Chapter 15
Savannah's POV
I woke up in an unfamiliar place. Again. Sandra was hovering over me with eight more pairs of eyes. For a moment I couldn't remember what happened and then the memories surfaced. I was mad when I discovered who Zamyr really was, but Sandra calmed me down successfully. Then the hurtful comments surfaced. I remember the rage I felt, but that's it. Nothing after that.
“What happened, Sandra?”
“Your powers were out of control and you destroyed another part of the castle, but nobody got hurt. We had to knock you out before you could destroy yourself or someone else. I brought you to the witches' realm. They'll help you. You need to learn how to control your powers.”
“At least nobody got hurt. What will happen now?”
“We'll help you as much as we can. You're exceptionally strong, but that's understandable given who's your ancestor. You cannot let your emotions control you. I'm not saying that from now on you cannot have feelings, but until you learn to control your powers you should avoid strong emotions.”
“Okay, but who are these people?”
“My friends. They got a little bit too excited when they felt my presence with someone else. They refused to leave.”
“That's fine. Nice to meet you, where should we start?”
“Meeting with your family. From then we'll see.”
I didn't ask more questions. I was still a bit dazed after hearing that I destroyed yet another part of the castle. This was getting out of hand too quickly for my liking. I have to learn to control this magic. I followed Sandra in silence as she was showing the way. I was about to meet my family I didn't even know existed. I just hoped that they would accept me as part of the family. In the past so many things happened. Iris grew up on earth and the witches stopped talking to each other. I want to reunite the witches so they'd at least be on speaking terms with each other, but that's not my priority at the moment. This desire of mine had to wait.
“Who's my family, Sandra?”
“The coven leader and her family.”
“Will they accept me and help?”
“I think so. Some of them might not be happy, but they won't dare voice those thoughts if the leader accepts you.”
This whole situation couldn't be worse. If they refuse to help it's their loss when my powers destroy something or someone. I have no intention of doing so, but that'd be inevitable. I was thinking about this meeting. I was afraid that they'd see my powers as a threat. According to Sandra, I'm really powerful. There are still some black holes in my memory, but it can be filled in later. It cannot be too important if Sandra didn't say anything when she had the chance. Soon we were in front of a mansion, but nobody was outside. I felt a strange kind of power humming in the air and Sandra stiffened beside me.
“What's wrong?”
“They're waiting for us. Martha, the leader, is releasing her power to subdue everyone present. You cannot cast a spell or do anything that requires using your powers. You should feel some kind of pressure or barrier. It's a bit uncomfortable, but you can get used to it.”
“I don't know. All I feel is a low humming. No pressure or barrier.”
“Oh, God! You're stronger than Martha. She cannot control you like she does to us. This might be a problem. As soon as we step inside she'll know that you cannot be controlled.”
“So, what now?”
“I don't know. You cannot get angry no matter what they say.”
“I'll try.”
With that, Sandra opened the front door and we were inside. The mansion was just as beautiful from the inside as it was from the outside. A maid was waiting for us and she gestured to us to follow. At the end of the corridor was a double door and the maid ushered us inside and closed the door behind us. There was a huge round table with at least fifteen people sitting in a circle. The youngest couldn't have been older than sixteen and I couldn't pinpoint the age of the oldest woman who had to be Martha, the coven leader. For a moment nobody said anything, but then Martha smiled brightly.
“Welcome! I'm so glad that you're here. I can feel how powerful you are that even I cannot tame your magic. I know that our families have fallen out, but I hope that we can leave it in the past and start anew.”
“Thank you! I'd like that. It's in the past and I don't even know how I'm related to you all, so I don't intend to hold a grudge.”
“Thank you, dear! My predecessor made a huge mistake when she refused to help Iris. When she discovered the mistake she made it was too late and the witches wanted nothing to do with us. Don't just stand there, sit down. We can talk about everything while we eat.”
“That would be great, but I don't want to intrude.”
“Nonsense, you're family.”
“Can I have a request?”
“It depends on your request.”
“Can you lift that barrier or something that prevents everybody from using magic?”
“I already did, dear. There's no reason to keep it when it's useless. And it's not your fault that you're this strong. You should be proud of this.”
I was happy and relieved that she accepted me for who I am. Everything went well until there was a scoff. Just like Sandra said not everybody would accept me right away.
“Is there something you want to say, Dalia?”
“Would it matter? You've already accepted her, mother.”
“You know the situation very well. I don't want history repeating itself. What's the problem? I don't understand.”
“My problem is that she's unstable and strong on top of that.”
“And that's why she's here. She needs our help. Don't tell me that you feel threatened by her? Don't worry, once I'm dead you'll be the coven leader unless the witches or the power choose otherwise. Don't forget that they can overrule the coven leader if 90% of the population says so.”
“I'm well aware of that, mother. That's not what I'm saying. You just sprung this on us whether we wanted it or not. You always say that family is above everything, but when it comes to decisions you leave us out.”
“And that's where you're wrong. I left you out, because no matter what happens you always throw a tantrum, just like now. Everybody else knew about this and they agreed. If you keep up this attitude you'll find yourself overruled by the people. Do you want that? If yes, you're on the right way towards that.”
“I'm your successor and yet here we are. You just admitted that I was always left out. What does everyone else have that I don't?”
“Common sense and empathy. I noticed that for a few years now you've been treating me like a senile old lady who can't differentiate between right and left. Let me tell you, even though I'm 92, I still can think clearly. You can't wait for me to drop dead. Am I right?”
“If we're speaking of the truth, yes. Before you, every coven leader gave up her position when they turned 65. I've been waiting for 27 years to be the leader, but you're too stubborn to give up the position. I'm already 64 years old and should be thinking of giving the position to my daughter, but how can I do that if I didn't even get close to being in that position? I've been telling myself that it's alright. I was patient, but when you turned 70 and nothing changed I got fed up. When you turned 90, I realized that you have no intention to name me your successor. Sadly you can't do anything about it apart from avoiding the inevitable. Sooner or later I'll be the coven leader whether you like it or not.”