Autumn's Affairs

4 - Evidence

She walks out onto the step and gets in my face, "I don't know what the fuck you're talking about. I think you should leave."

She looks like a younger version of Este, just meaner. "Where's Henry?" I ask her and she puts her hands on her hips and glares at me, but a small smirk plays around on her lips and it makes my stomach churn.

"He's out chopping wood."

I glance over to the side of the house where huge piles of wood are stocked up against the brick wall. "Right," I say, staring back at her. "Well, whe-" I snap my mouth shut when I hear the sound of footsteps crunching against the ground.

Henry comes around the house, looking frazzled and flushed. "What's going on? Ana, what are you doing here?" His eyes go wide when he sees me and his gaze flickers to Felix then back to me. His pupils dilate and I think it's fear swirling around in them.

"Este didn't show up for work today," I state, staring him up and down. "We came by to check on her. She got a little too drunk last night." I let out a forced chuckle, but my heart is pounding in my chest... is that blood on his jacket?

He sighs heavily, "Este left me."

I'm stunned into silence. No. No fucking way that's what happened. She wouldn't leave. Not without telling me first.

Henry walks up the stairs, avoiding Felix's white eyes, and stares down at me, "She's gone, Ana. She packed up and left late last night. Said she was bored with me."

My head starts to shake and I feel tears springing to my eyes, but Henry just nods sadly. He puts a hand on my shoulder and Felix is instantly at my side, glaring at Henry. The wind around us picks up ominously and Henry shivers, wrenching his hand away from me.

"I'm sorry, Ana" he says, glancing nervously at Felix. "But I don't think she's coming back." He sends a pointed look to the young blonde and she rolls her eyes, taking a step back into the house.

I let out a scoff, "well you sure moved on quickly, didn't you Henry?"

The woman laughs loudly, opening her mouth to say something but Henry clears his throat, "Stella!" He shakes his head quickly, "go inside."

She rolls her eyes again and slams the door in my face. My vision is blurry from my tears but I glare up at Henry, "how could you?"

He has the audacity to look offended. "I didn't do anything, Ana. Este left me."

"She told me she thought you were having an affair! And now this blonde bitch is here, and Este is just gone? So everything worked out perfectly for you, didn't it? She just decided she was bored and it had nothing to do with you fucking that slut?"

Felix squeezes my hand in his, helping me to calm down a bit, but I'm seething. She wouldn't just leave. She wouldn't.

Henry opens the front door, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, "you should go, Ana." He glances back up at Felix again and I watch as a shiver runs through his spin. Henry hates witches.

He doesn't say another word before walking into the house and closing the door behind him.

I'm in a daze. I don't even notice Felix opening one of his portals and pulling me through it until we're back in my bedroom. He pulls me into his arms and I just stand there, my face pressed into his chest and my mind running through every possible scenario over and over again.

Maybe she did leave. Maybe she was so distraught over his affair, she just packed up and left. But I just don't believe she'd go without coming to see me first. Although, she probably knows I would do everything I could to get her to stay. Maybe she didn't want me to guilt her into moving in with me instead. Maybe she just had to go.

But the blood.

Henry's a lumberjack, it's not uncommon for him to accidentally injure himself. It's not the safest work. But I didn't see a cut. Just a little bit of blood on the collar of his jacket.

"I take it that didn't go as expected?" Felix's voice rumbles in my ear and I wrap my arms around him, shaking my head into his chest. "Do you mind telling me what's going on? Is this why you were so distracted all day?"

I pull back, taking his hand and bringing him to sit on my bed, "last night Este told me she suspected Henry of having an affair. She planned to confront him, and then she didn't come to work today. I don't think she'd just leave like Henry said she did. And that girl..." I feel my eyes narrow, "Stella. I've never seen her before, and now she's just there. Like she just took Este's place."

I stare at Felix, my eyes filling with tears, "I-I need to find her. What if he did something to her?"

"I can have my aunt look into it. She's been trying to bring more structure and __ to the town. She'd probably want to investigate a possible murder."

Murder.

"You think he killed her?"

Felix stares at me, a grim look on his face, "I saw the blood on him. I know you did too."

I gulp nervously, "he wouldn't... she can't be..." But what if he did? What if she is? Oh my god.

I burst into tears and Felix wraps his arms around me, "I'll figure it out. I got you, Ana. I promise."

Why does he even care?

"I'm going to get my aunt to look into this and if she doesn't I'll do it myself." His voice is soothing and his words are comforting, but he's a witch. His aunt is the Coven Mother. They don't give a shit about human problems. We go missing all the time, no one ever cares.

I don't say anything, I just nod and enjoy the warmth of his embrace, until forcing myself to pull away. I clear my throat awkwardly, "you should go, thank you for taking me home."

He looks down at me sadly, his fingers tucking some of my hair behind my ear, "I'll help you figure this out, Ana." He brushes his lips against mine and my eyes flutter closed at the contact, my body wanting nothing more than to just sink into him and ask him to stay. But I can't. Not tonight.

"I'll see you tomorrow," he says, pulling away and creating one of his portals.

I smile at him and he disappears in a gust of swirling wind. Magic. Fucking crazy.

I change, check on Lucy, who unfortunately has no eggs for me. I give her a few pets and she clucks softly, then I jump over my fence and make my way into the woods behind my house.

I keep myself concealed in the trees, and walk for about a kilometer until reaching the edge of Este and Henry's property. I sneak around the shed and freeze when I see the shovel leaning against the wall and the hem of a shirt peeking out of a burlap sack. The shovel is muddy and... those are bloody fingerprints on the handle.

I open the sack and immediately taste bile in my mouth as I recognize the shirt Este wore to Alfred's pub the other night, and it's covered in blood. I fall to my knees, gripping her shirt in my hands and shaking with quiet sobs. He actually did it. He fucking killed her.

I'm going to kill him.