Warlock's Storm [Completed]

Chapter Five - The Council

Samantha's head was spinning. Her secret boyfriend was a Warlock? She could stab people with her thoughts. It was a lot to take in.

"Do you realize you started with 'there's something you maybe don't know about me'? Maybe?" she stopped. A frown spread across her face. "You marked me without telling me what was going on. You lied to me. You tricked me." For some reason, he wasn't ready for this reaction. The look of betrayal on her face hit him like a punch to the stomach. He waited to see what she would do. Slowly her face changed and she started to smile again. "Yeah, that was kind of jerky, but kind of sweet, too. Thank you. The whole side effect part is pretty cool, too, so thanks for that as well." He loved this girl. In that moment of acceptance and openness, he loved her. He felt his heart swell. She thought his being a Warlock was cool. Well, he supposed, she also thought stabbing people with her mind was cool. So, he supposed he should keep things in perspective.

"I think we need to contact the Council to try to figure out what is going on."

"I think we should wait on that. My step-father has been begging for karma to visit and it just hasn't come along. Until now, Tyler. This is my only chance to get back at him."

"The Council really should know, Samantha."

"Will they stop me from hurting him?"

"My people are sworn to protect humans. You can't hurt him on purpose."

"But I'm not a Warlock."

"Well, no, you'll never be a Warlock.... A Witch, you mean."

"What?"

"You're not a Witch. Warlocks are just male Witches. That's what a Warlock is."

"I knew that," the twinkle in her eye lightened the mood. "So, I'm not a Witch, which means that I don't have to follow your rules. Humans are not sworn to protect humans. I can hurt him on purpose."

"Samantha, going down that road can blacken the soul. The consequences of using this kind of power to harm someone can have disastrous effects. On you. I can't let you risk it."

"Oh please. He has it coming. And he blackened my soul the first time he laid his hands on me. My soul is already dark, Tyler." Without another hesitation, she closed her eyes and started to relive her darkest fantasy. Just a few short milliseconds of it. Just enough to end that miserable excuse for a human being. That miserable excuse for a man. For a dad. Tyler saw her eyes move quickly beneath her eyelids. Before he even realized what she was doing she opened them again. She'd been so quick about it. He probably didn't suffer enough, she thought. "Okay, I won't do any more. I promise." Tyler, not understanding, only felt relief.

"Thank you, Samantha. I know it's a sacrifice for you and I truly appreciate what you're not doing." He saw a strange look flutter across her face, but misinterpreted it. "I know it's hard to let him continue his life, but trust me, you will be glad of it in the long run. Come into the living room. We can have a drink before we call the Council to get to the bottom of this." He held her hand and took her to the kitchen.

He reached up and got a glass out of the cupboard. "Is water okay? .... Sam? Water?"

"What is that?"

"What?"

"That. What kind of book is that? I've never seen anything like it. It's amazing!"

"Oh! Right. The Book of Histories. I was trying to find out more information about the Fabric that separates our worlds. I didn't get far before you came in with your rather morbidly fascinating tale." She ran her fingers along the page that was showing.