"Of course, Amos blamed himself for not stopping Frank. He had promised Wendy to keep him safe and had failed and it was all his fault" Heather sighed "I had to talk sense into him."
-0-
"You are not responsible for the bad choices other people make. You are responsible for your own. It is not your fault that Irina was enslaved to a sorcerer. She made the bargain and never told you. And did you really love her or it was an enchantment? It was not your fault that the enchantment wore off. "
"What happened to John…"
"You did not drag John Lawson into dealing with Midler. He dragged you. And you did not know what you were dealing with."
"Frank…"
"Frank got plenty of warnings He shook the advice off as he shook your influence off. His choice not yours. Stop carrying the weight of the world. That you need blood is no reason to blame yourself for every little thing. Accept that you have limits, and understand what they are."
-0-
"And in the end, he believed me, sort of. I reminded him that he had to so something about Irina and told him that the box that Genevieve had given him might help him there. So, he opened it."
-0-
It was a small breeze that came out of the box. And then a strong gust of wind… And it got stronger… stronger, forming into a small tornado that flew out of the window, growing as it moved.
Owen Raft grabbed the furniture. "It is pulling me." He said. "I don't know if I can hold"
The tornado was gone and as Amos looked out, he saw it coming back, dragging Irina with it. Irina screamed and fought, but there was nothing that she could strike nor get hold off. The tornado brough her inside and pulled her towards the box. Owen Raft felt the pull too, but knew that he could stay where he was. Irina looked at him "Traitor!" she yelled.
Then the tornado went into the box dragging Irina Inside. Amos closed the box quickly.
"That's it… that's the end of it."
"Make sure that no one can open it again." Heather told him.
Owen Raft relaxed. "It is over… I am human again."
"Make sure you make better choices now."
"I will try. "
Amos put the box away carefully, deciding where he could keep it safely. Then he wanted to see if the tornado had done any more damage.
He flew over the area and he saw the crashed car.
He went down and pulled the driver. who was alone in the car. Thanking Lawson for the first responder training he took care of the immediate injuries and called for an ambulance (those cell phones were a blessing, he decided.)"
-0-
"And that's how Professor Romney came into Benchleytown"