Chapter 76

**Lyra's POV**

The images of Luciana flash through my mind sporadically—way more than usual. What was she doing in the house? I was supposed to be the only one here. Seeing her hold onto her mother's framed photo sent warning signs to my head. I searched for anything I could use to make her unconscious. Using my power in this state would be fatal to both of us. An iron rod came into view, and I swiftly picked it up. Seeing her rummage through every drawer, desk, and photo, I felt even more anxious. My grip on the rod tightened, beads of sweat rolled down my forehead. I watched as her eyes widened in shock before she bolted towards the entrance.

I took a deep breath, and everything seemed to slow down. In a matter of seconds, my iron rod had met her head sharply. I watched, bewildered, as she fell to the cold, hard ground. Staring down at her unconscious body and the steel in my hands, I thought, How could anyone do something like that? And yet I did? I knocked her out.

I quickly got on my knees, checking to see if she was still alive. I didn't even notice that the curtain was on fire. I gently moved her face and saw that her eyes were slightly open. A little blood stained my hands, and a tear flowed down my cheek.

"I'm so sorry," I uttered before her eyes finally closed. I muttered a few words under my breath as the flames turned to smoke. Carrying Luciana back to her room wasn't an easy task, considering my feelings were still too shaken to use a spell on her yet. I placed her gently on the bed and took out my crystal ball. The crystal sphere sparkled and glimmered as I chanted for a while. The orb's colors transitioned from a warm white to a light blue to a deep purple.

"What is it, Lyra?" came a strong, cold feminine voice from the crystal ball.

"We have a problem," I revealed.

"We? I'm sure whatever it is, you can solve it on your own," she remarked coldly.

"The girl saw me," I snapped, completely freaked out by my current situation.

"What?!" she exclaimed.

"I don't know how it happened. I was just in the cellar, and she walked in and saw everything."

"Calm down; don't panic..." she ordered. "What did you do when she went to the cellar?"

"I knocked her out with an iron rod. She was bleeding a little, but she's still breathing, just unconscious," I reported anxiously.

"We could still use this to our advantage," she suddenly uttered, her voice laced with malice.

"How?" I asked, cluelessly.

"We still need more of her blood."

"I don't like where this is going," I muttered under my breath.

"You still have those absorbing needles I gave you, don't you?..." I hummed and gave a slight nod.

"Alright then. Perform acupuncture on her."

"That will hurt her even more; she'll be bedridden," I reminded her.

"Better for us, I guess."

"Is this really necessary?" I asked, practically pleading for her to reconsider.

"Just shut up and do what you're told. You don't want to make your mother angry, do you?" she snapped.

"Of course not..." I sighed. "I'll start immediately. What about the cellar? She saw that too."

"Bless your incompetence..." she scoffed. "That'll have to disappear as well. Heal her wounds and wipe out any of her memories related to you."

"I can't," I blurted.

"Can't what?"

"I can't erase her memories," I revealed.

"Are you really shaken by this little ordeal, Lyra? How do you expect to rule the land like this?" she said, already in her third stage of major disappointment.

"Maybe I don't want to rule, Mother," I grumbled.

"What was that?"

"Nothing," I scoffed.

"I thought so. Now, make haste; let no one see you again, understand?"

"Yes, ma'am." I let out a sigh, turned off the crystal ball, and bolted towards the cellar. The doors floated shut as my hands were slightly raised. The lines that indicated a door ceased to exist, and so did any memories of it. I walked over to the bed where Luciana lay, pulling out a few needles from my pocket. The deep red tubes attached to them were the first thing I noticed. These tubes were where her blood would be stored.

I began piercing her with the needles and watched in horror as the needles sucked up as much blood as their little tubes could take. Picking up the tubes one by one, I was horrified. I cleaned up the drops of blood that were left on her skin. The needles slowly faded from sight, and I laid my head down on the bed, trying hard to calm down and collect my thoughts. Once my heart rate felt normal, I got to work. I had to begin by changing her blood-stained pillowcase and healing her internal and external injuries as best as I could.

Erasing a person's memory is one of the hardest things out there. One wrong move, and she could end up remembering what was initially erased, or her whole memory could be wiped out. I didn't want any of that to happen, so I had to be as precise as ever. I was very careful not to exceed memories of the cellar, placing my hands gently on her temples. I could see every little memory—even the ones she had unintentionally forgotten and the ones she chose to forget. I was saddened by them; she really didn't have a lot of happy memories. I shook my head and looked for the one in the cellar, completely absorbing it.

Footsteps shattered my concentration, and I was pulled out immediately. Keira walked in, flashing confused stares at me. I felt beads of sweat forming on my forehead and quickly thought of a believable lie.

"Her temperature was rather high. I wanted to check up on her."

Keira walked hastily towards her friend and felt her forehead. She gasped at the touch and stood up abruptly.

"I need to get a doctor. Please take care of her," she said.

I nodded slightly. Feeling assured, she quickly bolted out the door. Lucky for me, the acupuncture raised her temperature. I just hoped my memories would be fully erased. I stared at Luciana for a while before going to get a cloth and bowl.