I was saved from a dressing down by simply passing out in the back of the taxi. Exhaustion from the fight and the magic I had used was just too much to fight against and I was asleep long before we arrived back at Jen’s house.

Becca managed to rouse me enough to get me inside and up the stairs, but as soon as I hit the bed it was lights out until the next morning.

When I woke, things didn’t seem so bad. A slight headache but nothing too terrible. Then I shifted and all of those aches and pains seemed to hit me at once. I stifled a groan and did my best to focus my magical energy on healing Jen’s body.

But that did little in the short term to stop the pain, so I was left to lie there and hope that doing so would prove to be less painful than actually getting up and moving about. Of course, it might also be because Becca was sleeping soundly beside me and if I woke her up I would feel the lash of her tongue.

Not an altogether pleasant experience, so I felt no need to rush into it.

Alas, my bladder had different ideas and with another groan, I slipped out from beneath the covers as gracefully as I could and padded across the threadbare carpet to the door.

Jen’s father was in the hallway as I came out of the bedroom and he craned his neck to look into the room behind me. His eyes were watery and bloodshot and he reeked of the cider he’d spent yesterday drinking.

“Dad,” I said, by way of greeting. I wasn’t sure what type of relationship Jen and he’d had, so I opted for playing it distant but respectful. “You’re up early.”

“What’s it to you?” His teeth were stained with several missing and his breath was, frankly, atrocious. “You fucking that lass then?”

“Huh! No!”

“Aye, see that you don’t.”

“Why?” I just couldn’t help myself. Something about the belligerent old drunk pissed me off. “What would be the issue?”

He slammed me back against the wall with one shove from his hand and I grunted as I glared at him. “Do as you’re told, girl. You hear me?”

“Sure.” I rubbed at my shoulder, another ache to add to the many I had. “You need anything else or can I go pee?”

He raised his hand, but seemingly thought better about striking me. Perhaps it was just a warning but I refused to flinch and he sneered as he turned and staggered down the hall. It was pretty clear that he was still well into his binge and as pissed as a newt.

I shook my head and went to the bathroom, stopping in the doorway to grimace at the mess. I couldn’t find any suitable cleaning products so had to wipe up the piss with toilet tissue and then pulled a shirt out of the hamper and soaked it with a mixture of water and shower gel before cleaning the toilet seat and the floor as best I could.

Only then could I sit down to pee as I thought long and hard about how many times I might have made a mess for the cleaning staff without even noticing. One thing I was sure of, was that when back in my own body, I would be a little bit more considerate when peeing.

At least in my own home.

Back in the bedroom, a groggy Becca was trying to hide a yawn behind her hand as she blinked bleary eyes at me as I came back in. I braced myself for the worst.

“Everything okay?”

“Sure, why?”

She gestured in the general direction of the door. “Jen’s dad can be a bit handsy when he’s drunk.”

“He used to hit her?”

“Sometimes.” Becca shook her head sorrowfully. “When he went on a bender she would stay at my house.”

“You were a good friend to her.” I climbed carefully back onto the bed and pulled the covers over me.

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“She was my best friend,” Becca admitted. “It’s why I want to know who killed her.”

“To do what?” I asked, curious. “You can’t exactly call the police and say they killed your friend when I am walking around in her body. So what are you going to do?”

She smiled, sheepishly and ducked her head. “I don’t know. I’d not thought that far ahead.”

“Could always kill them,” I suggested, adding my smile to hers. “Or curse them. That would be a nice long-lasting punishment.”

As soon as I said it, I knew I had said the wrong thing. Becca’s face darkened with the memory of yesterday and she almost snarled as she looked away from me, as though she couldn’t face me.

“Jen would have never said that.” Her voice was small and lost and I was sure that if I could see her face I would see tears. “She was a good person.”

“And I’m not,” I agreed. “I can’t help who I am.”

“No.” She brushed at her eyes with the back of her hand before turning to face me. Her eyes were red-rimmed and she shuffled back to sit with her back against the wall and her logs crossed, facing me. “Why aren’t you though?”

“What do you mean?”

“Tell me why you care so little about the pain and suffering of others. Why you are so callous and why you could have managed to kill a child.”

Not a small question at all, and if I were honest, I would just straight up say that there was nothing wrong with me. Perhaps it was her who was in the wrong, that she held some airy-fairy ideals that people were better than they generally were.

But, I didn’t say that. I needed her, for the moment at least.

“Covens are all about power,” I said, choosing my words carefully. “Nothing else really matters. Just the power and what we can do with it.”

I sat up and wedged the pillow behind my back. If we were going to go through with this, then we might as well do it properly.

“A coven, is generally a family affair,” I said. “Since not every child born to a witch has the gift, the building of a coven can take generations, but when it is at full power, the rewards are incredible.”

“Wait… not all witch kids can be witches?”

“No.”

“Weird. I thought that was just a necromancer thing.”

My smile was, perhaps, a little patronising, but then she hadn’t had access to the knowledge and history that I’d had.

“You will find it is the same with many of the supernaturals. Once that human blood gets mixed into the gene pool, it never really leaves. Those born without the gifts of their parents are generally kept in the dark.”

“That’s what it was like in your family?”

“My sister, Delilah, and I are the only two of six children that have the power.” I didn’t need to mention that there had once been a third. “Those without the gift had it easier. Father at least just ignored them whilst Mother played the part, but amused herself with playing them one against another.”

“For Delilah and me, we were taught the mysteries and involved in the rituals from a young age. When it comes to a coven, the more members there are, the stronger the spells that are cast and, by far, greater the rewards of those castings.”

“Father might have ignored our siblings, but we were tools to be used to help advance the power of the family, of the coven. For to him, they are one and the same.”

Her expression had changed while I talked and she seemed willing to listen, to try and understand. That was something and it gave me better odds of not being banished, so I pressed on.

“I made my first ritual sacrifice at seven,” I said. “A rabbit that Father had given me for my birthday six months before. It was a lesson, you see.” I paused then, memories flooding me that I did not especially want to remember. “There were a lot of lessons.”

To my surprise, her fingers curled through mine and she gave my hand a squeeze. I’d not been expecting that and my eyes shimmered as I sniffed. The emotions of the body I was wearing came to the fore, which was another indication that time was running out.

“You asked if I would have killed a child for that spell.” I raised my head and looked her in the eyes. There was compassion there and something else, and I hoped it was enough. “I couldn’t know until it came to that moment. I was prepared to if it meant that I got what I needed.”

“In your eyes, and in many others, I may be a monster. But in mine, I am a product of my upbringing. A child of a coven, and I act as I was trained from birth to do so. I cannot change who I am, not overnight at least.”

“So banish me if you must, I cannot stop you.”

Becca was silent for a long time while I bit my tongue and hoped that I’d guessed right. If she did banish me from this body, then it was likely that the pull of hell would drag me back. I wasn’t sure if I was strong enough to resist long enough to find another body.

I ran my fingers through my hair, pulling at the tangles. In some small way, I almost hoped she would banish me and then I could find a more suitable body. One that wasn’t so damned female.

“I think I understand,” Becca said finally. “I don’t agree with your choices, but I understand why you make them.” Her eyes hardened on mine and she released my hand. “But, I cannot allow you to do something like that.”

“Then banish me and be done with it,” I said, unable to keep the anger and bitterness from my voice.

“No.”

I gaped at her, eyes widening in surprise. “Why not?”

“We made a deal. Help me find who killed Jen and I will help you get your body back.” She held up a finger. “However, there will be some changes. No making decisions without me, for one, and no killing any innocent fucking children!”

As caveats went, they weren’t too onerous and there was enough wiggle room for me to work with. I inclined my head towards her. “Agreed.”

“Just one more thing then.”

“What?”

“You need to get ready for college. Today, we’re going to find out if anyone is surprised you are still alive.”