AllFreeNovel
Share Us
In fact, apart from Ashton, I don’t see any of my boys today. They’ve all skipped class, apparently, and I’m starting to get really concerned about their wellbeing, when I overhear someone mention the Scale-ball match tomorrow.
That’s right. Jason and Emrys must be training.
I go to the stadium to confirm my suspicion and yeah, there they are, running up and down the field as if they hadn’t both been wounded and come close to death a few days ago.
They still look terrible, I notice as they pass in front of me, faces pale, movements stiff. It’s as if something is sucking the life right out of them.
And I know who it is.
I don’t stay on the bleachers to watch them, though it takes effort to move away. What I need to do is grab all of them and hide them someplace on the Academy grounds while having Ophelia distracted. Maybe if all of us are together without interruptions, with enough time to finally get that question answered and figure out what we can do to break the enchantment…
I find Vanessa standing in my way on the steps. Her eyes narrow.
“Look who’s back to watching the boys,” she says. “Haven’t you given up on them yet?”
“Why do you think I should give up on them?”
“Haven’t they confessed to their crimes yet?” She tsks. “The magical races must be eliminated, brought to heel.”
“Is that what you hope Ophelia will do?”
“All of us must work together. Think you’ll get the boys back? Think again. Our plan is coming to fruition.”
Our plan. All of us must work together.
“You joined forces withOphelia?” I whisper, dumbfounded. “You serious?”
I don’t know why I’m so shocked. Of course Vanessa would do anything to hurt the boys. That much was clear all along.
“We witches must band together.” She grins at me. “We real witches, not wannabes like you.”
First, I’m accused of being a wannabe nun, then a wannabe witch. It would be funny if it wasn’t so bad.
“Does Melissa know what you’re doing?” I ask.
“Melissa has no say in what I do.” Her lips press together. “I recruited Melissa, not the other way around, you know.”
“I’m sure you want to think that,” I reply, though I’m not so sure. It’s what I accused her of last time, and if it’s true, then Vanessa had a plan all along. Which begs the question… “Since when have you been working with Ophelia?”
“She approached me a year ago. Said that we had to do something to fix the world.”
“She roped you in—”
“No, she didn’t! This is about taking the world back from the usurpers, from men. All they did to us, all the suppression we have suffered, we’ll stop that.” She clenches her hand into a fist. “Take back what’s ours. Take back our rightful place in national and international decision making.”
“I’m all for women power,” I mutter, “but she lied to you.”
Vanessa frowns. “What do you mean?”
“Ophelia doesn’t want to free the world. She wants all the power for herself.”
The frown turns into a scowl. “You lie. Why should I believe you?”
“Because deep down you must know it’s true. Is she inviting you to the rituals she’s performing with them? When she’s kissing them and touching them…?” I have to stop, swallow down bile at the thought. “Are you on equal footing? Think she respects you?”
“Of course she does! We’re in this together, one fist against the status quo, against the current usurpers of power—”
“Think again,sweetheart.” I sigh. “There’s you, and then there’s her, and the only one standing to inherit the world is Ophelia. Is this what you had in mind?”
