyes. An SUV peels around the corner, going way too fast to be a neighbor returning home for the night .

A stone drops into my stomach.

“Get in!” Natalie shouts.

Spots burst in my vision. I jump into the passenger seat and slam the door. The SUV doesn’t brake, heading straight for us.

Holy shit, he’s going to rear-end Natalie’s car.

“Go!” I yell.

Natalie slams a foot down on the accelerator, tires squealing. A puddle hisses as we splash through it, the SUV revs behind us, and a deep thump rings out as it clips the bumper. Gripping the seat, I don’t even get a last glimpse of the house before we round the corner.

“I knew it,” Natalie says through her teeth, clutching the wheel. Her anger is white-hot, radiating into my bones. “They know where you live. Dammit, we’re lucky they didn’t get to you sooner.”

I shudder, imagining Freddie biding his time, waiting for the right opportunity to talk to me—to corner me. Did he follow us back from the thrift store that night? Watch Natalie walk me to my door with the slow cooker?

Natalie turns sharply, opening a gap between us and the headlights swaying in the side mirror. God, she’s going through so much to save me.

“How dangerous are the Madsens, exactly?” I ask, not sure I want the answer. Freddie’s desperate shouts echo in my mind, making me shudder. Get ’em! Get ’em!

The muscles in Natalie’s face tighten. Street lights flash across her face as she blows through a red light. Honks and squealing tires rise all around us, directed both at Natalie and the car in pursuit. “Let’s just say they’re willing to sacrifice for the cause.”

Nausea bubbles in my gut. “They’ve killed?”

Her silence tells me all I need to know.

“Take tonight,” she finally says, weaving through traffic. “They’re smart enough not to get their hands dirty, so Freddie sent some guy in to get the curse. Paid him. Guy almost got to it before I did—I had to knock him out, and he’s lucky that was the outcome.”

I stare. “What would’ve happened otherwise?”

“Those curses you ended up with? Imagine being stuck with one for days.”

My mouth goes dry. “It… it kills them?”

Natalie says nothing, her jaw tightening.

My insides twist. First, curses are more serious than I thought. Second, I can’t believe I came face-to-face with a killer tonight.

Natalie drives us toward downtown, glancing repeatedly at her mirrors. I look behind us too, but none of the headlights are in frantic pursuit. Did she shake Freddie off?

“So I’d just be another lackey,” I say, wiping sweat off my temples.

Natalie’s brow furrows. “You’d be more than that. With your ability…” She shakes her head.

A pull inside me grows stronger, leading me closer to a sense of purpose. If witches need to track down curses in order to keep the public safe, I can help them. I can use this unique gift to make a difference. “Why don’t you use me instead? Let me help you.”

Her gaze darts sideways to me. “Nobody should be using you. You have no idea what you’re asking for.”

“I’ll work for you, then. Or volunteer. Whatever.”

She doesn’t answer.

The sobering truth settles over me. This is why Natalie is saving me. She has a duty, and she can’t let the Madsens get a hold of my ability to sense curses.

In my pocket, my phone vibrates. I pull it out.

Clayton

Hey, just checking if you got home okay. I’m sorry for making you uncomfortable. I didn’t mean to make you leave.

I stare at the text. It feels like the normal part of the evening happened weeks ago.

If he only knew the extent to which I didn’t make it home okay.

Actually, Clayton, I bumped into someone who tried to kidnap me, witnessed some kind of magical duel, and now I’m on the run with a girl who claims to be a witch.

I let out a breath, softening. It’s nice of him to check in and apologize.

Katie

I did. Thanks. Don’t worry, we’re good.

Natalie’s gaze flicks to me, but she doesn’t ask who I’m texting.

The city lights blur past, and her erratic driving calms a little as we pull further ahead of Freddie. My heartbeat slows, the adrenaline leaving my body—and in its place, numb shock at how my life has managed to completely flip over in the last couple hours.

After a few minutes, Natalie pulls over in a loading zone. “We’re here. Leave everything but the cat. I’ll send someone to get all of it.”

“Where’s here ?” I fumble with my seatbelt and open the door, my pulse picking up again.

The streets are rowdy, everyone spilling in and out of the nearby pubs as they get ready to celebrate midnight. The cold, crisp air threatens snow, sending a shiver through me. I grab the kennel and hug it to my chest, holding Ethel like she’s my last tether to reality.

“Somewhere safe.” Natalie puts an arm across my shoulders, scanning our surroundings as she guides me along the red brick sidewalk. “Know what part of town this is?”

My insides flip over at her hand on my shoulder and her warm, solid body at my side. I take in the brick buildings, Victorian street lamps, glass storefronts, and cobblestones. It’s all familiar, but my brain isn’t working well enough to place us. “No.”

“Gastown. The famous steam clock is just up here.” Her tone is calm and reassuring, even as she looks around vigilantly .

“Oh, right. I—I came here with my family over Christmas.” Everything spins, disorienting. Is this a panic attack?

I inhale deeply, steadying myself.

“The clock is the main entrance.” Natalie’s voice distorts, hollow, as if coming from underwater.

“Okay.” I’m too busy forcing my legs to work to ask how a clock can be an entrance. I press closer to Natalie, needing her strength. She tightens her arm around me.

The clock is visible over the smattering of people, as tall as a one-story house, its glass body revealing the engine, chains, and pendulum inside. Above the roman numeral face, steam billows out the top.

The world blurs. Lights expand and distort, and the buildings tilt.

I lean into her. “Natalie, I—I think I’m—”

The sensation of being smothered overcomes me, and I gasp. My skin prickles.

Ethel meows, the tiny sound coming from far away.

Brightness stings my eyes. An earthy scent engulfs me.

Our surroundings have changed. I’m still on my feet, leaning into Natalie, but a Victorian street lamp now stands beside me, black with a cluster of white globes casting a warm glow. Red brick walls bound us on three sides, and overhead is an arched brick ceiling. Light and dark cobblestones under my shoes form a path down a hallway.

The dizziness fades, and my ears ring in the abrupt quiet. I lower the kennel, keeping a tight grip on the handle.

“Wh-where are we?” My voice is too loud, a slight echo coming off the surrounding bricks.

“The Coven of Shadows and Alchemists for Managing Magic. It’s where I live and work. Are you okay?” Natalie stoops to meet my eye. She puts a finger under my chin, inclining my face .

Her dark eyes search me, a frown pulling at her lips. As our gazes lock, a totally different kind of dizziness overcomes me. Heat spreads from where her fingers brush my face, trickling through my body.

“I’m fine,” I say, barely a whisper. It’s this sort of touch, the glint of concern in her eyes, that has me wondering whether she’s protecting me out of duty or something else.

“Good.” Her breath fans across my cheeks. She moves her hand to my neck and holds it there, her fingers warm and tantalizing beneath my ear. “There wasn’t time to explain. We had to get down here as fast as possible.”

Down here?

Above, through a square of hazy glass in the ceiling, a gold pendulum swings back and forth.

It’s the underside of the steam clock.

Natalie has taken me underneath downtown Vancouver.