Bound By Blood (Book 7)

Chapter 12

"In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act." – George Orwell

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Amy had healed Lauren, Stephanie pacing nervously in the background. Christina turned to her once they knew Lauren was alright. 'What happened?' She asked, still angry.

'Like Lauren said, a demon attacked.' Stephanie said.

'Where?' Katherine wondered. 'I thought Lauren was at the library.' Katherine turned to the second youngest accusingly.

'I'm sorry.' Lauren said. 'I didn't go to the library; I went to Aunt Steph's.'

'No, I saw you go in.' Dani said.

'I was only there for like fifteen minutes Dan.' Lauren said, her little sister sitting back feeling hurt at the betrayal. 'If I said I was going to Aunt Stephanie's you would have said no.'

'For good reason, it would seem.' Amy said.

'We didn't know a demon was going to attack the apartment.' Lauren protested.

'The demon knew where you lived?' Lisa asked their Aunt.

'It was the guy I told you about, the one with the grey eyes.' Lauren reminded them.

'He is a demon then.' Dani said. 'So why did he attack you?' There was a silence before Christina turned to her Aunt.

'Tell us the truth Steph. What does this demon want from you?'

'What makes you think he want's something?' Stephanie queried.

'Please, he's been to your place twice now and hasn't killed you.' Christina said. 'If a demon doesn't try to kill a witch, it means he wants something.'

'Aunt Step, you knew his name. And I heard you tell him that you needed more time. Time for what?' Lauren asked. Stephanie sighed and sat on the couch.

'His name is Seth.' Stephanie began. 'We met on my travels and he worked out that I was a Cimorelli witch.'

'Why does that matter?' Lisa asked.

'We were quite famous in the demonic community, when we were taking down demons back in the day.' Stephanie smiled at the memory. 'Your mother was the leader and almost every demon feared her. We had an antique ring which could absorb power. I'm surprised Michelle didn't tell you about it or pass it down.'

'And this demon, Seth, wants the ring?' Amy asked.

'He does.' Stephanie confirmed. 'He said that I needed to get him the ring or he'd kill me.'

'And you think we have it?' Katherine asked. 'Why didn't you just ask us?'

'I thought I could just find it myself and not have to involve you at all.' Stephanie protested.

'Well that worked out great.' Christina said sarcastically. 'Lauren got hurt because we didn't know what was going on. I don't care what you do Aunt Steph, I really don't, but one of my sisters was hurt because of you.' Christina glared at her. 'And I'm not going to let that happen again, so you are going to sit here and tell us everything you know about this demon and the ring.'

'Alright.' Stephanie conceded. 'The ring is an heirloom, passed down through the witches in our family. Your mother had it for a long time and she should have passed it down to Christina. That's the way it works. But it seems to have been misplaced somewhere.'

'I don't remember anything about a ring.' Christina said. 'She never talked about it, never wore anything other than her wedding band.'

'She took it out for demon hunting only so it's likely you never would have seen it.' Stephanie told them.