Chapter Forty-Five – The surprise visit

“Aren’t you lot hungry?”

Monica stood in the doorway with her hands on her hips. The four of them had been down in the library for hours, reading and reading. And every time they made some headway something else showed up, debunking that theory.

“What’s the time?” Adam asked, rubbing his hands sleepily.

“Past dinner – I’m demanding that you lot take a break and eat some dinner. Everyone else is done. The little ones have gone to bed, and the adults are outside enjoying the sun. You have the dining room all to yourself” Monica left the library with a huff, and it was hard not to follow her.

Talia’s stomach actually growled, reminding her of how long it had been since she had eaten.

“It’s hard to argue with her” Xavier said and stood, stretching his heads over his arms, stiffening a yawn. “I’d love some homecooked meal for once”

“I’m inclined to agree. We have to take a break sometime. And maybe some food and fresh air might give us a different perspective” Nadine rose from her chair as well.

“Fine. It’s not like we’re any closer now than we were earlier” Talia put her journal down, running both her hands through her hair in frustration. She’d managed to keep the panic at bay. Reading about what had happened to her was no easy task, and she was glad she didn’t remember.

“We know more than we knew yesterday” Nadine tried to cheer them up, but their spirits were too low for that now.

“Try saying that again after food” Talia tried to smile but failed.

“Come now, we all need a break and some food” Adam took her hand as he stood, dragging her with him. Nadine and Xavier followed after them, and as promised, they found the dining room empty. But there were plates of food set out for them, covered in lids to keep it warm.

“Monica is so thoughtful” Nadine smiled, practically running over to the table, lifting the lid up with a smile on her face. “Lasagna” If she hadn’t held the lid in her hands she would have clapped.

“My favorite” Talia was quick to join Nadine at the table, not wasting any time to get seated and dig into the food. A soft moan escaped her lips as she took a bite of the homemade focaccia. It was divine.

The four of them ate in silence, the only sound from the cutlery against the plates. It was a nice break; they had all needed it.

When dinner was all but gone every one of them leaned against the chairs. Talia had her eyes closed, her hand finding Adam’s under the table. Smiling at the feeling of her hand in his, feeling how he was reaching out and making her feel safe.

“I’d hate to break up this nice little break, but I came to think of something” Nadine spoke. The peace was broken. Talia opened her eyes and looked at the witch, not amused with her timing.

“What?” Xavier asked.

“What if we’ve gone at it all wrong. Like you said earlier, what if their goal wasn’t to create a weapon, but to destroy a family? And what better what to destroy a family who held pride in their pureness by inserting someone who wasn’t pure? And what if they tricked your grandma to be part of it to get back at her for something she had once done?” Nadine thought out loud.

“How many hold a grudge against your family?” She turned to Xavier, who shrugged.

“I wouldn’t know” He answered.

“But I do” An old man’s voice said from the doorway. They all turned to look at the source of the voice, Talia and Xavier’s mouth falling open. A silence fell over the group as the man walked into the room. The greying hair and piercing blue eyes were unmistakable. He was the spitting image of Xavier, only older.

“Grandpa?” Talia was the first one to stand from the table, her hand still entangled with Adam’s.

“I had to see it for myself” His voice was thick, his eyes welling up with tears.

“Grandma told you?” Xavier stood as well.

“Yes, right after she told me about what she had done. Kid – I’m so sorry” He looked from Xavier and to Talia.

She didn’t know what to say. Her throat was dry, and her muscles didn’t seem to function. The only thing she could do was blink while her mouth was open.

“Where is she now?” Xavier wanted to know, taking a step to cover Talia. From what he had read he didn’t believe his grandmother had included his grandfather, but he couldn’t be too careful either. The man had been there when it happened. And if he had only known he could have stopped it much sooner.

“She didn’t want to come” Kristoffer asked.

“I don’t believe that” Xavier took a step back, pushing Talia towards Adam, sandwiching her between the two of them.

“How did you get here so quickly? I spent two days traveling there, I left maybe eight hours go” Damn, had it really been that short amount of time?

“You’re not the only one who know people who can create portals” The older man responded, sending a glance in the direction of Nadine. “Thank you”

Xavier looked to Nadine, who shook her head. She hadn’t helped him, nor had she sent anyone to help.

“Why are you here?” Xavier asked again, more warily this time. Even Nadine had taken a step closer.

“When I learned that my grandchild was still alive and well after nearly a decade I had to see it for myself. You lied to be. You both lied to me” Kristoffer looked between Xavier and Adam, both of them tensing.

“We didn’t lie. We just avoided the truth” Xavier argued, making his grandfather let out a small snort.

“That’s rubbish, and you know it. You want to know who holds a grudge against our family you just have to look in the mirror”

“Who else?” Xavier asked warily. His grandfather had something about him that he didn’t like. The man he had spoken to earlier that same day was replaced by something else. Something malicious.

“Your grandmother apparently. If she had loved the family she wouldn’t have tainted it like this” He continued, taking a few steps forward. Adam instantly grabbed a hold of Talia, pulling her into his arms.

“Where is she?” Xavier asked again.

“She’s back at home, taking a well-deserved break”

The way he said that made a chill ran down Talia’s hand. She grabbed a hold of Adam’s arm, using it to steady herself. That man in front of her was her grandfather. She recognized everything, from the way his hair laid on his head, to how his eyes sparkled with determination to the sound of his voice. But he wasn’t the same as the loving grandfather from her memories. He was far from it.

“You didn’t” Xavier didn’t know what surprised him the most, what his grandmother had done years back or what his grandfather had done just hours before.

“It had to be done. She committed a crime against her own kind. Deeds like that cannot go unpunished”

“You’re…” Xavier couldn’t get another word out, too chocked up to speak. Though he loathed what his grandmother had done to Talia she had still been his grandmother, the loving figurine who made everything better when his parents fought. And now his grandfather had just disposed of her like she was trash and not an actual living, breathing being.

“I know what you’re about to say, so just save your breath. I’m not here to apologize, I’m here to rectify a wrong. Something that should have been done a long time ago”

Adam reacted before any of the others knew what was happening. He could smell it, the anger, the loathing, the hatred he felt towards his granddaughter. She was sullied. His pure bloodline muddled. Xavier hadn’t joked about how notorious the elders were about it.

Before the old man could react, Adam had him pinned to the floor, eyes glowing yellow. This man had once thanked him for trying to safe his granddaughter’s life. Had promised to keep his origin a secret as a thank you. He had been so warm and kind once, and in a flash, it was all gone.

“Get off me!” The old man yelled, trying to wrestle out of the grip he had on him.

Adam used his knees to pin the man’s hands to the floor, his hands firmly placed around his neck. He didn’t know what sort of element the old man could conjure, and he didn’t want to find out.

“Adam” Talia gasped. She didn’t know what was worst, the way her grandfather looked at her or how Adam was ready to kill him for it.

“You don’t want to do this” Kristoffer said, calmly looking into the yellow eyes of the wolf. “People could get hurt”
“You’ve already hurt enough people” Xavier said, leaning over to whisper something to Nadine. She nodded and quickly created a portal in front of her.

“There’s no escaping fate. They’ll come for her. Now that they know, they’ll come” Kristoffer voice was so calm it made everyone uncomfortable. Adam leaned down more on his weight on Kristoffer’s wrist, listening from the familiar sound of bones cracking. He wasn’t going to kill the man, just make sure he couldn’t attack them just yet.

“It’s all clear” Nadine had escaped through the portal a few seconds earlier and was now back.

“Adam, will you do the honors?” Xavier asked and stepped aside, giving him a clear path to the portal.

“Where are you taking him?” Talia wondered, watching worriedly as Adam stood, lifting the old man up with him with his one hand still on his throat and the other around his hands.

“A special place” Nadine answered quietly and they stood in silence as Adam led the man through, shortly followed by Xavier. Talia was about to follow after then when Nadine put her hand on her shoulder, stopping her.

“They’ll be back”

Talia nodded slowly and continued to watch the portal. Nadine kept it open for them, the white and blue liquids bathing the room in a blinding light. But Talia just kept staring. Waiting for moment. One. Two. Three. Four. Five.

Five minutes later Xavier and Adam returned from the portal. Both looking distressed.

Nadine closed the portal and Talia leaped into Adam’s arms, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face in his chest. She didn’t know why but she felt the need to just hold him and cry.

Tears streamed down her face as sobs where mulled by his skin. She cried for her grandmother, who she both hated and loved at the same time. She cried for her grandfather, who were so blinded by his own faith that he couldn’t see his own flaws. And she cried for herself, for having her life crumble time and time again.

Adam didn’t say a word, just wrapped his arms around her, stroking her back and letting her cry her heart out. She had been through so much in just a couple of days, it was healthy that she let it all out.

“She’ll be okay” Nadine whispered to Xavier and tangled her fingers with his. “And so will you”

Xavier took his eyes from the crying Talia and over to Nadine, letting his own get lost in her soft green eyes who held nothing but love and acceptance.

“Thank you” He whispered.