Mark of the Witch (Boston Witches) (8 page)

She must have been crying in her sleep because when she woke up two hours later, her face was wet from the tears. Her heart ached from missing her mother as she sat up in bed crying.

William must have heard her because there was a light knock on the door followed by his gentle voice. “Can I come in, Jilly?”

“Yes,” she said, quickly wiping away her tears.

He sat down next to her on the bed and folded her into his arms. She tried to pull away, but he held her a little tighter and she finally relaxed.

“You need to let me in, Jill. I want to help you. You can’t take all of this on your shoulders; it’s not good for you,” he murmured into her hair as he held her.

“How can I let you in? I don’t even know you,” she said, tears streaming down her face.

“Don’t you? Look inside yourself and tell me that you don’t know me.”

There was such tenderness in his voice, Jilly melted into his arms. She cried harder now, for the loss of her mother, and for the feeling of helplessness she felt now. She cried until finally she was out of tears, and William gently let her go and wiped away her tears with his hands. He looked deeply into her eyes, and kissed her softly on the lips before standing up.

“I’ll be downstairs when you’re ready to come out. I’m going to scrounge around for something for dinner.”

When he was gone, Jilly got up and took a long hot shower, letting the hot spray wash away all her doubts and fears. She felt immensely better when she walked out of her room thirty minutes later. Whether from the crying or the shower, she wasn’t sure.

She found William in the kitchen, reading the cooking instructions on a frozen pizza. He looked up when she came in. She eyed the box when she walked over. “It was either this or sandwiches again, and I figured since we had them for lunch this would be better.” He raised his eyebrows in question.

“That’s fine. At this point I’m so hungry I would probably eat the box it came in and be happy,” Jilly said with a laugh. William smiled at her and started rummaging in the cabinets for a pan. Jilly rounded the island and pointed him in the right direction before perching herself on a bar stool.

Once the pizza was in the oven and the timer was set, he grabbed a few Cokes out of the fridge and joined her at the counter. “Feeling better now?” he asked with a voice dripping with concern.

“I do actually. I’m not sure if it’s from the crying, or the shower, but I feel like a weight has been lifted off my chest. Thank you for being there. I didn’t realize how much I had been holding in and how alone I was feeling.” She looked down at her hands as she spoke, feeling the flush of embarrassment on her cheeks.

“I’m here, and I’ll be here as long as you want me to be. I have nothing but time,” William said with a wry smile.

Jilly changed the subject and asked him to tell her about his travels.

“Well, let’s see, first I was in England, and I traveled north into Scotland for a while, and then I stayed in London for a time. I enjoyed my time there very much; I met a great many people whom I will never forget and whom I’m proud to say were my friends. After that I went to France, as you know, but I didn’t stay long because of Sabine. Then I traveled as far east as I could go, ending up in Russia. I stopped in many tiny countries that no longer exist along the way; I met a few people like myself, one in particular in Russia named Nikolai. He and his wife Katya were the first of my kind who I had met that were not mad with power. I stayed with them for many years; we traveled together for sixty years or so before they returned home to Russia.” He had a wistful expression that Jilly found very appealing for some reason.

“I’ve never been anywhere,” she said with a touch of longing in her voice. “I’ve always wanted to go to England and Ireland, and Rome. Rome seems so romantic and full of culture.” She blushed slightly when William looked at her.

“Oh, Italy is very romantic, Rome is beautiful, and Venice and Florence are superb. We should go in the summer, when the air is warm and sweet. We could rent a villa in Tuscany, or Rome if you prefer.”

The slight blush was full blown now, and Jilly was at a loss for words. Luckily the buzzer on the oven went off and she was saved from having to respond. As William got the pizza out, she set the table and brought over a trivet for the pan.

Once they were seated, he took his first bite and said, “You know, this isn’t half bad for frozen pizza.”

“I know, right? It’s one of my guilty pleasures. This and chocolate ice cream I can’t live without.”

They both laughed and continued eating in silence.

Caroline finally emerged from her cocoon of sleep about an hour after they finished eating. She looked sleepy, but otherwise ok. “We saved you some pizza; it’s in the oven on the pan still,” Jilly told her sister.

“Thanks,” she mumbled in response as she shuffled over to the oven. Once she had her plate full of food, she joined them at the table to eat. “So, what have I missed since I’ve been in my drug induced coma?”

“Not much actually,” Jilly replied. “Em and I reinforced the wards on the house, and William is staying here for a while. Emily says you can crash at her place until this all blows over if you want.” She looked at her sister, trying to gauge her feelings by her face.

“Ok, well I guess it’s reasonable that William stays here; we have the room, right? As for staying at Emily’s, I think I’ll pass; I wouldn’t feel right abandoning you with all of this.”

“You wouldn’t be, you would just be staying safe.”

“I don’t see it that way, Jill. If you’re in this, I’m in this,” Caroline said, her words as fierce as her expression.

Jilly was surprised. This was a side of Caroline she hadn’t seen in a long time. “I’ll call and tell her you’re staying here then,” she said with a proud smile.

They chatted about nothing in particular while Caroline ate, enjoying each other’s company.

Once she was finished eating, Caroline pushed her plate away and looked from Jilly to William. “So what’s our plan of attack?”

“As of right now, we don’t have one. We’re waiting to see what Sabine does next,” William said. “I think we should give it a few days before we do anything. I told Jilly she has to stay in the house since it’s protected, and that goes for you as well since you’re staying.”

“Ok, I can do that.” Caroline turned and faced Jilly. “I’ve been thinking a lot the last few days, and I think I might want to start some training. What you said made sense; it is reckless to be in possession of something so dangerous and not know a thing about it.” She had a shy smile on her face, her tone sheepish.

Jilly was shocked; never in her wildest dreams did she think her sister would ever want to claim her heritage. She tried not to let her surprise show on her face. “I guess since we’ll have a few days at home we can start you off with a few basic spells. We can begin in the morning if that’s ok with you?”

“I appreciate this, Jill. I know it’s rotten timing, with everything that’s going on. But I never want to feel as defenseless as I felt when that man attacked us in the forest.” She stood up and put her plate in the sink. “I’m going up to my room to watch some TV and relax; I should be in there for the rest of the night if you need me.”

She washed her hands and climbed the stairs to her room. They heard the click from her door closing, and Jilly suggested they move to the living room where it was more comfortable.

*

When they sat down on the couch, Jilly felt a little awkward; she was unsure of how close to sit to William. After the closeness they shared in her room, she wasn’t quite sure where things stood between them. William made the decision for her, and he pulled her in close as he looked over at the fireplace. Flames suddenly erupted out of nowhere, bathing the room in a soft orange glow. Jilly looked over at it and said in wonder, “I’m never going to get used to that.”

She leaned back into his arm and they sat quietly for a while. It was nice to just be for a while, to not think about anything or worry that something was happening outside of their control. She could still feel the small tingles where his skin touched hers and it was a pleasant feeling.

Suddenly she became all too aware of the heat of his body against hers, and she felt a little lightheaded. She shifted in her seat uncomfortably, feeling suddenly shy being so close to him.

Using the bathroom as an excuse, she fled the room quickly. Splashing water on her burning cheeks, she looked at herself in the mirror.
Get a grip, he’s just a boy
, she said to herself, trying to work up the courage to go back out to him. She finally calmed down and walked back out to the living room.

Wanting to break some of the tension, she grabbed the remote and turned the TV on before sitting back down. William must have noticed her change in demeanor, because he looked at her sideways before settling back into the cushions. She made a point to sit a little away from him, but he slid over and put his arm around her. She gave up trying to fight it and just let herself relax into him as they watched TV.

An hour later, they were both getting tired. Jilly turned off the TV and they both got up and stretched.

“I’m ready for bed I think, but you’re more than welcome to stay up if you want. I have a ton of books in the den, or you can watch more TV if you want to.”

“No, I think I’m ready for bed too.”

They walked upstairs side by side in silence. When they reached her door, William took Jilly in his arms and kissed her. Not the kind of kiss that he had given her before either. She was totally unprepared for the heat behind it. Her whole body turned into molten lava. As the kiss deepened, her hands explored the muscles of his back. Without warning, he pulled away.

“I think we should call it a night right here, don’t you?”

Lost for words, Jilly just nodded and opened the door to her room. With a last look behind her, she closed the door and sat on her bed. She felt like fire itself, she was so keyed up; she doubted that she could sleep now. So, she changed into her pajamas, tied her hair into a ponytail, and quietly went into the den across the hall. Grabbing a book at random, she sat down on the big leather sofa to read. Opening the book, she saw that it was Liza’s diary, and she settled in and began to read.

February 3, 1693

Mary and I were in the forest today, collecting herbs and flowers for Mama, when we saw a strange man by the river. I wanted to talk to him, but Mary said we mustn’t. She never lets me do anything fun. When I told Mama about it, she looked worried, but she didn’t say anything else about it. William came calling again today; I can’t help but feel lucky to have found one such as him to love. I only wish Mary the same, for I cannot be truly happy while she is not.

February 6

I saw the man again today. He was wearing the same ratty clothes as before, but he was standing at the gate in front of the house. Papa says I must not engage him in any way, but he looks so lonely. William says he’s inclined to agree with Papa on the matter, so I guess I must listen to them. Mary and I learned a new spell from Mama today. It was really difficult, but I managed to change my eyes from green to blue! Mary didn’t get it right away and Mama told her she must practice harder at her spells.

February 14

Mary and I went into Salem to the market today with Papa. We met some sisters of the craft in front of the apothecary shop we normally go to. Mary recognized them from the last meeting in the woods Mama brought us to. I asked them if they had seen the man too. One of them hadn’t, but two of them had. They described him the same as I remembered. Every time I saw him, something about him was familiar, but I’m sure I’ve not met him before. When I bring him up to Mary, she gets a queer look on her face, says nothing until I give up, and talks of something else.

February 16

Mary left the house very early in the morning; I woke just as she was closing our door. I followed her at a distance into the woods, and I was shocked to see that she was meeting a man. It was the strange man I had been seeing around the house for weeks. I watched from behind a tree as she walked toward him and they sat down on the leaves. She had brought him food and a blanket, and one of Papa’s old shirts to keep him warm. As he was eating, he spoke to her in a low voice, and I couldn’t hear what was said. When Mary got up to leave I ran ahead back to the house and waited for her in our room. I confronted her about what I saw, and she burst into tears. She told me his name was Patrick, and he was William’s brother.

Jilly closed the book, surprised at what she had read. William had never mentioned having a brother in any of their conversations.

She got up, looking over at the clock on the desk. The digital readout said that it was 1:30 A.M. already. She picked up the diary and brought it with her to her room. She climbed into bed, wanting to go to sleep, but she was too wound up about what she had read. She had wanted to continue reading, but there were pages missing after that entry. Someone had torn out three weeks of entries; the next entry in the diary had nothing at all to do with Patrick, or William.

Feeling frustrated, Jilly tossed and turned in bed for an hour until she finally drifted off to sleep. Her dreams were erratic; they kept shifting from Liza’s time to her own. Liza was telling her to trust in William, that he was the key to her safety. She also dreamt of a strange man with dark hair, but she never saw his face.

Jilly woke up at 9:30, not feeling very rested, and headed straight into the shower. Standing under the hot spray, she went over everything she learned last night. Liza clearly believed William was trustworthy, and she wanted to believe her, but she didn’t like that he hadn’t told her about his brother. She decided to give him the benefit of the doubt; it wasn’t like she had asked him point blank if he had a brother and he lied.

While she toweled off, she decided she would just ask him and be done with it. She tied her hair up in a knot and quickly got dressed and headed down to the kitchen. She found both her sister and William seated at the table, eating breakfast. Grabbing a cup of coffee and a muffin, she joined them. She wanted to ask William about his brother, but she didn’t want to do it in front of Caroline.