A Witch's Undoing

Chapter 10: Theodor

"...and she's an amazing cook! I'm tellin' ya, you can still change your mind about the engagement. My niece won't stay on the market for long", Bart was whispering the conclusion of his not-so-subtle speech to me, which was pointless for multitude of reasons:

I was not going to abandon my arrangement with Lilian in favor of his niece.

I was not going to abandon my arrangement with Lilian in favor of anyone's niece. A nephew I might consider, but no one's niece was going to be good enough. Or, specifically, I wouldn't be any good to them.

The whispering was also unnecessary. No matter how far ahead Neil rode on top of his dear Antonius (which I had gifted him a year ago, a horse equally moody, equally blonde), he would still hear us in other ways.

"Look at what's happened to Micah! How do you know your bride won't enslave you too!", he gasped and suddenly eyed me up and down with suspicion, "unless she already has...".

I pointed at the chain around my neck with a bear claw hanging on it.

"She can't".

Bart squinted.

"What is that? Silver?"

"Brasstern. It repels witches and makes me immune to enslavement", I explained. I tried to give Bart the benefit of the doubt. I believe it's what my father would have done - try to chip away at the ignorance one mortal at a time.

"If it repels them, then how does she kiss ya?" he inquired next, throwing me off-guard.

"Uh... she's a smart girl, she finds a way around it", even I couldn't understand what I was suggesting. It never crossed my mind to imagine Lilian getting that close to me and now I was letting on that her insurmountable desire to wrap her arms around my neck had somehow led to a new, realm-shattering snogging method?

Antonius shook out his mane and began bolting.

Daft creature.

"Oy!" Bart yelled out when Neil disappeared from our line of sight.

"Let's not lag behind, shall we?" I urged Sylvie to catch up to her equestrian brother.

It gave me a good excuse to not elaborate on Lilian's kissing habits ever again.

We arrived at the village late afternoon. Neil sent Bart in first to find out Micah's whereabouts. We were waiting for him near the main road, out of sight of any passengers.

Neil was petting Antonius but his mind was somewhere else entirely, trying to work out the motives of the offender.

It did not make sense to begin with. Micah was the head of the village, yes, but enslaving him would not give one much power over anything. At best, this witch was just ruining his life. So, maybe, it was a vendetta?

Or, knowing that Micah was a member of the council, was she using him to get in the more influential circle?

"It is most probably the latter. I've seen all there is to see in Micah's mind. He might dislike witches but he's too much of a coward to openly fight one. My sources do not report any vendettas either", Neil explained.

"Her aim is the Council then?", I asked.

Neil's face shifted into a familiar scowl. He hated not knowing something for certain.

"Either way, she won't succeed. We'll make sure of it". I nudged him with my elbow. He didn't appreciate the gesture.

"Alright, out with it, what's weighing on your mind?" I crossed my arms, letting him know I wouldn't stop meddling until he caved in.