Retribution(52)

Morrigan stopped bouncing and proudly looked to Layla. “This stunning creature is none other than my granddaughter.”

Cecelia's expression sobered as her gaze snapped to Layla. “Rhosewen and Aedan's child?”

“The one and only,” Morrigan answered.

Cecelia looked at her with wide eyes. “How have you kept this secret for so long?”

Morrigan’s smile fell as she met her friend’s stare. “Her life depended on it.”

“Of course,” Cecelia conceded, finding Layla again. “My, my, sweetie. Yes you are an extraordinary witch.”

“That's only part of the news,” Morrigan added.

“There's more?”

“Oh yes, there's more. Three days ago, Quinlan and Layla bonded.”

“What?” Cecelia gasped.

“Yep,” Morrigan confirmed. “Let the lovely hazes go.”

Quin and Layla were thrilled to obey, enveloping their guest in sparkling fog and bright colors.

“Wow,” Cecelia whispered. “It's... it's beautiful.” She shook her head in amazement then sadly found Layla’s face. “And incredibly dangerous.”

After getting comfortable, the family listened to Cecelia’s story, and while it was heart-wrenching for Layla to hear, she handled the sadness better when her aura wasn’t stifled. Having the emotions on the outside, however, had a disadvantage. Each time she felt a particularly strong surge of sadness, her aura reacted, making everyone gasp or stare. The first few times this happened Layla apologized. Then she decided to ignore their shock, because she couldn't say sorry every time she experience strong feelings. She’d be saying it all the time.

Cecelia's tale was devastating, her status a constant burden. When she was eight, her family fled their home in Michigan and moved to France to protect her from the Lost Ones. Once Agro went underground with his army, Cecelia and her bonded parents returned to the states, joining an entirely different coven in Virginia. She'd been thirteen then, and that's when she met Morrigan. Her location remained a secret until she was nineteen, at which point Agro found her and tried to coerce her into joining his army. She refused, and before he could return to force the issue, she moved to her fiancé’s community in Massachusetts, hoping the relocation would throw Agro off track. A week before her wedding, the Unforgivables came looking for her, and when she refused to leave with them, they killed her fiancé and six of his family members. Cecelia fled again, moving to Georgia, and at the age of thirty, she married and had a child. At the age of thirty-five, the Unforgivables caught up with her yet again, and she lost her husband and her four-year-old daughter to them. She was able to escape with her life and her little girl's body, but she never fully recovered from the tragedy and devoted herself to a life of solitude, vowing never to marry another man or bear another child. She moved to Nova Scotia by herself, and that's where she'd been for the past twenty-five years, living an odd existence. She held no permanent connection to a home or a family, and she was considered nomadic by the few magicians who knew her.

She quickly committed herself to the fight, telling of the continued regret and guilt that haunted her. The fact that she'd lived when her child had not led to reoccurring ruminations of suicide. Only one thing kept her from following through. For twenty-five years her life had been driven by one purpose – to defeat Agro so others wouldn't suffer at his hands.

By the time her story was told and her commitment obtained, it was time for more guests to arrive. Mere minutes after Layla and Quin concealed their lights, two identical wizards landed on the lawn.

Their names were Darrion and Delano. They were twenty-five-year-old twins born and raised in Virginia. At the age of twenty they were discovered by Agro, who kidnapped their seventeen-year-old sister in an attempt to blackmail them into the Dark Elite. They were willing to sacrifice their freedom to save her and set up a meeting to make the trade, but when they arrived, they found their sister stripped and abused, undoubtedly used to fulfill the lewd desires of Agro's men. Tempers flared, and the twins went for Agro's throat, but the coward retreated, ordering his unit to follow, which they did. But not before killing the twins’ sister. Darrion and Delano vowed vengeance, and in an effort to protect the rest of their family, they deserted their coven. Now they lived near Acapulco, Mexico, awaiting their revenge.

They had no problem committing to the battle to come. “At this point,” Darrion said, “our lives hold little value.”

When Layla and Quin's secret was revealed, it merely added to their determination to destroy the threat. Like Grant and Cecelia, the twins thought a bond so special and beautiful should have the chance to blossom in the sun, not be shadowed by evil. Only Dallas was hesitant to commit, saying he’d waited too long for revenge to sacrifice his life for a flawed plan. He did, however, agree to stick around and help and perhaps reevaluate his decision to fight should they procure a larger army.