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I melted into the hug. After the week I’d had, I certainly needed it. He always smelled faintly of leather and tobacco, and the scent was a comfort to my weary senses.
“Sit. Have some tea with us,” Mum said as she went to fetch another cup. I sat down on the sofa next to Granddad, and then Mum returned with the cup. She poured me some tea, and I took a small sip, glancing between the two of them. I got the sense that I’d interrupted a serious conversation.
“What were you two talking about?” I asked, though I suspected I already knew the answer. Mum said she planned to ask Granddad Martin about his time in Oreylia.
“Nothing you need to worry about,” Mum said, and I grew irritated, my mouth settling into a disgruntled line as I set my teacup down and folded my arms.
Granddad must’ve noticed my sudden mood when he said, “I don’t mind telling her, too, Tegan. Darya’s old enough to hear the truth now.”
Mum exhaled a tired breath. “If you want her to hear it, I won’t object.”
Granddad nodded and turned to look at me. “I was telling your mother about my experience when Marcel Girard sent me to that hellish place they call Oreylia.” I nodded, full of curiosity. “I don’t normally like to talk about it, but I understand it’s important for you to know given the current circumstances,” he went on, and I realised Mum had already filled him in on the malevolent presence she and Rita had sensed.
“Go on,” Mum encouraged, and Granddad drew in a quick breath.
“Well, I’ll start by saying there may be evil in the world we inhabit, but it has nothing on that place. In Oreylia, full-blooded demons are at the top of the food chain. In fact, there are very few other species, though there are some, and they’re treated incredibly poorly. As a human, I was considered lower than dirt, but there was a small handful who were treated even worse than I was.”
“Who were they?” I asked.
Granddad’s eyes were apologetic. “Anyone with mixed heritage.”
Understanding dawned. “So, people like me?” I whispered.
He nodded, his eyebrows drawing together in a frown.
“What did they do to them?” Mum asked, clasping her teacup with both hands. “The people of mixed heritage, I mean?”
“Most of them were enslaved to work in mines, while others were tortured and abused,” Granddad replied. “I’d never witnessed such suffering and impoverishment. It was an incredibly brutal place. People were killed for the tiniest disrespect. It was dog eat dog. Sometimes I look back on my time there like a nightmare. I can’t believe it was real, and I certainly can’t believe that I actually survived it.”
“I remember how bad you were when I finally got you back,” Mum said, her voice catching at the memory. “Your skin was burned and scarred so badly you would have died if you didn’t have the supernatural medicines and salves to heal you.”
“It’s a miracle that I pulled through,” Granddad agreed, taking a sip of tea, a faint, pained look crossing his features before he continued, “If this presence you sense really has come from Oreylia, then you need to capture them as soon as possible. The sort of savagery those demons engaged in. I dread to think about someone like that freely roaming around this city.”
“What if it isn’t one of the demons? What if it’s one of the people who were enslaved, and they’ve come here looking for sanctuary?” I said.
Granddad shook his head. “If they killed your teacher, then I doubt they’re here to live peacefully.”
Well, he was right on that front. Granddad set his cup down, and I noticed his hands were a little shaky. Talking about Oreylia had taken a lot out of him.
“Dad, you look tired,” Mum said. “The guest bedroom is made up if you want to go and have a lie down for a while.”
“Thank you. I think I might take you up on that offer,” he replied, and Mum came to help him from his seat. When she returned, she looked exhausted.
“What are you thinking?” I asked.
Mum rubbed her forehead. “I think we need to catch whoever killed your teacher as soon as possible. Rita and I are going to start working with the Guard in their investigation. Our magic is stronger than the witches they have on staff.”
I perked up at this. “Can I help, too?”
“I’m sorry, Darya, but it would be better if you stayed out of this. You don’t have the experience.”
“But how am I supposed to get any experience if my lack thereof prevents me from ever being allowed to help in an investigation?”
Mum stepped close and ran a hand over my hair. “You’ll gain all the experience you need when you graduate from St. Bastian’s and begin your training. This isn’t something that can be fast-tracked.”
