The next morning, Tyrus is sitting at the dining table in the kitchen drinking apple juice when Esther walks in. Tyrus had been thinking about having a conversation with her. He had made two obvious moves on her and she had not responded to any of them in the way she used to. It was not that he was hurt, but he wanted to know the reason behind her changed attitude. He wanted to know if everything was okay with her. Also, he wanted to make sure that he had not done anything inappropriate without realization.
“Good morning Esther,” Tyrus says.
“Good morning.”
She walks over to the fridge, grabs a bottle of orange juice for herself, and sits at the table.
“I wanted to ask you something,” Tyrus says.
“Well, hello!” says Damion.Esther tears her eyes away from the place from where Lilia and Brent had vanished and says, “Hi, how are you?” looking at Damion.It had been one thing imagining that Brent is with Lilia, but it was entirely different to actually see them together. It made Esther’s heart throb with a dull ache.“I am good, as usual,” says Damion, but Esther notices that he does not sound like his usual cheery self.“Um, I’ll see you around, “ he mumbles and walks out of the door leaving Esther standing near the stairs and lamenting the fact that she is not in Lilia’s place.*
The next morning, Lilia wakes up cuddled together with Brent and says, “Good morning handsome, happy birthday eve”Brent smiles.He kisses her and says, “Thanks, baby.”Both of them get up and shower together, lathering each other with soap and washing it off. Brent traces Lilia’s body with his hands as he washes the soap off her. Lilia feels the fiery sensation that she always did at his touch. Brent pins her to the wall and starts kissing her. She moves her hands over his back and down to his butt, squeezing him and pulling him closer to her. He lifts her with ease and she wraps her legs around him as he enters her and starts to move back and forth.“Oh Brent,” Lilia moans.He
Lilia had called some decorators and when Brent returns from the hospital with her, he sees that they are already at work. Lilia was much more excited about his birthday than he was. Maybe after celebrating over 180 birthdays, you kinda lose the excitement, he thought. But he was infested by Lilia’s enthusiasm.Brent looks around the house, but he couldn’t see Esther anywhere. He had not told Lilia that he had seen Esther at the hospital because he wanted to ask her first. Maybe Esther didn’t want anyone to know. While talking to Tyrus he casually asks where Esther is, but he doesn't know. Eventually, Lilia’s talks about his birthday diverted his mind from Esther.*Esther had left the hospital with the blood bag about an hour ago and she was going to meet Mia.
Esther stands in her washroom, staring at herself in the mirror. Brent had seen her in the hospital. She should have waited some time more. She sighs, placing her hand on her forehead. She should have come up with a reason for being there instead of outright denying it which was stupid. But she couldn’t think of anything else at the moment. It was kinda hard to lie to him. He was too nice to be lied to and she was touched by what he had just said. He must have known that she was lying, but he did not insist on the truth which, honestly, made Esther feel even more uncomfortable about having lied.She glances at her wristwatch and notices that it’s about to be midnight. She should go outside and join the others for the cake-cutting.*Damion was cozying up to Emily in a corner in the sh
One week laterIt was early morning, but Esther had been lying awake for hours. She just could not sleep. The prospect of what was going to happen tonight was weighing on her. She is going to leave for Mia’s before midday. She has to transport the coffin and that might take some time. Mia had sent her the location of the place they would be performing the ritual. It was halfway up the hill at the top of which she had seen the sunset with Brent. Then finally, after all these years, she would see her sister again. The excitement she is feeling is such that it is making her nervous. As much as she wants to see her sister again, she would miss being here. She would miss seeing Brent, being friends with him and the rest of them. She lies there for some more time staring at the ceiling and when the sun is finally up, she gets up and walks into the bathroom to get ready for the day.
Esther is standing in the middle of a clearing with Mia surrounded by trees on all sides. There is a fire blazing between them. Mia is sitting cross-legged and chanting. On her right is a bronze vessel full of Lilia’s blood and on her left is the coffin. Its lid is open and it contains the body of a girl. But her skin has turned gray. She seemed to have desiccated.Esther is standing a little away from the fire, on the other side, with her hands crossed over her chest. Mia had cast an enchantment around all of them and this place. The Junta or anyone else would not be able to trace them, at least not until the ritual is complete. It would take a few hours. Mia had said that it is a complicated procedure. She is now waving one of her hands over the fire and holding the blood vessel with the other. After a few more movements, she gets up and walks to the coffin. She pours carefully measur
Brent had never driven faster in his life. Tyrus and he were at the bottom of the hill within ten minutes and were now climbing and running upwards at top speed. They crept through the trees and thickets swiftly but silently. Soon, they saw a light from a distance and even though Brent could not see the source of it, he had a feeling that they had found the place. They creep slowly towards the source of light and stop behind two giant trees with some space between the branches from where they could look. Brent looks at the scene and sees that Esther is down on the ground and an old witch is chanting something, moving a vessel around and there is also an ornate coffin on her left. Brent’s mind is running at top speed, thinking of ways and ideas to get Esther out of here safely. He knew that if this witch had gone to such lengths to secure Lilia’s blood, she must have made it difficult to reach her as well. Then, he gets an idea and in a ver
Lilia is traveling back home with Damion in his car. They are not talking much. She is still shaken by everything that has happened in the past few hours. The fact that she could have died and Esther would have been the reason behind it. By a stroke of luck, Brent had seen Esther at the hospital, otherwise, no one knows what would have happened. What if it had been too late till the Junta tracked Esther and her witch? There is something more that Brent and Tyrus had not told them on call. They wanted them to come home instead.Lilia wraps her hands around herself and looks out of the window. The fact that she could have died isn’t the only thing that is bothering her. There is something more. Something that had happened between her and Damion just before she started having chest pains. If Esther’s witch had not started the ritual at that exact moment, they would have kissed and Li