Chapter 17

Savannah's POV

When I opened my eyes after my dream it was already morning. It was heartbreaking to see Iris giving up her daughter. The last part; however, wasn't meant for the baby. It was meant for me, but what did she mean I had to withstand the force of the veil? Is it possible that she hid the grimoire inside the veil that separates the realms? Was that even possible? My thoughts were interrupted by a knock.

“Good morning Ms. Morrison! Once you get dressed please come down for breakfast.”

“Thank you. I'll be down in five minutes.”

“Good morning!”

“Good morning, dear. After breakfast we can start with your training right away after I give my powers to Dalia.”

“Fine by me. Will anybody else be present?”

“The whole coven. They have to witness the shift in power.”

“That's amazing. I can't wait to witness it.”

Breakfast was over soon. People were gathered outside and they were whispering among themselves. I was about to leave the porch when Martha grabbed my hand signaling me to stay put. That's when I realized that the whole family was standing on the porch. She considered me family with this gesture.

“Good morning! My time to step down is nearing. Today I'll give my position to my daughter, Dalia, temporarily. If she proves that she's worthy, she'll become your leader in a month. Dalia, please come here.”

I couldn't believe that Martha gave her position to Dalia so easily. I wasn't the only one. I heard someone gasp from the family too. It didn't matter that I was concerned about this decision, because now wasn't a time for me to speak up. Martha took Dalia's hand and murmured something. I was supposed to feel the shift in power, but I felt nothing.

“What did you do, mother? I'm not stronger.”

“I did what I promised. I gave you my position along with the power.”

“You didn't. I feel the same as I did five minutes ago.”

“Impossible! You know that the power can't be passed down to anybody else if I'm holding your hand and casting the spell.”

“But someone received the position and power. I felt the shift in power Aunt Martha.”

Suddenly Martha's gaze snapped to me and something clicked. I was the one who got the power. But she said yesterday that it can be dangerous when she's retrieving the power. Then how the hell did it end up with me now?

“Impossible! This shouldn't have happened.”

“What shouldn't have happened, mother?”

“I know where the power is, but it cannot be retrieved. It found its permanent place. I'm no longer your leader, but you'll be in good hands. It was an honor to be your leader.”

“What are you talking about, mother? I don't have your powers.”

“No, you don't and never will. Welcome your new leader, Savannah Morrison.”

As soon as the words left Martha's mouth all hell broke loose. Some people were cheering and shouting, some didn't understand what was happening and Dalia was looking at me like she wanted to murder me.

“Savannah dear, please come forward. I know that this is not what you wanted, but now you have no choice. I'll help you the best I can and so will the rest of the family. Savannah has exceptional powers. She's the descendant of Cecilia and the powers that a coven leader needs deemed her worthy. There's nothing I can do about this. The powers chose her and nobody can take it away from her until she dies and neither can she give it away.”

I was still in shock. I didn't ask for this. I numbly stepped next to Martha and looked at the faces. Then every single one of them bowed their heads. They accepted me as their leader. I just stood there awkwardly and waited until they raised their heads. I looked at Martha to do something, but she was just looking at me with a smile on her face. I raised my eyebrows at her, but she acted oblivious and kept on smiling. She wanted me to step up and do something, but I had no clue what to do. I didn't even know how to control my powers, let alone lead a whole coven of witches.

“Good morning! This is not how I pictured this morning, but here we are. I don't know what just happened or how, but as I heard we can't do anything about this predicament unless I die. Let me assure you, I'm not planning to die anytime soon. Honestly, I'm new to all this. Two weeks ago I didn't even know that this world existed, let alone that I was part of it too. I wasn't planning on taking this power and the position that comes with it from Dalia. I will definitely need some help from all of you. I don't want to be the cause of your downfall.”

The words just kept coming from my mouth and slowly the nervousness disappeared. By the time I finished I felt like this was where I was meant to be. This was a responsibility that I had to take seriously. I had so many things on my plate, but this became the cherry on top. I also needed to talk to Zamyr and Maddie, but how could I leave these people here without a leader? Slowly the witches started to leave and five minutes later only my family members were standing on the porch. I was looking for Dalia, but she was nowhere to be seen. I wanted to talk to her and tell her that I didn't want to rob her of the position.

“What happens now?”

“Now you'll lead the coven, dear. All of us will help you. Do you trust us?”

“I do, I think. You were so kind to me and accepted me into your family. What about Dalia?”

“She will accept this as time passes. The power should've been Cecilia's anyway. You just got what you deserved. Now, tell us everything that happened to you as you were getting your powers. No secrets.”

“It's a long story, but I'll tell you everything I discovered so far, but I want to talk to Dalia first. Do you know where I can find her?”

“In her room. As soon as things go south she shuts herself in her room.”

“I'll go talk to her and hopefully she won't blame us for what happened.”

After Martha told me the way to Dalia's room I was on my way. As I reached her door I could feel her fury and jealousy. I knocked on her door and waited. Moments later the door swung open and Dalia stood there seething.

“Oh, look at that. What else do you need from me? You took everything.”

“That's why I'm here. I didn't want this to happen. You're still family and in the end that's what matters. I hope you understand and we can move forward together.”

“What family? My mother blatantly told everyone yesterday that she had no intention of giving me the position. And today I was humiliated in front of everyone. They saw that I'm weak. And now here you are. Blabbing about family and moving forward. You should be proud of yourself. You waltzed in and suddenly became the coven leader. I have no future here and finally all of you will get what you wanted. I'm leaving and won't come back.”

“Don't do this, Dalia. Let's talk about this calmly. And where are you planning to go?”

“There's nothing to talk about. I heard that there's a town in the human realm, Salem, where witches live. I'll go there. Maybe they'll accept me for who I am.”

“I see that I can't change your mind. Just be careful. You know that you can come back anytime you want.”

“Like I said I won't come back. Now go and report back that I won't be here any longer. You should even have a celebration.”