[ WP ] `` At first they came back with nothing , and then they did n't come back at all . ''

“ His father was a great wizard once, ” Miranda said, forming a circle with her mouth, like a fish out of water, and blew out a ring of smoke. I suppose becoming immortal at the age of seventy eight had at least one perk. She smoked like a steam train, and I hadn ’ t heard her cough even once. “ Back when the Halbrook compound was attacked in ‘ 86, he was the one that saved Vera ’ s coven. You can ask anyone, they ’ ll tell you. ” She waved her pipe my way, and crossed her legs. 
 
 “ So, why wouldn ’ t he help us now? ” I asked, wrapping myself tighter in the wooly, red blanket. I had to open all the windows just to breath around Miranda, and the icy wind numbed my fingers and toes. 
 
 Vera and Cil went out to Asher ’ s Private Storage, a security facility for witches and wizards, for the second time, today, without me. The first time was to scout the place, and today, to find out what her grandmother had hidden there. They offered money and to take me to a safe place once they decided to go out on their own, and I received neither, so I wasn ’ t worried that they left me behind quite yet, but darkness clad the sky and they had yet to return or let us know that they were okay. My nerves were up, and I kept listening for the sound of Cil ’ s car. 
 
 “ You know that they ’ re elemental witches, yes? ” She pushed back a long streak of grey hair behind her ear. 
 
 I nodded, pulling the blanket up to my neck. Vera ’ s absence somewhat changed the old grouch into a tolerable human being. I ’ d say *nice* but I didn ’ t want to jinx it. 
 
 “ Well, about a year ago, a High Talon—that ’ s Cillian ’ s coven, dear—wizard had a bit too much to drink. You ’ ve seen the way Cillian uses the air to travel... ” she paused, looking up at me over blue rimmed glasses, and waited for acknowledgement. I nodded and she continued. “ This wizard did just that and ended up in Halbrook. We don ’ t know exactly what happened, but they gave him back with his limbs in one bag and his torso and head in the other. ” 
 
 My eyes widened. Vera never mentioned that her coven was violent. She only ever called them protectors, and well, that didn ’ t sound much like protecting. “ They just killed him because he entered their compound? ” 
 
 Miranda ’ s head tilted to the side, and her lips pursed to one side in contemplation. “ It ’ s a little more complicated than that. One of their witches, Natalia Noor, is said to have done it. She had been captured by a few men outside of the compound as a young girl—heaven alone knows what they did to her. ” Her expression grew darker. “ She hasn ’ t been quite right in the head ever since. Very twitchy and, ” she shivered, “ has the empty eyes of a corpse, I tell you. He ’ s said to have crashed into her house, and well, came out in trash bags. ” 
 
 “ But if everyone knows the witch is... different, ” I struggled to come up with the right word and chose the first one that came to mind, “ I don ’ t understand why he wouldn ’ t help Vera and Cil? ” 
 
 “ The Halbrook coven refused to give Natalia up to them so that she could receive her punishment. ” She shrugged. “ And the drunk was Cil ’ s uncle, so there ’ s that as well. ” 
 
 “ Oh, I see how that can be a problem, ” I said, twiddling with my fingers. “ What ’ s the punishment for something like that? ” 
 
 “ Death by fire, ” she said simply, as if she were talking about the color of the sky. Rubbing her hands together for some warmth, Miranda stood, and stretched her back. “ Hot chocolate? ” 
 
 “ Witches burn witches at the stake? ” I asked, frowning. “ Isn ’ t that supposed to be our job? ” Humans didn ’ t have the best reputation among witches, but truth be told, our policy with everything that ’ s different, is to destroy it. 
 
 “ Oh no, sweets, ” she shook her head while opening a cupboard where she stored the cups, “ they get taken to Rosali Proz, the provincial executioner. The excusers and sometimes family of the accused, friends if they had any, gather for a final celebration. One for life and one for retribution. It ’ s all very nice. ” She set the kettle onto the stove and turned her back to the counter, leaning against it. My expression my must have been that of utter shock, because she raised up her and shook her head in mild justification. “ Oh no, no. Really, it is. They give the accused a nice little drink to put them to sleep, and slide ‘ em into an oven. ” Her brows furrowed. “ There ’ s no pain involved—that we know of. ” 
 
 I closed my gaping mouther, and nodded. “ Yes, sounds delightful. ” 
 
 We sat in silence for a moment before the whistle of the kettle sounded, and cups clinked as she poured us the hot chocolate. It must have been past ten o ’ clock, and there was no sign of either of them. 
 
 “ Are you not worried about them at all? ” I asked, interlacing my fingers. “ Last time they came back in about five hours, it ’ s almost been eight now. ” 
 
 Miranda didn ’ t answer. She picked up two steaming cups and came to set one down in front of me. Avoiding eye contact, she walked over to the couch, and bent down, coming back up with a heavy looking, black duffle bag. 
 
 A chill passed my spine, and a dull, empty ache crossed my heart. Betrayal was indeed cold. I looked at the bag and took a deep breath, nodding to myself. “ After all I ’ ve done for her? ” 
 
 Miranda set the bag down on the couch. “ They conjured you some money, and I can walk you to the bus stop in the morning. She cares for you, dear, and that ’ s exactly why she did it. ” 
 
 I put my elbow on the armrest of the couch, and placed my forehead into my palm. “ I have nowhere to go. My bloody house is out of the question after Vera led that whatever-the-name-is coven there. And now she ’ s left me too. ” 
 
 Miranda came to sit on the couch with me, and put a gentle hand on my knee. “ Do you know that there ’ s an ongoing witch hunt for her now? Witches from all over the world are streaming in to find her. ” She tapped her hand, and moved it to my shoulder. “ No one in their right mind would let a human anywhere near that mess, sweets, especially not one they care for. ” 
 
 “ So they ’ re not coming back at all. This is it? Am I supposed to forget about them now? About magic? How the hell am I supposed to go back to some mediocre life? ” I shook her hand off my shoulder and took my face in both hands. Tears warmed my eyes, but I was not sad, they came with anger. “ I can ’ t shitting believe it! ” 
 
 “ You could always stay here with me, ” Miranda said. I looked at her and found a gleaming smile on her face. “ Come on, it ’ ll be great. You can help me tend the garden. You can go out and buy one of those television things. It ’ ll be fun. ” 
 
 She must have been very lonely, because the first time the two of us met, I heard her call me ‘ that one ’ and even ‘ the dark one who talks a lot ’ once, and I knew that she knew my damn name. Tina, it doesn ’ t get very much easier than that. I frowned and looked her over. 
 
 “ They ’ ll come fetch you when they ’ re done. ” Miranda put her arm around me again. “ I ’ m sure of it. ” 
 
 ***** 
 
 More stories about Vera, Cil and Tina here, /r/AlinaKG
