The Beginning Of The End

Chapter 36

"You won't believe how good everyone's gotten already!" Jaylon was saying to his brother, who he had been overjoyed to see. Thalia too, she hadn't left Lucas' side since we'd entered the library and she'd done another of those flying leaps into his arms.

I could feel a wave of pain coming on and sighed. I couldn't wait for this all to be over.

"Finn?" I murmured, nudging him. Over the past few weeks, Finn and I had grown quite close, and it turned out we had a lot of the same interested.

"Yeah?" He stood up from his seat and looked at me intently with pity in his eyes. I hated it when people looked at me with pity.

"Can you come with me for a bit?" I asked, not wanting to disobey Jayon and be on my own but not wanting to interrupt his time with his brother either. Having a breakdown in front of everyone was definitely not an option.

"Yeah, of course."

No one looked up as Finn and I left the library, heading down to Jaylon's room which had become mine too after the past few weeks. It had suited both of us fine, as he didn't want me to be alone and I didn't like being alone at night with my current condition.

"Are you okay?" Finn asked uncertainty as I shut the door behind us and went over to sit on the edge of the bed.

"I will be," I murmured, closing my eyes and flopping down onto my back. The pain hadn't really taken hold yet, but I could tell it was going to.

"Do you want me to get Jaylon?" Finn asked. He seemed unsure of what he should do.

"No, just sit and do your own thing," I mumbled. "I'm just not supposed to be alone."

I heard him shuffling around, looking at some of the things in Jaylon's room. Some of my clothes and other belongings were scattered around the place, which I'm sure Finn noticed but didn't mention. I opened my eyes to see him looking at some photos and smiled.

"This is Jaylon's family?" He questioned, motioning to a photo of an adorable little Jaylon and Lucas with their little sister and parents.

"That's them." I gritted my teeth as the pain started. It wasn't as bad as it sometimes was, but it still made me feel like there was something ripping at my head, at my ears, from the inside, It made me want to claw into my own skull and tear it out.

"Hey, it's you. This is cute," Finn said, and although my eyes were screwed shut I guessed he was talking about the photo of Jaylon and I that he had recently added to his collection.

"Oh um, are you okay?" He asked, finally turning and noticing the state I was in.

I nodded, my hands scrunching the bed sheets in my fists so that I wouldn't be tempted to rip into myself.

Minutes later, it was over. I was lucky that didn't last very long, and thankful that Finn hadn't had to sit through a long one.

"I feel like apple juice," I mumbled, sitting up. Finn, who had been rocking back and forth on a chair sprang to his feet.

"I'll go get you some," he exclaimed, seeming relieved to have something to do, or maybe to get away from me like this.

"No, I'll go, you can go back to the library," I said, sending him a grateful smile. He seemed eager to do just this but then hesitated.

"You aren't supposed to be alone though," he said with a frown.

I just shrugged. "I'll be fine."

"No." He said firmly. "I'm coming with you."

Down in the kitchen, I poured myself and Finn each a glass of apple juice while he perched on the counter and watched me.

"You know," I said. "It's not very sanitary to sit in the place where you prepare food."

"Just prepare it somewhere else, have you seen how big this kitchen is?" He said with a laugh, though he did hop off the counter.

"Yes, I happen to live here," I laughed and shook my head.

"Hey so you know when I went into town with Candy the other day?" he said, referring to when Candy had decided she needed to make some calls so she wouldn't be reported missing or something.

"Yeah, I remember," I said, handing him a glass and taking a sip of my own.

"Well, I called my mate Taylor, the guy I was pretending to be at the cafe, you remember?"

"I don't have the memory of a goldfish, Finn, of course I remember," I said, laughing.

"Right," he grinned. "Sorry. Anyway, I called him and he's kind of on his way out here."

I just stared, the smile dropping off my face.

"Finn," I said slowly. "Do you know how dangerous that is? If people find out about us, about this place..."

"I know, I know," he sighed and ran his hand through his hair nervously. "I just, I don't know. I see Taylor every day, more than anyone else. I kind of miss him, you know?"

"Yeah, I get it," I sighed. Candy and Adam had been the only people I saw often that I was close to before I came here, and though I had realised I didn't really miss Adam all that much, Candy I had missed like crazy. "Finn, you don't have to stay here, but this has to stay secret."

"I want to stay," Finn said earnestly. "I just want Taylor here too. I didn't tell him anything yet, just where to come. Talk to Jaylon for me, won't you? I know Taylor will be able to keep it a secret, and if Jaylon says Taylor can be a part of all this, great! But if not, then I'll leave with Taylor, and I will keep my mouth shut about it around him and everyone else."

"Okay, I'll talk to Jaylon," I said, understanding. "We'll all have to discuss it though, it's not just up to Jaylon."

"I know." He nodded. "But if you're for something Jaylon will be more likely to be too, and if Jaylon is the others will be a whole lot more likely to win over."

"I like your way of thinking, it makes sense," I said, laughing a little. "Come on, I'll talk to him tonight but let's go back to the library now."

I walked out of the kitchen and was about to start up the stairs when I stopped, listening.

"What is it?" Finn asked from just behind me. I turned slowly and stared down the entrance hallway, down towards the door. "Louisa?"

"Shh." I walked slowly down towards the door, Finn following. There was a tapping, not like someone knocking but more like someone was just drumming their fingers impatiently. I stopped just on the inside of the door and stilled, wishing there was a peephole.

I motioned for Finn to step back out of sight, doing the same thing myself, then raised my hand and used magic to pull the door open.

"Well, it was nice of you to open the door for me!"

A girl stepped inside. She had long black hair and couldn't have been older than thirteen or fourteen, though she held herself like someone who knew she could go anywhere and get her way.

"Who are you?" I asked, stepping forward. How had she gotten inside? There were spells stopping anyone but members of the twelve silver coven families from entering.

"The name's Rowyn," she said, grinning wickedly. My eyes widened and I took an involuntary step backwards. She stepped forward, a hand raised, but then Finn lunged at her.

Before Finn was even within a metre of this young girl, my little sister, she swept a hand through the air and sent him flying backwards. He hit the wall with a loud thump and fell to the ground, not moving.

"Finn!" I screamed, trying to go to him but I was held back by an invisible force. I turned to Rowyn and glared. "What are you doing?" I cried. "Please, let me-"

I didn't get to finish my sentence. She brought her hand down in a fast, sweeping motion. I gasped, clawing at my throat. I couldn't seem to breathe, couldn't get air into my lungs. I tried to speak but it came out as a croak. I fell to my knees, my hands still at my throat. My vision was starting to blur, my eyes swimming, and she was standing over me laughing.

The last thing I saw was that wicked face, pure joy lighting up her eyes as I fought for air that simply wasn't there. And then she seemed to get bored and made a quick motion with her hand. Next thing I knew, I could breathe again, but my muscles wouldn't work. I couldn't move, and everything had gone black.