Chapter 3

Frankie groaned while he grabbed his head with both hands. He had a splitting headache. Slowly he moved to a sitting position and was surprised to feel the cold and moist grass under his hands. He felt strangely numb, as if he had been slammed into a brick wall. His whole body felt stiff like he had been here for quite a while. It was dark. It scared him that he didn’t know where he was and what had happened.

He started to feel nauseous when he turned his head to scan the vicinity and that forced him to seriously slow his movements. Then he recognized the high gates as the gates from school. Bit by bit his memories of the afternoon came back to him. His hand moved to his face, carefully touching the sore spot where the damned bitch had slapped him.

The whole afternoon he’d been brewing on a plan on how to punish the tainted bitch. It was a crude but simple plan, worth the risk of getting in trouble at home. He knew he was not allowed to use his abilities on people, but he craved sweet revenge. It was simple to control the bitch because there was still enough of her physical essence on his face. Once they were outside, he warded the environment, which would guarantee that people would avoid going there.

He loved the bitch’s scared expression and her bulging eyes. He knew he had to wipe her memory afterwards, which would be the hardest part.

But then everything went pear shaped when suddenly the love of his life appeared from out of nowhere. Her beautiful face contorted in a feral expression and before he could react, everything went black. He never had the chance to protect himself. He groaned as he suddenly realized that Winnie must be part of the other tribe his grandmother had talked about. It was clear he was going to be in big trouble; there was no way he could cover-up his mistake. Winnie had witnessed his mishap, and he was convinced the impure bitch would tell her father.

With some effort, he managed to stand and while he had trouble keeping his balance, he reached for his back pocket to get his phone. His heart sank when he realized his brand new phone wasn’t there.

Frantically he looked around and sighed with relief when he saw it glistening a few feet away from him in the scarce light.

His blood started to boil when he picked the battered phone from the ground. He howled when he saw the cracked screen; it was completely dead.

Betty was in a state of shock when Winnie helped her into the car. Winnie’s hands were shaking as well when she gently pushed the passenger door closed. With unsteady feet, she walked around the car and as she climbed into the driver’s seat her whole body started to tremble furiously.

“Oh my,” she whispered. Feeling completely drained, she reached into the back seats in the hope she could find the bottle of water that had been there for ages. It was a lovely feeling to hold the cool bottle in her hands as she unscrewed the top. She handed it to Betty who gratefully took a few long gulps.

Winnie felt relieved when a weak smile appeared on the black-haired girl when she handed her the bottle. It was a wonderful feeling how the cool water flowed into her body. It instantly had a soothing effect on her.

Now that she had calmed down enough, she saw that Betty’s face was a mess because of her running mascara.

“There’s a box of tissues in the glove compartment,” she said softly. “Let me clean up your face.”

Betty nodded silently as she pulled a few paper tissues from the box. Winnie used the water to wet the tissue and when she carefully cleaned her friend’s face, she suddenly felt guilty about what happened.

“I’m so sorry Betty,” she sniffed, “perhaps I shouldn’t have been so condescending to him. Then this wouldn’t have happened.”

“Oh, you silly girl,” Betty admonished her with a gentle voice. “You thoroughly kicked his ass. He’ll think twice before he pesters us again.”

Winnie gasped while looking distressed at her best friend. “Do you think we should check on him?”

Betty narrowed her eyes to thin slits when she growled, “No!”

“Right.”

“What?” Betty retorted irritated. “He nearly chocked me to death, Winnie. I was so scared.”

Winnie knew her BFF was right but there was a small voice telling her she had knocked the sense out of the boy. Literally. Her doubt was washed away in an instance when she recalled the moment she saw the sad bastard was actually enjoying Betty’s suffering.

She nodded and as she started the car she said with resoluteness in her voice, “Let’s go home.”

Frankie’s brain cleared up significantly during the short walk to his car. It was strange to see the empty parking lot, realizing everybody left ages ago. He cursed softly when he looked at the car’s clock when he started the engine; he was going to be late for dinner.

His vision was still a little blurry, so he decided to take the highway because it would be much better lit than the secondary roads he usually took. It was hard to steer the car on the road but soon his stiff muscles felt a little better.

By the time he had steered the car onto the residence’s road he felt a lot better, but something felt off and he couldn’t put his finger on what it was exactly.

He dreaded the fact that his mother was extremely strict about dinnertime, and he knew he would suffer the consequences because he was fifteen minutes late.

“Ah! Here is your son who doesn’t appreciate the fact that his mother has cooked dinner for him,” the gravelly voice of his mother echoed in the large dining room.

“Frankie, my boy” his father said upbeat. “There you are. Make sure you respect your mother’s wish next time.”

“Charles!”

Frankie cringed, hearing the sniping voice of his mother. “I’m sorry mom,” he muttered while he sat at the enormous dining table. This time he was pleased they were seated far away from each other.

His grandmother, who sat opposite him, kept on eating her food as if nothing had happened. The moment Frankie moved his chair forward the old lady stopped eating and as soon as Frankie reached across the table for the large dish, she gasped, “My good gracious, boy. What on earth have you done?”

Frankie stopped moving as if he was caught red-handed. He considered acting as though nothing had happened, but he knew it was of no use.

His grandmother’s eyes lit up as she murmured a few words and with a gracious flick of her hand a glittery substance landed on his body. “Oh boy,” his grandmother whispered as his body started to glow.

He recognized the crimson color that betrayed him for using his own magic, but the ever so bright silvery light lit up the entire room. “Franklin Bethomylus Aspen,” his mother growled, “You’re grounded.”

He bowed his head, knowing he was in deep trouble.

Winnie steered the car onto Betty’s empty driveway and killed the engine. “Where’s your mom?” She asked Betty.

Betty sighed deeply as she slowly shook her head. “How can I forget?” she groaned. “My parents are on their way to see Cindy. They’re taking the rest of her stuff because she has her own apartment now.”

Winnie nodded and suggested, “Why don’t I stay with you? I’ll cook you my favorite dish.”

“I thought you have to take care of Nana?”

The blonde girl shook her head. “Not on Fridays. But I need to message my mom I’m going to stay with you.”

Betty’s face lit up and asked hopefully, “Are you going to stay the night?”

Winnie looked at her best friend, knowing the real reason. What had happened to her was hanging like a Damocles’ sword above Betty’s head. Sooner or later, it would hit her, and Winnie wanted to be there to give support. Winnie smiled warmly as she nodded. “Of course. I can’t let you be all alone in this big house.”

“Yay!” squealed the black-haired beauty and as she stepped out of the car she purred, “I can’t wait to snuggle up to you while we watch a movie. I’m pretty sure mom bought those special popcorn bags again.”

Winnie giggled nervously as she knew how affectionate Betty could become. Strangely enough she actually longed for that kind of intimacy. She felt hungry. Her heart skipped a beat when she suddenly realized her body felt hungry as if it needed to be replenished. But with what?

Betty’s voice sounded from far away when she heard her saying, “Hey! Are you coming?”

Winnie had trouble focusing her eyes and it took her a moment to make herself aware of her environment again. It was strange to find herself holding onto the handle of the open driver’s door. She must have opened it, but she couldn’t remember when she had actually done it.

Somewhat unsteady, she climbed out of the car and exhaled her breath when her feet were standing on the paved road going towards Betty’s house.

Suddenly, she felt Betty’s warm body hugging her. “Whoa, easy sweetie pie,” she whispered. “Hold on to me.”

“Eat,” said his grandmother curtly as she flicked her hand again. To Frankie’s relief the bright aura disappeared with a soft whomp.

“What were you thinking, Franklin?” his mother snapped harshly, “Our family name is already tainted with all kinds of accusations and now you’ve risked a lot more.”

Frankie had trouble swallowing his food and muttered, “But I used wards to secure the environment as grandmother has taught me.”

His grandmother cackled. “Those wards only work for people, goofy. I also warned you about the fact that any other witch in the vicinity would be drawn towards it.”