Red

I spent the entire night with Luciano, grieving about what I had lost—my friendship with Lisa, someone who I always I could trust, someone I loved, someone I dearly cared about, she was gone, forever. It was a risk for Luciano to be with me in the night but he still stayed, not giving a care about whether we could be caught or not.

We were done here.

When the next weekend arrived, we managed to leave the mansion, after taking permission from Dillion. While the East Wing still had to be explored, we did have what Cordelia wanted and we were going to give it to her, in exchange of our freedom from here.

The secrecy, the constant hiding, the distance from my family, it was getting to me at last. I had spent the past couple of nights worried sick about Fiona. I had taken cold showers to stop my mind from running wild.

"We tell her everything and then we ask her to free us." Annabeth said while adding sugar to her tea.

I nodded. My wet hair was tied up in a messy bun, strands spilled on my face and I looked like I had just murdered someone and was on the run.

"Good morning, girls." Cordelia came in the same cafe, her features young and brighter than before. I guess she was excited to learn who was the woman that kept her away from the man she loved. Who wouldn't be? "I hear you both have news for me?"

Anna's head turned, she glanced at me before looking back at Cordelia. "We do and in return for this information, we ask for our freedom." She stated, clearly.

"Now, now, that wasn't our agreement, was it?"

"We have gotten the name of the woman that has been behind Dillion for months, maybe years, the same woman that has been giving him love potions every morning." My sister's teeth gritted together, and she leaned forward, also frustrated.

Anna wanted to get marked by Ben but before that, she wanted to know about him and the only way she could was by leaving this place. On the other hand, time was ticking for me, I had only ten days to return to Lunaris and take what was mine.

"What's her name?" Cordelia asked, interested than ever.

Anna scoffed and a blew a strand of her hair away from her face. "Marissa. They call her Madam Marissa."

Terror gripped Cordelia's face as it turned pale. "No." She was in disbelief. "It's not possible."

I opened my mouth and clarified the truth for her. "She visited Dillion a few days back, asking him to get rid of us as she knew we would cause trouble for her. She had been sneaking behind your back. Anna was able to corner Brenda last night and she told us everything."

It wasn't my sister that forced the truth out of Brenda, it was Luciano but I couldn't bring that on my lips. He was able to lure the poor servant in a span of five minutes with his words and she gave in immediately, telling us everything about Marissa and Dillion.

Cordelia frowned at me, "I don't believe this. Marissa is my friend, she works for me."

I huffed out a chuckle while shaking my head. "Trust me, friends are the worst betrayers."

I never either believed Lisa would do anything, but at the end of the day, she did—she killed my grandmother. How was it so easy for her? To sit beside me and comfort me on Nana's funeral when she knew what she had done? What was so bad that she had to do this to me?

"If this is the truth, I'll end Marissa." Cordelia said, her nostrils flaring with rage as she clutched the side of the table tightly, almost breaking it apart. The veins in her hands twisted and turned black as the witch inside her came out.

"It is the truth. Marissa had been seeing Dillion for a very long time. With the help of a couple spells, she trapped him around her finger and I don't think so he loves her but is rather stuck. He has been talking about her non-stop since she came, of course she must've done something." Anna explained and the woman seated in front of us grew angrier and angrier.

When her eyes switched a pitch-black, I grabbed Anna's hand, gesturing her to stop as we didn't want Cordelia to snap in middle of a coffee shop.

"How dare she?" Cordelia went on. "She tried to take away the man I loved. My own friend."

It was a good week for friends to become enemies. I almost laughed at my own thought but stopped when Cordelia's emotions shifted from fury to sorrow. Her head lowered to the table and her loud, deep breaths filled our ears.

Did Dillion really meant a lot to her? Did she really love him? All along I thought this was just about power, being with an Alpha, being with someone strong and single. It never crossed my mind that Cordelia was in so love with the old man in the house.

"Fuck." Anna mouthed at me as she got up and went beside Cordelia. Poor woman. "You should be relieved, you know who it is now, just kill her or do whatever you want and you'll have Dillion for yourself." It wasn't consoling in anyway but she tried.

"Marissa is among my sisters." Cordelia blurted out.

"Do you love Dillion?" I asked her, eager to know their story.

"Of course." She whispered. "I came from nothing and when I started practicing magic, it turned me emotionless but powerful, more than anyone else. Dillion changed that part in me, he was able to make me feel emotions, we were together for years, he wanted to marry me but one day, everything changed and he left."

For every witch, there was a moment of life where she'd be stronger but feel nothing. I had my moment when I wasn't connected with my talisman years ago, and at that time, I wanted to kill everyone and anything except for Luciano, simply because I felt something for him.

Therefore, I was able to understand Cordelia.

"We are sorry for that." Anna lowered her voice, "Maybe try talking to him again, he's not cruel, not with us."

"He wouldn't want to come ten feet near me and you're telling me to talk to him?" She glared at my sister's eyes.

"Why?" I questioned.

"Because Dillion thinks I have planted spells on him, taken away his and his pack's happiness but I know that till date I never used my magic on him!"

Wow.

"Oh."

Cordelia pressed the bridge of her nose and shut her eyes. We gave her a minute to take in everything. It finally made sense to why she wasn't wicked, even when she was Gretel's mentor—she was simply in love with a man and nothing else mattered to her. She wore rags and lived in a small house even when we all knew that she could've been somewhere else if she had been using her powers.

After all, she bought me back to life by using her magic. She had strength but never showed it. She had the ability of becoming the Queen of Witches but she never wanted it and instead, taught someone else to be.

"We gave you the name of the woman you need to go after. Do you whatever you wish to do with Marissa, kill her, rip her throat apart, anything. But give me a few days, and Dillion will come to you, willingly and he'll believe you. I promise." I said with a faint smile over my mouth.

Anna raised an eyebrow at my words midway and by the time I finished, she nudged her elbow into my stomach. "No, shush, agreement's over, we are going to leave."

"No, Anna, everyone deserves to have a chance and Cordelia gave me life and I would want to give her something back then just a name."

Three women, one man, this was going to be fun.

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