Chapter 108 - Violet

Once I said those words, the entire hall was screaming, cheering, and clapping. I could even see Greta near the bar wiping a tear away.

“Going forward, Violet will now be known as Luna. Let’s party!” He yelled, then pulled me into him kissing me hard. Everyone continued to clap and cheer as he kissed me. He pulled away and looked at me. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?” He whispered.

“Better than I thought it was going to be.” I laughed.

“Now, we just have to get married.”

My mouth dropped, I wasn’t expecting this, and I wasn’t even sure I heard him right above the noise of the crowd. “What?”

With that, he pulled away, knelt on one knee, and pulled out a ring the size of Jupiter. “Violet Proctor, it’s been one hell of a ride so far, and I couldn’t think of anyone else I would want to take this ride with. Will you marry me?”

The crowd went silent, as they waited for my response. My hand went to my mouth in shock, my heart raced with his words. I could only stare at him, smiling at me, offering me the world. “Of course.” I finally said.

The crowd started to cheer, louder than before. Champagne bottles were popping and spraying everywhere. Simon stood and put the ring on my finger. My hands were shaking. He hugged me.

I pulled away from him. “When did you plan this out?”

“The moment I saw you.” He brushed a hand against my cheek, pulling me in for a kiss.

The crowd quieted down, found their seats as the kitchen staff started to serve dinner. We took our place at the head table that was on the stage. Greta sat to my right and Jared sat to Simon’s left. Greta was already making wedding plans, asking me if I knew what colors I wanted and if I preferred a spring or fall wedding because a summer wedding was tacky. Even though she hated planning parties she already designated herself as maid of honor.

I was still in shock. I would occasionally look down at my hand with the rock that Simon put on my finger. This was real and it was happening.

Loud, slow clapping came from the other end of the hall. A hooded figure with a black mask on was clapping and walking toward our table. Everyone in the dining hall watched, with smiles on their faces, as this figure climbed up on stage and stood before us. The crowd didn’t know if this was part of the party or something else.

Something was off about him; I couldn’t sense what or who he was. But it wasn’t a wolf.

“Isn’t this precious.” The hooded figure hissed. The voice. That voice. My stomach dropped as I realized who it was. I gasped. “Violet, it’s been too long. I think it’s time for you to come home.” He held out his hand.

Simon stared at the hooded figure and then looked at me.

“Eli, I have no intention of going anywhere with you.” I stood, kicking my chair back. This was it; this was when we were to face off.

“Pity. I thought you might want to make this easy on yourself.” He paced in front of us. “How about, if you come with me, I won’t kill your fiancé. Hmm. How does that sound?”

“You can go fuck yourself.” Simon stood up. “She’s not going anywhere with you.”

“Doggie’s got a bark.” He laughed and looked out across the crowd. The others in hoods and masks laughed. The hooded witches were placed strategically around the room, blocking exits. The werewolves in the room weren’t sure what was happening. Tristan, James, and Luis all stood at their tables, ready to lend a hand if needed. “Doggie will keep quiet or else he will end up like his parents.”

My mouth dropped open to what Eli said. Simon’s face scowled. “What the fuck did you just say?”

Eli chuckled and gave Simon an evil smile. “You heard me. But I’ll repeat myself if you really think that will help you understand. You should shut your mouth, or I’ll kill you like I killed your parents.”

“You fucker!” Simon yelled, balling his hands into fists. I touched his arm; I didn’t want him to do something rash.

“You shouldn’t have come here.” I said to him.

“I’m only here to take what is mine.”

“I was never yours, you psycho.” I spat at him.

“Of course, you were, my dearest. You just didn’t know it.” He lifted a hand to try to brush it across my cheek. Before he could touch me, I slapped his hand away. “You are the key to bring witches back to their previous glory.”

“That plan is never going to work.”

“Of course, it will.” Another hooded figure walked up behind Eli. This one was large, like a wall. I instantly knew it was Jeffers. Confirmation came when he smiled, and his pointed teeth stared at me. “Tell me dearest, did you ever find your familiar?”

I glanced at Simon for a fraction of a second, then glared at Eli.

“No.” He pointed at me and then Simon. “Don’t tell me.” He started laughing to the point of doubling over. He slowly got into control of his laughing. “Your dog here is your familiar. Burn me at the stake and call me done. That’s a first.”

“Fuck you.” I hissed at him.

“That just won’t do.” He slapped me hard before I could react. Simon jumped over the table and punched at Eli. But his punch didn’t land, and he was thrown across the stage and into a wall. Jared jumped up and made his way over to Eli and Jeffers. Tristan, James, and Luis flanked the stage.

I quick stepped over to Simon to see if he was alright. He blinked up at me, stunned but wasn’t bleeding. “Are you ok?”

Simon nodded and slowly stood.

Jeffers turned and was staring at the three werewolves getting closer to the stage. This was his wheelhouse. He loved a challenge and would be merciless.

Before anyone could start to fight something occurred to me. I yelled at Eli. “How did you get in?”

He turned and stared at me, an evil smile spreading across his face. “Funny story. I got help from someone with whom you thought were once allies. Now they betrayed you and this…pack.” He looked at the crowd. “Do you what to know what their price was?”

I nodded.

“They wanted for us to get rid of you, kill that Alpha and inherit this land.” His smile faded a little. “Don’t you think that’s funny?”

My eyes start to well up. I scanned the crowd as I looked for the ones that helped Eli. My eyes landed on Garrett and Layla. “You!” I yell and point at them. “I will fucking kill you.” They cowered where they stood. I shot magic at them, pushing them to the floor. My power circled them, slowly growing tighter, like a boa constrictor. They screamed as my power crushed them. After a few seconds, their screams abated, and the hall was silent.

“I just love it when you show your hate, dearest.”

I felt my body starting to heat up. I was over this discussion. I was over Eli. This was going to end, here and now, once and for all. I let the magic flow through me, and I pushed Eli. Wrapping him in my magic, I wanted to choke him in it. Before I could get a tight grasp, he cut through it with fire.

Some people in the crowd screamed.

“It’s not going to be that easy,” he tsked at me. “Since last you saw me, I grew stronger.”

In return, instead of binding him right away I would need to get him away from these people. I needed to cause as little damage as I could, to save as many people as I could. I conjured up my magic and shot it at Eli. Pounding into him and launching him into the ceiling. It broke with little effort, sending him outside. Debris showered the guests, covering them in dust and dirt.