Page 76 of Heart of a Witch
“What did you do?”
I dug deep. I couldn’t tell him how she’d used a dark magic spell to harm another and it had come back thrice upon her. “I accidentally gave her some rare poison when I was playing doctor with a friend. I got into Cas’s apothecary kits and found some unlabeled liquids.”
“Who’s Cas?”
Shit. My eyes bulged, and I ran cold. “An uncle. He was the one who got my brother interested in medicine.”
“Oh, well I’m sure she forgave you. She was your mother.”
“She did, but it didn’t change anything. Her health slowly deteriorated, until she died. She lived in misery—I know it—and I couldn’t do a thing about it.”
“How old were you?”
“Eleven when the incident happened,” I said. “Old enough to know better.”
He stared up at the ceiling too. “You were just a child.”
“It doesn’t take away from it. I spent years feeling helpless. I was trapped in a house I didn’t want to be in, constantly confronted with the physical result of what I had done.” I dug my nails into my palm, leaving half-crescent marks, and the pain sparked through my fingers. “I did everything I could to look after my family, but in the end, I couldn’t save them.”
“You seem like a good sister to me.”
I thought about Ember, and my heart hurt. “I could be better.”
“I feel the same way, about Corbin, but there’s only so much we can do.”
“Perhaps, but it doesn’t stop me from feeling like a failure.”
His hand flinched in my direction, but he didn’t reach out. “I feel the same way.”
Silence hung between us as thoughts flickered in my mind. “Whatever is going on, with your scars”—I grabbed his hand before he could distance himself—“and the real reason you’re agreeing to be a hunter even though you don’t want to, I want you to know you’re not alone. I may not be the strongest person, but I can withstand a storm or two.”
His fingers trembled, and I swore he was going to pull away from me, but he stayed still. “I see that.”
“You don’t have to be strong around me.” I turned my head to look at him, and the compassion in my eyes was real. “You can let yourself just be. I’ll never judge you, and nothing you tell me will change how I see you.”
He glanced at me and back at the ceiling. “I’m not trying to be mysterious.” He pressed his lips together until they turned white, his fingers jolting under my touch. “The truth is just layered.”
I looked at the clock on the nightstand. “It seems we still have some time until the carriage arrives.”
“Stop.”
I sat upright, placing my hand on his chest, the other on his face. “Okay,” I answered breathily.
“Why do you care anyway?” he asked, his jaw tensing. “You run hot, then cold and expect me to believe after one night you suddenly give a fuck about me.”
I didn’t loosen my grip. He was fighting back. His eyes glittered fear, the crease between his brow deepening. “I do care.”
Is that what he needed to hear?
“I care about you,” I said.
“This is ridiculous,” he said, this time with a crack to his voice and a gloss to his eyes.
“Don’t push me away,” I begged as he sat upright, moving me off him. He was angry, and I knew it had nothing to do with me. “Help me understand.”
“Victoria, drop it,” he warned, and normally I would, but this was my mission. I had to get him to fully open up to me. I hated pushing on anyone’s boundaries, but feelings didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. “You know what, it’s good with me. Keep pushing everyone away, be alone forever.” I grabbed my jacket and moved toward the door. “Stay in here and keep your secrets. You are so afraid to let me in, and don’t pretend it’s just me, because I’ve heard rumors about you, Elijah. You’ve slept with many of the women in this town, eligible or not, and refuse to marry, refuse to commit in any way.”
“And you think you’re the one who could change that? How naive on your part.”
