Just a Little Magic Ch. 15

- "Have you had time to consider what the future would have looked like, if you hadn't seen that full moon in Atlanta?" she said. "Or did you think about it at all?"

- "I did. I thought about it a lot. I guess ... I was trying to figure out a way that I could do what Lillian and Janine wanted, save the women ... and somehow still end up with Sophie. I know that sounds pretty stupid. Especially since I proposed to Esther. But it's what I was thinking."

- "Think it through now." said Anna. "Given what you now know to be true, what do you think would have happened?"

- "Lillian and Janine would have stolen the babies. That was their purpose all along. Thirteen little girls, to raise as witches, in a coven under their complete control."

- "Yes. But what about the little girls' father?"

For a moment there, I almost drew a blank. I'd never really my considered my role in the little girls' lives - beyond my part in their conception.

Then it began to dawn on me.

- "You'd have been a liability." said Anna. "They would always be worried that you might find a way around the geas - a way to confess to someone what you'd done. At some point, you would've figured that Robert Clifford wasn't involved at all. You would've known that you'd been lied to. And then once the babies started to go missing ... their mothers would naturally have turned to you, wouldn't they?"

- "A liability? You mean ...?"

- "They would have buried you, Pete. Dead men tell no tales."

Holy shit. I was even dumber than I'd thought. Of course they would have. If Lillian and Janine could break up marriages and relationships, force 12 women to bear children, and then steal their babies ... why would they draw the line at murder?

- "Thank you." I said. "For telling me that."

- "You're welcome." said Anna. "So ... Peter ... tell me something: how many of the women on the list would you have pursued, if you hadn't been under a spell?"

- "I ... I'm sorry - I don't understand."

- "We never asked you which of them you preferred. There must have been more than one, though. Right?"

- "I'm sorry, Anna. I'm not ... comfortable with that question."

- "Really? If I was a man, I'd have been interested in quite a few of them. You didn't have a favourite? Or two, or three?"

- "No."

- "Oh, please ... that Mirella ... wow - what an incredible woman. She must be the most attractive woman you've ever met."

- "I don't agree. I thought that Janine was the absolute standard for beauty - until I met Sophie."

- "Oh, come on. I think my niece is pretty, but she's not in the same league as those two."

- "Then we'll just have to disagree."

And then, at that moment, I realized that Aunt Anna was bluffing. No - I couldn't read her mind; her defences were too strong. But she'd tipped her hand, in a sense. All of that poker playing Janine had made me do came into play: Aunt Anna was bluffing - and she knew that I wasn't buying it.

"Why did you invite me over, Anna?" I asked.

- "Because Sophie asked me to."

- "You're still protecting her, aren't you?"

Aunt Anna didn't deny it. She didn't answer me at all.

"Thank you for the meal. And the story." I said. "You've helped me quite a bit."

***

Sophie - thank you for asking your Aunt to invite me to dinner. I managed to pick the right wine by pure luck.

I appreciated hearing her story, and learning more about you and your family.

You said that you would be in touch - does that count? Anna was still being protective, but she helped me to make up my own mind, too.

I'm coming to Montreal. I don't want to simply show up on your doorstep, and surprise you. Some surprises can be unpleasant. I can easily imagine how I would feel if someone did that to me.

So I'm warning you in advance. I plan to leave around noon next Friday.

If you don't want me to come at all, you only have to say so. I'll respect your wishes. If you aren't sure until the moment I arrive ... that's okay, too. Just don't answer the door, and I'll understand.

But I really hope that you'll be there.

***

I knocked on her door. I'd never been so nervous in my entire life. It felt like I was rolling the dice for ... everything. Or nothing.

I was all in, pushing in my last chips. Win ... or lose everything.

*****