Episode 2.2:
Rebound
Cassie inhaled deeply, feeling the first wave of waking wash over her. Her body felt warm in the folds of the covers, and the world was hidden behind the ruby-amber glow of her eyelids as daylight streamed into her bedroom, still hazy from sleep. She kept her eyes closed, savoring the sweet absence that fills the first few moments of the day. Her worries, her fears, her anxieties still existed in yesterday, and, at least for a few more seconds, today was only the smooth cotton of her sheets.
The rest of the week after asking the Circle to re-bind had been hectic. In addition to her frustration over how their meeting at the Java Brew had gone, she held onto the frightened realization that the Balcoins were, in fact, in Chance Harbor. Her first instinct had been to tell Adam—but then what? She had already told them she could feel something inside of her telling her that her half-siblings were here; would the symbol in the fireplace even make a difference?
At first, a voice had screamed in her head Yes! Yes, now you have proof! Something they can feel, too! They'll have to bind the Circle then! But that pleading was quickly replaced by a voice, quieter, but smoothly hypnotic…hearing it made Cassie feel as if she were swaying from side to side, mirroring the movements of a dangerous but seductive snake. Don't tell them…keep this to yourself. It drained away the first voice, until Cassie was left alone with it, feeling as if, for some reason, the languid voice was more logical than the instincts urging her to tell Adam about the fireplace. She suppressed the traces of anxiety left within her, and decided she would tell no one about the Balcoin siblings visiting her.
Shaking that memory and stretching her arms over her head, Cassie groaned as she felt the tension in her shoulders resist movement. She had apparently been carrying all of her stress in her neck that week, and being able to sleep in on Saturday had been just what she thought she needed—although apparently her body disagreed. As she lowered her arms, she could practically feel her shoulders squeaking in their sockets. Work that afternoon was not going to be enjoyable…
Cassie sat up, looking around the hazy illumination of daylight in her bedroom. The whites in the room were dazzling in the final glory of the summer sun, and the house seemed almost peaceful in its quietness. Normally, it felt lonely, even eerie at times. She wondered if it was the lingering heavy warmth of slumber that was calming her.
Pushing the covers to the end of the bed, Cassie stood up and walked to the fireplace mantle where she kept her mother's Book of Shadows. Sliding her fingers gingerly across the top, she removed the end piece and gazed at the Book. She imagined it still asleep, huddled in the cool cavern. She reached in for it, bringing it back to sit on the end of her bed. Today would be the day…if she couldn't convince the Circle to bind themselves with her power of persuasion, then she would have to use some different powers.
The ocean was a jade green color this close to the rocks, tinted with the brown from the mud that swirled back into the water each time the waves crept up between the cracks in the rocks. Soon, the sun would stop piercing the rays, and the butter yellow light that filled the cool mid-morning would give way to the gray skies of fall and the water would become sapphire and charcoal again. Diana contemplated this changing of the seasons, wondering if this would be the last fall she'd ever see in Chance Harbor.
"Breakfast sitting all right with you?" Grant asked, squeezing Diana's hand and turning toward her. "You've been awfully quiet since we sat down."
"It's just…" Diana paused, contemplating how to explain what she was feeling. Grant had left his home a few years back, and had spent that time seeing the entire world. How could he understand her simultaneous passion to abandon her childhood home and apprehension to leave it all behind?
"I've grown up on this water," Diana said, lifting her feet from the rock they had been sitting on and pulling her knees toward her chest. "It feels like home to me. Even this summer, sailing down toward California…it wasn't my water." She pressed her lips together, wishing there was a better way to say it. Right now, she sounded like a possessive child, as if she could somehow own the waters that moved in and out of Chance Harbor.
"I think I understand what you mean," Grant said softly. "There's never been water like the kind I grew up with. We didn't live on the beach, but we lived close enough to visit often. I've been all over the world, and I've never found sand that moves between my toes the same way, or even waves that froth and bubble in quite the same way. It's hard to believe that it's all the same water, circulating across the globe."
Diana smiled at Grant, holding his hand in hers. "Exactly," she whispered, returning her gaze to the water.
"You're still planning on leaving as soon as you graduate?" Grant asked, his voice tinged with a note of graveness this time.
"Yes," Diana said firmly. "I'm leaving the next day for wherever I end up going to college, and I'll rent a place that summer before classes start."
There was a silence between them, filled by the lapping of the waves as they reached the shore.
"You know," Grant finally said, his voice somewhat hesitant. "Leaving your home won't be as easy as you think it will."
"Grant," Diana sighed. "I know it's…complicated. But I can't stay here." Her grip on his hand loosened.
"I understand," Grant offered, his voice soft again. "I don't know if I could bare the place I lost my parents, either."
Diana exhaled slowly, forcing herself to nod.
That had been the reason she told Grant she had to leave Chance Harbor as soon as she finished high school. Over the summer, the evenings they spent lounging on the ship, looking up at the stars, she told him that she couldn't stand to stay in the place where her parents had slipped away from her. Unless her father made a recovery, by some miracle, she felt she needed to get far away if she had any shot of starting the life she had worked so hard for.
She didn't, however, tell him about the disaster with John Blackwell, the dark magic Cassie had awoken in her, or about the Circle and its failure to protect the people they loved. Grant still had no idea about what she was. Diana felt that if they had any shot of a future together, especially the kind of future that Diana had spent the summer imagining, one free of witchcraft and magic, then she wanted Grant to remain believing that witchcraft was a thing of fairy tales, a Halloween costume, a scary movie, anything but real life…her real life.
Diana pulled her eyes from the water and studied Grant's face. His eyes were light blue and playful, reflecting all of the light from the ocean. A perpetual grin was on his jaw, eager to spread into a smile. His blond hair had been bleached out by the summer sun, and was now a paler shade, playing up the tan he'd developed at sea. She thought he looked like he'd just walked out of a catalogue for Cape Cod inspired clothing. She grinned at that thought, turning back toward the rocks.
Grant had been attractive to her since she first laid eyes on him, but their relationship had been so different than it had been with Adam. She had known Adam since she was a child, had known she loved him since she was in middle school. He was the only boy she had ever dated, had ever been interested in dating. She was just always so sure about him. And now, here was Grant—someone who promised to bring her on all the adventure in his life, away from all of the security and comfort that Adam brought to her.
And yet here she was, planning her life to include him in it. She felt her toes scrunch up in her shoes. Is that was she was doing, planning her life around some guy she had only known for a few months? Did she even love him? Could she?
Diana glanced back at Grant from the corner of her eyes. He was leaning back on his palms, whistling, and rolling his feet on his heel as he gazed at a fishing boat sailing back into harbor. She wondered if this was their relationship—or if she was waiting to get out of Chance Harbor before she could see what kind of relationship they could have when they were both normal, non-witchy people.
"Hey," Grant said, jerking Diana back to reality. She felt her head snap back to their view on the water, and color and heat come to her cheeks. She could feel them deepening when she realized she shouldn't have been embarrassed.
"There was a kite-flying competition over in the park," Grant said, seeming not to notice Diana's flustered state. "Want to go check it out?"
"I don't think I've gone to that since I was a kid," Diana laughed. "There used to be people who'd bring big dragon kites, or orca whales." She laughed, remembering how huge and impressive the kites had been when she was so little. "Sure, though, that sounds like fun."
Shrugging off her contemplation of the details of their relationship, Diana pushed herself back up to standing and took Grant's hand, heading toward the park.
Faye rolled onto her back, stretching her arms over her head and wincing slightly as the brunt of daylight hit her face. Next to her, Jake was still asleep, tangled in the sheets and snoring softly. Faye grinned, laying on her stomach and watching Jake's chest slowly rise and fall with each breath.
The light filtering through the window made the room look amber-tinted, like they were in some golden aquarium, soft and dazzled by the early fall sun. Everything was silent and still in the room; not even the wind or birds from outside seemed to enter. It was all just so…peaceful.
It was a new feeling for Faye, and a new note of their relationship. Since last spring, their relationship had matured in a way neither of them had expected. After almost losing Faye to the witch hunters, Jake shook off much of his devil-may-care attitude, and instead seemed somber and introverted much of the time. He still seemed icily cool to most, but Faye had noticed a thoughtful, quiet side to Jake that she had never encountered before. In some ways, she wasn't sure she liked it. But they had reached equilibrium in their relationship, which hadn't existed before. It was a space where petty fights didn't seem to happen anymore. Jake no longer seemed to be fighting Faye for dominance of the relationship, and she gladly took over.
She wondered what she had missed while she was no longer vying for his attention. Now that she had all of it, it seemed almost trivial at times, something she expected. Watching him sleep, slowly breathing, snoring lightly, she wondered for the first time what he thought about when he would enter his stormy periods of introversion. He had mostly kept to himself before, but now he seemed to have some deep inner personal life that was disconnected from her, from their relationship.
"Faye?" Jake asked groggily, rubbing his eyes and pushing his torso up. He leaned against the headboard, running his fingers through his messy hair.
"Good morning, sunshine," Faye said, sitting on her knees to give him a kiss on the cheek.
"Morning?"
"Well…not quite. Afternoon, but barely." Faye's green eyes rolled from Jake to the alarm clock and back to Jake.
"I want to start getting up earlier," Jake mumbled, reaching for the glass of water on his bedside table.
"Why?" Faye grumbled, examining her nails. "There's nothing to do in the mornings. Night is for the young." Her voice lilted playfully at the end, revealing the grin that had spread across her face.
"Mornings are for the productive," Jake replied, rolling out of bed and stretching his arms up toward the ceiling. Faye grinned.
"I can think of something we can do this afternoon." She held back a smile before leaping forward and grabbing Jake around the waist. He laughed breathily, falling back into bed.
"Well," he murmured, trailing kisses behind her ears. "Maybe just for a little while…"
Melissa rested her chin in her palms, sighing. Her elbows were perched on the smooth plastic table, and she had been halfheartedly sipping her soda for the past twenty minutes. She had refilled it once already, as well as rearranged the jellies that were still out from breakfast, and cleaned off the ketchup bottle with the napkins that had been left on the table.
Outside, the ocean sparkled with the wheat-colored light from the sun. Everything was bright and golden, with fluffy clouds drifting lazily on the horizon. Fishing boats bobbled on the water, and a few kids splashed in the shallow water, braving the last of the summer waters.
"Sure you don't want to order yet?"
Melissa snapped out of her daze, turning to face Adam. He stood at the end of the table with his arms crossed against his chest, a notepad in one hand.
"Still waiting for Faye," Melissa sighed, leaning back against the booth. "She's late, as usual."
"Are you sure she's coming?" Adam asked. "Punctuality and remembering commitments are two of Faye's biggest weaknesses, after all."
"I think so," Melissa grumbled, pulling her phone out of her purse for the twentieth time that afternoon. "I mean, she's not answering her phone, but she could just be in a hurry to finish getting ready. She is the one who wanted to meet here, after all."
0 new texts, 0 missed calls. Melissa scoffed and threw her phone back in her purse.
Adam gave her a sympathetic smile. "Well, how about I get you some fries while you wait for her? On the house."
"Thanks, Adam," Melissa said without much enthusiasm before pulling out her phone and dialing Faye again. No answer.
"Don't worry about it. I hope she gets here soon." Adam turned around and went to check on a table with a cute couple at it. Melissa glared at them from afar.
I bet this is Jake's fault, Melissa thought to herself as she crossed her arms and slouched further in the booth. Stupid Jake.
She sighed, looking back at the ocean again.
Cassie's hands trembled as she dropped the last teaspoon of clove into the concoction. The brown powder swirled lazily in the oily soup, spiraling down toward the bottom and then hovering right above the bottom layer. A few tiny bubbles popped on the skin of the surface.
"There," Cassie whispered, nudging it forward on the kitchen counter. She let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, and reached for her Book of Shadows. She ran her finger down the old parchment page.
"'To conclude the Persuasion Elixir'", Cassie read, underlining the scrolling letters with her purple nail, "'soak with a quartz for one hour.'"
She took a deep breath, and reached for the cool, cloudy crystal she had gathered along with the rest of the ingredients. She ran her thumb over the smooth surface of one of the faces, looking at the patterns inside of it. Was she really about to go through with this? This spell had the potential to tamper with free will, a low-grade mind control. She second-guessed her decision to interfere with the Circle's final decision this way.
What they don't know can't hurt them, Cassie thought firmly as she dunked the crystal into the glass jar. She turned around, setting the oven timer for an hour.
"Besides," she said aloud to herself. "It's the right thing to do."
Hearing her voice fill the otherwise empty space of the house was somewhat startling. Grabbing a bag of chips from the cabinet, Cassie walked out to the living room and curled up on the couch, watching the sunlight trickle through leaves before turning on the television.
"Still no Faye?"
Melissa let her head fall further toward the table, letting out a deep sigh.
"No," she grumbled. She heard Adam slide into the booth across from her, and lifted her head up. "No texts, no calls, no emails, nothing. She has officially ditched me."
"Sorry," Adam said, shrugging. "She can kind of be like that sometimes."
"Not sometimes anymore," Melissa snapped. "All the time, now that she has Jake. I don't exist to her anymore." Melissa slumped down, crossing her arms, her brows scrunched up. "I'm sick of everyone getting boyfriends."
"Well, we're both single," Adam said, grinning. He reached his hand out toward Melissa across the table. She ignored it.
"Yeah, so is Cassie." She shot him a quizzical look.
"Hrmm…" Adam made a low sound and retracted his hand, turning to look out the window. He studied the water for a few moments, then turned back to Melissa. "I meant, since Faye is apparently preoccupied, we could do something together." The corner of his mouth tugged up into a playful grin.
"Don't you have to work?" Melissa asked, arching one eyebrow and keeping her arms folded across her.
"I'm just cleaning up now. I'll be done in ten minutes." His mouth widened into a bigger grin, and he reached across the table again. "What do you say?" He asked, his voice lower than before, tilting his chin down slightly.
"Like a date?" Melissa asked, voice gravelly and slow.
"Yeah," Adam said breathily, smiling. "Something like that." His head remained slightly tilted, and he grinned at Melissa expectantly.
"I don't think so, Adam," Melissa said, lowering her arms and reaching for her purse.
The grin disappeared from Adam's face, and his eyebrows raised, an obvious look of surprise crossing his features.
"Why not?" He asked slowly, retracting his hand slightly and studying Melissa. "I thought—"
"You've dated half the girls in our Circle already," Melissa said quietly, placing her purse on her lap. "You'd probably move onto Faye next if she wasn't already taken."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Adam snapped back defensively, shoulders scrunching up.
"You've got a thing for power," Melissa said flatly. "You want it. That's why you wanted Diana, that's why you left her for Cassie—"
"She dumped me, I didn't leave her—"
"It doesn't matter," Melissa said in a matter-of-fact tone, shaking her head slightly. "Now that Diana's sworn off witchcraft for good, and Cassie is disappearing into that old house, and Faye is satisfied with spelling up free pizzas and mini firework shows, you're going after me. I'm not interested though." She stood up, slinging her purse over her shoulder.
"I just thought you might like to go out to lunch," Adam scoffed, shaking his head and crossing his arms, looking out the window. "Where did all this come from?"
"You've been building up to it for a while," Melissa said, taking a step backwards.
"Yeah…I've kind of been thinking about it for a while." He looked back to the ocean. "I have no idea where you're coming from calling me out on it being about power."
Melissa made a non-committing shrug. "Why else notice me now that Diana and Cassie are no longer options?"
"It's not like that," Adam said, his voice dark and angry. Surprised, Melissa's eyebrows raised and she took another step back.
"Look, Adam. I didn't mean anything by it. I still want to be friends, I just don't want to…"
"Get lunch with me?" Adam offered in a sarcastic tone.
"I'll see you later," Melissa spat back, turning swiftly on her heel and rushing for the door. She kept her eyes down, focusing on her black boots as she took step after step on the way to her car. What had just happened? Why did Adam freak out? Was it her fault?
"Oof!" Melissa stumbled backward, wobbling on her heels and feeling her body weight tilting backward. A strong hand grabbed her wrist, righting her and getting her back onto her feet.
"I'm so sorry," she apologized hurriedly, twisting her left shoe back into place. "I wasn't looking where I was going, aaand…" She looked up to find a tall, broad-shouldered young man smiling at her. His hair was pitch black, and he had sapphire blue eyes. He was wearing worn jeans and a charcoal gray tee shirt.
"Don't worry about it," he said, running a hand through his slightly wavy hair. "You're not hurt, are you? It looked like your ankle twisted there for a second."
"No, I…" Melissa trailed off, looking down at her foot again. It didn't hurt, did it? She couldn't really tell right at the moment.
"I'm Troy," he said, offering her his hand to shake. She grasped it, shaking it back.
"Melissa," she said, smiling. "It's nice to meet you."
"Do you come here often?" Troy asked.
"Yeah. Well…maybe not as much now…" Melissa mumbled out the end of her sentence, trailing off again. Why was she so flustered?
"I heard it's where most everyone goes after school." Troy flashed another brilliant smile.
"Do you go to Chance Harbor High School?" Melissa asked.
"Yeah, I do. Do you?"
"Yeah, I'm a Senior. Are you new?"
"Yeah," Troy said. "I'm a Junior, though."
"Maybe that's why I haven't seen you around," Melissa said.
"Maybe. It's hard for me to meet people, too." Troy looked down, a surprising hint of bashfulness crossing his face.
"Seriously?" Melissa asked, disbelievingly.
"Yeah, you running into me is probably the first opportunity I've had to force myself to talk to someone." He laughed lightly, making Melissa laugh as well.
"Sorry again about that," she said, lifting her hand to the back of her head. "I should have been watching where I was going."
"Seriously, don't worry about it," Troy replied, shoving his hands in his pockets and shrugging. "It was really great to meet you." He smiled again, his dark blue eyes glowing.
"Yeah, hopefully I'll see you around school sometime," Melissa said, taking a step toward her car.
"I'd like that a lot," Troy replied, grinning. Melissa couldn't help but smile back as she waved good-bye and walked to the parking lot.
"Crap!" Cassie exclaimed as she fished around the Persuasion Elixir for the crystal. The oven timer was beeping shrilly at her, and she was somehow running five minutes late for leaving for work. The crystal had somehow become slimy in the potion, and resisted her efforts to grip it, shooting out from between her pinched fingertips.
"Aha!" She exclaimed, lifting it up swiftly and squinting as she stared at it. "Got you," she said, examining the discoloration. The quartz had become muddy colored in the potion; the cracks and swirls inside of it were no longer visible.
Turning around and silencing the timer, Cassie wiped her hands on a towel and reached for the cork to seal up the vile. She carefully folded it into a white linen cloth, placing it gently in her purse. Even though Kate Meade had never just shown up out of the blue, she also wasn't not allowed to come by whenever she wanted, and she was due for a visit soon. Cassie decided the potion was safest on her. She patted the folded towel gently before running out to her car.
"Hhhhhhhhh!"
Cassie took a step back as a cat hissed at her, arching its back. It was the same black cat that had scared her last weekend when it was chasing a mouse in the bushes.
"Shoo!" Cassie hissed back, waving her hand. "Get out of here!"
The cat stared at her for a moment with its round yellow eyes, then slowly slinked off toward the same bushes between her yard and Jake's it had run out of the first time she saw it.
"You better not be making a home there," Cassie muttered as she trotted to her car. She unlocked it and slid inside, placing her purse carefully on the passenger seat.
As she started to drive toward work, she looked nervously out of the corner of her eye at the bag. She had decided she would try to get it to Faye. After all, she had been Cassie's biggest opponent during the meeting about re-binding the Circle. If she had managed to persuade the rest of the group to go against Cassie the first time, maybe she would still have the same kind of influence while unknowingly working for Cassie.
I just have to figure out a way to make her take it, Cassie thought dishearteningly.
She had considered a few different options. She thought she might try to get Faye to come to the Java Brew and slip it into her drink somehow, but she decided against that, thinking that the strong odor of the potion would translate into a strong flavor as well.
She had also considered lying to Faye, telling her the potion was for something else so that she would drink it on her own. But that didn't seem like it would work either. Faye was too suspicious by nature, and would make Cassie show her the recipe in her Book of Shadows and then re-make a new batch in front of her.
Finally, Cassie had decided she could bake it into food. It seemed like that was the best way to make the flavor blend out, as well as seem the most natural way to get Faye to consume something. Now she just had to get Faye to eat with her…If only she hadn't been running late, or she could have called Faye before she left.
Seeing a rare parking spot right in front of the Java Brew, Cassie dismissed her thoughts and pulled into the space. She gingerly grabbed her purse, carrying it instead of sliding it over her shoulder. Locking the door behind her, she stepped onto the sidewalk. Her face lit up as she saw who was leaving.
"Faye!" Cassie called. She saw the dark-haired girl stop walking, turning around to see her. Her mother, Dawn, was also with her, holding a to-go coffee cup.
"Hi, Cassie," Faye said slowly, a strange look of apprehension on her face. "Well, nice seeing you—"
"I was going to call you," Cassie said, moving closer to the mother and daughter. "I was wondering if you wanted to spend the night sometime. We could order pizza, watch movies, eat too much junk food." Cassie beamed.
Dawn's eyebrows arched on her face, and she turned to look at Faye expectantly.
"On a weekend, of course," Cassie rushed, smiling awkwardly. "I know you want her to focus more on her classes, Principal Chamberlain."
"Oh, really?" Dawn asked, looking again at Faye with the same expression. "When did Faye tell you that?"
"When we were hanging out last week," Cassie said nonchalantly. "She told us about how you thought it was really important so that she can apply for colleges." Faye bit her lip and stared at Cassie, as if avoiding her mother's gaze.
"Ah, yes, when you were hanging out last week," Dawn repeated, smiling at Cassie. "Of course. That would make sense, wouldn't it?" Her smile was somehow sour.
"Uh, yeah…" Cassie said uncertainly. She felt like something was happening that she didn't know about. Did she and Faye actually get in a fight about how well she was doing in her classes, or whether or not Faye was going to go to college next fall?
"Sorry, Cassie," Faye said rapidly, grabbing onto her mother's forearm. "I have plans with Melissa on Friday and with Jake on Saturday. I don't think next weekend is going to work out. Raincheck?" She tugged at her mother before Cassie could respond, leading her down the sidewalk. "I'll talk to you later!" she called over her shoulder as Dawn and Faye disappeared down the sidewalk.
"That was weird," Cassie muttered to herself as she pushed open the door to the Java Brew. She hurried behind the counter, placing her purse in the cubby against the far wall, and tied her apron around her waist.
Adam slammed the door behind him as he entered the basement. He stomped over to the far wall, kicking an oil-covered rag out of his way.
He was still fuming from his conversation with Melissa. Where did she come off telling him he was only interested in her because of her power, that he was just working his way through the female members of the Circle?
Adam slammed his fist onto the rough wooden table, glaring at the sliver of light that leaked in through the corner of the blinds.
She didn't know the first thing about him. She didn't know anything about his relationship with Diana, or with Cassie. Why did she think she could start diagnosing his relationship problems? Her, of all people, who lost Nick just before Diana turned her back on him, and then Cassie lost her feelings for him…
"Damn it!" Adam roared, punching a wooden box from the table. Its contents exploded when they hit the floor, and then scattered across the floor. Adam took a deep, angry breath, turning toward the box that was nestled gently against the wall.
Slowly, he wrapped his fingers around it, pulling it carefully toward him. Taking a deep breath, this one calm, he undid the brass clasp and looked inside. Gently, he brushed aside the blue cloth he had covered it with, and plunged his hands down the side of the box, grabbing onto the cold contours of the skull. It immediately warmed to his touch, and Adam tilted his head back, eyes closed, focusing on the movement of energy from his fingertips up his arms.
"So, you're hanging out with Cassie Blake again?" Dawn snapped, closing the door a little too loudly behind her.
"Mom, come on, it's not like—" Faye began, before being interrupted by her mother.
"It's not like what, Faye?" Dawn aggressively undid the buttons on her beige trench coat. "It's not like you explicitly went against what I said? It's not like you blatantly disobeyed me?"
"It's not like she's any real trouble!" Faye snapped back. "We aren't going to bind the Circle, okay?"
"I don't care!" Dawn exclaimed, laughing sarcastically. "I don't care! You do what I say, do you understand?"
"I'm almost 18, Mother," Faye hissed back, her eyes stormy.
"That doesn't mean anything, Faye," Dawn said flatly. "I will still be your mother when you turn 18."
"Why the hell are you so paranoid all of a sudden?" Faye exclaimed, throwing her hands out to her side. "Why do you care if I'm around Cassie if we're not doing magic?"
"I don't want to lose—"
"Bullshit!" Faye snapped back. "I've heard you say that already! And it's not going to happen! So come up with something better or drop the whole—"
"Faye, go to your room."
"Excuse me?" Faye asked, disbelievingly. "Are you actually sending me to my room? What am I, ten?"
"When you act like you're ten, I'll treat you like you're ten," Dawn snapped back in a mocking voice. "Until then, I want you in your room. Dinner will be ready in an hour."
"This is not happening," Faye said in a flat, low voice. "I am not going to my room."
"Faye," Dawn said, closing her eyes and leaning against the front door, letting out a long breath. "I told you not to hang out with her. You did. How do I make myself clear?"
"I get it, all right?" Faye said, exasperated. "I won't hang out with her anymore."
"I'm not kidding, if I find out that you—"
"Mom." Faye's voice dropped lower. "I get it, all right?"
Dawn looked at her daughter hard, her mouth sterner than usual.
"Dinner will be ready in an hour," she said in a quiet voice, before turning out of the entryway and heading into the kitchen.
"Are you sure you want to make me dinner?" Grant asked, grinning at Diana. They had just pulled in front of her house. Outside the windshield, they could see the sun starting to set in the west, casting a warm orange glow along the roofs of the houses at the end of the street.
"Yes," Diana said, smiling. "My grandma is supposed to go over to Cassie's for dinner tonight. So I will be making you my world-famous chicken parmesan recipe." Diana beamed as Grant's eyebrows crept up his forehead. "That-I-found-on-the-internet," she added quickly, breaking out into a giggle. Grant laughed with her, reaching for her hand.
"Well, my stomach is growling already," he said. "But are you sure I can't meet your grandmother yet? I tend to be a hit with old ladies. It's the accent."
"Maybe…soon," Diana said, looking away. "Let's go inside now though. It's a little chilly out here."
Diana opened her door, stepping out onto the sidewalk. She hurried up the front steps, calling over her shoulder to Grant, "I promise you'll love it!"
"Is it usually a big hit?"
"I don't know, I've never made it before!" Diana replied, laughing at herself as she pulled open the front door. She placed her purse on the side table, and turned the corner toward the kitchen.
"Grandma!" she exclaimed, stopping in her tracks, the smile falling from her face. At the kitchen counter was Kate, stirring something in a large bowl.
"Hi, Diana. How was your day?" She looked up briefly from her cooking to smile warmly at her granddaughter.
"I thought you were supposed to go over to Cassie's tonight," Diana said, her voice tight.
"I was, but one of her coworkers called in sick and she had to work longer than she expected. I'll be going over tomorrow instead; she's not scheduled to work then."
"Okay, well then I have to go—"
"You must be Grandma Meade," Grant said brightly, walking up behind Diana. "It's wonderful to meet you. I'm Grant."
"Oh, Grant!" Kate said, wiping her hands on her apron and hurrying around the counter. "Oh, it's so good to meet you finally!" She gave him a quick hug, then took a step backward to survey the two of them together. "Aren't you two just so sweet?"
"Your granddaughter is lovely," Grant said. "And I see she got your beautiful brown eyes!"
Kate beamed at Grant, but Diana felt her shoulders tense at that. She could feel her molars grinding against each other, but didn't seem to be in control of her jaw anymore.
"Well, I would be absolutely delighted if you stayed for dinner tonight!" Kate said, moving back to the kitchen counter. "I'm making turkey pot pie. One of Diana's favorites." She smiled at the couple again, going back to stirring whatever was in the bowl.
"That's okay, Grandma, we—" Diana started, gripping Grant's wrist and trying to force him to move backward with him.
"I haven't had a home-cooked meal like that in a long time," Grant said, seemingly oblivious to Diana's protests. "I would love to stay."
"My pleasure!" Kate said, reaching for a pot on the stove and pouring what looked like diced turkey breast into the bowl she was mixing up.
"Excuse me," Diana said coolly, releasing her grip on Grant. "I need to use the restroom."
She turned quickly on her heel before anyone could question her, but it didn't seem like they had any intention of it. Grant took a seat at the counter and was chatting with Kate. Both of them seemed unaware of Diana's unhappiness.
Huffing, she turned around and stomped upstairs to her bedroom before sliding down her door, burying her face in her hands.
Cassie stood up as she heard someone ring the bell on the counter. She had been digging through one of the lower shelves for more green tea, but had so far had no luck. With one of the veteran baristas out sick, everything had felt overwhelming to Cassie, and she growled as she heard the bell ring again.
"Just a second!" She yelled over her shoulder, pushing a box of napkins out of the way as she reached further into the cabinet. Her fingertips brushed a box behind it, but it was just out of her reach…
Ding!
"All right!" Cassie snapped, hitting her head on the ledge as she stood back up. She mumbled to herself as she turned around to the cash register.
"Oh!" she exclaimed, eyebrows rising. "Adam!"
"Hey," he greeted her, tucking his hands into his coat pocket and grinning. "What a surprise, seeing you here. I thought you were supposed to get off work at 6."
"I was," Cassie said, her voice slightly more miserable than she had intended for it to be. "But Annika called in sick, so I'm stuck here 'til closing at 9 now."
"Oh," Adam said, some of the brightness peeling away from his voice. "I was thinking we could get dinner together or something."
"Sorry," Cassie said, smiling half-heartedly. She could feel her stomach clenching into a knot at the idea of them getting dinner, even though she knew it wouldn't be a date. It seemed to squeeze acid into her mouth, and she felt bitter and sick.
"Well, can I stick around until closing? Maybe we could rent a movie or something."
"What?" Cassie asked, the disbelief obvious in her voice. She realized she shouldn't have sounded so stunned. Of course Adam just meant hanging out. He doesn't feel that way about you anymore, she reminded herself for the millionth time.
"Yeah, everybody's busy," Adam grumbled. "So, what do you say?"
"Sure," Cassie said, tapping her finger anxiously on one of the buttons on the cash register. "Sooo…do you want a drink?"
"Maybe just some water for now," Adam said. "But I'm kind of hungry. Do you guys have any more food, or is it just that one sandwich that's still in the case?"
"Actually," Cassie said brightly, an idea dawning on her. "I was just about to throw some muffins in the oven."
"Muffins?" Adam asked, surprised. "Don't you usually stop serving those pretty early?"
"Well, like you said," Cassie said hurriedly, "It's just the one sandwich in the case. And the muffins bake quickly and are always pretty hot sellers."
"All right. I'll take a muffin when they come out," Adam said, reaching for his wallet. "What do I owe you for it?"
Cassie rang him up, her heart pounding. She felt sick and exhilarated at the same time. Maybe she could get Adam to convince the Circle for her. After all, she had imagined him as one of her biggest allies originally. Maybe he could actually pull through this time.
Adam smiled and went to take a seat, and Cassie turned, hurrying to the wall where the cubbies were. She fiddled with some dishes in the deep industrial sink, hoping it wasn't obvious to anyone what she was doing. But there were so few people in here for a Saturday night, and everyone seemed preoccupied with their drinks and conversations. Slowly, Cassie reached for her purse, brushing away the linen wrapping and sliding the vial into the palm of her hand. She tucked it in the pocket of her apron, and then walked over to the fridge where the muffin batter was kept. She pulled the bucket in front out, popping off the lid. There was hardly any batter left for today…but it didn't matter. Quickly, she scooped the blueberry-dotted batter into the muffin trays, filling only half of it. Then, quickly and quietly, she tipped the vial until all of its contents disappeared into the batter of one of the muffins. Grabbing a knife and stirring it until the color was consistent, Cassie turned and popped the tray in the oven, setting the timer.
Turning around, Cassie faced the patrons sitting in the coffeeshop. No one was looking at her, even though she felt like her heart was pounding so hard it must be echoing through the building. She could feel sweat on her forehead, and her mouth was dry. Realizing no one had noticed her, she walked slowly back to the cabinet where she had been looking for the green tea, disappearing under the counter and out of view.
Melissa sat with her legs crossed, looking out at the water. There were food vendors all along the boardwalk, finishing up the Kite Festival. Most of the people around her were families with small children, as well as the occasional couple on an awkward date. Little kids ran around in hats made by someone selling balloon animals, and everything seemed to smell like ketchup and mustard from how many hot dogs were being sold. And yet, somehow, Melissa was still all alone on Saturday night.
She had never gotten a hold of Faye. She had given up trying two hours ago, and had turned her phone off, burying it deep in her purse, not wanting to see it again. She had wandered through the tail-end of the Kite Festival, and had ended up on this bench about a half hour earlier. But with nothing better to go do, she had settled on simply spacing out, staring at the ocean and brooding over what had happened with Faye, and what had happened with Adam.
Sighing, Melissa uncrossed her legs, ready to stand up and go home, when she realized someone was standing behind the bench.
"Mind if I join you?"
Melissa turned around to see Troy, hesitantly waiting for an answer.
"Oh, I was just leaving." Melissa put her purse over her shoulder to emphasize the statement.
"Well, I have horrible timing then," Troy said. Melissa felt some color rise to her cheeks.
"I guess I can stay a little longer," she said, slowly sitting down on the bench once more. Troy walked around the corner and sat on the far end of the bench, putting about a foot of distance between them.
"It really is beautiful out here," he said, watching as the golden sun dipped down toward the water, casting shades of pink and orange on the ripples.
"Where are you from?" Melissa asked.
"The east coast," Troy said, turning back to face Melissa. "How about you?"
"Born and raised in Chance Harbor," Melissa said in a flat voice, crossing her legs once more.
"I don't think that's so bad," Troy said. "Like I said, it's beautiful out here."
"Why did you move?" Melissa asked, then realized that was a stupid question. Duh, she thought. Because your parents did.
"My mom passed away," Troy said softly, eyelashes lowering as he looked at his hands, wringing them.
"Oh my god, I'm so sorry," Melissa said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I had no idea. I'm so sorry."
"You couldn't have known," Troy said, giving her a sympathetic smile. "Anyways, my parents got divorced when I was still a baby, and my dad does a lot of work overseas for his investment firm. I didn't really want to live in six different countries a year, so I came to live with my mom's sister and her husband. My uncle is a fisherman here, so I live with him and my Aunt Hanna. She works for the hospital."
"Well, I'm glad you're here," Melissa said softly. "You seem really nice."
"So do you," Troy said, smiling. "I haven't really met anyone else yet. A lot of people seem…unapproachable."
Melissa nodded, thinking about the gloomy cloud that had been cast over Chance Harbor in her mind since last spring, and couldn't help but agree.
"Sorry…did you have to go meet someone?" Troy asked. "I know you said you were just about to leave."
"I changed my mind," Melissa said abruptly. "Are you busy tonight?"
Troy shook his head. "Don't know anybody." He laughed slightly at himself.
"Do you want to get a slice of pizza? I'm starving."
"Sure," Troy said, smiling. "I'm pretty hungry myself."
"I'll drive," Melissa said, smiling back.
"Order up," Cassie said, smiling as she handed Adam a plate with a muffin on it.
"Hey, thanks," he said, taking the plate. "Smells delicious."
Cassie forced herself to keep smiling as Adam started to peel back the paper liner. She could feel herself shaking slightly, and her hands felt hot and cold at the same time.
"I hope you like it," she said, waiting expectantly for him to take the first bite. He nodded as he picked one of the blueberries off the top, popping it in his mouth. Cassie remained rooted in place, quivering and staring.
"There's someone at the counter," Adam said, pointing toward the cash register.
"Oh!" Cassie exclaimed, starting to run over. She stopped after two steps, turning back toward Adam and saying, "I'll be back over in a minute to see what you think!"
Cassie went over to the register, where a woman was waiting, tired-eyed and clearly exhausted from working a late night. Cassie prepared her order (mint tea to go) and then hurried back to where Adam was sitting, now halfway done with his muffin.
"Weeeell," Cassie said, sitting down on the edge of the armchair across from him. "How is it?"
"It's fine," Adam said, laughing as he wiped crumbs out from the corner of his mouth. "Why? Is it a new recipe? Did you do something to it?"
Cassie's body went tight and she exclaimed, "No!" too quickly and loudly. She tried to laugh when Adam looked at her strangely. But he continued eating the muffin, so Cassie tried to force herself to relax. After the last bite had been swallowed, Cassie took a deep breath.
"I've been thinking more about binding the Circle again," she said quietly but firmly to Adam. His eyebrows rose slightly, but then relaxed back into their normal position.
"Really?" His face remained relaxed, and his voice didn't sound too surprised or grave. Cassie took it as a good sign to continue. Instead, there was a hint of interest in it.
"Yes. And I think we really need to reconsider."
"Why?" Adam asked, his voice genuinely imploring Cassie, concerned and riveted on her every word.
"I think the Balcoins…" Cassie hesitated, considering telling Adam about the symbol singed into her fireplace last week. Instead, she said, "I think they're going to come after us soon."
"Why?" Adam repeated, a look of deep concern etched onto his face. "Did something happen to you, Cassie?" He reached out and took her hand in his, looking at her pleadingly. Surprised, Cassie realized he was scared something had happened to her.
She felt like her hand in his could make her burst into tears, and she swallowed them back, trying to keep her voice steady.
"I think I'm connected to them somehow," she said. "The same way I was connected to my father. I can feel that they're here, and I can feel that they're powerful."
"Then we have to do something," Adam said firmly, still holding onto Cassie's hand. She tried to wiggle it away, even though her heart wanted her to keep it there forever. She was about to lose control, though. It finally slid out of Adam's grip. He didn't seem to notice, however, and placed his palm on her forearm instead.
"They're stronger than we are," Cassie said. "Each one of them has dark magic. And if we're not bound, there's nothing we can do to fight back when they strike."
"You really think they're going to?" Adam asked, squeezing her forearm slightly. Cassie slid farther back in the armchair to try to escape his reach. Where was all of this touching coming from? They had avoided each other for months, rigid when they got anywhere close to touching, and now he couldn't get close enough. Cassie's skin tingled with the familiar sensation.
"I do," Cassie said firmly. "In fact, I know they are. My father said that's why they came here. And they're going to hurt you, Adam." Her voice was low and croaked at the end. "They're going to try to hurt the rest of you. They might even try to make me or Diana do it."
"We have to be ready," Adam said firmly. "We can't let that happen. I won't let that happen to you."
Cassie's eyes widened in disbelief. Since when was he protecting her, concerned about her?
"We have to re-bind the Circle," Adam said decidedly, standing up. "I'm going to go talk to Diana right now."
"Wait!" Cassie said, reaching for his hand, which as resting softly at his side. She hesitantly took it in hers, her fingers sweaty and buzzing. Why did he have to mention Diana? This moment had been so sweet, had let her go so far away from her fears that he was in love with Diana again. It had let her believe, even if just for a second, that he still loved her.
"What?" Adam asked, curling his fingertips around hers. Cassie sniffed back a tear, hoping it came off as a runny nose instead.
"It's the right thing to do," she choked out, realizing she was about to tell him "I love you."
Adam nodded firmly, then squeezed Cassie's hand and rushed toward the front door.
Cassie inhaled deeply, then rushed back behind the counter. She slid into the closet as if she were looking for a mop, and leaned against the wall, wiping away hot tears.
It had worked. The elixir had worked, and Adam was going to make Diana re-bind the Circle. The Book of Shadows had said it would wear off in 6 hours. That should give him plenty of time to convince her. Oh god, Cassie thought. Why am I crying then? It worked! She continued wiping her tears on her sleeve, trying to push past the fact that she was in love with him and he would never feel that way again.
Faye lay on the end of her bed, snapping her index finger up and down. Each time it pointed toward the ceiling, a small crackle would sound and a white light would flash, like a tiny firework.
"I'm bored," she said through her teeth, rolling onto her stomach. The phone that she had levitating next to her ear went with her.
"Why?" Jake asked teasingly. "Because you're grounded?"
"I'm not grounded!" Faye snapped back. "I just don't want my mom to be any more pissed off than she already is. She was practically steaming at dinner." Faye flexed her finger again, causing another pop! followed by a flash.
"I wonder what her problem with Cassie is," Jake said.
"It's because she's the wickedest witch of them all," Faye said in one breath, flicking a piece of lint off of her black leggings.
"I don't understand why your mom feels that way," Jake said, his voice genuinely wondering. "Cassie's not her father. And she was the one who saved us when it really mattered."
"Oh, please," Faye retorted, rolling her eyes. "It's part of that innocent act she has down. So are you going to come break me out of here or what?"
"I thought you said you weren't grounded."
"Be here in ten minutes," Faye ordered before snapping her fingers. The phone hung up, and then landed with a soft thud on her bed.
Diana gingerly nibbled the bite of turkey at the end of her fork, looking between Grant and Kate. So far, it was horrible—they got along wonderfully. Kate wouldn't stop telling stories as if she and Diana were still chummy, and Grant was charming and witty.
"It sounds like Australia is absolutely magnificent!" Kate gushed, putting down her wine glass. "I don't know why you'd ever leave it!"
"Well, I had a whole world to see," Grant said. Diana wanted to roll her eyes.
Really? She thought. She couldn't believe how annoyed she had become with Grant during the past half hour. Everything he said seemed so sappy sweet, so perfect. She couldn't decide if he was actually obnoxious and she just hadn't noticed yet, or if he was kissing up to Grandma Kate.
"You did, didn't you?" Kate said, dabbing at the corners of her mouth with her napkin. "Diana, you've barely touched your dinner," she said. "Are you not feeling well?"
"Late lunch," she said back, pushing her plate forward and crossing her arms.
"Well, can I get you any more to eat, Adam?" Kate asked, standing up. Her body jerked with a sudden line of rigidness as she realized what she had just said. Diana's eyes widened slightly, and Grant awkwardly held his glass halfway to his mouth. "Grant?" Kate said quietly, forcing a crooked smile onto her face.
"I'm fine, Mrs. Meade." Grant replied in a strained voice before taking a sip. He looked down at his plate after that.
"Please," Kate said, rushing to the countertop where the pot pie was resting. "Call me Kate."
Or Adam, Diana thought bitterly, taking her napkin from her lap and putting it on the table.
"I better get going, Kate," Grant said, scooting out from his chair. "Thank you for the delicious meal."
"Oh, any time!" Kate exclaimed, coming around the counter again and leading Grant toward the door. "I hope you visit again soon."
"Maybe," Diana said tersely as she stood up, following Grant. She led him down the hallway to the entryway, where he slid his rain jacket back on.
"That was a lot of fun," he said, voice relaxed once more. "Your grandma is really nice."
"Hrmm," Diana mumbled as she pecked him on the cheek. "Well, good night," she said, opening the door. Her jaw opened slightly as she saw Adam on the other side, fist raised as if he were just about to knock.
"Oh, hi," he said, looking from Diana to Grant, then back to Diana. "Sorry, am I interrupting something?"
"Not at all," Grant said coolly. "I was just about to leave, actually." The usually playful grin had disappeared from his face. "Night, Di," he said sternly as kissed her on the mouth before pushing past Adam to go to his car.
"Was that my fault?" Adam asked, looking over his shoulder as Grant slinked down the walkway.
"No, it was my grandma's," Diana sighed, crossing her arms. Adam looked confused, but then shook it off.
"I have to talk to you about something really important," he said urgently.
"Can it wait?" Diana sighed. Adam shook his head. "Is it witchy?" Diana asked. Adam didn't move. "I don't want to talk about it then," Diana said, grabbing the door to shut it in his face. Adam placed his hand on top of hers, looking sternly into her eyes.
"It's important," he said again, voice low and pleading. Diana paused, staring at him, and then his hand over hers. "Can I come in?" Adam asked.
Diana looked at Grant's car. The engine was running, but he hadn't left yet.
"I don't know…" she said uncertainly, still hyperaware of their hands touching. Grant's car pulled out a little too quickly, and then zipped down the road. "Fine," she sighed.
She stepped aside, letting Adam move into the entryway. He wiped his feet on the welcome mat.
Kate turned the corner, stopping when she saw Adam in the doorway.
"Adam!" she said, surprised. "Why are you—I mean, how are you?"
"I'm fine," Adam said, his voice somewhat impatient. "And yourself?"
"Just…fine," she replied, looking questioningly at Diana. "I'll be in the living room if you need me," she said hesitantly before continuing through the entryway.
"Let's go to the dining room then," Diana said, leading Adam before taking a seat across the table from him.
The room was slightly dim, with only one of the lights on. The shadows cast dark lines over Adam's face, making him look mysterious. Diana realized how different his eyes were from Grant's. The slight darkness on his features reminded her of lying in bed with him, the way the shadows seemed to rest on his face so softly.
"What?" Diana asked, shaking her head and forcing herself to refocus. Where did that come from? she thought to herself.
"I have to tell you something really important," Adam said, voice low. "It's about Cassie."
"Of course it is," Diana said grumpily, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms. "What is it?" She asked impatiently.
"I think she drugged me."
"Finally!" Faye moaned, ripping her seatbelt off and stepping out of Jake's car and into the dark, cool night. "Freedom at last!" She threw her arms in the air, and spun a small circle.
"The last six hours must have been tortuous for you," Jake said, giving her a fake sympathetic smile.
"You have no idea," Faye said, leaning against the car. "But what do we do now?" Her voice was pouty. "I'm so bored of the same old magic tricks I've been doing all summer."
Before he could respond, both Jake and Faye turned at the sound of Cassie's car pulling up behind them. The door slammed, and Cassie hurried toward the front door of her house, ignoring them. The moonlight illuminated her pale face, and streaks of tears lit up like lines of quicksilver.
Jake immediately ran after her, catching her wrist as she was about to enter the house. Faye's eyebrows arched as Cassie tried to push him off and Jake moved in front of the door. Cassie looked up at him. Even from the distance, Faye could see that her eyelashes were dark and thick with tears, framing her big, wet blue eyes.
"Wow," Faye scoffed, rolling her own eyes and starting to walk toward Jake's door. She turned around, infuriated when she saw the two of them were still talking, the look of concern obvious on Jake's face even from the distance. Faye's lips pressed together angrily, and she stomped up the stairs to Jake's door, kicking her heel hard against it as she leaned, waiting.
Faye heard Cassie sob loudly, then push her way through the front door, slamming it behind her. Jake's chest rose and fell as he sighed, and his shoulders settled back into a slouched position. He slowly made his way over to Faye, looking up at her as if expecting a sympathetic glance.
"Are you still in love with her?" Faye asked shortly, looking hard at Jake.
"What?" he asked incredulously.
"Answer the question," Faye hissed impatiently.
"No," Jake said disbelievingly. "Why would you even need to ask me that?"
"Because you just ran over to Little Miss Gloom and Doom like you were her big knight in shining armor," Faye snapped, taking a step away from Jake.
"She was crying," Jake said, shaking his head slightly. "What has gotten into you, Faye?"
"What the hell has gotten into you?" Faye yelled, stomping down the front steps. She turned around and glared at Jake. "You better get over whatever is left between the two of you, or this isn't going to happen anymore." She started stomping down the street, ignoring Jake as he called out to her.
"You think she did what?" Diana asked, eyebrows shooting all the way up her forehead.
"I think she spelled me," Adam said softly. "With some kind of mind control potion. Isn't there something similar to that in your Book of Shadows?"
"A Relaxant Potion," Diana murmured, not wanting to think about the hours and hours she had spent poring over that book. "It's not mind control, though, just…a way to get someone to be relaxed enough to tell you the truth."
"Well, I think Cassie's Book of Shadows has something a bit more powerful than that," Adam said, voice low. "I was with her at the Java Brew." Diana looked strangely unhappy with that statement. "She must have baked it into my food. After I ate it, she came over and started talking to me about binding the Circle again."
"She didn't!" Diana exclaimed, standing up suddenly. "How dare she!" She paused. Kate's footsteps had just been going upstairs, but had stopped suddenly with Diana's outburst.
"Diana, calm down," Adam pleaded, urging her to sit back down. Diana held her breath, and then heard Kate start treading the stairs again. She exhaled, taking a seat gain.
"She violated your free will!" Diana hissed, trying to keep her voice down.
"I didn't last very long, though," Adam said calmly. "Halfway on the drive over here, my head felt clear again. I had honestly believed her, that binding the Circle was our only choice. And then by the time I got here, I was back to myself again, and started piecing together what had happened."
"What is wrong with her?" Diana muttered angrily. "Adam, this is serious. We don't know what she's capable of anymore. I mean, her own friend." The grave tone in Diana's voice sent a shudder across the room.
"I know," Adam said sadly. "I'm concerned about her. I don't know if it's being alone, or feeling like her friends have turned their backs on her—"
"She's the one who just drugged her friend!" Diana jeered back.
"She's still all alone." Adam's voice cracked slightly. "I think we need to do something. To try to take care of her."
"I don't think I'm ready to make up with her just yet," Diana said coolly. "Especially not after this."
"We at least need to be looking out for her." Adam said. Diana looked away from Adam.
"I'll let you know if anything else happens," Adam said, standing up.
"Please," Diana said, this time her voice soft and genuine. "Please do."
Adam nodded, then turned toward the entryway. Diana followed him, crossing her arms as the cold air entered when he opened the door. He hesitated.
"Diana?" He asked quietly.
"Yes?"
Adam turned to look up at her, a strange, glassy look in his eyes. "Are you in love with Grant?" He asked.
"I—" Diana stopped, unsure of why. Her first instinct had been to say I love him, yes, but something stopped her. She realized that they had never said those words to each other. Her lips refused to utter them now. They were trapped somewhere in her stomach, boiling and refusing to work. "I don't know," she managed to say softly.
Neither of them spoke as the cold air continued to leak in through the front door.
"Why?" Diana finally whispered.
Adam looked up at her again, the same glassy look in his eyes.
"I don't know," he whispered, repeating the same words she had just spoken. The two stared into each other's eyes nervously.
"Are you in love with Cassie?" She spat out. He looked up, surprised. It was the thought that had been burning Diana since he began defending her, and it somehow felt both worse and better to have spoken it out loud.
"You know the answer to that," he said, voice steady. "You know about the elixir we had to drink to save Jake's life."
There was an awkwardness lingering between them, coupled with a strange ease that had come from being so close for so many years. Diana felt a strange tightness in her belly, then realized it was the nervous flutter of butterflies in her stomach. Her breathing increased as she looked at Adam, thinking of how handsome he still was to her, of everything they had shared together.
"Good night," she said suddenly, closing the door. What had gotten into her? She loved Gra—her thoughts stopped themselves again, and she couldn't even finish the thought to herself. Because it's a lie, she thought sullenly.
No it's not! She fought back internally, sprinting up the stairs.
Cassie sat on the couch, wrapped up in a braided wool blanket. She had made a cup of tea to try to help her go to bed, but it remained untouched on the coffee table. She had watched the steam dance up from it, and then eventually stop after it had cooled off.
It was just a matter of time, she kept telling herself. Tomorrow they would re-bind the Circle. Adam had gone over to convince Diana of the matter. She felt absent from her own plan, however, at the thought of not being there herself. It was better that way, though. Adam would be able to convince Diana. Still…she didn't like the idea of them alone together.
"You have no right to be jealous," she said out loud, pulling the blanket tighter.
She jumped, adrenaline coursing through her body as she heard rustling in the bushes outside the window. Frustrated, she stood up, pulling up the glass and yelling into the yard, "Get out of here, you stupid cat!"
The bushes rustled again, and then Cassie stood, petrified, as a dark, human silhouette appeared on the other side of the window.