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CIARA OPENED THE DOOR for her colleague from Canada. “Josh!”
Josh smiled and wrapped his arms around her. “Hi. Looks like I found the right flat just fine.” He paused. “Isn’t that how you say it here in England? ‘Flat’?”
“Yes, perfectly British.” Ciara smiled and nodded. “Was your trip alright?”
“Oh, it was.”
“Great.”
“Anyhow, I brought you a little something.” Josh handed Ciara a small present. “I hope you like it.”
Ciara smiled. “Thank you.”
Josh took off his coat and hung it on the coatrack. Underneath it, he had an American prisoner costume.
Ciara grinned. “Love the costume.”
Josh laughed. “I couldn’t help myself. I had to try one of these.”
“Those are actual prisoner clothes?”
“Yes.”
“Impressive.”
Ciara led Josh to the living room to meet everyone and made the introductions.
Then the doorbell rang.
“Make yourself at home,” Ciara said to Josh and hurried to open the door again, placing the present on a chest of drawers on her way.
This time it was Evie and her girlfriend.
Ciara smiled at them. “Welcome.”
“It’s so good to see you.” Evie hugged Ciara and gave her a present.
“You, too.”
Evie turned to her girlfriend. “Ciara, this is Lola.”
Ciara smiled and shook Lola’s hand. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“All good, I hope,” Lola said and smiled.
“Absolutely all good,” Ciara assured.
Evie and Lola matched with their identical costumes. They were both wearing skeleton dresses with skeleton tights. They both had frizzy, curly hair, so the matching costumes were perfect. The only difference was in their hair colour and skin. Evie had auburn hair and pale complexion, and Lola had dark hair and skin.
Ciara barely made it to the living room with Evie and Lola when the doorbell rang again. She placed the present down and hurried to the door.
This time it was Shawn, dressed as a Jack Daniels bottle. He had the logo on the shirt, and his hat looked like a bottle top.
After Shawn, Jesse and his friend Max Salters arrived. Jesse was dressed as a cowboy, and Max as a military zombie.
Only a little after their arrival, the rest of Ciara’s American colleagues—Brody, Alec, and Charlie—arrived.
Once the greetings were over, all three men took off their coats and hung them up, revealing their Halloween costumes. Brody was dressed as a lifeguard, wearing shorts and a lifeguard’s top. Charlie wore a Superman shirt, which was peeking from under his blazer. Alec’s costume was a devil, with horns and a fancy suit.
It was only quarter past six and everyone but Mia and her friend had arrived.
“Ciara has saved my life so many times you wouldn’t believe if I told you about all of them!” Josh said, gesturing to Ciara with a glass of sparkling wine in his hands. “One time she stepped in front of a curse for me. There’s no one as stupidly brave as she is.”
Ciara shook her head. “Josh, you’re exaggerating. Besides, you’ve repaid the favour.”
Josh turned to the others. “She’s just being modest.”
Henry nodded, bringing his glass closer to his lips. “She always is.”
Then the doorbell rang.
Ciara grinned. “Perfect timing.”
“I didn’t finish with the stories yet,” Josh warned.
“Sure, sure,” Ciara said and headed to the door. She opened it for Mia and her friend.
What surprised Ciara was Mia’s friend, Trixie Archer. Ciara knew her from school. Trixie had been in Liam’s year, and she had had an obsessive crush on Liam back in school. But so had Mia and plenty of other girls.
“Trixie?” Ciara said, regaining her composure.
“Hi, Ciara!” Trixie grinned widely and pulled Ciara into a hug. They had never been friends, so the cheeriness took Ciara aback.
“Hi.” Ciara smiled. “I didn’t know Mia was bringing you. Didn’t even know you were friends.” She turned to look at Mia.
“Oh, right!” Mia said and grinned. Clearly she hadn’t realised Trixie had never been friends with Ciara. “Trixie is also a journalist,” Mia explained. “We’ve worked together here and there.”
Trixie turned to smile at Ciara. “I hope you don’t mind that I tagged along.”
“Of course not.” Ciara shook her head and smiled. “It’s nice to see familiar faces.”
“It’s great to see you, too. Mia has told me so much about your job. It’s so cool!”
“Thanks.”
Mia’s costume was a sexy explorer, with short shorts and a crop top. Trixie was dressed as a Barbie doll, with a Barbie shirt and a pink miniskirt.
Once they had hung their coats and handed Ciara their present, Ciara led them to the living room to meet everyone.
“Hi, guys!” Trixie said, grinning.
Jenna’s eyes widened. “Trixie...hi.”
Ciara placed her last present on top of the chest of drawers. Jenna walked over to talk to her in privacy.
“Trixie?” Jenna asked, raising an eyebrow.
“I had no idea Mia would bring her,” Ciara whispered. “But she seems alright.”
Jenna shrugged. “I guess. Wasn’t she, like, obsessed with Liam back at school?”
Ciara nodded. “Wasn’t everyone, though?”
“I wasn’t. But Mia sure was.”
***
THE BAKED GOODS AND snacks were a success. Jenna and Mary were both excellent bakers.
“When will you start dating that roommate of yours?” Brody inquired, keeping his voice low, when he and Ciara walked in the kitchen to get drinks.
Ciara chuckled, walking to the fridge. “He’s my ex.”
“And future boyfriend?”
Ciara rolled her eyes and pulled the fridge door open. She grabbed a beer can and handed it to him. “Oh, Brody.”
“So you’re still not over Theo. Is that it?” Brody asked, his voice softening.
“No.” Ciara shook her head. She grabbed a canned cocktail from the fridge and pushed the door shut. “I’m not completely over his death and I don’t know if I ever will be.” Ciara sighed, popping her can open. “But I’m moving on.”
She had promised Doherty she would move on. But it didn’t mean she was going to give up on her revenge. After losing Doherty, she was even more determined to wipe out the witch hunters.
Brody nodded. “Theo would want you to move on.”
“That’s what I keep telling myself.”
Brody stepped closer and placed his hand on Ciara’s shoulder. “It’s the truth. He wouldn’t want you to spend your life mourning him. He’d want you to live.”
Ciara sighed and leaned against Brody. “You’re right. It’s just not that easy.”
“Well, I think he’d give his blessing to that ex of yours.”
Ciara chuckled and shook her head. “You’re impossible, you know that?”
Brody smiled. “Nah, just a love expert.”
Ciara crossed her arms but grinned at Brody. “Yet you have no girlfriend.”
“Actually, I’ve gone on two dates with someone now. Expecting to go on a third one.” A proud smirk crossed over Brody’s face. “We’ll see where it goes.”
“Hope it goes well.”
“Yeah, she seems great.”
Ciara pointed a finger at Brody, poking his chest. “Then call her and take her out on that date.”
“I will.”
Ciara and Brody returned to the living room. Josh was once again telling stories about Ciara’s heroic acts. Jenna, Henry, and Jesse were listening to him keenly. Max and Alec were chatting, and Shawn was sitting with Evie and Lola. Trixie had ended up hitting it off with Charlie. And Mia was busy flirting with Liam.
When Shawn spotted Ciara, he walked over. “So are you going to let your friend steal your man?” he whispered in Ciara’s ear.
“Not you, too.”
“Your costumes almost match. You both have the same shade of red, some black and—”
“Not on purpose.”
Shawn shot a grin at Ciara and winked. “So it’s destiny.”
“Ciara!” Josh called from his seat. “Remember the time you had to beat up that guy without magic?”
“The non-magic guy?” Using magic in front of non-magical people was illegal. In some countries it was even punishable by death. Even in the countries that didn’t support death penalties, the consequences were severe.
“That murderer, yeah,” Josh said, nodding.
“I remember. I’m not doing it again,” Ciara said, cringing.
“But it was badass!” Josh exclaimed.
“I can’t imagine Ciara beating up a guy.” Henry’s eyes widened, and he turned to grimace at his best friend.
“Yeah, he was big,” Brody said. “Pure muscle.”
“The guys are exaggerating. Again,” Ciara said.
“Even so, you never tell these stories,” Jesse said, grinning. If Ciara didn’t know better, she would think Jesse had a crush on her. He never stopped with the questions and was always dying to know more about her and her life.
“It’s just work,” she said, shrugging. She sounded modest, but it was the truth. It was just work for her.
“Your work sounds exciting.”
“Well, last time it was Josh who saved my life,” Ciara said and started telling the others about it.
Liam tried to listen to Ciara, but Mia was talking to him non-stop. “How did you pick the costume? It looks great on you.”
Liam shrugged, looking down at his clothes. “It was the easiest costume I could come up with.”
“Well, it looks good.”
“Thanks.” Liam smiled awkwardly. He didn’t know how to get rid of Mia. For years, he had gone to parties with Iris. He wasn’t used to being single.
“And how is everything at work? You’re still a curse breaker, eh?” Mia leaned against the wall and twirled her hair between her fingers, trying to seem attractive.
“Yes. It’s partially a desk job now that I’m in England.” Sometimes Liam missed getting to spend all of his days actually breaking the curses. He had more paperwork in England, and sometimes it was tedious.
“You like it, though?”
Liam nodded. “I like it in England.” Subconsciously, he stole a glance at Ciara who was chuckling at something Josh had said.
“More than in South America?”
“It’s different, but yes.”
“What is South America like? I bet it’s beautiful.”
Liam, once again, glimpsed at Ciara. “Uh, yes, it’s beautiful there.”
Mia was persistent. Liam had to excuse himself to the bathroom to get rid of her.
When he came back, he spotted Ciara walking to the balcony and followed her. He lingered in the doorway.
She leaned against the wall, choosing a spot no one could see from the inside. She snapped her fingers, and a cigarette appeared between her fingers. With another snap of her fingers, she lit it up.
“Don’t do that.” Liam walked up to her and snatched the cigarette. He dropped it onto the balcony floor and stomped on it.
Ciara looked up at him wide-eyed, like a teen caught doing something illegal. “Liam.”
“Why are you stressed?”
“I’m not.”
“You told me, at my birthday party, that you only smoke when you’re stressed,” Liam said, recalling that night.
Ciara sighed, leaning her head against the concrete wall. “It’s nothing.”
It wasn’t true, but Liam didn’t push it. Not after the previous night. He didn’t want to ruin the party for her.
“Quite the stories Josh is telling,” he said, changing the topic.
Ciara smiled, turning to face Liam. “He’s exaggerating most of it.”
“I like his theory better. You’re just being modest.” The corners of his mouth turned up, and he gazed at Ciara.
Ciara’s cheeks turned pink. “You’re taking his side, huh?”
“I didn’t know there were sides.” Liam chuckled, his eyes fixed on Ciara’s face.
Ciara looked down, still flushed. Her eyes settled on Liam’s hand. “You’ve forgotten your drink.”
“I think Mia might have poured love potion in it, so I’ll grab a new one.” Liam was joking, but the idea didn’t sound absurd to either of them.
Ciara hummed. “She’s had a huge crush on you since school years. I bet she’s elated to know you’re single now.”
“Well, I guess I have to—”
“Here you are!” Jenna peeked through the balcony doorway. “I know you used to do these balcony meetings at school parties, but I didn’t know they were still a thing,” she teased. “Anyway, come inside. Everyone’s wondering where you two disappeared to.”
“Coming,” Ciara said. She and Liam headed inside, and Liam grabbed a drink from the fridge on his way.
“Henry was just telling us about how you rode a dragon in the tournament!” Alec’s eyes were wide with excitement, and he was grinning. “How have I never heard about that?”
Josh grinned “I have!”
“It was ages ago,” Ciara said. “But it was fun.”
“It didn’t look fun,” Evie said, grimacing. “I was horrified!”
Jenna raised her drink. “Ciara came first, though. Theo finished second.”
“I completely forgot Theo was in that tournament, too.” Alec scratched his chin. “I bet it was a tough one between you two,” he added, facing Ciara.
Ciara smiled. “Well, I won.”
“You sure he didn’t just let you win?” Brody teased.
“Highly doubt that! He was so competitive,” Josh said and smiled at the memory of his deceased colleague.
Ciara smiled fondly at the memory of Theo. “Josh is right. He was hell-bent on winning.”
***
CIARA MADE HER WAY to a nearby balcony. It was cold outside, but she needed a moment of privacy. She had got through another tournament task earlier, and people had been celebrating since then. She hadn’t had a moment to catch her breath.
“Are you trying to catch a cold?”
Ciara spun around to see Liam had followed her. He walked over and offered her a smile.
“I won’t be here for long,” Ciara said.
“Well, you have an exam on Monday, so...” Liam pulled off his jumper, leaving him in just a T-shirt. “Take this,” he said, handing it to Ciara.
Ciara hesitated. “But you’re gonna freeze.”
“I’ll be fine.”
There was no point in arguing. If she didn’t take the jumper, they would both freeze. She took it and pulled it on.
His scent was all over the jumper. Ciara would have recognised it anywhere. Fresh, sort of lemon-like, but with hints of something warmer—perhaps cinnamon.
She smiled. “Thanks.”
Liam smiled back at her. “You were incredible today.”
Ciara heard how impressed he was, and she couldn’t help but blush. “Thanks...again.”
“Henry was impressed by your beast-taming skills.”
Ciara chuckled. “He hasn’t shut up about it all night!”
“I bet,” Liam said, amused.
“He’s hoping I’ll change my mind on my future career choice.”
“Will you?”
She shook her head. “No. I want to be a curse breaker. Although I have to admit, riding a dragon was fun.”
“Fun?” Liam said in disbelief.
Ciara chuckled at his reaction. “After it calmed down, yes.”
“You’re one of a kind, Ciara.”
She shrugged.
“Try to keep dragon-riding stories to a minimum during the holidays, by the way. Mother will freak out if she hears,” Liam warned.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“So are you still up for tutoring on Wednesday?” Liam asked.
Ciara nodded. “Of course.”
“Great.”
“You’ve told Professor Tennant what an incredible job you’ve done, right?” Ciara checked. Liam had spent so much time helping her, he deserved credit for it.
“I’ve told him what an incredible job you have done,” Liam said.
“All thanks to you,” Ciara pointed out.
“Should I give you another talk about giving yourself more credit?” Liam asked, cocking his head to the side.
“I’d say it’s my turn to give you one of those.”
“No need.” Liam smiled gently.
“Don’t forget to give yourself credit then.”
Liam nodded. “I’ll try not to.”
A certain brown-haired best friend of Ciara’s pushed the balcony door open. “Here you are! I’ve been looking all over for you! There are some guys who want to hear about today’s task. Theo’s friends, I think. Come!”
“But—”
Ciara didn’t have time to say goodbye before Henry pulled her back inside.