Chapter Thirty-four

Chapter Thirty-four

Hans stood up from the bench and I felt the power in his stance as he prepared to face her for me, but I didn’t want him to. I didn’t need him to. I put a hand on his arm gently and shook my head as I rose to my feet myself.

“Let me,” I said.

I pulled my dress back on as Grandma kept screeching from the other side of the grounds, but I wasn’t frantic about it. I didn’t rush to run to her, just walked slowly, enjoying the darkness of the night with my fresh new eyes.

“KATHERINE!” she screeched again, and then she started in shock as she saw me standing there.

“I’m here,” I said, “and I won’t be regretting anything. You’ll never make me doubt myself again.”

She was holding a crucifix and brandished it at me like I was going to curl up on the floor in agony, but it made me laugh.

“Oh, Grandma! God doesn’t hate me. The higher power wants us to be true to ourselves, not living a lie for other people.”

“THAT’S STUPID, GIRL!” she tried, but I shook my head.

“It’s not going to work with me anymore. I’m not going to let you kick me with your criticism every time I want to be myself.”

“Nor me,” another voice sounded out, and wow, there was my mum, walking through the grounds towards us, wrapped up in her favourite thick green cardigan.

My heart soared.

Grandma looked between us like it was a conspiracy, but Mum was as calm as I was. She arrived at my side and took hold of my hand, and stared Grandma right in the eye.

“You either love us for us, or you don’t love us at all. Your choice.”

“DON’T BE–” Grandma began, but Mum shook her head.

“Which is it going to be? Do you love us or not?”

Grandma looked so hateful.

“And what are you going to do if I don’t? Are you going to curse me and throw me to my death like you did your father?”

I clenched Mum’s hand, but I didn’t need to. She stood firm.

“Except I didn’t kill my father, did I? It was your magic as well as mine that caused it. If I’m a murderer, then you are too.”

Grandma flinched. Shocked. Because Mum was right. It wasn’t just her roar of magic that had rocked the tower that night. Not at all.

“We’re all witches,” Mum told her. “Accept it, and you can accept the love between us all.”

Hans approached from behind and stood beside us, all three of us looking at the woman battling her demons. We had none left of our own.

Grandma was still clutching at her crucifix as a car pulled up in the gateway. The glow of headlights blinded us all, and the figure walking towards us was nothing but a silhouette.

Wow. It was turning into quite a gathering. Who the hell was this now?

I heard one word. Serena. And my mum dropped my hand.

“Thomas?!” Her eyes strained to see him. “Thomas? Is that you?”

My God, I heard the love in her voice. The figure was walking towards us, but he didn’t make it anywhere close. Mum went running to him in a full sprint and he was ready for her. He held her tight in his arms. I watched them open-mouthed.

“Time for you to meet your father,” Hans whispered to me, and my undead heart pounded.

My father.

Grandma was mute as I took tiny steps towards the man I’d never had the chance to know.

“Katherine,” he said and both he and Mum held out a hand to me.

Just crazy. Wow, it was just fucking crazy.

The tears streamed down my face as I joined my parents in their embrace. I let them hold me, the three of us together, and there were no words needed. The unspoken said it all, like it so often did these days.

“You’re all sinners!” Grandma hissed, but I didn’t care. None of us did.

My father broke the embrace and me and Mum stood by his side as he faced the old witch.

“All said and done, there’s only one sinner here,” he said.

Grandma held the crucifix to her heart, her lip twitching with disgust.

“Time for you to leave this time,” my dad said.

Grandma hesitated, glancing from one to the other.

“Thomas is right,” Mum said. “There’s nothing for you here. Nothing but love.”

Grandma recoiled at that and she spat. She actually spat on the ground in front of us.

“Sinners,” she said, “this isn’t the end of it!”

And with hatred burning in her eyes, she stormed away into the night, a fresh breeze washing over us as she left us behind.

“Goodbye and good riddance,” Mum said.

Hans walked up and cleared his throat. My father stepped over and held out a hand.

“Good evening, Hans,” he said. “Lovely to see you.”

“And you, Thomas,” he replied. “Sorry for the short notice.”

They shook hands, and it was another round of crazy. These two men knew each other well.

My father pointed back to the car and the driver waiting there.

“Time to get back to the manor,” he said with a smile. “Edwin has the merlot ready to flow, and well. We have a lot to catch up on.”

He was holding my mum’s hand tight as we walked the path, and I was right behind them, with Hans holding mine.

Yes, it was true. Finally.

My soul was home.