Page 106 of Heart of a Witch
“Do they use it too?”
“No, they haven’t.”
She took all the responsibility and the burden. Half of me wanted to hold her, to keep her together because I could see her breaking, but the other half said she couldn’t be trusted, that she was one of the monsters I’d spent my life fearing, who’d lied and used me. “Is my father dead?”
“Not yet.”
“Why?”
“Because I wanted him to suffer, to see everything he cares about collapse around him.” Vengeance filled her expression. “I plan on killing him tonight.”
“What will you do if I try to intervene?” I asked, baiting her. Was her revenge more important than any connection she had with me? If it was all pretend, her answer would prove it.
She hesitated and sat on the end of my bed. “Elijah…”
“Tell me.”
“I’m asking you not to.”
“But what if I do?” I asked.
“Then I’ll stop you,” she admitted, her eyes glossing with tears. “I won’t hurt you, but I won’t let you stand in my way.”
My heart softened an inch, but I didn’t move from where I stood. She appeared so human, but I still didn’t understand. “You are no murderer, Victoria. Murder darkens the soul.”
She laughed. “Didn’t you hear? I’m a witch. My soul is already dark.”
I couldn’t see it, even after everything she’d shown me with the demons and magic. “You said some time ago you believed witches were created from humans and old gods?”
She nodded. “It’s true. We are people, just like you. Mostly human, but we have magic.”
“Why should I believe you?”
She huffed out a breath, puffing out her cheeks. “Because, Elijah, if I were lying, I wouldn’t bother coming up here. I would simply kill you if I were some emotionless being.”
She had a good point. “You used me back there to show me my father’s true side.”
“Yes.”
“It hurt,” I admitted, and the words felt as childish coming out of my mouth as they sounded in my head.
“I know,” she said and inched in my direction, but she thought better of it.
“My brother—”
“He knows. Alex told him everything.” She rolled her eyes—at her sister, I imagined.
“He wasn’t upset?”
“No. He listened and understood. He’s more open-minded than I realized.”
“I’m not surprised.”
“We did save him,” she said. “When you brought us to him that night your dad had whipped him, he was going to die. I’ll tell you the truth. If we hadn’t performed a spell on him, he wouldn’t have made it.”
A lump formed in my throat. “Anything else I should know?”
She sighed. “When the snake bit you, I performed a spell to take half the venom into myself. My sister wasn’t going to make it back on time, and you were dying. We both took the potion.”
