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“I’VE TALKED WITH EACH of our volunteers now,” Doherty said.
Doherty, along with most members of the British group, was sitting in the Rosslers’ living room for yet another meeting. According to Doherty, it was unheard of to have a meeting only two days after the previous one.
But they needed to act fast. They knew some witch hunters’ locations, but there was no guarantee they wouldn’t pack and leave. The group couldn’t risk losing track of them. Not when they were so close.
Ciara was dying for action. She wanted to wipe out those terrorists for everything they had done to her.
And to others.
Under the orders of the British government, the officials were barely working on the witch hunter case. They weren’t even intensifying the training for the hit witches and wizards. The officials only did something when the witch hunters killed someone, even though it wasn’t enough. They didn’t do anything to prevent the attacks.
“We have five confirmed locations, two false locations and one unsure location,” Doherty explained with all the members listening to him intently. They were all dying to get answers.
Most of the group’s members were witches and wizards who had already lost someone because of the witch hunters. But there were also people who merely wanted to help.
“But there’s a problem,” Doherty said to the members who were shifting anxiously in their seats. “The witch hunters are living in five of the confirmed locations, and we don’t know how many witch hunters to expect. It’s likely there’s one house with only two witch hunters, and there may be one with three. But that’s purely based on what we could find out over one night, so we can’t be sure.”
“We need to deal with the witch hunters before they flee,” a member said, pointing out the obvious.
But it wasn’t that simple. Some of the members wanted to run into fights before thinking everything through. Some of them were blinded by grief and anger. It wasn’t a good, nor a safe, combination. People often lost rationality when they experienced such powerful emotions.
“First, we have to come up with plans for each location,” Doherty said. “We can’t risk mistakes, and we can’t take any unnecessary risks.”
“We need teams for all the locations,” Henry said. He and Ciara were standing near the doorway, side by side.
“And back-up in case something goes wrong and we have underestimated the number of witch hunters in the location,” Ciara said.
“The back-up can wait here,” Ray said. “Once they get the alert, they’ll teleport to the right location. If they were already on scene, someone could see them. We can’t take that risk.”
“Any volunteers?” Doherty asked.
Ciara was about to offer, but Doherty saw it coming.
“Ciara, I want you as part of the back-up team, okay? You’ll be more helpful if or when things go south. You know what to do in tough situations.”
Ciara knew Doherty was right, so she agreed. “Alright.”
But she didn’t like it. She would have preferred to be out there fighting—getting revenge on her fiancé.
Liam tried to volunteer, but his mother was quick to disagree. Eventually he ended up in the back-up team with Ciara. Iris volunteered for the back-up team, too.
The said team ended up being bigger than most of the location teams, but they split it into pairs. Iris and Liam were one pair. Henry was with his father. There were other pairs, too, but Ciara was left by herself. Doherty wanted to send her wherever she was needed most.
Ciara was one of the few professionals in the group. It didn’t mean she was better, but she had more experience.
The missions—the attacks on the locations—were going to take place the following day. Everyone needed to be well-prepared and well-rested, so there was no point executing the missions until then.
Once the meeting was over, everyone headed home. Little by little, the house became less and less crowded.
“You’ll be late for your date with Jenna if you don’t leave soon,” Ciara told Henry, her voice low as they stood in the living room, watching people leave.
Henry’s eyes widened, realising what time it was. “You’re right!”
Ciara chuckled, amused. “You’d better hurry.”
“Uh, I’ll be home late.”
“Or tomorrow?” Ciara said, wiggling her eyebrows at Henry.
“I’ll see you later anyway,” Henry said before running out of the room. He said his goodbyes and vanished, teleporting to Jenna’s place.
Right after, Mary walked into the living room to talk with Ciara. “Is everything okay with Henry?”
“Oh, yes.” Ciara smiled at Mary. “He just realised he’s about to be late.”
Mary’s eyebrows rose, and she looked intrigued. “Late for what?”
“Well, I bet you’ve noticed how he can’t stop staring at his phone.”
Mary’s eyes widened. “He’s dating! Finally!”
“But I didn’t tell you that.”
Mary smiled. “Of course not. Do you have any idea who it might be?”
“I’m afraid I can’t tell, but ask Henry about it,” Ciara said. “I can try to convince him to bring her here, too.”
“Do that!” Mary’s smile was so broad her teeth were showing. “You know her, don’t you?”
Ciara smiled and nodded. “I do, and I think she’s perfect for Henry.”
Joy lit up Mary’s eyes. “I believe I’ll like her, too.”
“I bet you will.” Ciara was already excited about the idea of Mary meeting Jenna.
“Did Henry leave already?” Liam was standing in the doorway of the living room, looking around with a confused frown.
“He was late for his date, so he just left,” Ciara told.
Liam bit his lip but couldn’t contain his smile. “Of course he did.”
“You knew?” Mary asked in disbelief. “Why didn’t I know until now?”
Liam raised his hands in defence. “He asked me not to say anything.”
“Ciara said nothing either, but at least she gave me a hint!” Mary, of course, wasn’t upset with Liam, even though she was looking at him disapprovingly.
Liam rolled his eyes. “Men don’t do hinting, Mum.”
Mary sighed. “Oh, my boy.”
Ciara smiled, amused, and took one step towards the exit. “I think it’s time for me to head home.”
“Are you sure? Do you have dinner prepared?” Mary asked.
Ciara smiled. “Yes, I have food waiting for me in the fridge.” She looked at Liam and Mary in turn. “I’ll see both of you tomorrow.”
“Rest well,” Mary said. “And don’t forget to eat well. It’s important you have enough energy tomorrow.”
“Of course, Mary.” She glanced at Liam then. “See you tomorrow.”
“See you,” Liam said and smiled at Ciara.
“See you,” Mary said, too, before Ciara left the living room.
Ray was talking to two other members who had yet to leave. Ciara chose not to interrupt them. Instead, she walked over to Iris to say goodbye to her.
“See you tomorrow.”
“Are you leaving already?” Iris asked.
Ciara nodded. “I need to rest before tomorrow.”
“Ah, I see.” Iris nodded. “Do you think you have any time off later this week? I’m looking for a wedding venue, and I’m going to visit a couple of places this week. I’d love to have you come along.”
“I can’t promise anything yet, but I’ll keep you updated on my schedule.” Ciara dreaded the idea of tagging along with Iris, but she didn’t let it show. Instead, she smiled.
“Wonderful!” Iris squealed.
“See you tomorrow then.”
***
LIAM AND IRIS WERE the last ones to leave, because they stayed for tea. Mary had wanted to talk about the wedding with them. They ended up being home by nine.
“So, Ciara has been helping you?” Liam asked Iris once they were sitting on their own sofa. Liam was watching a television show, but he wasn’t paying much attention to it. Iris was reading a wedding magazine.
“Oh, yes. Just a little for now, but I asked her if she could help more and she agreed. She might come see some of the venues with me.”
Liam furrowed his eyebrows. “Why didn’t you say anything about that earlier?”
“What do you mean?” Iris set down the magazine and turned her full attention onto Liam.
“I mean...” He hesitated, but he knew he had to say it. “Isn’t it odd that she’s helping with our wedding? So far, she has done more than I have.”
“She’s your friend, isn’t she?” Iris said. “Besides, you’re busy at work, so it makes perfect sense that she’s helping. She knows what you like and so on. I mean, I do too, of course, but it’s nice to have someone there to confirm my thoughts.”
“If you want my input on the wedding, we could wait one more year. You want a festive December wedding, but December comes every year.” Liam sighed. “Especially with the witch hunters and—”
Iris’s eyes widened, and blood drained from her face. “Are you having second thoughts?”
“No.” Liam took his fiancée’s hands into his. “I just...planning a wedding in a rush might be the wrong choice. I could help if we waited. It could be safer in a year, too.”
“Is this about Ciara being back?”
“Why would this be about Ciara?”
“She just came back and now you’re suddenly thinking about changing our wedding date.” Iris pulled her hand from Liam’s hand and crossed her arms across her chest.
“It’s not about her. It’s about my input on the wedding. And the witch hunters. I’ve barely even talked with Ciara.”
“Yet you came home at seven in the morning because of her,” Iris said accusingly.
“You know it wasn’t like that. I was working for the cause. I went there as back-up. If someone had been there, they might have needed my help.” Liam sighed and shook his head. “There’s nothing to worry about.”
“Oh, please!” Iris spat. “Even your Mum adores her!”
“Why does that matter? We’re getting married. You and me, Iris. It has nothing to do with her,” Liam said, his voice soothing. “My mother knew her way before I even had a crush on her. She’s Henry’s best friend.”
Iris sighed.
“I love you, Iris.”
Iris turned to look at her future husband, letting her arms drop. “I love you, too.”
***
“I WAS SURPRISED WHEN you asked me out yesterday,” Iris confessed to the tall, handsome man beside her. He was walking her home after their first date.
Liam smiled. A soft chuckle passed his lips. “I suppose it was sudden.”
“It’s nice, though.” Iris couldn’t help but grin. “I’ve had so much fun today.”
“I could say the same thing. You seem like someone I’d like to get to know better.”
“I’m sure that can be arranged,” Iris flirted.
“So, I will get a second date with you?”
“Give me a time and place, and I’ll be there.”
“Dinner this Friday?” Liam suggested.
Iris smiled widely and nodded. “You pick the place.”
Liam returned the smile. “Will do.”