Chapter 38

“That wasn’t very long,” Kris commented when he saw me land on the window ledge.

“The witches are fighting among themselves. I don’t think Alizya knows about it. I need to tell her about it,” I sent him.

“The witches are always fighting. The newer one on the council is stirring the pot and trying to give herself more power,” Kris explained.

“This has something to do with Orin. I’m not sure what but they said that he has vampires hidden around the city. How would that even be possible?”

Leo and Kris exchanged a look that told me that they had a suspicion that I had just confirmed. Something else was happening in London that I had been too wrapped in my own problems to even notice.

“What is it?” I pressed.

“Go tell Alizya what you heard. We’ll take care of the Orin part. Stay with Alizya until one of us comes to get you. Okay?” Leo commanded.

“You don’t want my help anymore?” I asked, feeling useless again.

“You’ve been a big help. Now we need to do the work that you can’t do as a bird.”

In my mental space I was crossing my arms and pouting but they couldn’t see it so I just flew out the window and did some more circles above the city instead of going to Alizya.

I found myself perched on top of the red lighted letters of Nyctophilia watching vampires and humans entering the club. No one took notice of me but I still made careful moves to stay in the shadows that the setting sun was casting around the space. The only thing that I could see was on the outside of the club but I could hear the music that the DJ was playing inside. Every so often I could feel the bass hit and shake the building ever so slightly but this seemed to excite the humans who were standing outside in the line.

I couldn’t figure out what I was doing there but I waited patiently because I assumed that something was going to happen. Warren’s car pulled up eventually and he was on his cellphone, demanding to be told where someone was. At first it could have been anyone but then I heard him say it all out loud.

“Leo, I hired you to keep track of her so that she would be here when I needed her. Now I have Orin on the way, asking for her specifically and you don’t know where she is! You knew what this job was and you knew that it was important to keep her on a short leash. Either find her and get her here before midnight or I will find a replacement for you!”

Anger flared in my chest. How dare he speak to Leo like that. But it also provided some clues to who I used to be. Leo didn’t tell me that I was OWNED by Warren. Here I was thinking that I was some sort of special child when all he wanted me for was his own entertainment and personal gain. Had I been created simply because I was pretty?

As I thought more deeply about what he said, chills ran through both me and the raven. There was something that I was deeply afraid of and couldn’t remember pushing at the back of my mind. Pushing at a locked door that I didn’t have the key to open and I wasn’t sure that I even wanted to open in the first place.

“Go get her Leo. This is not an optional meeting. She is required to be here by midnight in the dress I sent. I don’t care what assignment Kris has her on. If you don’t make it happen, I will find someone who can.”

My gut wanted to go to Leo to be safe and feel safe again but it felt like a step backwards at the same time. Was he not telling me what he knew about my past so that he could keep me more obedient? If that was a lie, what else was a lie?

Did he actually love me at all?

There was only one person who I knew could help me get my memories back and I needed to go to her anyway. Alizya would be able to open that door and I would have to be brave enough to face whatever was waiting for me on the other side.

~

I flew over witch territory in sweeping lines until I found Alizya in a house with my aunt and cousin. I looked for an open window but didn’t find one so I landed on the roof only to realize that this was the house that I had woken up in. This was where someone dropped me off after I had lost my memories.

It felt appropriate that this would be the place for me to demand my memories back.

“Alizya?” I questioned as I reached out to her.

She replied quickly. “You came back?”

“I’m on the roof. I need to tell you something and I need you to get my memories back.”

“I’m opening the door on the back patio.”

I swooped down to the back patio, realizing how well the raven and I worked together when I gave in and trusted it. Alizya held open the door for me and I hopped through before flapping up to her offered arm after she closed the door behind me.

“You’re sure that’s Raven?” my aunt asked from a table across the space of the kitchen we were in.

I nodded before mentallyh connecting with her. “I’m in here. I don’t know what happened or how to change back but I'm here.”

Her face screwed up in confusion. “How is that possible?”

“My best guess is that your sister is keeping secrets from her own family. Females don’t generally shift but it can happen and why she’s a raven instead of a wolf is beyond me,” ALizya answered aloud.

I hopped off her arm and on to the table I wanted to demand more information but it felt less important than what we had going on already. The raven flapped its wings to get their attention back to the important stuff.

“Alizya, there are witches planning to dig up ancestors and try to leave. Apparently, Orin is coming in with a bunch of vampires to attack the witches. They were having a meeting in the graveyard. I don’t know much about witchcraft but what you’ve taught me makes me think this would be a really bad idea,” Imentally blurted to Alizya.

Alizya blinked.

“Mom, are you okay?” my aunt asked as Alizya took a careful seat.

“Raven saw a group of witches in the graveyard talking about taking the ancestors and leaving. They are claiming that the threat from Orin has gotten worse,” she replied.

“Orin has vampires hiding around the city apparently,” I sent Alizya with a nod. “I might be able to help but I need my body and my memories back. I need to remember what happened.”

“This isn’t good. We can’t be divided if that’s the truth,” my cousin added.

“What can you do Raven?”Alizya asked skeptically. “Orin has armies waiting.”

“Orin is at one of Warren’s clubs. I don’t think he knows that I’m a witch. I can get close to him and compel him. Whatever happened to me gave me the power to compel vampires.”

Alizya considered my plan.

“You’re going to have to tell us what’s going on Mom,” my aunt spoke after a moment of silence.

“She wants to compel Orin. Now that she drinks vampire blood, she can compel vampires but she needs her memories back before she goes to find him. In case he has something to do with why she lost her memories in the first place,” Alizya answered.

“She won’t be able to compel him as a raven though. She will need to transform also,” my cousin added.

“I don’t know a spell for getting three years worth of memories back. That’s too much time for one spell,” my aunt continued.

Alizya frowned. “We’re talking about sending her off to face this alone and unarmed. I can’t let you be that stupid.”

The raven clucked disapproval while I crossed my arms in a huff from my mental space.

“We won’t have all the ingredients for the potion until tomorrow. I think we can get the memories from the night she came to us, though,” my aunt tried. “After that, who are we to tell her what to do with her life? She won’t be part of the coven anymore.”

Alizya huffed. “You are sending her off to risk her life. She might never come back to us if we let her do this.”

“Grandma,” I sent gently, “I’m already dead.”