Page 87 of Filthy Little Witch
“You’re different,” she said. “You’re stronger.”
“Perhaps,” I admitted. “I don’t know if that’s a good thing.”
She smiled and leaned in to kiss my forehead, the touch comforting in its familiarity. How many times had she done this in my life? Thousands? Millions? And this time, it seemed to startle me. Like whatever was in me would sink its teeth into her, corrupting her as thoroughly as it had me.
“Tita, I—” I cleared my throat and shook my head. “I think something’s wrong with me.” The words came out in a hushed whisper. I didn’t want anyone else to overhear, which was stupid because there were ears everywhere in the estate.
“Shhh,” she said with the same kind smile that she always used when I came home with a skinned knee or a bruised ego. “It’s over. Whatever happened is gone. Whatever it is, we’ll figure it out.”
“They might take my patch,” I said. “They might…”
“If that’s the case, then we will figure that out, too.” She pulled me back into her arms. “My sweet Elizabeta. My Marta. You have survived so much for someone so young. And you know what? You will survive this, too.”
My heart squeezed as I wrapped my hands around her back and clung to her, suddenly feeling like that little girl again, the one who had found out she’d been made an orphan.
I didn’t know what would happen now, where I would go or what I would do.
But I remembered what St. Michael had said to me.
Sacrifice is always painful.
I made my choice, and now I had to be prepared to live with it, no matter the cost.
CHAPTER 28
Marta
I stood in front of Lilith with the rest of the coven circled me. Bridge hovered off to my left, her brows furrowed as she tried to give me a reassuring grin. She’d been part of the conversations around what to do with me, but despite being my cousin and my best friend, she couldn’t tell me what they’d decided.
It had been three days since we’d been back, and I hadn’t been permitted to see Atlas or Wes. A Harlot was with me every minute of the day, standing guard or escorting me through the estate. My warriors were still close, but their absence needled under my skin like a tattoo, slowly piercing me into delirium. I needed to be near them, skin to skin, bone to bone.
But that, too, was part of the reason I probably should maintain my distance. I didn’t know or understand what I’d unleashed in us, and I didn’t trust what would happen when we were finally reunited.
“Marta,” Lilith said from her spot at the head of the table. Circe sat on her right, smoking a cigarette, and Rhiannon, the Harlots’ enforcer, sat on her left with her hand crossed in front of her. “It’s good to see you up and walking around.”
“Thank you,” I said and straightened my shoulders. “It’s good to be home.”
Lilith nodded, her focus unnerving me, making me want to explode or rage just because of how much I knew she could see. I might as well be naked in front of her, all my scars on show, all my faults bared for her judgment.
“You were trapped in the liminal for two months with your warriors,” she said. “Circe has told me your side of the story, just as Valkyrie and Gullveig have collected versions from the Colts.”
I swallowed, knowing our stories had more or less lined up. Both Wes and Atlas were reluctant to admit what had driven us to use a banishment spell, knowing it would create even more hesitation from the Harlots to welcome us with open arms. But I couldn’t keep it from them, as much as I initially wanted to. It was up to me to protect them, all of them. If I were a threat, let them do with me as they will.
“I must admit,” Lilith continued. “I’m impressed. That you managed a blood binding, a flesh binding, and a banishment all by yourself speaks to an…unknowable power.”
Unknowable.
I licked my lips and glanced at the ground, perhaps sensing where this was going. Lilith didn’t like unknowns. The safety of the Harlots depended on the rules of magic, the discipline of order, and a strict hierarchy of strength. I’d upended that in a variety of ways.
“I’m told you invoked St. Michael, that you called divinity into yourself.”
“I did,” I said, the ghost of that incredible energy flickering through my veins. It combined with that mysterious darkness, that emptiness, and sparked a small fire in my gut. I feared I’d never be rid of it, not truly.
“You’re aware that banishment is forbidden,” she said. “It always comes with a cost. It’s the reason we created liminals in the first place.”
“Nothing is free,” I said. “To banish a soul, you must give a piece of your own.”
“Indeed,” she said. “And still, you did this anyway.”
