The Circle

The Circle - Chapter Fourteen

Fourteen:

It was eight o'clock the next morning and as April McCabe made her way over to the Garcia caravan, she absentmindedly waved to the new neighbours. Beryl Howes pulled weeds from the over grown flower bed whilst her husband Eric struggled to mow the lawn. Both Serena and April had no idea the house next door was up for sale, let alone housing new neighbours from the U.S but Serena reassured her that they seemed friendly enough and April was relieved. Nosey neighbours were all she needed, especially now she needed to continually sneak out of the house without Serena noticing. Not that she noticed much these days. Perhaps that baby of hers was cutting off any common-sense skills she once had as well as filling up her womb. The concept was disgusting and even more worrying as the baby was Gavin Johnson's. April was still none-the-wiser about Gavin's role in The Circle of Aurora and for all she knew, the baby Serena was carrying could be the devil reincarnate.

The mid-November wind blew through April's hair and she was glad of it. She was still traumatised after the revelations the night before that getting off to sleep was an impossibility. She needed to speak to Clarinda about what happened at Mad-Hatters. It was possession. She knew it. Luckily the young girl wasn’t harmed in the end, just a few cuts, bruises and the dull ache of electrocution, but the possibility was a little too close for comfort. Whoever performed the Hex at Loretta's party must have known she was on to them, yet she couldn't help but ponder Caleb’s place in all this. Had it been a trap? A ploy to force her to reveal her true identity? The options had flown through her mind all night. Why had Caleb turned up so swiftly and why was he so adamant she shouldn’t help the girl? As she approached Jinx's caravan she heard voices from inside. One voice she recognised as Clarinda and the other she recognised as none other than Caleb Anderson.

She felt a heavy sinking in her stomach and her thoughts momentarily skipped to her appearance. She didn’t want to face Caleb today. Not like this. She was tired and angry, and it seemed every time she saw Caleb she was in the same state. Taking an exasperated breath she continued towards the caravan and that was when she noticed the conversation wasn’t pleasant, but argumentative.

"I saw it Clarinda, with my own eyes, it was possession, I'd bet my life on it."

"Well of course you'd bet your life on it, I'd be praying for death by now if I was you!" Clarinda shouted at Caleb, throwing her hands in the air and strutting angrily around the caravan. She understood what Caleb was saying, but she didn't want to believe it. Who did this man think he was anyway? Clarinda Garcia was no fool and here he was taking her for one.

"That is out of order Clarinda and you know it," Caleb replied frustrated as he stood motionless in the centre of the room, his whole body towering over the short and podgy woman. "You need to listen to me. That was Black Magic last night, no doubt about it. The possession of an innocent mortal to carry out a message. It is a typical Pergatorian incantation. We need to watch these developments day in and day out. This isn't just affecting April anymore, it’s affecting everyone."

"Caleb, with all due respect, it could be a child prank. I think you're taking this too far and jumping to ridiculous conclusions," Clarinda replied as she sat down in the armchair, rubbing her eyes as a sign of stress. "It's probably nothing serious."

"It's serious when April's life is on the line!" Caleb hovered over the small woman, his hazel eyes showing something April struggled to recognise. He looked pained, almost traumatised yet dangerous and intimidating beyond belief. "Now I don't know about you, but I have a duty to protect that girl and if that means having to sacrifice myself to The Pergatorio I'd do it all again if I had to. She is special Clarinda, but I'm sure you've figured that out for yourself. I'm not having anyone hurt her. Not you or anyone else for that matter, do you understand?"