Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

Six Months Ago. . .

I hate this fucking demon.

I really do.

Not only do I not know his name so I can curse him, since that would give me power over him, but he is such a creepy stalker. I don't know if the others simply don't see him or don't want to, but he won't stop following me around, whispering in my ear at inappropriate times, like now.

"Don't you think Hagatha"—his name for Agatha, the head witch—"looks particularly ugly today?"

"Shut up," I hiss to him, and a witch close to me frowns in my direction then moves away.

Great, another person who thinks I'm crazy, hence the no friends thing, just the demon chuckling in my ear.

Being a witch isn't easy. The more powerful we are, the more we are praised and revered. It's a hierarchy without men, but don't get us wrong, we aren't nuns. No, there are local warlock covens who are visited often, not to mention the nearby town, but our village is a sanctuary for women and magic. It always has been, with lineages tracing back to the witch trials hundreds of years ago and blood so deep in magic, you cannot separate it.

Family is important, or at least that's what I hear often, and it's another reason I am mostly ignored.

I have none.

I am completely alone. Add that to the fact that I have been haunted by a demon since before I could remember, and most think I am strange or odd and choose to ignore me as much as they can. They don't shun me or kick me out since I'm useful. I'm not super powerful, but I'm not weak either. I make spells and charms no one else can. Usually, they are the darker kind, which worries them, but beggars can't be choosers. It's why they keep me here, under the protection of the blood circle and within our magical village.

Most would assume it resembles something from the fifth century, and although there are buildings that look like some of the historical shops and homes, the rest are influenced architecturally by the modern era. It's a mix of what shouldn't work but does. It is also a paradise where you are free to be as you wish without persecution.

Unless, like me, you have a demon taunting you, telling you to do bad things, which you may or may not sometimes give into when he dares you so he will stop calling you his ridiculous, little nicknames.

Like now, facing down Hagatha—Agatha, oh my goddess!

I duck my head in shame but also to hide my moving lips. "Go away right now or I'll never speak to you again."

"Liar." He chuckles in my ear. "You'd be lonely without me. Admit it, little witch, you like my company and my naughty whispers, daring you to do things you want without repercussions on your soul."

"Well?" Agatha demands for the third time, her impatience evident in her voice.

I lift my head, my veil of black hair falling over my shoulders with the movement. Usually, it's tied back since it's so long and thick, but my hairbands keep magically disappearing. It's the demon, I think, since he seems to love playing with my hair. More than once, I've woken up to my locks in braids so intricate, I cannot unravel them. Once, he even made them into horns on my head, and I had to hide for days as I worked to undo them.

"What do you have to say for yourself, child?" Agatha booms, tired of waiting for me to repent.

She leads our coven as the matriarch. She is the strongest witch within our ranks and also the oldest. You do not cross her unless you want to be turned into a toad or worse.

Rest in peace, Toad Angelina.

"I'm sorry," I murmur through the magic weaving around the room. We are inside her shop, one that sells some of the most powerful spells in the entire world, and I can taste the raw magic and talent. It calls to me, overpowering my senses like a fragrance.

As always, my eyes catch on the mask locked in the glass in the back. I swear I have heard it sing to me once or twice, so I quickly look away. Objects hold power and memories, and some can be filled with evil that can possess you. I have my theories on the mask, but Agatha will never tell.

"Sorry? Child, you blew up the water plant!" She sighs, rubbing her tired face. "I cannot keep protecting you, Freya. You have to stop making mistakes. Just because you lost your family, it does not give you the right to act out. You know better than this. You could be such a good witch if you tried, but it's like you are determined to sink into the darkness you wear like a cloak." Her eyes see too much. They always have.

When I was born, Agatha told anyone who would listen that I had a forked path before me.

Good and evil.

It was up to me to choose.

Most didn't know what she meant, but I did, since evil is my companion in the form of a demon. One day, I will either give into him and go completely mad, being as bad as any witch can, or I will free myself from him.

My hands move behind my back, weaving a spell as I twist my fingers, and then I fling it at the demon only I can see. I hear his grunt as he's tossed through the door and the wall. The glowing gold net will pin him beyond our borders, but not for long. It used to last months, weeks, then days, but now it only takes hours for him to free himself from my magic.

Hours of peace without him is not worth the cost of my magic, but sometimes, like now, I'm desperate.

"I am sorry, Guardian Mother," I tell her respectfully, lowering my head once more.

Her sigh fills the air, and spells breathe to life with it. Where I am darkness, Agatha is light. She is happiness and love and nature. I wish I had that ability. Instead, I am drawn to the dark and mystical things that hide within. Most witches land somewhere on the scale, but me? I'm off the other end, and I hate it.

I also hate that I gave into the demon's taunts that I couldn't summon a troll and accidentally blew up the water plant when I sent it back. He laughed his ass off, holding popcorn the entire time.

Evil bastard.

"You are always sorry. I thought you would have outgrown this by now. You are not a teenager anymore, Freya. You must do better. This coven relies on every member."

"If one cog is broken, then the whole system is broken," I repeat. It's something I have heard since before I could speak. "I know, and I truly am sorry. I will do better."

"I hope you will. The coven is getting restless. They grow tired of your mistakes." My head rises at that, my eyes widening in fear.

Being exiled and cast aside by your coven is a death sentence.

No witch can live alone; it drives you mad.

"Guardian Mother," I whisper.

She waves me on. "Think on it. Now go, I have some guests arriving soon who ought not see you."

I frown at that but nod, grateful she hasn't exiled me or worse, and then I hurry from the shop. The looks I receive once I'm out on the cobbled street have my cheeks heating, so I pull my hood up to hide my face. It won't do much, since I am recognisable even here. My raven-coloured hair is as black as night, while most others' locks are bright, and my lips are as red as blood .

It seems I was born to be bad, but I fight it every single day.

I hurry through the streets before Agatha changes her mind. She is fickle like that. I keep my head down as much as I can, knowing the roads like the back of my hand. The streets in our town are a woven tapestry of madness with dead ends, tunnels, and alleys that seem to lead nowhere. Houses and shops tower into the sky and down into the earth, representing each witch perfectly. They appear when you are of age. Some have mansions and palaces high up on the hills behind me, the sun gleaming through their stained-glass windows. Some have cute, little cottages out through the trees by the bubbling brooks, close to nature.

Not me.

I'm not that lucky.

I live on the outskirts of the village, as far as you can before you hit the blood circle, and mine is buried in the earth, filled with darkness. Most thought it was an omen, and at first, so did I, but I found I like my solitude out here. I can be who I am without tempering myself, and others won't hear me cussing out a demon who doesn't exist to them.

Maybe I am mad.

I scream and fall back when the demon appears before me with a macabre grin.

"Miss me, little witch?"