Page 80 of Soul of a Witch

Her wonder and curiosity had turned to terror, and I’d felt it. Even miles away, in the northern reaches of the forest — I’d felt her. That sudden shift in her emotions had immediately brought me back.

Flying into the vault and finding her there crouched over the beast, drenched in blood with a mouthful of fangs, had stunned me. If it weren’t for that, she would be dead. I would have been too late. My oath to protect her would have been broken, and although her soul would live on, how could I forgive myself?

“I can’t keep depending on my magic to simply provide,” she said, her voice shaking as I secured a bandage around her arm. She would heal quickly, thanks to the enchanted medical supplies. “I need to be able to use it when I need it, not simply hope for a miracle when I’m desperate.”

“You will,” I said. “It will take time and patience.”

“The first of which we have in short supply,” she said. Glancing toward the radio as I dabbed at the blood around her mouth, she said, “Where does that tunnel in the vault lead?”

“I’m not entirely sure,” Winona said thoughtfully. “That place has been sealed for so long, I’m not sure anyone in the house really knew what was inside. But if I had to guess, judging by Sybil’s fascination with studying the God, it may be an entrance to the mines.”

“That would explain why such a powerful Eld creature was able to get in,” I said. “A beast like that needs a great deal of corrupt magic to form.”

“Does the tunnel give the God access to the house?” Everly said.

Winona was silent for a moment. “It’s unlikely. The protective spells around this place extend into the ground as well as the air. The God would have to stretch Its energy excessively to enter. Without being able to easily move Its physical form, the God would struggle to penetrate the barrier with psychic energy alone.”

Everly’s eyes were vacant with shock. Her heart was still pounding. How could I have been so foolish to leave her alone? I’d known there was risk, and yet, I’d left her anyway.

I hated myself for it.

“I don’t understand how it happened,” she said. “I just remember thinking…if only I had teeth like that, I could defend myself.”

“You shouldn’t have had to defend yourself.” I pulled her hand away from her mouth so I could clean the scrapes on her knuckles. “I was wrong to leave and let you go in alone. I should have been there.”

“You couldn’t have known.”

“I should have.” The words came out with a snarl, and she stared at me, making me bristle under her gaze. “I failed you. It’s not acceptable. I failed the oath I made to you.”

It was a sickening feeling, truly. The thought that she’d been so close to death, from such a ridiculous thing. To die in the safety of her own house, left alone by the one being who should have been protecting her above all else.

“You should punish me for it. You never should have been left alone.”

She shook her head, her face softening. But I didn’t want her to be soft. I didn’t need gentle reassurances.

I needed the reminder that consequences came without mercy. I’d dared to allow myself to grow lax and that simply wasn’t acceptable.

“Oh, stop pouting, Callum,” Winona said. “It is a dangerous world we live in, and Everly defended herself well. Remarkable, truly remarkable…” She went on muttering to herself.

My energy was so heightened. I could barely sit still, and I couldn’t force my mind to calm. I needed to be alone with my witch. I needed her voice, her touch.

“It’s not your fault, Callum.” Everly grasped my arm, and I froze. She noticed my stiffness and softened even further, gentling her voice like I was a wild animal that might flee from her at any second. “It’s okay.”

Those words were like torture.

I couldn’t have known. Nothing I could have done. I gave all I could.

Bullshit. Fate had ripped everything from me and yet somehow that wasn’t enough for me to learn my lesson?

“If that tunnel leads down to the mine, we would benefit from having a map before attempting further exploration,” Winona said, oblivious to my suffering. “Those flooded passages are like a maze.”

“We could check the university library,” Everly said. “They probably have the original building plans for the mine somewhere in storage.”

She still had her hand on me, keeping me close. It both comforted me and intensified my guilt. Her affection, which I longed for above all else, wasn’t something I deserved.

“I need to get down into the laboratory again, as soon as possible. Sybil found something, I’m sure of it. A way to poison the God. But…” She paused, chewing her thumbnail. “Many of her notes are written in a language I don’t understand, one I’ve never seen outside this house.”

“Sybil was known to frequently write in code, particularly toward the end of her life as she grew more paranoid,” Winona said. “But if we can decipher her writing…”

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