Page 59 of Soul of a Witch

When we arrived at the house, my heart was beating so hard it hurt. This was my last chance, I had to run, I had to…somehow…

“Don’t fight it.” My father opened the passenger door, catching me before I could fall. My muscles refused to work how I expected them to, my arms locking up while my legs were nearly limp. “When the second sacrifice is offered, you will feel God’s presence even more intensely. Let it happen.”

It was already happening. I was being overtaken. And Raelynn…Jeremiah had said they were going to kill her tonight…

“Oh no…” My voice caught on the words as my father shushed me, helping me walk into the house. I was too disoriented to struggle as I was guided to a chair at the bar in the kitchen, where I could see Meredith and Jeremiah seated on the couch in the living room.

More words I couldn’t understand swirled around me. Staring at the white carpet until my brain stopped spinning, I poured all my tired effort into clearing my head. Going limb by limb, muscle by muscle, I reminded myself that I was in control. Curling my fingers, my toes, rolling my shoulders.

A subtle scent of woodsmoke filled the air. I thought it was Callum. I thought the demon had come for me after all. He wasn’t a liar, he hadn’t abandoned me, I wasn’t alone —

But it was only Leon, called here by my father.

There was somethingdifferentin the way his golden eyes moved over us, assessing the humans before him one by one. My father gave him orders, showing him pictures of Raelynn and ordering him to orchestrate her disappearance. Kidnap her. Dump her car off the coast. Make it all look like it was just an accident.

Gripping the edge of the countertop until the marble dug painfully into my fingers, I tried to maintain my focus. I could find a way out of this. I could stop them before they killed her.

But then, Leon did something he’d never done before. Something he’d never been able to do, because my father carried the grimoire and would cause him pain if he dared to step out of line.

After staring at the photos of Raelynn for several seconds in silence, the demon lifted his gaze to my father’s and said, “No.”

My eyes widened as I shifted in my seat. My father sputtered, lifting his voice as he demanded Leon obey. But he had no power to enforce his commands. My father couldn’t use magic without spells, his tongue couldn’t recall the words to weave enchantments without the grimoire in his hands.

He was powerless. Only the talisman around his neck protected him now.

The rest of us weren’t so lucky.

The demon snatched Jeremiah from the couch, gripping him by the throat as he hoisted him into the air. Meredith screamed, and Father began to shout as Leon squeezed, claws digging into my step-brother’s throat. His face was vicious, contorted with fury as he snapped his sharp fangs.

My father sounded panicked as he yelled, “Put him down! Obey me! Obey at once!”

“Obey orwhat?” Leon’s voice was strong enough to rattle the windows and shake the walls. “What will you do? What will you do without your precious grimoire? Did you really think I wouldn’t figure it out? That I wouldn’t notice?”

Jeremiah wheezed, clawing weakly at the demon’s hands. His face was reddening, his lips turning blue.

“After all these years, did you really think I’d let you slip up for even a second, Hadleigh?” Leon roared. His eyes kept darting toward me. Me, the only person present who could theoretically stop him, was also the only person who had no desire to do so.

If he slaughtered us all, perhaps it would be better that way. Perhaps that was how this could all be brought to an end. Even if he couldn’t kill my father, if he killed the rest of us…

Our eyes met. His bright with fury, mine stinging with tears and exhaustion. It was only the briefest of moments, but I saw fear in the demon’s eyes, and I knew it wasn’t fear for himself.

It was Raelynn. He was…afraid for Rae? Did he care about her?

Was hesavingher?

Turning away from me, Leon said, “Dismiss me. Now. And I’ll let your son live.”

Jeremiah was twitching limply in his grasp. Meredith was screaming at my father to do something. So he did. He dismissed the demon, and Leon vanished with a sound like a bubble bursting.

A long gap of silence followed Leon’s disappearance, punctuated by Jeremiah’s gasping breath.

I slipped awkwardly out of my chair, stumbling into the kitchen so I could seize a glass from one of the cabinets and fill it from the sink faucet. As I gulped down the tap water, I was certain I was going to be sick.

Something struck the back of my head, startling me so much the glass slipped from my fingers, shattering on the floor. I whirled around, arms flung up defensively, creating a burst of heat that exploded in Meredith’s face, sending her stumbling back with a shriek.

She had her arm upraised to hit me again. Her eyes were wide, practically bulging with fury. Jeremiah was still on the couch, clutching his throat and groaning. Father was in the doorway, watching me with a heavy frown.

“Everly…” He said my name as a warning, but the buzzing in my head blocked him out. My arms were aching, my skinburningbeneath the cuffs. Wedging my fingers against the glass, I tried to tug them down, desperate for relief.

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