Bewitching the Demon ✓ (GxG)

Twenty-Four

“What… What do you mean, Bethany?” Kara's voice echoed as her mouth grew dry. “What do you mean that Nico's a witch?”

     “I mean… he's a witch,” Bethany replied. “Look Kara, I know what I saw… Our little brother accidentally did a levitation spell.”

     Kara remained silent as she continued to listen to Bethany's voice over the phone.

       “Him doing that must've alerted someone,” Bethany explained.

       “Yeah… When I went to wake Nicolas up this morning, his whole room was in disarray,” Kara told Bethany. “Pillows, blankets, and toys were everywhere. The window was shattered in… and there was blood on the wall.”

      “Shit,” Bethany responded. “Well… Damn. They got him then. Do you know where that witch place in Europe is.”

    Kara shook her head as she continued to press the phone against her ear. “No.”

     “You should talk to Nicolas's dad…” Bethany suggested. “Maybe he knows something… In the mean time, I'll talk to Mom about this.”

    Kara and Bethany conversed for a little bit longer before the call ended and Kara put her phone back in her pocket.

    “Well?” Dylan asked Kara as she turned to face him once more. “What did your sister say?”

     “Nico's a witch apparently,” Kara answered.

    “Are you shitting me?” Dylan responded.

     Kara exhaled. “I wish I was making this up.”

     Dylan whistled. “Damn. Okay.”

     Kara looked to the ground for a moment as if she was deep in thought before looking back up at Dylan. “Do you want to accompany me on quick trip?”

     Dylan cocked his head to the side a little. “To where?”

     “France,” she answered.

     “Of course,” Dylan replied, huffing.

─┉─¡! • !¡─┉─

      After the hour drive to the small French town that resided near the French-Luxembourgish border, Dylan groaned. “Thank god we're here. My legs were cramping up.”

     Kara laughed a little as she drummed her fingers on the top of the steering wheel. “Really?”

    “Yes, really,” Dylan replied, adjusting his glasses.

     “Dylan, the drive wasn't that long,” Kara remarked. “I have to wait longer in the car when it came to picking up Nicolas from school.”

     “Oh wow!” Dylan clapped, sarcastically. “You can stay in small, cramped cars for a really long time…” He snorted. “That must be your secret super power or something…” He stretched his arms out in front of him after taking his seatbelt off. “...that and accidentally burning your own house down.”

     Kara groaned at that comment, flopping her head back against the seat. “Don't remind me.”

     Dylan opened his car door. “Come on… Let's go give Nico's old man a visit.” He started heading up the walkway.

      Kara quickly got out of the car, getting Greyson out of the backseat before running up the walkway to catch up with Dylan.

     Soon, Dylan, Kara, and Greyson made it up to the door.

     “It's all you,” Dylan told his friend.

     Kara took a deep breath before knocking on the door and calling out, “Pierre Beaumont?” When Kara got no response, she knocked again, saying, “I just want to talk.”

     The sound of a dog barking echoed loudly from the home.

     Pierre opened the door, not recognizing Dylan—-he pulled a face at him. Pierre's gaze drifted over, locking on Kara—-his gaze softened. “Kyllian, right? Anais's boy.” He exhaled. “It's been a really long time.”

     “Um…” Kara awkwardly said, “It's uh… Kara now.”

     “Ah. Kara,” Pierre responded. He gestured to Greyson. “Who's this?”

     “This is my son, Greyson,” Kara responded. She tilted her head in towards Dylan. “This is Dylan Thao, a friend of mine.”

     “Yo,” Dylan said.

     “Thao. Thao. Thao,” Pierre began to say as he thought. “You know… That was the name of Anais's friend.”

    Dylan nodded. “Kara and I's moms have been friends for a very long time. That's how we even got introduced to each other in the first place.”

      Pierre took in that bit of information before letting his gaze fall upon Kara once more. “How's your mother doing?”

     “She's fine,” Kara replied. “Just… busy with her work life.”

      “And Bethany?” Pierre asked.

      “She's busy going to school in America. …a place called Caesar Falls,” Kara responded. “She's been busy raising her son Gaël too.”

     Pierre raised an eyebrow. “So, both you and your twin sister have little boys of your own now?”

    Kara nodded.

    Pierre exhaled. “Well, I'll be damned. Time really does fly, huh?”

     “Um, Pierre,” Kara began to say. “I was wondering if I could talk to you about your son.”

     “Little Nicolas?” Pierre responded. “Yeah. What about him?”

      “He was…” Kara took a deep breath. “Kidnapped last night.”

     Pierre could feel his heart sink. “What? Why?”

    “We think it was because he was a witch,” Kara answered.

     Pierre stiffened a bit. “So, ol' Iris Haynes got him then?”

    “It would appear so,” Dylan said.

    Kara asked Pierre, “Is there anything you could tell us about this topic? Anything at all? The slightest bit of info could be very helpful to us.”

     Pierre looked down at his shoes for the longest time as if he was contemplating what to say. Finally, he looked back up at Dylan, Kara, and Greyson, taking a deep breath. “Look, kid,” he started out, clearly directing his words at Kara specifically. “I'm…” He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I'm a witch too.”

    Kara raised an eyebrow—-deep down though, she wasn't very surprised by this information. “You're a witch?”

     Pierre nodded. “Mhm. When witches find themselves, they're shipped off to the Haynes Academy near the old kingdom of Iojetria… In Italy.” He sucked in a breath. “But I escaped…” He exhaled. “Iris Haynes isn't someone to fuck with. She's the real deal. She means business and she'll probably gut you if you piss her off.”

    “Good to know,” Dylan replied quickly, as he rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet.

    Pierre sighed. “Witches are meant to be at that Academy for all of their immortal days… They can't leave. It's like a… fucking prison. Freewill is an illusion there. Iris controls their every thought until the end. Hell, at a certain point in someone's life, they sterilize them just to keep them from producing any offspring.” Pierre inhaled, held it for a few moments, and then released it. “You need to get Nicolas out of there… I fear he might be in danger.”