He bent down again and kissed me again. This time I didn’t fight back. This time I didn’t move. I let him kiss me, maul me while I fought my desire to burn him alive. He held the trump card and we both knew it.
‘What the hell?’ said Ezra from behind us.
My flames died and Noah turned to Ezra, his face alight with the glory of winning.
‘Aren’t you going to congratulate us? Your ex-girlfriend has decided to become my wife.’
Ezra stared at me, his expression unreadable.
Noah put his hand around my waist and opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, Ezra stepped forward and smashed his fist into Noah’s face. The sound of bone breaking and the smell of metallic blood filled the air.
Noah fell to the floor like a stone, clutching his nose.
‘That was the last time you touch Eva, and so help you if you so much as look at her again.’
Noah started laughing. He gazed up at us, blood dripping from his nose; a true devil. ‘You forget that I know Eva is a witch. If I can’t have her, there’s no way my sister is marrying her brother – so, I guess you leave me no choice but to reveal the truth and protect my family.’
Ezra flinched before he took my hand. ‘Get the hell out of this house.’
Noah put his hands up as he stood, fresh blood gushing from his nose. ‘You know what, I think I will go – for now. See you soon, sweetness. That was some kiss, by the way.’
Ezra rushed forward, but I pulled him back.
‘Bye-bye,’ said Noah. He blew me a kiss before he left the room, then whistled as he made his way down the stairs.
He may have been gone, but he had left a world of trouble behind.
Chapter Four
I glanced around at our living room packed full of my fellow students, my family, Ezra’s mum and a number of neighbours and people from church that Orpheus had insisted come along. I let out a deep sigh – at least Orpheus hadn’t arrived yet.
I turned my attention back to Violet, who stood in front of me, chatting away. Violet’s mouth opened and closed while the lines on her face deepened from a lifetime of habit. I pulled my face into a smile and nodded, but my mind was still reeling after what had happened in my room only an hour earlier. I could barely contemplate Ezra’s proposal when I couldn’t stop thinking about whether Noah would go through with his threat and try and expose my family as witches – and whether Orpheus would believe him.
Violet took me by the shoulders and gently shook me.
‘Eva, what on earth is the matter?’
‘Sorry, Violet. I have a lot on my mind.’ I glanced around for listening ears that were never far away these days.
‘I can see that, dear. Would you like to talk about it?’
Relief flooded through me like a cool change after days of hot weather. Violet was someone I could trust. If I could talk everything through with her, maybe I could clear my mind, know what to do.
‘I would like that, but not here.’
She nodded. ‘Come by tomorrow.’ She rubbed her wrinkly thumb down the side of my face. ‘Everything’s going to be okay, dear. But I’m afraid I need to sit down in front of my fire with a hot cup of tea.’
I pictured her in her cosy little lounge room and smiled.
‘In that case, let me walk you home.’
‘There’s no need for that, my dear. This is your party – you must stay and enjoy yourself. You only turn eighteen once, you know.’
‘I’d rather come with you,’ I said, taking Violet by the arm and quietly slipping outside unnoticed.
Silently we made our way across the road to Violet’s house. The night was dark and the clouds were low, sprinkling us with fine droplets of rain.
‘So much for spring,’ said Violet as she opened her door. ‘I can’t remember a colder winter in all my days.’
I shivered, cursing myself for agreeing to wear such a light dress on a cool night.
‘I’m home safely, dear. You head back to your party. I’m sure Ezra will be missing you, the poor, love-struck boy.’
I couldn’t help but laugh. ‘I’m sure he’ll be just fine for a few minutes.’ I stepped inside Violet’s house and she followed quickly behind me. I set about lighting her fire while she went into the kitchen and put on the kettle.
A few minutes later, I found myself seated by her fire nursing a hot chocolate.
‘Care to talk?’ she asked, her voice as old as the mountains.
I took a long, steady breath. Before I could overthink my words, my sorry story flooded out from me and into the safety of a kind friend. I told her about Ezra’s proposal, but I stopped when I reached the point in the story where Noah found out I was a witch; implicating or burdening Violet with my witchcraft was not an option.
‘Are you going to tell me the rest?’ she asked, her purple eyes finding mine.
I swallowed the lump in my throat. ‘It’s best…you don’t know.’
‘Is that so?’ she said, raising an eyebrow.
I nodded, but my story was forming, seeking a way out.
‘Well, I can see it’s not best for you. As for me, any concern of yours is a concern of mine. And at my age, nothing surprises me, dear.’
My secret – my birthright, which I’d learned to hide away – to repress – for my family now sat between us in the room.
I stared into the mesmerising flames of the fire. ‘I can’t tell you, Violet. It wouldn’t be safe for you to know.’
Violet took a sip of tea. ‘You might be surprised what I already know. After all, your house is across from mine and I’ve been keeping a close eye on you.’
I turned to Violet, but
