Despite the excited look on Luz's face, I shared my little sister's fear. Though the story about her trip to the knee had a happy ending it also had a scary implication. We'd finally found a way to free her.
I knew from the moment Amity mentioned the powerful protective feeling she got when her and Luz were separated that the two of them had grown a strong bond with each other. Her fondness of the human had literally given her the strength to summon a giant phoenix, for titan's sake. And sure, it was a good thing that Amity had found someone who truly made her that happy. But that also meant she had found someone strong enough to pull her into the spirit realm.
All Luz had to do was die and my sister would be free.
"Well," My twin uttered. The smile on Emira's face tried to hide the anxiety in her eyes. "I'm glad you two are safe".
"Me too," Luz laughed, completely oblivious to our painful realization. "I really thought I was a goner".
"It wouldn't be the first time this month," I chuckled. "You sure do have a knack for trouble".
That made Luz's joy falter. She slightly flinched as her shame struck her.
"Yeah," she went on as if the comment hadn't hurt her. "I always have".
"That's a good thing" Emira smoothly soothed. "I mean, at least you're not a rule-following dweeb like Mittens".
Said witch's face scrunched in irritation. Her ears flattened while she huffed. She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.
"Hey," I jumped in. "Mittens is getting better. Soon she'll be a dirty delinquent, just like us".
"I can't wait," Amity muttered.
Emira quickly glanced at her scroll, the sight making her sigh.
"We need to go. Mom should be back any minute now".
"Alright," our little sister murmured as she sank. "Talk to you two later".
When Amity and Luz's image faded from the crystal ball, my sibling let her comforting facade drop.
"Son of a hellhound" she groaned.
"It's not all that bad" I failingly tried to reassure. "She enjoys staying at the owl house. Maybe she won't mind waiting to get to the spirit realm".
"But the longer she waits, the more she risks being found out by mom. And if that happens, Titan knows what would happen to all of us".
As Emira spoke, the sounds of Amity's screams in agony crawled its way to the front of my mind. I shivered. I could only imagine the twisted look of pain on my baby sister's face as our mother tortured her.
"Em?". My voice was cautiously quiet. "Do you think we're safe here?".
"I…". She stopped for a moment to carefully choose her words. She didn't want to lie, but she didn't want me to panic either. "As long as we're careful".
"That doesn't sound very encouraging".
"I know. But where else would we go?".
"Do you think the Owl Lady would take us in?". I could tell by the way she went rigid that Emira liked the idea. But her hope was short-lived.
"That would be too risky. We might lead mom straight to Amity".
"So, it's hopeless? All we can do is sit here and hope mom doesn't hurt us?".
"We could tell dad" she suggested, though she had little faith in it.
"Com 'on, Em. Do you really think dad would ever stand up to mom?".
A knock on the door made the both of us jump. Since it was her room, Emira was the one to answer it. When she saw who was on the other side, her ears pointed to the ground.
"Hey, mom" she greeted, her voice accidentally wavering. "Do you need something?".
The older witch wore a smile but was unamused by her daughter's nervousness. She rested her hand on her hip, holding in her sinister irritation.
"I was hoping to talk to your brother". Her sharp blue eyes locked onto me like talons. "In private".
With a look, I silently asked Emira what to do. She simply nodded but flicked her ear as a way to tell me to be careful.
"Sure, mom". I pushed down my nerves and joined my mother out in the hallway. With her arm, she gently led me away from the door. "What did you want to talk to me about?".
"How are your wounds healing?".
"There fine" I answered, her question reminding me of the painful gashes. "They should scar up soon".
"And you said you got them when you were attacked by a book?".
I swallowed the lump of fear stuck in my throat? She was on to something, but I had no clue what that something was.
"The wailing star brought a monster from one of the books to life. He attacked us".
"I just find it strange" my mother hmmed. "You're covered in slash marks, but Emira only has a simple bruise".
Is that what this was about? Was she trying to blame Emira for the scratch marks on my side?
"I helped her to a hiding spot as soon as I could".
"With your injuries?".
"I didn't really notice them until after the fight. I was more focused on not dying".
My mother took a deep breath, then grabbed me by the shoulders. Her hold was as strong as a griffins, the earnest radiating off of her suffocating.
"Sweetheart,". The pet name made chills run up my spine. "I want you to be completely honest with me".
"About what?" I mumbled, about to break like a twig.
"Has Emira been hurting you?".
"What?!".
Where the hell did that come from?! Did she seriously think that Emira would do such a thing?! We'd been extremely close since the day we were born!
"Of course not!" I yowled in surprise. "Where did you get that idea?!".
"Your sister has been acting very strangely since Amity passed. She's been growing rather…virulent lately. I just wanted to make sure".
"Is this because of what happened in the marketplace?! That kid was literally asking for it!".
"Have you known Emira to ever get violent, at all?". Despite how ludicrous her suspicion was, she did have a point. It wasn't like Emira to lose her temper, even in the most infuriating situations.
"Okay. So, she snapped. But she'd never hurt me! Not like that!".
"Honey". My mother handed me her pity, sounding as sickly sweet as she could. "Its nice that you and your sister are close, but you should never let your guard down. Just because you're family doesn't mean that Emira can't stab you in the back".
"Well, she hasn't, not at the library or anywhere else".
"Alright," she said after a moment. She took a few steps toward the stairway, about to leave our conversation behind. "But when she does, don't be afraid to let me know".
I watched my mother head to the staircase, only going back into my sister's room when she had completely left my sight. That entire conversation made ice shoot through my veins. The way the witch talked about her own daughter was just unnatural. Whatever feeling of safety I had left had just been shattered.
"What did mom want?". The weight on my shoulders threw me onto Emira's bed. I laid flat on my back and stared up at the ceiling.
"She asked me if you hurt me at the library".
"What?!".
"That's what I said!".
"Why would she think I'd hurt you?" Emira asked incredulously.
"She thinks it weird that you came out of the library without a scratch".
"Without a scratch?". A growl rose in my sister's throat. "What would you call the huge bruise on my side then?".
"I told her that but…she thinks you've changed".
"Changed"?".
"She thinks you're going to stab me in the back".
Emira gritted her fangs as if the very thought made her sick. Ever since Amity passed, she had just grown more protective of her siblings.
"And what do you think?".
"What do you think I think? You'd never!". When Emira said nothing in response I went on, my worry spilling out. "You need to run".
"To where, Ed?".
"Anywhere but here! You saw what mom did to Amity, and she didn't have anything against her. If you stay here, who knows what she'll do to you?".
Emira let out the deep breath she was holding. She sat down on the bed, causing me to sit up beside her.
"We'll cross that chasm when we get there".
"But who knows when mom will strike? By the time you find out she's done something, it might be too late!".
"But if I react too early, she'll become even more suspicious of me". She put her hand on my arm and pulled my gaze towards her own. "I'll be careful. And you should be too".
"Okay" I finally sighed. "But the first chance you get, Em, promise me you'll run".
"Don't worry. Once we find a safe enough spot to hide, the both of us are getting out of here".
…
As the sun set, an eerie chill filled the manor. It was around dinner time, but I wasn't hungry in the slightest. My stomach felt as if it were full of bugs, all skittering around trying to find a way out.
Every small noise made me freeze. The air around me felt like it was covered by a heavy fog, constantly getting caught in my throat while it shoved its way down to my lungs. Despite being alone, I felt pairs of eyes stare at me from every corner of the hallway.
A bunch of angry footsteps pulled my attention towards my mother's office. I should've ran the other way, back to my room, but my morbid curiosity drew me closer to the door. My eye peeked through the keyhole as my breath grew shallow.
While drowning deep within her thoughts, my mother paced the floor. Her hands grasped onto her minty green hair, slowly pulling it out of her bun. The wrinkled lines on her face darkened so much it looked as if someone had drawn them on with marker.
I'd never seen her look so panicked, not even when Amity went missing. She always hid her fear so well part of me thought her freaking out was impossible.
My mother stopped in front of her desk. She leaned against it for a moment and threw her head into her hands. After a few deep breaths she grabbed a small vile from one of the drawers and held it up to her face. The label on it had no writing, just a simple symbol, a zig-zag with three sharp edges with a diagonal line running through it. It was a rare and very expensive substance, but I recognized it right away.
Wattsicide, a substance that sent bolts of electricity through your veins. It worked fast and had no flavor, though if you focused hard enough you could feel it send ripples across your tongue. You only had a certain amount of time to get it out of your system before the substance got into your bloodstream. Once it did, it was irreversible and one-hundred percent lethal.
To put it simply, it was a very dangerous poison.
The conflict stained on my mother's face painted a very clear picture. That poison wasn't something she was planning on using on a powerful business rival. She was planning on using it on one of her own children.
"She's going to kill Emira!". The thought echoed in my head while I held my mouth shut as tightly as I could.
I had to fight to not shout out in surprise. We weren't safe there! Mom was going to try and hurt us, kill us!
Before she could notice me, I shot into the closest room, which happened to be my little sister's old room. Everything was left untouched. The only thing different from the day she died was all of the dust gathering on everything.
I had no time to be saddened by the sight. I was too busy panicking. What was I supposed to do?!
I had to tell Emira! But what would she be able to do about it?! She had nowhere to run to, and even if she did, she would always be in danger just like Amity was!
We would have to face mom head on, but how?! She was a much stronger witch than we were, one that had years of experience and an arsenal of abomination weapons behind her! In the end, no matter what we did, my mother would outsmart us. That hellhound would get what she wanted no matter what the cost!
Well, she wouldn't get everything she wanted. She still didn't know where Amity was. She still wouldn't have her precious amulet.
I started to think (most would call that a miracle). This was all over some amulet, right? Mom just wanted someone she could use against her business rivals. And as much ire as she had shone towards her daughter in the last week, that someone would probably be Emira. She'd take Amity's place. She would become mom's new golden child.
But what if she had another child to boss around? Would she leave Emira alone? When Amity was still around, she let a lot of things we did slide. All of the rules we had broken, the pranks and the vandalism, were tossed into the wind as if they never happened.
What if I became her new golden child? What if my mother put me in an amulet instead?
I know it sounded nuts. That would mean that I would have to die! But if I didn't, Emira eventually would have. Mom would stop at nothing to have her killed. And sure, she would never stop looking for Amity even if she did get a new amulet. She was her favorite after all, the most promising of her three kids. But she wouldn't be in such a rush to get her powerful piece of jewelry back if she had a spare.
Maybe I would be good enough for her, just that once.
At dinner time, I made my final decision. I had no choice. Asking Eda would lead our mom right to the three of us, and no one else would believe us. We needed to handle this on our own and this was sadly the best idea I had. Besides, If Em or I were to speak up about the poison, mom would've tried to kill Emira a different way, a way I didn't know about.
Before my sister could take a bite, while no other witch was looking, I swapped our bowls of soup.
I honestly didn't know why we ever ate soup. It was the easiest to poison. Granted we all knew how to check it for poison, some rare exceptions like savagescent and wattsicide were nearly undetectable, at least until it was too late.
Still, it hadn't killed any of us up to that point. Not yet.
Surprisingly, I didn't notice the ripples roll down my tongue until I was almost done with the soup. They started off very softly, though they grew stronger and stronger as the meal went on. Soon each wave made my grasp on my fork tighten. They were starting to really hurt.
My twin noticed right away. From across the table, she silently asked if I was alright. My gaze fell to the ground while I flicked my ear at mom. Though she didn't know the context she got the general idea.
I felt the tip of her foot touch the top of mine. Emira nodded at me, her golden eyes full of comfort. Despite her not saying anything, I heard her loud and clear. "Just make it through dinner".
I wanted to tell her so badly. Hell, I wanted to tell everyone what I'd just done and be rushed to the healing coven. It still wasn't too late. I could still take the antidote and not have to die.
But I kept my mouth shut. I just sat there, meagerly picking at the meal in front of me as my chance to back out of my crazy idea slowly slipped away.
The only thing keeping me going was the horrible alternative. What mom had done to Amity was horrible enough. What she would do to Emira, a witch she had been angry enough with to poison, the darkest part of my mind could only imagine.
She was probably going to do some very terrible things to me once she had me in an amulet. Just like my little sister, she would probably make me into her personal assassin and would punish me in the worst way possible if I failed her. But I was a tough witch, right? I mean, I constantly went to the healing coven but it wasn't because I was meek and sickly. It was because I wasn't afraid to break a few bones…or one-hundred and five of my bones…all at once…don't ask.
I'm sure whatever mom had planned for me I could handle. The pain wouldn't last forever. I just had to deal with it long enough for it to blow over.
Yeah. My confidence was about as blind as a mole-hog, I know.
After dinner, Emira immediately drug me into her room. She shut the door as quietly as she could before turning to face me. Her eyes reflected my worry.
"Is it just me or was mom acting really suspicious tonight?".
"Like she hasn't been all day?".
"She kept staring at me the entire time, like she was trying to read me".
The both of us went back to sitting on the edge of Emira's bed. Thousands of possibilities all popped up in my sister's head, each one trampling her.
"What do you think she's planning?" I asked, trying to bring her back to the moment. She took another moment to think before her mouth fell open.
"Do you think she's poisoned me?". She leapt to her vanity and looked her reflection over.
"No, no" I rushed. "Trust me. I checked".
Emira took a deep breath. I'm not quite sure if she was sighing in relief or simply trying to ground herself.
"We're both going to be extra careful, though it seems like she's mainly after me".
"Don't worry, Em. I've got your back".
Emira's thankful smile hit me like a careening grudgby ball. It took all of my strength not to tell her everything. Hiding something from my twin was usually hard enough (mainly because she found out about it super quick) but I was so titandamn scared! If I ever needed the siblingly support, I needed it right then!
"We've got each other's backs," she corrected.
My stare fell. If Emira had seen the devastated look on my face, I wouldn't be able to hold back the truth for much longer.
I twiddled my thumbs as I nervously looked down at my hands. I wasn't paying that much attention to them, since I was stuck in my own storm of thoughts. Not until I notice a little spark crawl up my vein.
My welling fear lit into panic. I hid both of my hands with my arms and shot to the door.
"Where are you going?" Emira questioned, her concern now all on me.
"I just remembered I've got to do something!".
"Something?".
"Something important!".
Before she could say anymore, I fled into my room. Once I closed the door, I leaned on it until my breathing slowed. Another bolt of electricity shot up my veins, making me grit my fangs.
That pain was nothing compared to the feeling in my chest. It was too late now. No matter what, in a few days I was going to die.
I barely made it over to the chair in front of my desk when my dread made me topple over. Hundreds of existential questions hit me at once. Was my life a good one? Did I regret anything? Is there anything I had to do before I went?
Well, I guess I needed to figure all that out sooner rather than later. It would be my last chance to do so.