Page 54 of Destiny of the Witch

‘Here,’ Shaun said calmly. ‘Come and see it.’ He tapped the clear glass box next to him. Through the translucent panes I could see the dark red crystal, glowing, pulsing with light like a visible throbbing heartbeat. I didn’t need to touch the jewel to feel its evil intent. The power of the damned thing pervaded the room.

‘Don’t touch it!’ Mum barked at me.

What did she think I was, an acolyte? I took a small step forward to take a better look at the clear box. As I was still swimming in the magic of three witches, I could easily see the snare runes all around it. I sighed. ‘Bring it to me here. I’m not stepping into any of your traps.’

‘Worth a try,’ my father said, grinning at me unrepentantly. Shaun stood, crossed the distance between us and handed me the harkan box. I felt the weight of its power instantly; the box was containing it to a degree but even holding the box made the power vibrate into my fingertips.

‘Let me get Ria,’ Shaun sighed. ‘I don’t want her getting hurt in the fighting.’ He went to the door and stepped out of the room.

I took advantage of his absence to quickly consult with my sisters. I grabbed the pendant in my left hand.How do I destroy it?I asked them silently.

It is made with a life force forcibly taken. It is destroyed with a life force freely given.Abigay’s voice was calm.

I clenched my jaw. On some level, I had known it would come to this. I let the pendant drop back to my chest and across the room I met my mother’s all-too-knowing eyes.

‘It was my mistake,’ she said softly, as if there were only us in the room. ‘You know the prophecy, Amber. “Her sacrifice made in love’s pure light.”’

I shook my head stubbornly. ‘No.’

‘Yes,’ she insisted.

Before we could argue further, Shaun returned cradling Ria in his arms. When he laid her down on the sofa, she looked like she was sleeping. Her face wasn’t lined with malice and hate, and she looked so young.

Shaun reached into his pocket and pulled out Fido, who was barely moving. He pulled a vial of the familiar potion I’d made out of his pocket, poured a little onto the coffeetable and laid Fido next to it. The mouse opened his eyes and sniffed the air.

‘Drink it,’ my father ordered him.

I remembered suddenly that Fido had ridden into the safe room on Lucille’s back. I’d thought it was because they were messing around, but now I saw that Fido could barely move. I realised that Lucille had carried him out of necessity. Dammit, if I’d realised Fido was sick sooner, Ria’s betrayal might not have blindsided me the same way. I had missed too many clues and now here I was, stuck in the spider’s web with one heck of a tarantula.

Luckily, I’ve never been afraid of spiders.

Chapter 48

‘Thank you for the potion,’ my father said.

‘Did you use it to heal Cesca?’ my mum asked, looking around for my father’s dog familiar.

Sorrow crossed his face. ‘Cesca is no longer with us,’ he admitted. ‘The problem with bonds is that you can’t have two at once.’

‘Shaun?’ My mother’s voice whipped out, full of dread. ‘What did you do?’

‘I found a dark spell that would let me bond with a magical creature, but it demanded a sacrifice.’

Mum looked at him with horror. ‘You killed your own familiar?’

‘She volunteered. She knew that it was best for us,’ he said evenly.

‘What did you bond with?’ I asked, but I already knew the answer.

‘Thechimera, of course. Her name is Lycia. And she hasn’t been afflicted with the sickness like Cesca was.’

Pain suddenly wracked me – not mine but Bastion’s. His agony took my breath away and I dropped to my knees. ‘Bastion!’ I gasped.

‘Yes, I’m sorry about that,’ Shaun said, his voice genuinely full of regret. ‘But if you’re going to bond with the harkan, you can’t have another bond interfering with it. I’ve told Lycia to make it quick.’

I glared at him. ‘When you went to get Ria, you gave the chimera some more instructions?’

‘Yes,’ he admitted. ‘My bond with Lycia isn’t as close as the one I had with Cesca – Lycia needs verbal commands. She was toying with him before. Now she’s trying to kill him.’

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