Spellbound Hearts || The Vampire Diaries

The wind howled against the windows of the old house in the Ashford forest, as if it wanted to get in. The candles flickered, casting feverish shadows on the walls loaded with symbols. The smell of burnt herbs and iron filled the air.

Lydia Ashford was standing on the threshold of the living room, unable to move. In front of her, Nathaniel drew lines of light with his fingers, his face streaked with sweat and concentration.

"Nathaniel, stop... please." Her voice trembled more than fire in the candlesticks.

He didn't listen to her. His hands opened as if to grab something invisible. The magic answered: a draft of air exploded the windows, the floor shook, and Lydia realized that she was about to lose it.

"Don't you understand?" He shouted. "I can control it, I can-"

The phrase died in a flash. The flames enveloped him, coveted screams cut the air.

When Lydia managed to move, the circle of salt was shattered and her husband's body was in the center, motionless, charred.

Behind her, a small and confused voice: "Mom?"

Lydia turned around suddenly. Isabelle was on the threshold, her face illuminated by a flame leaning towards her, as if attracted. For a moment the room seemed to breathe with the little girl, the fire swelled, the wind fell silent.

"Get back in the car, honey. Don't look."

The little girl hesitated, then obeyed, getting back into the car.

When the door closed, Lydia fell to her knees next to Nathaniel's body. Tears ran down her face, but she didn't dare to touch it.

From that day on, the Ashford house remained silent. The windows were repaired, the symbols deleted, the candles extinguished.

But Lydia didn't destroy anything.

She locked every grimoire, every amulet, every memory behind a locked door, and swore to herself that Isabelle would never know who her father really was.

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