Chapter 19

Savannah's POV

After I ended the phone call with Maddie she texted me the number I needed and I dialed it immediately. Just like Maddie did, Dorothea answered too.

*“Hello! Who's this?”

*“Hi Dorothea, it's Savannah.”

*“It's good to hear from you. How are you adapting?”

*“Given the circumstances, I'm okay, but that's not why I called you. I heard what's going on in Salem. Is there a chance to stop this madness?”

*“I don't know. Jeremy's gone mad. He won't listen to anybody. I tried talking to him and explained that this behavior of his won't get him anywhere. He refused to listen. He's desperately trying to find you.”

*“So I heard, but even if he finds me I'm no use to him. I don't know how to lift the curse.”

*“I told him this too, but he said that you will. I don't know what his plan is, but as long as you're not here he can't harm you. You need to learn everything you can. That's the only way you can defend yourself.”

*“I'm doing exactly that. Thank you for the update. Can you try talking to him again?”

*“I will, but I don't think he'll listen. Be safe, child.”

*“You too. If there's anything, please call me.”

*“I will.”

This was bad, really bad. I had no idea what to do or how to stop Jeremy. I was safe for now, but once I'm back home I'll be on my own. It's a gut feeling, but maybe the reverse of the curse was written in the grimoire. Without it I don't stand a chance. Maybe finding it became more of a priority. Martha needs to know this, so we could re-evaluate everything. I found her in the kitchen, looking out the window.

“Can we talk?”

“Of course, dear. What happened?”

“I just found out that it's not safe for me in the human realm. The families who were cursed by Iris are looking for me. They discovered that I can lift the curse. They want to force me somehow. I think that finding the grimoire suddenly became more of a priority.”

“In this case, yes. You need to get as strong as you can be. The problem is that we have no information about how to cross the veil forcefully. The angels and demons are closed off, they don't mate with other races. They stick to their own, so their children could be strong and pure-blooded. If we can find someone from the two races who's willing to help we can figure out where exactly the grimoire is.”

“Theoretically, this is amazing, but where can we find an angel and a demon? You said, they're closed off.”

“Yes, but that doesn't mean that they don't leave their realms.”

“I'm totally lost now. If they leave, where are they going?”

“What's the only realm that is the home to every supernatural race?”

“The human realm.”

“Exactly. So now you've got the answer where you should be looking for a demon and an angel. Those who live there are not banished. They can go back to their realms when they wish. Once you're strong enough, you can go back and look for them. Until then, you're stuck here with us.”

“I won't do anything reckless. I know that I need to be strong to succeed. When do we start?”

“I wanted to start training you today, but after today's events I'm not so sure that it's a good idea. But, if you're up for it we can start with the basics.”

“We can't waste more time. Let's start today.”

Martha just nodded and asked me to follow her. We went to the backyard. She asked me to look deep inside myself and grab the magic. It was way harder than it sounded. At first I thought that it was like a ball that I could grab. I soon discovered that it was more like a slippery substance. I didn't know how much time passed until I could finally grab my magic and hold it in my hands just like I imagined. When I did that, something clicked into place.

“That was your magic connecting with your mind and soul fully. From now on, you'll be able to control it easier.”

I felt different, more balanced. Next Martha asked me to let out my powers in different intensity. That's all she said, but not how. Soon I understood why. It was obvious. It was like a tap that needed to be opened and closed. I had to concentrate on that and after a few tries I got the hang of it. By the time I finished it was dusk.

“You did good today. The more you practice the easier it'll be to control the amount of magic you want to release. In a real situation you won't have time to concentrate on how much magic you want to let out. You'll just have to do it unconsciously. To make someone, who doesn't have magic, back down you don't need spells. You only need your magic. Soon it'll be like breathing.”

“This was harder than it sounded, but it became easier. Strangely, I don't feel drained. Should I feel drained?”

“You should, but possessing such a big amount of magic helps with that. You might need to use more of it to feel drained. We'll experiment with that. Now let's go and have dinner.”

The whole family gathered together and finally I felt like I belonged somewhere. After dinner I felt like I haven't slept for days. Without taking a shower I literally fell into the bed and I was sleeping like a log.

*I looked around and I found myself in Salem, but I couldn't see anybody. I was standing where Iris and the other witches were murdered.

*“I'm so proud of you, Savannah!” - I quickly turned around and I couldn't believe my eyes; Iris was standing in front of me.

*“How is this possible?”

*“I called you here. You saw snippets of my memories, but it's time to tell you every detail. There's a bench under that tree. Let's sit down.”

*“I'm so sorry about what happened to you and everybody else.”

*“Don't be. You had nothing to do with it. The other witches were reborn, but I made sure that my soul won't find another body. Not until I talked to you. You started looking for answers and you even became the coven leader.”

*“Yeah, well the last part was kind of an accident. Am I on the right track?”

*“You are. Martha is a clever old woman. You figured out that you'll have to cross the veil forcefully to retrieve my grimoire. And before you jump into it, you're not strong enough for that. At least not yet. No witch has visited Heaven or Hell before me and Gloria. They don't even know that Heaven and Hell are the same. What you see and feel depends on your actions when you were alive. Of course, angels and demons are two separate races. You don't have to guess where to go. There's only one place.”

*“Wow, this sounds impossible. And what about the curse you placed on the families?”

*“It was necessary. I couldn't let them hunt down the other witches who lived outside of Salem. The other families didn't want to get involved, so I let them be.”

*“Should I lift the curse?”

*“That's up to you. After this talk I will no longer be here. My soul will find a body. That's why you need to know everything. Just be careful with your decision. You can read auras. Use that to your advantage. The person can lie, their auras can't.”

*“Okay. Now, how can I cross the veil when the time has come?”

*“Just think about where you want to go. The veil will protest, but once you've become the strongest witch who was ever born, you'll be able to go anywhere with ease. You can experiment with it. Until the time's right, the veil will push you back.”

*“I'll be stronger than you and Gloria?”

*“Yes, you will. I don't know why or how, but when I gave away my child, part of my soul shattered and left with her. I couldn't talk to anyone, but you. I don't know what happened to my daughter. All I know is that you possess that part of my soul along with Gloria's. Before you ask, yes, Gloria's soul is inside you. This is why you'll be the strongest witch. For now keep this information a secret. You can't even tell Martha. Just do what she tells you during the training.”

*“This is too much to take in. I won't freak out now, but later I definitely will. But if your soul leaves, what about the part that's inside me?”

*“It'll be part of you always. I lost it when I was still alive and that part of me is still alive. If something's alive it can't disappear. I'll always be with you. You need to find out who your ancestors were. I sent my daughter to Blackstone. Her name was Elizabeth Russeau. If the family changed her name, look for Elizabeth Martin.”

*“I grew up in Blackstone. My parents abandoned me along with my sister.”

*“No, they're not your family. They adopted you when you were a baby. I know that this is a shock, but you needed to know this. And how do I know this? Through your memories. You don't remember it, because you were a baby, but I saw it. Your birth parents gave you away, because they couldn't take care of you.”

*“Can I go back and look for clues?”

*“Not yet. Ask Maddie to start looking for clues. You can only go back when you know some self defense spells and you can easily control your magic. If you keep up the pace you can return within a week. My time to leave is near. I've told you everything you needed to know.”

*“Can't you stay a little more and tell me about something lighter?”

*“I can't. Soon a baby will be conceived. At that moment, my soul will leave and never return. I won't remember anything from my past life. I'm so proud of you.”

*“Thank you, Iris, for everything. I wish I could've more time to talk to you. I promise you that I'll find out what happened to Elizabeth and make sure that no witch will lose their life like you did.”

*“Now, the time has come. Go now and remember that I'm always with you.”