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18

CALLIE

I drop my head to my knees. "I wish you were here. You'd know exactly what to do," I whisper. I'm talking to both my mom and grandmother. I never knew them, but having them here would make everything so much easier. A few tears slip out of my eyes and down my nose. “Why does this have to be so hard?”

I don’t know why I’m out here in the dark whispering to myself. I feel like a little girl again, lost and scared.

“Because anything worth doing can’t be easy, or everyone would do it.”

I hadn’t heard the back door open. Fran must’ve heard at least my last sentence. I wipe my face and twist around to look at her. She looks fierce, her long dark hair tied back in a bun, her eyes blazing, and the light streaming out of the kitchen behind her.

“Come on in. Have cake," she suggests.

I perk up instantly. I didn’t know there was cake. I'm a sucker for cake. “Is there coffee?”

Fran snorts and leaves the doorway. I’ll take that as a yes. The guys haven't let my supply of coffee lapse since they moved in here. Even with as many people in the house as there are, we still seem to have plenty. For which I'm grateful.

The smells of the kitchen hit me when I walk into the light. The rich, velvety scent of cake and chocolate. I’m not ashamed to say my mouth starts to water.

Fran’s in the middle of cutting off a slice from a massive cake when I close the door and move to stand behind her.

“Bigger,” I mutter. She repositions the knife. “Bigger,” I urge.

She chuckles but still slides the knife over a few millimeters.

“I hope you're not worrying about my waistline." I have far more serious concerns at the moment, and a big slice of chocolate cake will help me deal with those things. "Cut me a real piece.”

Fran cackles as she carves off a big hunk of the cake. It’s already half gone anyway, so what does it matter if I eat my feelings?

I pour two cups of fresh coffee, the rich smell all I need to reassure me, and set one down in front of her before taking my first bite of cake. “This is heavenly. Did you make it?”

“I couldn’t boil water if it's for food. Your grandmother used to marvel over it. She said I could make a potion better than anyone she’d ever seen, including her. But ask me to make something to eat, and I’m beyond useless.”

I nod. “I can cook with a recipe, and I can wing a few things. I’m not particularly fond of it." I grimace just thinking about it. But if someone in the house is capable of making a delicious cake like this, perhaps they can make other things, too.

She winks. “You've got to train those boys of yours to enjoy cooking. The next time they make something, rave over it. Compliment them repeatedly. Maybe give them a little something extra after dinner.” She winks and takes a bite of her cake.

Giggles roll up my throat. “Fran! I didn’t know you were so knowledgeable about so many different, uh, areas of life.” I give her a wink.

“The things you don’t know vastly outnumber the things you do.” She shakes her fork at me.

Well, that’s a buzzkill. “Yeah. That’s why I was talking to my mom and grandmother,” I admit.

Fran’s face softens in sympathy. “You’ve got a lot of help here. I’m not going anywhere, for one.”

A soft smile stretches over my face. I don't think she realizes how much that promise means to me. Fran is giving me a chance to be close to the people I'll never get to meet. “I appreciate that. But I don’t know how to get everything where it needs to be. I know I need to claim the throne and go to The Designation, but how do I get there? What happens in the meantime? I mean, I’m powerful, sure. More powerful than I expected to be. But I’m still a baby in terms of skill.” I haven't even admitted that insecurity aloud, though I've hinted around it.

“We’ll help you.” Fran's words echo what the guys have been saying to me every time I start to get doubts. I need to listen to them all. She watches me polish off another bite of cake.

It really is delicious, and I need to find out who made it and convince them to make more of this delicious goodness. Perhaps they'll also make cookies. I lick my lips at the thought.

“Are there enough of us, though?" I ask. "I know you've all got my back, and I appreciate it more than anyone can know, but there's just so few of us to go up against King Robert's might. And since he’s already the catalyst, that gives him an enormous advantage right off the bat. How do we go up against that?” Not to mention the power he commands in the form of his control over the various coven members. He's probably up to no good siphoning power in other ways, too. I can't put anything past him at this point.

“Many of the people that he commands are doing it against their will,” Fran assures me. “That will give you an advantage. Once they realize there's another option, a lot of them will start to take it.”

I wish I could do something about that now. Not just because it'll give us an advantage power-wise, but also because it's unfair to force them to use their magic against their will. My uncle needed to be stopped for so many reasons.

“Don’t look so forlorn.” She smiles and looks like she’s got all the secrets in the world. “Don’t forget. You can command as much power as the king. Sure, he’s the catalyst now. But you’re far more powerful than he is. And the Magic will listen to you. Your grandmother believed, and I do as well, that it wants you to replace Robert. Who knows what it might do?”

My jaw drops. “How?”

“Call a town meeting. Claim your inheritance. Many people will follow you. They'll declare their allegiance to you. The king has many enemies, especially with all the kidnapping he’s been doing.”

“Won’t he kill me if I reveal myself?” That's what my guys are scared of.

“No. He won’t be able to in a situation like that.”

I breathe deep, then gobble up the rest of my cake to give myself a moment to think. “Let’s do it.”

“When, child?” Fran’s eyes light up like it’s Christmas morning.

“As soon as possible.”

Fran jumps to her feet. “As you wish.” Then, turns, grabs her coat, puts it on, and heads out the back door before it hits me what she’s doing.

I guess it’s going to be soon.

Relief washes through me alongside fear. I'm nervous about doing this, but it's a relief to have a plan. To know things will change soon and I don't have to live in this perpetual state of nothingness.