I Prefer Witches

Chapter 18

"Then I think this is a step closer to something. How long has it been since you last talked to them?" She asked. I shrug my shoulders.

"I think it was at Christmas." I said.

"When do you want to go?" Hecate asked.

"Before dinner time. There's a chance Fluer might be there so I can speak to them before she goes home." I said. The truth is I'm not sure Fluer wanted to see me right now. I hadn't contacted her in a while even after the baby was born. And I still needed to apologise for last year, something we both tried to ignore. It was our first fight and we just never knew what to do after it.

Were we still okay or have we fallen out?

"There's still a few hours then perhaps we can watch one of those shows you've been watching" Hecate suggested and I agreed with the idea and entered the living space to make myself comfortable.

X

Perhaps this was a bad idea. Everything was awkward as we all sat around the kitchen table. I hadn't expected everyone to be here. And by everyone I meant the whole gang. The grandmother however was out with a few friends and I was glad for it.

"Aren't you going to say anything. Tell us why you're here after not hearing a single word from you for months." My sister said glaring at me. I folded in on myself, it felt suffocating in here. I felt a hand take mine and as I looked up at Hecate she gave me an encouraging smile.

"Freya?" My dad said as he saw the interaction. I sucked in a breath looking down at our hands then finally opened my mouth.

"I've got a lot to say and I hope you haven't eaten yet." I said. Merlin why is that the first thing to come out of my mouth.

"Hecate and I" there was a pause as I thought what to say "Hecate and I are going to court next week as witnesses." I said.

"Witnesses?" Donna questioned.

"Yes to the Laurent case." There hadn't been much information on it but it has been on the news so people did know about about Edmunds recent arrest.

"You mean with that young lad who abused that poor wee lass?" My grandfather asked.

"Yes that's it." I said.

"I've heard that three other girls have came forward since his arrest." Fluer said.

"What goes through his head to make him do such a thing." Donna said.

"That girl has saved so many others that may fall victim to him " Dad said.

"A brave little thing she was." Grandfather said. I tightened my grip on Hecates hand when I heard that. Was I brave?

"That girl your talking about is sitting right here, in front of you." I said not able to look up.

"What?" Fluer questioned in disbelief.

"Freya?" Dad's small voice came and it took everything within not to start crying.

"And I was scared, so scared for my life that I never said anything." I said and from there I told them everything from the day I woke up in the hospital bed right down to the point of how relieved I was two days ago when my cycle came, so there was no baby like he wanted to trap me.

"We should have picked up on it from your strange behaviour." Fluer said.

"By next week everyone will know and it terrifies me that somehow he's going to walk free." I said.

"He won't. There's nothing that can save him from this." Aunt Donna said. Dad looked over at her and I knew by their expressions there was a secret that only they shared.

Hecate and I stayed for supper and left around nine. It drained me from all the emotions that were running through my mind.

"Maybe we can stay in bed all day. Do absolutely nothing." Hecate said as she changed into her night dress.

"I like the sound of that. It been ages since I've been able to." I said as I climbed into the bed.

"There's something else I've been meaning to speak to you about." She said when she got in the bed.

"Go on then." I said.

"I've decided it's time to take a break from teaching." She said. I raised a brow.

"Hecate are you ill?" I asked.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked offended by the question.

"For as long as I've known you there's never been a single time you've took a day off and now you're telling me you want to go on a break." I said.

"It's as you said I have never had a day of. I've been teaching for over thirty years and I think it's about time I do it. Besides it means I get more time with you." She said. I grinned at her.

"There are many things I can think of us doing in that time." I told her.