around?”
“No,” said Grams. “The women in our line only give birth to girls.”
That sounded preposterous. “Why? How?”
“I don’t know.”
“You’re saying for 325 years, every woman in our line has given birth to a girl and none of them have delivered a boy? That’s impossible!”
“Highly improbable? Yes. Impossible? Not when magic exists. It tends to manipulate events based on those magical beings who call upon it. I look forward to uncovering the truth when I cross over. But for now, no one knows why. Our line only produces females. It’s so expected that everyone in the line has given up fighting what seems will always be.”
I had a difficult time trying to understand that one, so I moved on to a more pressing issue. “You said there wasn’t time to tell me everything, and now you think you’ll be leaving soon.”
“I’ll hang on as long as I can.”
“That means…you’ll pass away soon?”
Grams shook her head. “Don’t worry about that. Concentrate on what you can control.”
“But you taught me that we can’t control everything.”
She smiled and nodded. “You always were a good listener.”
Her confidence in me sparked another question. “Do you know what powers I have?”
“If you used them, I’d be able to sense the residue from your actions, but since you haven’t done so…” She shrugged. “Remember this though: our line has no history of twins. You and Alexis have not followed the natural path. So I have no idea what powers you might have or what you two might be capable of.”
“Grams,” I said. “I understand why you didn’t tell me, but it doesn’t sound too convincing. There has to be another reason.”
She clamped her lips together as though fearing that she’d rebuke me. A dark grimace flashed across her face. After a few moments, she said, “When you were a toddler, I revealed one of my abilities to you…and you were absolutely terrified. At that moment, I decided to wait until you needed to know. That day is today.”
I didn’t recall the incident that Grams referred to. “Why do my mother and sister hate me?”
“Because they feel you might have more power than Alexis. So they fear you.”
“But I don’t want to hurt anyone.”
“Yes, but they do.”
“What? Why? I don’t understand.”
“Delphine is one of Zephora’s disciples. As I said, I don’t know if they’ve been in contact, but I wouldn’t doubt it. Because Alexis looks up to your mother, she has also followed that path. But to lessen some of your worries, a mother cannot harm her children. Magic won’t allow it. That was one smart rule that Zephora put into place.”
“That means what? Delphine won’t attack me but my sister might? Why? I’m not a threat to her.”
“Your mother thinks you are, so your sister thinks the same.”
“I don’t know anything about being a witch. How can I be a threat to anyone?”
“Common sense doesn’t matter when it comes to Delphine. What matters is what she thinks and how she feels. After all these years, I’ve never been able to understand what she wants or why.” Her face grew stern. “Stay away from her and Alexis, but practice your abilities—once you discover them.”
“How do I do that? Hop on a broom and fly over to Hogwarts for a one-on-one with Hermione?”
She gave me an impatient look.
“Sorry. How do I protect myself?”
A grave expression appeared on her face. “By killing them before they kill you!”
CHAPTER FIVE
An hour later, after taking a taxi to Grams’s shop, The Antique Boutique , a small business operation that she’d run since I was a child, we stood at the front of the shop. The room was filled with nondescript items: a dusty iron serving plate from the 1920s, a 19 th century bicycle, dolls from the American Revolution, and so many more esoteric items that few would want on any given day, except collectors who must have resorted to searching for like-minded items
“No,” said Grams. “The women in our line only give birth to girls.”
That sounded preposterous. “Why? How?”
“I don’t know.”
“You’re saying for 325 years, every woman in our line has given birth to a girl and none of them have delivered a boy? That’s impossible!”
“Highly improbable? Yes. Impossible? Not when magic exists. It tends to manipulate events based on those magical beings who call upon it. I look forward to uncovering the truth when I cross over. But for now, no one knows why. Our line only produces females. It’s so expected that everyone in the line has given up fighting what seems will always be.”
I had a difficult time trying to understand that one, so I moved on to a more pressing issue. “You said there wasn’t time to tell me everything, and now you think you’ll be leaving soon.”
“I’ll hang on as long as I can.”
“That means…you’ll pass away soon?”
Grams shook her head. “Don’t worry about that. Concentrate on what you can control.”
“But you taught me that we can’t control everything.”
She smiled and nodded. “You always were a good listener.”
Her confidence in me sparked another question. “Do you know what powers I have?”
“If you used them, I’d be able to sense the residue from your actions, but since you haven’t done so…” She shrugged. “Remember this though: our line has no history of twins. You and Alexis have not followed the natural path. So I have no idea what powers you might have or what you two might be capable of.”
“Grams,” I said. “I understand why you didn’t tell me, but it doesn’t sound too convincing. There has to be another reason.”
She clamped her lips together as though fearing that she’d rebuke me. A dark grimace flashed across her face. After a few moments, she said, “When you were a toddler, I revealed one of my abilities to you…and you were absolutely terrified. At that moment, I decided to wait until you needed to know. That day is today.”
I didn’t recall the incident that Grams referred to. “Why do my mother and sister hate me?”
“Because they feel you might have more power than Alexis. So they fear you.”
“But I don’t want to hurt anyone.”
“Yes, but they do.”
“What? Why? I don’t understand.”
“Delphine is one of Zephora’s disciples. As I said, I don’t know if they’ve been in contact, but I wouldn’t doubt it. Because Alexis looks up to your mother, she has also followed that path. But to lessen some of your worries, a mother cannot harm her children. Magic won’t allow it. That was one smart rule that Zephora put into place.”
“That means what? Delphine won’t attack me but my sister might? Why? I’m not a threat to her.”
“Your mother thinks you are, so your sister thinks the same.”
“I don’t know anything about being a witch. How can I be a threat to anyone?”
“Common sense doesn’t matter when it comes to Delphine. What matters is what she thinks and how she feels. After all these years, I’ve never been able to understand what she wants or why.” Her face grew stern. “Stay away from her and Alexis, but practice your abilities—once you discover them.”
“How do I do that? Hop on a broom and fly over to Hogwarts for a one-on-one with Hermione?”
She gave me an impatient look.
“Sorry. How do I protect myself?”
A grave expression appeared on her face. “By killing them before they kill you!”
CHAPTER FIVE
An hour later, after taking a taxi to Grams’s shop, The Antique Boutique , a small business operation that she’d run since I was a child, we stood at the front of the shop. The room was filled with nondescript items: a dusty iron serving plate from the 1920s, a 19 th century bicycle, dolls from the American Revolution, and so many more esoteric items that few would want on any given day, except collectors who must have resorted to searching for like-minded items
Similar Books
