18. GOOD PURPOSE

Feeling the need to go back to his room, Desmond ascended the grand stairs and turned left as he climbed further.

He had a frown on his face as he thought about the mark on Angelina's neck and the crow.

     "Desmond." Someone called after him and he sighed before turning to see who it was.

Amelia had a mischievous look as she elegantly walked up to him and he narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously.

       "What is it this time Amelia?"

"What do you think Desmond?" She asked back and he bit his lower lip and looked everywhere but her, as if she said something he didn't understand.

"Oh stop it Desmond, I caught you red-handed yesterday and do you know what I found?" She rested a hand on her waist as she gave a bold look.

Desmond had an amused look and he leaned against the wall and folded his arms as he waited for her to expose him.

       "Your mate is a sea creature and so is your daughter."

The amusement in his eyes increased and he snickered at her, making her glare at him.

"Stop it Desmond, there's no need to hide them…what's the point in hiding them?" She asked with a serious look.

He smiled at her as he responded.

"I'm glad you show concern for them Amelia but you got it all wrong. My daughter is not under there and so is my mate. I only went down there to find answers regarding Angelina."

"Your reason isn't strong enough Desmond. I don't even buy it one bit."

She gave him a dull look and he smiled.

"One day you'll get to meet both of them and that day isn't far, I can assure you. My mate isn't someone ordinary to show herself anyhow…"

He turned and was about to walk away after that when Amelia suddenly stopped him by holding his arm.

When he faced her, he saw concern in her eyes.

"If your mate continues hiding herself then she'll only be hurting you and you'll end up living a lonely life."

His eyes nearly widened but he schooled his features so she wouldn't know what went through his mind.

"I saw how you looked at Beta Connery and his mate with longing. You yearn for what they have Desmond."

He looked at her with a sad look and forced a smile before looking behind her.

      "Your mate is waiting for you." He informed her but her eyes remained rooted to him.

"It's high time she came out from the river Desmond. The longer she stays down there, the more she hurts you…"

"You shouldn't bother yourself about her Amelia." He tried to brush off the topic.

"But I am greatly bothered by it, Desmond. It's strange to be apart from your mate…"

"Amelia." Aaron called her name as he came to stand some inches behind her.

Desmond sighed in relief and turned to leave them but Amelia stood rooted as she watched him leave. She pitied him.

"They have their reasons why they're apart." Aaron explained as he placed his hands on her shoulders while staring at Desmond's retreating figure.

When he was no longer in sight, she turned to face Aaron with warmth in her eyes and he leaned in to plant a tender kiss on her forehead.

"I would never leave your side, my love," he vowed.

*

When Desmond was far away from them, a look of sadness covered his face and tears filled his eyes as he leaned against the wall and tried to stifle a cry.

His heart was breaking day by day but he didn't want to let anyone know what he was facing.

Only Angelina understood what he was facing. He needed her but with what she was facing currently, it made things worse.

A tear ran down his face and he covered his eyes as he sobbed. He was totally lost on what to do and it frustrated him.

His shoulders shook as his back slid against the wall before he sat to the ground.

*

Her eyes adjusted to the darkness as she regained consciousness.

She had an exhausted look as she slowly sat upright. This time around, she was in a room. An eerie dark room.

Her head throbbed and her face twisted at the pain she felt.

"I thought you wouldn't wake up." A muffled bass voice reached her ears and she lifted her eyes to look in front of her.

A lamp suddenly lit but the flame was light blue in color.

Her eyes widened when she was able to see what spoke. It was the cloaked crow.

It had a long hat on and a magnifying glass. Its beak was large and Angelina stared at it in fascination instead of fear.

       "You're a crow and also a corvin…but what exactly are you and what do you want from me?" She didn't hesitate to ask as she adjusted in the chair she sat on.

The corvin watched her without moving and it was very creepy but she squinted her eyes at it, wondering why it was staring at her in such a way.

"I want you to adjust to this whole new side." Its eerie bass made her skin crawl but she showed no sign of fear.

"For what purpose?"

"A good purpose."

"And what is that?" She probed as she scrutinized its creepy movement.

"Me," came its straightforward reply and she frowned.

"You don't look good to me…you're full of evil." She bluntly said and it chuckled darkly, causing its creepy bass voice to echo around the room.

"I am. That's why I want you to adjust to this side because you're already bound to the dark side and there's no going back."

"You marked me without my consent!" She raised her voice at it as she frowned angrily.

"I am a white witch for goodness sake and I'm not supposed to mingle with evil."

"Yet you are." It bluntly said and her mood turned sour.

"Take me back."

"Even if I take you back, you will still come to me." It told her and she gritted her teeth with a glare in her eyes.

"I can't stand the sight of you." She finally blurted out when it began to sink into her mind how horrific it was.

"I'm glad you can't, that's a good step." Her eyes widened at its words and she became extremely angry as her eyes turned yellow in color.

"I will burn you this instance if you do not take me back." She warned as she began to glow bright orange.

"Go ahead. But it's a pity you do not know what you are up against, which would only make your efforts futile." It calmly responded as it waited for her to attack it.

      "Burn," she blurted the word with ease and orange flames engulfed the corvin but it sat unmoving with an unreadable expression as it watched her.

The room was brightened by the flames and she was able to see what she couldn't see before.

Her eyes grew large and her lips parted in dread as the room was filled with crows.

They began to caw at her and she immediately brought her frightened gaze back to the corvin who stood tall before her with the orange flames licking its body but it didn't burn as she expected.

Her fighting instinct kicked in and she cast a spell of protection before it could harm her, and a glass orb appeared around her.

        "It seems like you want it the hard way Angelina. How about we go for a walk in the sky, shall we?"

Her heart was racing as its feathered hand broke through the glass orb and tried to reach her but she suddenly vanished into thin air, leaving it staring at the empty chair.

.

Angelina appeared in a strange place and tumbled to the ground before rolling until she hit a tree.

She groaned in pain and rolled over so she could see where she was.

She purposely didn't want to use her vanishing magic at first because she didn't know where she was or where it would take her.

The trees were long as if they reached the sky and she was grateful for how bright the moon shone.

Fog covered the ground and she struggled to her feet and staggered as she felt dizzy.

She began to see double but she refused to succumb.

She blinked several times and her heart did a flip when she saw the corvin stand still as it watched her ten steps away in the fog.

Without spending another second, she turned in another direction and ran like a mad woman.