“Don't give me that drivel, old man,” Zelda declared heatedly. “You could have untangled that mess weeks ago.”
“Don't call me old, you wicked crone.”
Rosa looked to Eleisha for reassurance that everything hadn't just gone pear-shaped and they weren't about to be ousted from the Dragons' Lair.
Eleisha was not in the least perturbed. “Behave yourself husband. Zelda is a friend and she's also our superior.”
“Superior is a good word,” Zelda cackled.
But Anton wasn't so quickly appeased. “That bat called me an old man!”
“My darling. You
are
old. We
all
are, the exception being Rosa. Zelda, perhaps you could enlighten us why you think we should unbind Alanna's magic early.”
Zelda continued to sip her tea. She enjoyed stirring up a little mayhem of her own. She gestured to Gregori. “Perhaps it's best if you tell them everything from the beginning.” She stared at Anton over the steam in her teacup. “Unless you've been keeping a watchful eye on the developments in Raven's Creek over the last few days?”
Anton flapped a hand. Rosa could tell he was bursting with curiosity. His eyes had taken on a gleam of interest. “There have been developments while I've been busy elsewhere? Do tell.”
Gregori sighed heavily. He'd not missed the inane bickering of Council business. “We've learned the truth about Jack and Alice Greenwood.”
Eleisha sat up straighter. Her tea sloshed in her cup. She looked to Zelda. “All of you know?”
Zelda nodded. “Alanna finally opened up and told us everything. Gregori has been successful in drawing the truth from her when no one else has been able to.”
“I made a promise to Alanna never to tell another soul, but once she opened her mind to me, it was as if a floodgate had been opened and it all came pouring out to everyone yesterday.” And he related to them all in exact detail of Alanna's confession.
Silence descended in the room as he, Zelda and Rosa waited for Anton's response. Even the two dragons had stopped flying and roosted on perches nearby.
Eleisha leaned over and picked up the teapot and refilled Zelda's cup as well as her own. Her hand shook. “That poor, poor girl,” she spoke softly. Her lips trembled as she took a sip from her cup. She shook her head and looked to her husband who had turned a sickly gray.
He braced his elbow on one knee and cupped his face in one hand. “I don't know what to say. I'm shocked. Horrified. Discombobulated.”
“As are we,” Zelda admitted. “I'm afraid to say it, but the confession has created a rift between Alanna and Beth. Beth refuses to work with or even be in the same room as her. It looks as if it will be some time before the rift is healed.”
Anton looked to Rosa. “And what about you? How do you feel about this situation? How do you feel knowing your sister was instrumental in the death of your parents?”
Silent tears cascaded down Rosa's cheeks. She didn't try to wipe them away. No matter how saddened she was, she knew in her heart Alanna had never deliberately set out to harm anyone. “It was an accident. I hold no resentment or anger towards her. In fact, I feel I should have noticed more. Understood just how affected she had been by the accident. I hold myself responsible for not being a better, more approachable sister.”
Her cup rattled in its saucer. She placed it on the table and rubbed her palms over her knees. “Surely she has suffered enough.” She looked to Zelda and Gregori for his reassurance. “We all feel the same.”
Zelda nodded, a suspicion of moisture filming her eyes.
“Except Beth,” Gregori stated without emotion. “Hopefully, with time she will learn to forgive Alanna.” He downed a second shot of whiskey. “One of Alanna's greatest fears was that this knowledge would break up her family. With her parents gone, her sisters were all she had left. She was so traumatized by the incident she's been punishing herself for years.”
“Which makes sense,” Eleisha agreed. “She has internalized all that guilt. What a terrible secret to keep. My heart goes out to her.”
“You're too soft, my beloved,” Anton's voice was gruff. He rose from his chair and began to pace the centuries old floorboards. “She deserves to be punished.” He paused. Spun on the spot and Mistletoe whisked over to circle him before alighting on his shoulder.
“I hunt her,” Mistletoe sparked, and the smell of burned hair filled the room.
Anton patted himself down to ensure what remained of his hair was still there. “No.”
“What then would you do?” Zelda posed the question and she too stood, genuine fear dulling her eyes.
“I need to think on it.”
“Don't think too long,” Gregori was growing increasingly impatient. “Alanna and I plan to bind our magic in Cabasson in a few hours time. We hoped you would hold the official ceremony.”
Delight sprang into Eleisha's eyes. “Really. Oh that's wonderful.”
“We'll stay there for a few weeks. That should give Beth time to mull things over and, hopefully, she will find forgiveness in her heart by the time we return.”
Anton held up a hand. “Hold on. I haven't agreed to anything yet.”
“But my darling,” Eleisha rose and brushed a hand down Anton's weathered cheek. “You will agree.”
Anton shot her an aggrieved look, but said nothing to disagree with his wife.
“There's something else,” Zelda spoke loudly, garnering all their attention.
“What now?” Anton's brow creased.
Zelda coughed, looked to Rosa and then squared her shoulders. “It would be best if you also Called Alanna to Marylebone.”
“What?” Anton bellowed and Mistletoe let out a long line of flame. Anton's new robe caught fire again. Only a swift spell from Eleisha prevented not only his cloak but Anton lighting the room like a fiery beacon.
Gregori's mouth dropped. Zelda placed a finger under his jaw and closed it for him. She smiled smugly. “Surprised you all with that one, didn't we.”
Rosa twisted her hands together. “You're immortal, Gregori. You know what happened to Aden.” She pleaded to Anton. “Please don't let that happen to my sister.”
“I can't just give someone immortality because it's what you want.” Anton was evidently perplexed by their request. “The Fates will have something to say about it if I do.”
Gregori huffed. “You're not afraid of them, are you?”
Anton glared back at him. “I'm not afraid of anyone.”
The Grand Dragon was full of hot air. “Of course you are. They're definitely creepy. But you're head of Marylebone.”
Anton wasn't convinced. “Her magic isn't strong enough yet.”
“The magical potential swirling inside her is comparable to mine,” Gregori revealed. “It's all inside her. She had secreted most of it away behind walls created in her mind. I think she's frightened of her own power. And wouldn't you be if you were instrumental in the death of your own parents? I think you'll find that, given time over the next few weeks, with nothing left to hide, you will begin to see just how much she will blossom.”
“Perhaps we could unbind her magic then and wait and see what transpires.”
“I think she should be Called,” Rosa insisted. “She needs watching over. She needs guidance and if her potential is as great as Gregori says it is, then it should fall to Marylebone to watch out for her.”
“We can do that without Calling her. There's you and Zelda. And perhaps Beth?”
“No,” Zelda responded with a shake of her head. “I'm often away on Council business. Rosa's seat of power may reside in Raven's Creek but she works for Marylebone also. A lot of her time is now spent here. Beth isn't a suitable solution given the current hostility between them. It would be best if Alanna was here, in Marylebone, where everyone can watch over her.”
“I want her with me in Cabasson,” Gregori protested. “I intend to formerly retire my position here at Marylebone. I can teach and guide her.”
“She needs a women's guidance also,” Eleisha interjected. “I can give her that in Zelda's absence.” Eleisha reached out for her husband's hand and gripped it, pulling him towards her until her fist was pressed against his chest. “I stand for her. She will be my protégé. She is a talented sculptor. She can teach the little ones who show a similar talent and perhaps she could also counsel those with problems. She, of all witches, surely, will understand the difficulties of having so much potential and so little control at such a young age. We can keep her so busy she won't have time to consider breaking any rules.”
“Not so busy we don't have time together,” Gregori objected.
“Let me understand,” Anton bellowed as everyone began to speak at once. “You want Alanna's magic unbound and for her to be Called to Marylebone. She will become an immortal, a neophyte in training.” He paused and waited for everyone's assent.
“Warlocks' Wonder. This is an unusual case. I think perhaps a decision such as this needs to be endorsed by the Supreme Council.”
Zelda knocked her knuckles against Anton's brow. “I am the head of that Council, you knucklehead.”
“Well then, the three Fates should be consulted.”
“Right,” Gregori laughed. “I volunteer you go ask them. Last time I saw them they were in Ephesus.”
Zelda blanched. “You've talked to them?”
“I have.”
“And you're still alive to tell the tale,” Anton grinned. “Why did you search them out?”
“I asked for clues in how to approach Alanna. How to break down her barriers.”
“And they told you?”
“Not exactly. They spoke in riddles. They alluded to my chipping away at stone.”
“And that is exactly what you've done. You've released her heart from imprisonment, just as you found a way out of your own.”
Gregori blinked. Then he laughed heartily, lifted up his sister and twirled her in a circle. “Of course. How could I be so blind when it is so glaringly obvious?”
Eleisha laughed along with him. “That's because I'm much smarter than you are. Always have been. Always will be.”
Anton beamed. “That's why I love you, my beloved. Smart as a tack and achingly beautiful as well.”
Zelda tsked. “Witches and warlocks are so emotional.”
“My dear Zelda,” Rosa hugged her. “As are you and don't you dare deny it.”
Zelda changed the subject instead. “So is it decided? Will you Call Alanna to Marylebone?”
Anton looked to Eleisha. Indecision warred with reason. “I trust your judgment. I don't trust Alanna's.”
“Bring her here,” Eleisha insisted. “We will place conditions which she must accept before our decision becomes final.”
“And what conditions,” Gregori asked, his voice filled with caution, “would they be?”
Gregori found Alanna on the footpath, standing outside Lavender Cottage. “There you are.”
She stood, forlorn as she gazed at her home. “I had hoped to live here one day.” Her voice cracked as she spoke. “It was always my intention to live near my sisters, completing the circle of three.” The lane short, their cottages the only ones on it. They shared ownership of all the surrounding land. It ensured privacy and a seat for their magic.
“Goran won't be here forever,” he spoke against her temple. “He will return to Marylebone once he's free. Beth's magic is unbound. Yours will be soon.”
“I think Goran will remain here. He cares deeply for Beth.”
Gregori's lips twitched into that of a cynic. “He cares for all women. She will be no different.”
“I've told him if he hurts her, I'll make his life unbearable.”
Gregori's burst of laughter was genuine. “Now that I believe.”
Alanna twisted round in his arms to face him, and placed a swift kiss on his lips. Her hands cupped his jaw and she searched into his eyes, looking for something.
“What? What is it?” Gregori asked.
“I want to live here as well as Cabasson. You said once that we could.”
Gregori didn't hesitate. “I will go wherever you want to live. My heart, my soul, my life is yours.”
Oh no. More tears. They brimmed in her eyes, but she was smiling and this time they were caused by a new sensation. It was a strange unfamiliar feeling, but the kernel was there. Happiness. “I love you so much.”
“My darling Alanna,” Gregori swept her up and twirled them round and round, a huge enormous grin on his lips. “I love you too. I've already loved you for an eternity.”
Then he grew serious and deposited her back on her feet. “There has been a development that could mean the unbinding of your magic before the official ceremony.”
Her heart skipped a beat. “What?” she screeched. “How?”
“Do you trust me?”
“Yes.”
“Then come with me. I'm taking you to Marylebone.”
Alanna grew tense and she pushed hands against his chest and stepped out his embrace. “No!”
“Zelda and Rosa are already there. There is more, but I can't reveal it to you. There are conditions that you must agree with first.”
Marylebone. She would get to walk the halls of Marylebone. At least see the room they would take her to. It was far more than she had ever expected to see. Despite the anxiety pooling in her stomach, she gazed trustingly into Gregori's eyes and inclined her head. “What about Beth? Will she be there too?”
“I'm sorry, my darling. Beth is not invited. She is filled with too much ⦠” his voice petered out.
“Hate,” Alanna finished for him.
“I hesitate to say the word, but yes. Until she learns all about forgiveness and reopens her heart, she will not be able to travel there.”
Alanna felt her eyes were as round as saucers. “Marylebone thinks I'm worthy enough that I can visit.”