Chapter 1
“Why was Titus here?”
Cornelius had his back to her, focused on whatever he was reading on the desk, and Natalie waited, even though there was a chance he might not answer. With how things were it was more likely than him answering.
“For the ritual.” Cornelius sighed, turning. “It’s all he cares about.”
Of course Natalie was there, asking questions about Titus, because she ‘needed’ to know. Cornelius crossed his arms, eyes on his wife. How different would their lives have been if Jonathan was born with magic? There was no way of knowing.
“Nothing else?”
“You’re worried.”
“It’s not as though you haven’t made it obvious who you care about, Cornelius.”
“I’ll do what needs to be done.”
What did that even mean? Cornelius wasn’t going to give a clear answer, he didn’t want Natalie to know, but she had to try, for the girls.
“Have you thought about what how that will affect your daughters?”
“There’s no easy answer to that question, Natalie. Yes, I have, and it’s the best option we have.”
From the expression on Natalie’s face his words weren’t helping, but then Cornelius didn’t plan on helping, exactly. Just being honest with her. For too long the two of them had lied to each other.
“Best option?”
“I know you don’t believe me.”
“This is all for Anne. Both of you believe you know what’s best for her. Have you asked her what she wants?”
“She wants to be free.”
“Free?”
Mind turning once more to what Leonora said about Titus and Anne, about how Anne was before, there was no doubt Cornelius knew more than she did, and Natalie had no reason to think he’d be more open with her. He didn’t trust her. From the way he’d been it didn’t seem as though he even liked her.
“None of this matters to you.”
“How could it not matter, Cornelius? Whatever happens this is going to affect me, and, more than that, it’s going to affect the girls. They deserve better right now.”
“Do they?”
“Their actions were based on mine, because they’re still children. Blaming them for my mistakes isn’t fair.”
“Both of them are old enough to know how they treated their brother was wrong. They could have made different choices, but they saw him the same way the rest of Glimmerbrook did. He was less. Would they apologise now if they were to see him? Truly apologise, not just to get back on my good side? I don’t believe they would, Natalie.”
“Why are you being like this?”
“Anne was one of the few who treated Jonathan like a person.”
Back to Anne again. “Yes, I know, and I’m grateful he had someone, but this… I need you to be honest with me, Cornelius. What are you doing? Does this all have something to do with whoever it was you had in your body?”
“Julian helped me see the truth, Natalie. For the first time I know who Titus truly is, and he’s not the man who should be leading the Council, so that means I need to find a way to stop him.”
“Why you?”
“There’s no one else with the courage. All the others will do what he wants to protect their families.”
“You should do the same.”
“No, I shouldn’t, because if everyone makes that choice everything will stay the way they’ve always been.”
“Others have tried, Cornelius.” Maybe Leonora wasn’t right, but if she was enough had died in their attempts to stop Titus, and his would be another name on the list. “Does Anne what you to do this?”
“She doesn’t get to make the decision for me.”
Obviously that wasn’t the right answer either. Natalie wanted something he wasn’t willing to give. The same way Anne did, but at least she’d argued against his choices from a place of love – she cared.
“Which means she doesn’t want you to do this, knowing how likely it is you’re not going to succeed. Please, Cornelius. Listen to her.”
“Anne doesn’t know who I am now, Natalie, but she will. I made a promise, and I’m going to keep it.”
“To Julian?”
“Yes, to Julian, because he loved her too. He didn’t want her to be trapped the same way she has been for so long, and this is the best chance we have to free her. You don’t get to argue against this when you only have one life to worry about.”
“So do you.”
Unless things went as planned, but that wasn’t a subject to bring up with Natalie. One of the many things she didn’t need to know.
“Yes, I know, but I want to use this one life I have the right way, rather than letting Titus do the same thing he’s always done before.”
Natalie breathed in deeply, looking at him, and from the way she shook her head it was obvious she didn’t know how to argue against that.
“The right way according to you, and a soul who desperately wanted revenge. I understand why Julian felt the way he did. What you’re doing… I want to support it, but when I think about what might happen… Cornelius, the girls need you. Of the two of us you made the right choices when it came to Jonathan. You’re the better parent. All I’m asking is you think about them.”
“I’m thinking about them, and the children they’ll have. Stopping Titus will make Glimmerbrook a better place. Otherwise the same thing will happen the next time he’s born into this world, until he finally manages to keep his own promise, but in doing so he’s going to make Anne’s life worse, something I don’t want to happen. She deserves better.”
“How, exactly, are you planning on stopping him, Cornelius? He’s far stronger than you, or anyone else in Glimmerbrook, other than Anne, who seems unable to stop him either.”
“They’re tied together. If one dies they both die.” It was more honest than he planned on being, but maybe it was for the best, if it explained Anne’s ‘failures’. “Someone needs to undo that, for Anne to live a normal life.”
“Someone meaning you, because no one else has.”
“Think about it, Natalie. You’re young. Everything’s changed in ways you couldn’t have expected. As a survivor Anne made certain choices that led her to where she is now, and nothing about this is her fault.”
“I’m not saying it is.” Natalie studied Cornelius again, seeing the certainty in his eyes. “No one’s going to talk you out of this, are they?”
“No, they aren’t, because I know this is the only way I can be true to myself, now I know everything. Anne needs someone who can truly help her, and with Julian’s knowledge, the planning he’s done for generations, I am that person.”
“What are you going to do?”
“There’s no reason for me to go into detail right now. Please trust me.”
“Cornelius, I have no reason to trust you. Not right now. If Anne is against this, and Titus came here to warn you, then you’re doing something that might cause more problems than it could ever solve.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Be open with me then. Let me help you. You stand a better chance of stopping Titus with help.”
“I have help.”
“Alive help.”
“No, Natalie, because if this does go badly the girls will need you.”
“So this could kill you?”
“Potentially, but I know for certain I’m going to die if I work with Titus. This at least gives me a chance of surviving. It’s better than how things were, and I know I’m making the best choice I can.”
“Does Leonora agree?”
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