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Chapter Twenty-Seven

Days went by and she was going out of her mind. With nothing to occupy her in the small, dark room, she had little to do but sleep.

So she slept, and dreamt of Ty. She dreamt of the two of them together, writhing together in pleasure and in pain. She dreamt of the vision she’d had, and the violence of it intertwined with her memories of the bandits in the woods.

She woke and ate the food they brought her, and she paced around the room. She thought about everything that had occurred over and over and over until she drove herself half mad trying to figure out all that she didn’t know.

Then, on her third day after waking up, a knock came on the door.

“Come in,” she called. The Occidens witches had never knocked before; they just came in when they brought her food and emptied her chamber pot.

She almost couldn’t believe her eyes when Greya walked into the room. “Ena!” she cried, rushing towards her and scooping her in her arms.

Ena froze there for a minute, too shocked to move or speak. When she finally realized that this was, indeed, reality, and not one of her wild dreams, she wrapped her arms around Greya and felt tears instantly start to fall.

Greya’s scent surrounded her. The familiarity and the warmth of her sister seeped into her bones, buoying her when she’d been drowning. The sisters held each other for several minutes, rocking and weeping and drinking in each other’s presence.

Eventually, Greya pulled away. “Are you alright?” she asked, wiping tears from her eyes. “I’ve been so worried, Ena. So, so worried.”

“I’m fine,” Ena replied, sniffling. “I promise, I’m unharmed.” They moved to sit together on the bed as Ena asked, “Where’s Heran?”

“She’s meeting with the matriarch of their Coven. Syrelle, I think her name is. They’re discussing whether any reparations need to be made because of the breach of the treaty, but Heran is confident that they’ll let you go. They seem to understand that this was not your doing or your choice.”

Ena nodded silently, relief flooding through her.

Greya studied her in the way only a big sister could.

“Ena, what happened?” she asked, as if she’d been holding this question inside for weeks.

“They said you arrived with three daemons and helped them steal an amulet? There’s been a lot of consternation about that.

They said…they said you used your Gift on them.

” Greya spoke that last part cautiously, as if not wanting to offend Ena.

Ena took a deep breath, steadying herself. She needed to tell the truth, and pray that Greya would understand her choices. If she had any hope of redeeming herself with her Coven and her Goddess, she needed to come clean and accept the consequences.

“It’s true,” Ena replied. “They took me on the night of Samhain. They were looking for the amulet in Heran’s house, and when I found them, they forced me to come with them and do a locator spell.

It led them here, and they told me if I helped them, they’d let me go.

I tried to escape but…” Ena trailed off, tears filling her eyes again as she thought of how close she’d come to getting a message to her sister.

“Shh, shh, it’s okay, Ena. You don’t have to explain yourself. You did what you needed to do to survive.” Greya stroked her hair soothingly. But a pit of guilt hit Ena’s stomach.

“No, no, you don’t understand. I did use my Gift on them…

and others. I know it wasn’t Gaia’s will, but I thought it would save them from violence…

I thought it would save me .” Ena buried her face in her hands as tears began to fall.

She cried for all the fear she’d felt, all the guilt.

All her sadness and her confusion spilled out with her tears as they turned to sobs, and through it all, her sister held her in understanding, making soothing sounds and mumbling calming words.

Eventually, Ena began to calm down. Her tears dried up, and her breathing slowed once more. But still, she could barely bring herself to meet her sister’s gaze, because there was something else she had to admit.

“There’s…there’s something else you don’t know,” Ena said, taking her head off Greya’s shoulder, her eyes puffy and swollen. “One of the daemons who took me…was Ty.”

“Ty?” Greya asked, her brow furrowed in confusion. “The mortal from all those years ago? Are you sure?”

“Yes. He’s not a mortal. That was a cover. He’s a daemon.”

Greya paused, a look of utter shock on her face.

“Oh, Ena,” she said, her voice filled with anguish for her sister.

Greya had been there when Ena had waited, year after year, for Ty’s return.

She knew the heartbreak Ena had felt in his wake, and she knew, Goddess damn her, that a part of her had never healed, that a part of her had always been waiting for him to come back.

Greya brought her closer as if to hug her again, as if to comfort her, but Ena shook her off. She’d had enough of crying, and mentioning Ty reminded her of what she still needed to do. She needed answers.

“Did they tell you anything about the amulet?” Ena asked, pulling back to look at Greya.

“No,” she said. “Why? Do you know why the daemons wanted it?”

“No, but Greya, there are some things that don’t add up.

When I put it on, I had a vision. I saw three witches, and they were doing a ceremony with the amulet.

They were hurting someone. I don’t know who it was, but it felt…

wrong. So wrong. I don’t know what Ty wants with the amulet, but I’m not sure it’s bad. ”

“Ena,” Greya started, her brow coming together in confusion and disbelief, “you can’t be serious. This man just kidnapped you, burned Heran’s house, attacked this Coven. He can’t be trusted. He’s manipulating you. Who’s to say exactly what you saw?”

“I know what I saw,” Ena said through gritted teeth, her anger rising. “Look, Greya,” she said, trying to calm herself and speak clearly. “I can’t explain it, but somehow… I think I trust him.”

“Trust him?! Ena, are you drinking fucking psilovenom?” Now it was Greya’s turn to feel anger. “I know this is hard for you. I know you’ve been hung up on this guy for years, but you’re letting your feelings cloud your judgment. He cannot be trusted.”

“That’s not what this is about, I—”

Ena’s words were cut off as the door opened again and the sisters went silent.

Heran walked into the room, her gray eyes darting between the two of them. “Am I interrupting something?”

“No, my apologies,” Greya said as she stood up, smoothing her dress and fixing her composure. Ena hoped they hadn’t been overheard arguing with one another; that would not be good for the Coven’s image.

Heran turned to face Ena, her arms outstretched. Her face was wrinkled and her eyes kind. Her brown- and gray-streaked hair was tied tightly back in a bun. “Ena, my child. Are you alright? We’ve been so worried.”

Ena smiled warily at Heran, her heart and mind still thrown from the argument with Greya, and moved closer to embrace her. “Yes, Heran.”

The smell of lavender surrounded Ena as Heran held her. Heran’s body was small, but sturdy. The feel of it comforted her, and she felt her own body calm slightly. It felt good to be safe again, with people she trusted.

Pulling back, Heran held Ena by her shoulders and studied her intensely. “We have much to discuss. The Occidens witches have agreed to let you return home with us. They do not consider this a willing breach of the treaty, so you will see no punishment.”

Ena breathed a sigh of relief at that, but tensed at Heran’s next words.

“Greya, would you please step outside for a minute? I would like to speak to Ena alone.”

Greya looked warily between her and Heran, but nodded dutifully and stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her.

“Sit, my child,” Heran said, gesturing to the bed. She herself sat on the lone chair in the room and reached out to grab Ena’s hands. “I know you have been through much and must have a lot of questions, but I need to know: the amulet that was stolen, did they tell you why they wanted it?”

“No, Heran. They didn’t tell me anything.

But…” Ena paused. She was cautious to share what she knew, especially after the way Greya had reacted.

“I was the one to find the amulet first. I intended to take it and hide it from them, and hoped to bring it home with me when they let me go.” She looked at Heran for assurance.

She wanted her to know her intentions had been good.

She had tried so hard to serve Gaia and to disrupt the daemons’ plans.

“But when I touched it…I saw something.” Ena paused again, gauging Heran’s reaction.

“You had a vision?” Heran asked calmly.

“Yes. And what I saw…well, it was unsettling.” Ena described her vision in as much detail as she could to Heran. Heran remained silent as she spoke, slowly stroking her thumbs over the back of Ena’s hands in comfort. When she was finished speaking, she released them with a gentle pat.

“Thank you for sharing that with me, child.” Heran’s reaction was not what Ena had expected. She did not seem surprised or confused, only calm and contemplative. She rose to stand and turned away from Ena. She paced the room a few times, before seeming to come to a decision as she sat back down.

“I believe Gaia has seen fit to reveal this vision to you, so I will tell you what I know.” Taking a deep breath as if to steel herself, Heran continued.

“Hundreds of years ago, when witches and daemons came to the split, it was true that many daemons willingly chose to serve Iblis. But it is also true that some did not. You must understand, it was a dark time. There was significant discord and disillusionment between witches and daemons. It was decided that, although some daemons wanted to remain connected to Gaia and continue serving both their Master and our Goddess as they saw fit, they could not be trusted. Daemonic gifts were too insidious, too disruptive to be allowed access to Gaia. They were simply not suited to serve her. So, one witch from each Coven came together to bind all daemons into servitude with Iblis, removing their ability to access Gaia’s power and interpret her will.

It was a necessary sacrifice, one which has allowed witches and mortals to thrive, relatively free of daemonic influence.

The daemons have since been confined to the Underworld, and though they occasionally emerge to create chaos and disrupt the balance, witches have been able to, for the most part, maintain control. ”

Ena was silent for a minute as she tried to process this information. “So, the vision I had when I touched the amulet. That was the binding ritual?”

“Yes, I believe that is what you saw. The amulet is a crucial conduit which allowed the witches to terminate the daemons’ connection to Gaia. I am not certain of the details, those have been lost to time, but I believe the daemons who took you intend to use the amulet to break the bond to Iblis.”

Ena’s mind spun. Was this true? Was this what Ty and the others intended to use the amulet for? To regain access to Gaia and her power? What would that mean for them, for witches, for mortals? Ena didn’t know how to feel about this.

Heran, misinterpreting her confusion for distress, reached for her hands once more.

“Do not fret, my child. The daemons may have the amulet, but Syrelle and I are confident that they will not be able to break the bond to Iblis on their own. It was done with witch magic, and daemons alone cannot break it, even with the amulet.”

“Oh…okay,” Ena replied flatly. That was the least of her concerns right now.

“But Ena, I’m not certain why Gaia has seen fit to reveal this to you. Only time will tell, but this information is strictly guarded. Only Coven matriarchs have been entrusted with it, and it must remain that way. You cannot tell anyone, not even Greya. Do you understand?”

No, Ena didn’t understand. She didn’t understand at all.

Why was this being kept secret? Why were they so sure that cutting off daemons from Gaia’s power was a good thing?

She wanted to ask these questions, and so many more, but that was not her place.

She had never argued with Heran, so instead, she lied.

“Yes, I understand, Heran.”

Heran nodded and cupped her cheek gently. “Good. Now come,” she said, rising to stand once more and bringing Ena with her. “We were given nicer accommodations for the night, and you’ve been given permission to come stay with us. We’ll leave for home first thing in the morning.”

Ena sighed deeply. She was more than relieved to be leaving this tiny, dark room, but as Heran moved to open the door, Ena’s heart sank.

Heran had said only Coven matriarchs knew about the amulet, which meant Syrelle already knew. There was no new information Ena could tell her that might sway her to let Ty live. She had no more cards left to play.

Her mind spun in frantic disbelief. Maybe they’d decided to let him go anyway. Maybe his heritage had been enough. Heran had been talking with the Occidens matriarch, so she must have new information.

“Wait,” she said, her voice shaking as she stopping Heran. “The daemon I was found with. Did they tell you if they came to a decision about what to do with him?”

“Don’t worry, my child. He is to be drowned in the Endless Ocean at dawn. He won’t be able to haunt you anymore.”