Haunting Shadows (Book 2)

Chapter 67

“Mary!” Zane yelled. He tried to go to her to help, but James held him back.

Zane gazed at his father with wide, disbelieving eyes. And then he noticed the green sheen that had taken the place of James’ usual brown eyes. Among that was an expression of intense anger. Something within the older sorcerer must have snapped, and Zane had no doubt that that something had everything to do with his mother.

“Jane, let the girl go.” His voice was cold and deadly, chilling Zane’s bones. There had been only one voice that managed to induce more fear in him before, and that was the voice of a notorious dark sorcerer.

Zane hardly recognized his mother as he watched her. She had always been cold and distant, only showing rare moments of warmth to him and Lana when they were children, but her expression now rivaled the coldness in her that he had grown so accustomed to. The coldness filled the room with a frigid air, twisting everything in malice, freezing even the warmest of hearts in its path. Mary was still gasping for breath. Zane felt powerless to help her.

Lady Eleanor’s fist clenched, and she swiped her arm in a sudden motion in front of her, sending Mary flying into the wall. Zane stared in horror and quickly rushed to her side to make sure she was okay. She was still breathing, but was no longer conscious. Her head had hit the wall in a loud thump, and Zane knew she would need to be healed to prevent any real damage.

He softly chanted a healing spell and watched as she was bathed in a faint white light. She would be okay, thankfully.

“You ruined my life!” His mother yelled at James. “I had everything planned, every detail accounted for! No one would have been the wiser and I would have steadily risen to the top! But then you had to come along! The one detail I did not account for! You almost cost me everything!”

James was livid. The green sheen still occupying his eyes. “Just like Lana was one detail you did not account for? What was it about her that made you want to kill her so badly? Why, when you are a witch yourself, would you even consider killing your daughter?!” He yelled, his rage almost taking on a tangible quality as his words filled the air.

“I have my reasons! No of them that matter to you!” She walked closer to James. “Lana would never even have been born if it weren’t for you! All of this could have been avoided if you had just stayed out of my life, or if you had left after you found out I was getting married! But no, you had to stay!”

“I stayed because I loved you! And only now do I realize how foolish I had been. I once believed you loved me too, but you are a cold, lifeless shell, incapable of giving or receiving love!”

“I had loved you too! That is why I couldn’t simply cut you out of my life! But you have no idea what you have done by staying! Lana should never have been born! I did the world a favor by killing her!”

Zane’s entire body tensed and he fixed his gaze on his mother. “How could you say that about your own daughter? Do you care so little about us?”

“I care about you! That is why I did what I did. To give you a chance.” Jane’s voice had taken on a different quality, and Zane could’ve imagined it, but her ice seemed to be melting. Her tone almost seemed to contain a hint of pleading to it.

“How does killing my sister give me a chance or even prove how much you care about me? She’s my sister! My best friend!” Zane yelled, on the edge of his temper.

“You can’t and will never understa—“ Before she could finished her sentence, James levitated her into the air, his hold constricting her windpipe. She glared down at him as her face started to turn blue. “One… day… you… will… thank... me… for… getting… rid… of her… before… she… could… realize….” James flung her against the wall and she hit the floor in a crumpled heap. She was also unconscious and Zane stared at her sleeping body in bewilderment. What was she about to say about Lana? What possible reason could anyone have for wanting to thank her for killing his sister?

Zane hadn’t realized that James moved closer to him and started when he noticed the sorcerer standing right next to him suddenly. “I sense a greater power in your mother than what she just displayed. Our only chance is to get out of here before she regains consciousness.”

“What do you think she was saying about Lana?” Zane asked, his expression vulnerable as he looked at his father.

“I don’t know. But it is most likely just ramblings of a mad woman. I wouldn’t take her too seriously if I were you. She was merely trying to find an excuse for doing what she did.”

Zane nodded, even though he wasn’t so sure. Yes, his mother was cruel. But he had never known her to be needlessly cruel. There had to be more to it than that. And Zane was determined to figure it out. If there was some big secret surrounding his sister, a secret that made their own mother want her dead, he needed to know it.

Zane scooped Mary into his arms and gestured for James to lead the way. They exited the house, but not before Zane spared one last glance back at his mother. From this moment forth, things were going to be so much different for him. This fact excited him as much as it frightened him. But most of all, above any other feeling he was experiencing there was great joy and hope. James had said that Lana was still alive, and while Zane was still reluctant to believe that, he couldn’t wait to see her.