AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Really. And it’s very late to be calling your family with such big news.”
“They might already be in bed,” she said. “I wouldn’t want to disturb them.”
“We told everyone we’d join them at the party,” he said.
“It would be rude not to show up.”
“Very rude.”
“Quinn and Julia would kill me,” Cara said.
“I think we should go. You know, for their sake. They might worry if we’re not there.”
“We don’t want that.”
“Don’t forget your coat,” Nick said.
***
Chapter 3 - Cara
Cara hopped on the bus after her last class.
It only happened last night, but so much had changed. She hadn’t been able to focus throughout the day. It wasn’t a surprise. She met a void, and she lived to tell the tale. She also hadn’t told anyone else. She picked up her phone at least a dozen times to call her family, but she didn’t, and she wasn’t sure why.
It could have been because she knew that it would change everything. Every single witch heard stories about them, and she could only imagine the reaction they would have. None of them knew Nick. They wouldn’t understand that he wasn’t a threat.
Cara wasn’t sure why she trusted him. It might have been intuition. Her mother was always telling her to trust herself. Some witches could sense things, like a gut feeling, but Cara didn’t know if she believed in that or not. Most of their magic could be proven and studied, but intuition was intangible.
On the other hand, her reaction to Nick could have been some kind of void influence. She wasn’t an expert on their abilities. It would make sense for them to have an effect on people, especially witches, to get closer to them. A magical equivalent to pheromones, maybe.
The bus stopped, and an older woman walked on. She saw the empty seat beside Cara and sat down, and Cara gave her a polite smile.
Outside the window, the outskirts of Edinburgh gradually disappeared, replaced by fields and narrow roads.
It wasn’t only the witch community that would be interested in Nick’s presence in the city. The other players in the supernatural world would be, too. She would only tell her parents, for now. If too many people found out, Nick might be in danger.
Cara almost missed her stop, too focused on Nick, and she grabbed her bag and awkwardly slipped past the woman beside her. She hurried to the front and hopped off, and the bus pulled away, leaving her alone on the main street of her town.
As she walked, she glanced at the faces she passed, and she couldn’t help but imagine black lines crossing their skin. The absence of light and warmth, that icy cold power that drained her magic entirely.
She reached her parents’ house without a problem, as always, and by the time she reached the gate, she heard a bark. Finn rushed around the side of the house and jumped at her, barking excitedly and trying to lick her face.
He was a mountain of a dog, all fur and muscle and love, and he panted happily as she threw her arms around him and lavished him with attention.
Her father opened the door and smiled. “Cara? We weren’t expecting you.”
“Hey, Dad.”
“Come inside. Are you staying for long? We’ll be starting dinner soon.”
Cara hugged him. “That’d be great, but I actually came to ask you about something. Is Mom here?”
“She’s out the back,” Eric said. “Is something wrong?”
“No, of course not.” She hoped that was true. “I’ll explain it to both of you together, it'll be easier.”
They went outside to the garden and found her mother pulling up weeds near a flowerbed.
