A thought struck me. I wheeled myself in front of him. “Victoria! Go check the basement! See if she’s still there!”
“If it wasn’t one of your people, it had to be her!”
The butler went to check himself. Just as I suspected, the chains were cut. The basement was empty, save for the signs of a struggle. Victoria and her friends were gone.
Charles immediately pulled up the security footage. He saw that Caleb himself had let them out of the basement last
night.
When Caleb was dragged before his father, he was still clueless. “What’s going on?”
Charles slapped him across the face. “You have the nerve to ask me that? You couldn’t watch one person? What are you good for?!”
“Why did you let Victoria go? Did you not consider the consequences of releasing a tiger back into the mountains?”
“What sin did I commit to have a fool like you for a son?”
“Three people in this family are already critically injured! You might be next! Did you have someone arrange the items in the sanctuary? Why were their positions changed? Are you trying to kill the entire family, you traitorous piece of garba- ge?!”
Caleb was stunned. “I didn’t! Victoria printed out the diagram! She’s my fiancée, I couldn’t just leave her locked in the basement! She’s probably waiting in her room for me right now, I’ll go get her!”
Chapter 2
The butler looked at him with utter disappointment. Charles laughed, a sound devoid of humor, and called for the family‘ s disciplinary rod.
“You idiot! Waiting in her room to ambush you? She’s long gone!”
“She mirrored the diagram! The way you arranged things was a death sentence for this entire family!”
“If I don’t break your legs today, my name isn’t Devereaux!”
The heavy wooden rod fell again and again on Caleb’s body. Pampered his whole life, he couldn’t take the punishment. and passed out within minutes. Charles was about to douse him with ice water and continue when dozens of police officers stormed in.
“You are all under arrest for assault and unlawful imprisonment. Please come with us.”
Victoria walked in behind them, her chin held high, a smug look on her face.
I told you I wouldn’t let this go.”
“Now let’s see what happens to the Devereaux family without their precious Elara.”
1 tried to wheel myself away, but Victoria grabbed my chair and shoved me in front of the police. The entire Devereaux household was taken into custody. The ritual items in the sanctuary were still not all in their proper places.
No matter how Charles tried to explain, the police refused to believe his story about curses and magic. The wounds on Caleb’s back were the perfect evidence of assault. Victoria, playing the part of the worried fiancée, went with Caleb to the hospital. Charles was taken to the station for interrogation.
For three days, the number of Devereaux family members falling ill grew into the dozens. The causes of injury were varied, but the result was the same: a deep, unrelenting coma. Even those who survived surgery never regained consc- iousness.
When Caleb woke up and heard the news, he nearly had a complete breakdown. Victoria, however, still insisted I was a fraud. But when dozens of nearly identical medical reports were placed in front of her, she finally fell silent.
Caleb, ignoring all advice, stormed out of the hospital and headed for the police station, with Victoria trailing behind him. The livestream video had been scrubbed from the internet by Charles, so she arrogantly assumed I had no proof. She demanded I be charged with fraud and sent to prison.
But Charles had anticipated her move. He had kept a copy.
The unedited video of Victoria torturing me was played for the police. The roles of victim and perpetrator were instantly
reversed.
Victoria was taken into custody.
That very night, Charles took me home to perform the rite again. Caleb, having finally understood the truth of his family‘ a curse, stood by, helping in any way he could, not daring to breathe too loudly.
From my wheelchair, I directed him until every item was in its place. Then, I began the ritual.
An hour later, it was complete.
Almost immediately, the hospital called. The dozens of comatose patients had, miraculously, begun to regain conscio- Xusness.
The Devereaux family never spoke publicly about the ritual. They simply said they had been blessed. To cover their
The Devereaux family never spoke publicly about the ritual. They simply said they had been blessed. To cover their tracks, Charles made a multi–million–dollar donation to charity, framing it as a case of good deeds being rewarded.
I took a six–month leave of absence to recover. When I finally returned to school, I heard that the Sterling family had gone bankrupt. Victoria’s friends had all dropped out, their whereabouts unknown.
Victoria herself was sentenced to three years in prison for aggravated assault. But in prison, she lost her mind. She would spend her days kneeling and kowtowing to the security cameras, muttering incomprehensible words.
Caleb visited her a few times and told me about it.
I knew what it was. The backlash of the craft.
But it had nothing to do with me anymore.
Some things in this world may seem mysterious, but if they exist, they exist for a reason.
