Autumn Calling by T. Lynne Tolles Read Free Book Online Page B

Marcus, and the rest of
the Macabre mob under the rule of Jaqueline, the matriarch.
    “With the help of Myrtle, they devised a
plan that went terribly wrong.”
    “How?”
    “Jaqueline must have suspected something was
up. She instructed the family to never leave Violet alone with her
mother. Once you girls arrived, Myrtle showed up hoping to distract
the Macabres with her surprise visit and Ivy took the brunt of the
magical assault that followed.
    “On Ivy’s death bed she called for me to
come to her side and asked me to watch over you.”
    “Why just me and not Lunette?”
    “Because Ivy had a ‘plan B’ in place if the
first had failed. She knew the first born, even if only a few
seconds, would receive more magical powers than the sibling. Plan B
was this: if they couldn’t get you girls and Violet out safely,
then the first born must be taken, for having the both of you would
be catastrophic to anyone who wields magic. For the Macabres crave
power; they always have. And with you girls on their side with the
more powerful Midnight magic within you, they would use you both to
strip the world of its magic to boost their own.”
    “That’s awful.”
    “It is and it was. The war that ensued
between the Midnights and Macabres that night is written in the
magical journals as one of the most powerful and horrific displays
ever recorded. In the end, there were many deaths on both sides.
All the Macabres died that night except Yvonne, Marcus and his
sister Juliette.
    “On the side of the Midnights, Ivy and
Violet lost their lives, and though Myrtle got you out and hidden,
she didn’t escape their damage. Her fits, as you call them, started
shortly after, as did the decline of her powers. It was a sad day
for magic, but Myrtle saw to it that you were well cared for. She
recruited Ivy’s best friend’s daughter to join the order and watch
over you at Holy Cross.”
    “Where was Morti in all this? He’s a
Midnight. Why didn’t he fight for his sisters and their
families?”
    “He couldn’t. The BROOM wouldn’t allow it.
His punishment for his crimes forbids him from using magic and
forces him to live out his life as a familiar. Though I will say,
it is believed that he had a hand in Rene Midnight’s death when
Violet’s father ‘mysteriously’ became ill. Rene was suspected of
having a hand in his ailment, and just as mystifying as Henry’s
sickness was, Rene inexplicably fell to his death the day after
Henry passed.”
    “The BROOM never charged Morti for that
crime did they?”
    “I think given the circumstances, the BROOM
turned a blind eye to the ordeal.”
    “What circumstances?”
    “It was the Macabres who reported Morti’s
crimes even though it was found they had a hand in the crimes
themselves. Morti did what he did out of love for Yvonne Macabre,
Marcus’s great-aunt. She played him and strung him along as long as
it benefitted the Macabres, and as soon as Morti was no longer
needed they reported him as being the sole perpetrator.”
    “I suppose the does explain why he’s such a
grumpy old coot most of the time.”
    “What’s a coot?” Daniel asked.
    “Um…an eccentric old guy?”
    “Ah, yes. That would most assuredly describe
Morti.”
    “So are there any ‘watchers’ like you
watching out for Lunette?”
    “Not that I know of. Why?”
    “I don’t know. I just seems like she got the
short end of the stick when it comes to the Midnights.”
    “Maybe, but remember, there’s only Myrtle
who isn’t always coherent, and Morti who can’t use magic or be
anything but a cat.”
    “I guess. I just feel kind of bad for her,
having been raised by such awful people, and all without a mother
to at least commiserate with.”
    “You didn’t have a mother and you turned out
okay.”
    “Yes, but I had Sister Mary Louise, the
other sisters and Tori…and you, of course, looking out for me,” she
said with a smile.
    “True, but Lunette has her father and her
aunt. I’m sure her life