The Moreau Witches Trilogy
Part One
The Legacy
by Julien Gregg
Copyright © 2025 by Julien Gregg
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law. For permission requests, contact the author by email. The link is below.
The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this production are fictitious. No identification with actual persons (living or deceased), places, buildings, and products is intended or should be inferred.
Eight
Christmas dawned bright that year. The temperature outside was forty-six and they actually had the heat on as they brought the babies downstairs for Christmas morning. Giselle and Revanche handed out gifts. The babies’ gifts were given to Quinn. Even Josephine had gifts under the tree. Quinn didn’t know how that happened because he hadn’t bought her a thing.
Once the gifts were passed out they began to open them. Revanche was thankful for his laptop computer. Giselle thanked him for the easel and paints. He got her new brushes and sponges too.
For Charlie he’d gotten a few gifts. One was a pair of lounge pants and a sweatshirt. These were important because Charlie said his sweatshirts were getting threadbare. He also opened a chain necklace with a pentagram suspended from the middle link. There was also the plaque that said “Daddy” on it. He hugged and kissed Quinn for it.
Quinn got a painting from Giselle. It was of him and Charlie and she’d painted it from memory. Revanche bought him CDs of his favorite bands. Charlie got him a necklace that was herringbone with a triquetra suspended from it. He also got him a “World’s Best Dad” t-shirt and a pair of sweatshirts, one said “World’s Best Husband” and the other said “Some Men Are Called Daddy”. He loved them and hugged his husband for them.
Pierre got a brand new wand and a chalice that had diamonds around it. He also got a sweatshirt that said “World’s Best Uncle” on it. Revanche got one of those as well. Lorette got several law books and a laptop computer with a briefcase that it fit into. Franklin got the same thing but his law books were about taxes and the laws associated with them.
Josephine got presents from her brother and some from Lorette and Josette. These were dresses that looked really nice. From her brother she got a memory book to put pictures of the boys in.
Lilly and Donetta served breakfast while Revanche picked up all of the wrapping paper and put it in a black trash bag. He looked at all of the stuff for the babies and smiled. There were receiving blankets, outfits, bottles, pacifiers, and spit rags.
They gathered around the table and had breakfast. Each of them went on about their gift. The boys were fed and put in bassinets that were in the dining room with them. Josephine even got to hold them for a bit. She was happy about that. Her complete mindset seemed to have changed. She was extremely quiet and withdrawn when she wasn’t holding the boys. She didn’t look anyone in the eye. Quinn was a tad worried about her if he was honest. Now that she’d had the babies they were looking for a place for her but it wasn’t easy. She had no money and no skills.
Joseph came for her just after breakfast to hang out with him and Leah. Quinn was thankful that she had that chance. When they brought her back she packed her stuff and moved in with them. Quinn was happy about that too. It solved his problem of where to put her.
He and Charlie fed, burped, and changed the little ones and then rocked them back to sleep. Everyone wanted to hold them but Quinn was firm about letting them sleep. They slept a lot during the day. They were up a lot at night. He didn’t care. They were here and they were his.
They had a great time at breakfast. Then Lilly and Donetta were working on the dinner that would be ham and all of the trimmings. Quinn was happy to have Josephine out of his house. That lifted a lot from his shoulders. He would give her pictures of the babies as they grew. Lord knew that had taken a lot of photographs of them already.
At dinner they were all happy. This was the way it was supposed to be in his house, happy people all of the time. Lorette and Franklin went home after dinner and then it was just the family and Pierre. He told Quinn that he was seeing a man named Tom Dent. He was not connected to the family in any way. Quinn was happy for him. Pierre said that they’d meet Tom when he hosted a dinner party on the boat.
When Pierre left they sat in the living room watching Christmas movies and munching cookies. It was a lazy night for them but it was needed. The boys woke up and needed to be changed. Then they held them for a while before putting them back in the bassinets. By the time they went to bed they were tired from both the long day and lack of sleep the night before.
Quinn had Legacy stuff to deal with the next morning. He spent most of that morning in his office with Wynn and Franklin going over paperwork for this and that. Money was sent to Ashdon and to a number of charities. Then he was looking at loan paperwork it seemed that everyone had gotten flush with their loans but Angelique which had undergone a foreclosure from the Legacy. That house was now officially Joseph’s and Leah’s.
They were gearing up for their wedding which would be on Valentine’s day. They were holding the event in the church with a reception at the Keller Center. Quinn had already received his invitation. He would be happy to attend the wedding and go to the reception. Lilly had already told him that she and Donetta would take care of the boys that night.
Then a surprising thing happened. Giselle accepted a date with Corbin Moreau who she’d met in he novice class. Quinn didn’t know what to think about it but if his sister was happy then he was all for it. Corbin picked her up at six and brought her back around eleven that night. She was all smiles as she went up to her room to shower and get ready for bed.
Quinn was happy that the boys were sleeping a bit longer at night now. They still woke them up a lot but it wasn’t as much as it had been. Dave said they were continuing to grow at a remarkable rate. The spell that Angelique had cast on Josephine to get her pregnant had done so much more. Quinn was of two minds. If she hadn’t cast that spell he wouldn’t have his sons but he was so angry at her and Josephine for what they’d done that it burned his stomach to think about it.
Lilly and Donetta were a big help where the boys were concerned. They watched over them while Quinn was gone to the advanced class and circle. They were there to help him when Charlie and Giselle were at the novice class and circle. By New Year’s Day the boys were sleeping all night long way ahead of schedule. They looked to be about six months old now and Quinn was starting to worry that their lives would be accelerated by that damned spell.
They were the topic of conversation every time Dave came to dinner. He talked about how he was working to counteract the spell. Lorette had even tried to break it but the spell hadn’t been cast on the boys. Their accelerated growth was a byproduct of the spell that had been cast on Josephine.
They were also going through clothes at a rapid rate. Thankfully Dave said that the acceleration was slowing. Quinn had been very worried about their growth and development. Now that it was slowing it may stop all together and they’d be normal little boys until puberty when they got their powers.
Lorette and Franklin were a big part of their lives as well. They both were content to be in their company as well as in Quinn and Charlie’s. They seemed to love Lilly and Donetta. That was a plus because Quinn would leave them with no one else. He was just happy that those two women were happy to have the boys any time he needed them.
Pierre had his dinner party on the boat on New Year’s Day. Quinn met Tom Dent at that dinner party. Tom was a tall, dark, and handsome man with the greenest eyes he’d ever seen. He was a witch but nowhere as powerful as the mighty Moreau witches as he put it. He seemed nice enough. His power was telekinesis but he was very weak with it compared to Joseph.
Tom was a nurse at Moreau Medical and he loved his job there. He had heard of the infamous Quinn Moreau through other Moreaus working at the hospital. He’d heard about the spell that Angelique had cast on Josephine to get her pregnant and the aftermath of that spell.
He was a pediatric nurse after all and worked closely with David Moreau. Quinn was happy to have met the guy and really happy for Pierre who appeared to be nuts over the man. At least he’d found another witch so he didn’t have to hide anything from him. Quinn had lucked out with Charlie and he knew it.
Josette filed for divorce from her husband and moved in with her girlfriend which thoroughly shocked Quinn to his core. He’d had no idea that Josette was a lesbian. He was happy for her for making herself happy. He just felt bad for the husband that was blindsided by this. He was a Moreau but the woman that Josette had taken up with was a Moreau as well. Her name was Olivia Moreau and her power was metallurgy. This was a power that Quinn knew little about but she told him she could pull the metals from the earth and make things out of them with her power. He was impressed.
Giselle had Corbin Moreau over for dinner a few times. Quinn liked him. He was a witty and caring young man who could read minds. He was nowhere as powerful as Pierre but he was no slouch. He also seemed head over heals for Giselle. Quinn was happy that she was finding love.
On Valentine’s day they were at the Keller Village Catholic Church to be witnesses to Joseph and Leah’s marriage. The ceremony was much longer than Quinn’s and Charlie’s had been but they made it through it. The reception that followed was epic.
Of course he, Charlie, and Giselle were in classes now. Lilly and Donetta took care of the boys while they were in classes. Quinn really liked his new classes and was doing really well. Charlie loved his culinary classes and was having the time of his life. Giselle took her GED and was now in Art classes. She was having a good time at school too.
They were all well known at the school because of he donations to the school by the Legacy. They had Quinn’s name attached and everyone knew that he had recently married Charlie and that Giselle was his twin sister. People stared and whispered about them a lot but some of them actually took the time to say hello. When they needed study partners Quinn was never at a loss for partners. He had so many that people seemed jealous.
He was also studying Astrology with Pierre. They were running out of things to teach him after the meld mentale spell. Pierre told him if it weren’t for time he’d be ready for initiation. He was of a mind to skip the year because of he meld mentale and just initiate Quinn into Moondance. In fact he said he would at the next circle night.
Pierre explained to him that he would bathe in the herbs and take the potion to empty himself and then he would put on a robe that Pierre would give him and then be lead to the circle blindfolded. He explained all that was to happen to him and put him at ease.
So it was on Saturday Quinn skipped class and took his bath and drank his potion. When he was empty and clean he put the robe on over his naked flesh. He left the house and walked around to the back where the circle waited. Pierre blindfolded him and left him in Lorette’s charge.
Quinn was lead blindfolded to the circle. He knew that the coven members were holding up a sword. Pierre took the sword that they carried and said, "Who comes to the gate?"
“It is I, Quinn, child of the Goddess,” said Quinn.
"Who speaks for you?" Pierre asked.
"It is I, Lorette, who vouches for him."
Pierre held he point of the sword against Quinn’s heart and said, “You are about to enter a vortex of power, a place beyond imagining, where birth and death, dark and light, joy and pain, meet and make one. You are about to step between the worlds, beyond time, outside the realm of your human life. You who stands on the threshold of the Goddess, have you the courage to make the essay? For know it is better to fall on my blade and perish than to make the attempt with fear in thy heart!"
"I tread the path with perfect love and perfect trust," Quinn answered.
"Prepare for death and rebirth," said Pierre as he took he sword and cut off Quinn’s robe until he was standing there naked. Pierre ground the sword into the Earth. Quinn was still blindfolded. Pierre said, “And he is bound as all living things must be, who would enter the realm of the Goddess. And his feet were neither bound nor free.”
Pierre poured water over Quinn’s head and shoulders and said, “Thus are all first brought into the world, and thus all first brought into the Coven.”
Pierre now led Quinn to each of the four corners and introduced him to the Guardians, moving in a clockwise manor and introduced Quinn as a Priest and Witch. Then he brought him back to the altar. Pierre knelt and gave him the Five Fold Kiss, this was on both feet, knees, pubic bone, breasts, and the lips, saying, “Blessed be thy feet, that have brought thee in these ways. Blessed be thy knees, that shall kneel at the sacred altar. Blessed be thy core. Blessed be thy breasts, formed in beauty. Blessed be thy lips, that shall utter the Sacred Names."
As he kissed Quinn’s lips they embraced then Quinn spread his arms wide. Pierre measured him around he head, chest and tied knots marking the lengths with a cord. He then rolled up the cord and asked, “Are you willing to swear the oath?”
“I am,” Quinn replied.
“Are you willing to suffer and learn?” asked Pierre’s
“I am, “Quinn replied.
Quinn knelt with one hand on his head and one at this heal. He repeated after Pierre word for word: “I will keep secret what I am asked to keep secret, and never divulge names or dwelling places of our people unless by consent. I will learn and try to master the Art Magical; but ever remember the rune. What good be the tools without the inner light? What good be the magic without wisdom sight? In due course I will strive to find a worthy pupil in magic, to whom in future years I can hand down the knowledge I acquire. I will never use the Art Magical merely to impress foolish persons, nor for any wrongful end. I will help Craft the Wise, and hold its honor as I would my own. I consider these vows taken before the Goddess; and that if I betray this Charge I accept as my just reward the retribution of the destiny which overtakes those who basely betray the trust and confidence that others have placed in me. I know that none can escape this fate, be it curse or blessing, which we make for ourselves, either in this life or another.
I, Quinn, do of my own free will most solemnly swear to protect, help and defend my sisters and brothers of he Art and to keep the Coven’s Charge. I always keep secret all that must not be revealed. This I do swear on my mother’s womb and my hopes of rebirth, mindful that my measure has been taken, and in the presence of the Goddess.”
“So mote it be!” they all shouted.
Pierre said, “Arise and be anointed.” He mad an X mark on Quinn’s forehead, breast, and genitals and said, “May your mind be free. May your heart be free. May your body be free. I give you to the Goddess.”
The rest of the coven grabbed him suddenly, lifting him and carrying him three times around the circle, laughing and yelling. Then they lay him face down before the altar and pressed him into the ground. Gradually the pressure changed to stroking. They chanted his name, raising the Cone of Power over him. The blindfold was removed and they said, “Know that the hands that have touched you are hands of love. Thus are all first brought into the world, and thus all are first brought into the Coven.
Pierre handed him the cord and said, “In the Burning Times, when each member of the Coven held the lives of the others in their hands, this would have been kept and be used against you should you endanger the others. But in these more fortunate times, love and trust prevail, so take this, keep it or burn it, and be free to go or to stay as your heart leads you."
He felt tired and full of power. It was zinging through his body and he knew that he was that much more powerful because he was initiated. That made him both happy and uneasy about that. Charlie helped him put his clothes on and get back in the house. The boys were cooing in their playpen. The seemed to know that magic was happening in the back yard.
“Hey boys,” he said as he sat down in the chair by the playpen. They cooed back at him. “Did you like the magic out there? Did you feel it? Sure you did.”
“They were going nuts over it while it was happening,” Charlie said as he stood beside the chair. “They knew that something was happening.”
“Of course they did,” Quinn said with a smile. “They’re powerful little tykes.”
“That scares me,” said Charlie.
“Why?” Quinn asked.
“Because if they’re like you and get their powers around eight depending on what those powers are we might have a lot to handle,” said Charlie.
“Well we’ll have to wait and see,” Quinn replied. “Right now I’m just happy that they’re happy.”
“Yeah they are pretty happy guys lately,” he said. “I think they feel the lighter atmosphere now that Josephine is gone.”
“Probably,” Quinn said. “It is more relaxed here now that she’s gone. I just hope she stays gone.”
“How is she going to stay gone if you don’t let her take the boys out of the house and you want to let her see them?” Charlie asked.
“A conundrum,” Quinn said. “I guess I hadn’t thought it through.”
“Well it isn’t like she’s here now,” Charlie said. “What do you have going tomorrow?”
“We’re having dinner with Calvin and Marie Moreau here in the manor,” he said. “I’ve already told Lilly and Donetta to cook more.”
“Who are Calvin and Marie Moreau?” Charlie asked.
“Members of he family with no magic,” he said. “They’re in the advanced class and I met them last week. I invited them to dinner and forgot to tell you.”
“No problem,” he said. “I suppose it will be fun.”
“They want to move to Keller Village and open a grocery store there,” said Quinn.
“So this is a business dinner?” Charlie asked.
“No this is a get to know them dinner,” he said. “The loan would come from the Legacy and they’d need collateral and a business plan.”
“Well when you say it that way,” Charlie said with a smile.
“I seriously want to start a trend,” Quinn said. “If I let them move to Keller Village and open a store there then the rest of the family will start to see that those with no magical ability still have merit. Pierre has already started letting those with no real magic attend his classes and circles. We’re just trying to kick start this.”
“All right,” Charlie said. “I get it and I’m happy to help. After all I’m one of those in the family with no real magical ability.”
“Well I wasn’t trying to point that out but it says a lot that I married you instead of another Moreau,” he said.
“Really?” Charlie asked. “They expected that you’d marry a Moreau?”
“They nearly required it,” he said. “Thankfully I was the heir and they can’t make those kind of requirements of the heir.”
“Lucky for us,” Charlie said. “You should do something about that.”
“Well I’m trying,” Quinn said. “It isn’t easy to change the way the family thinks after generations of the same way of thinking.”
“I suppose not,” Charlie said. “Are you telling me that the family doesn’t like me?”
“No I’m not telling you that but it wouldn’t matter anyway because all of the members of the family I associate with on a daily basis love you,” Quinn said.
“That’s true,” Charlie said. “I guess I’m mollified.”
“Good,” Quinn said.
“So we’re having dinner with them and then you’re meeting them for the loan?” Charlie asked.
“Well I already know a lot about their finances,” Quinn said. “They’ve got way more than the ten percent I would require that they pay before the loan. I was planning to just give them the loan and set them free. I’d ask that Lilly and Donetta try to get some of the groceries from them, too.”
“You know they order those groceries Quinn,” Charlie said.
“Well they can get some things there,” he said. “They’ll figure it out.”
“Yes I suppose they will if you ask them to,” Charlie said. “They think you are the rising sun.”
“Oh I just treat them better than most in the family,” Quinn said waving his hand.
“You don’t get it do you?” Charlie asked. “They like you for more than the way you treat them. You got rid of Maria who was constantly critical of Donetta and Larry. You brought Lilly and Kim back to Moonlight Bay to be with you. They think the world of you.”
“Well when you put it that way I guess,” Quinn said with a smile. “I brought Lilly and Kim here because I love them. I was nice to Donetta and Larry because Maria was a mega bitch.”
“Well they love you for it,” Charlie said.
“And I love them,” Quinn said.
They had a nice dinner with Giselle and Revanche. There were no others in attendance. He told them about Calvin and Maria coming to dinner. They found no reason to comment on it. When he told them that they had no magic they still didn’t find a reason to comment. Then he told them that they were moving into Keller Village and opening a grocery store.
“The rest of the family will have a fit about this,” Revanche said. “They’ll never shop in their store.”
“They will if they see us doing it,” Quinn said.
“Oh I see,” said Revanche. “This is a sales pitch. What do you expect me to buy in their store?”
“Well I figured you could stop in and get a soda or something semi regularly,” Quinn said.
“Sure I can do that,” Revanche said. “You know Gage and Calvin will shop there all the time.”
“Good,” Quinn said. “The idea is get people in the store a lot of the time.”
“Get Lorette and Josette in on this,” Revanche said.
“I plan to,” Quinn said.
“Good boy,” Revanche said.
“I’ll shop there,” said Giselle. “I’ll buy whatever I can think of there.”
“Thanks Giselle,” Quinn said.
“I don’t think anything bad about those in the family without magic,” she said.
“That’s good, Giselle,” he said. “There are quite a few of them.”
“Have you heard anything from the couple that tried to raise me?” she asked.
“Giselle, I think they died,” he said.
“Well that would explain why you haven’t heard anything out of them,” she said. “I’m sorry that they died. They weren’t my parents but they did try to raise me like a daughter.”
“Well that’s nice, but I’m working on getting the family to accept those without magic,” he said.
“I know,” she said. “I’m on board.”
After dinner Quinn spent some time with his sons. They were now sitting up and playing with toys, they ate baby food and baby cereal, and had graduated to real milk. Quinn had thrown out the parenting books that talked about normal children. These two were still accelerated.
He played with them and loved them for about an hour before they started to yawn. He took Marcel and Charlie took Philippe and they went upstairs to put the youngsters to bed. They changed their diapers and then dressed them in their pajamas and placed them on their backs in their cribs.
Then Quinn and Charlie got ready for bed. They just stripped to their underwear and climbed into bed. They settled against each other and went straight to sleep. Some time in the night they traded places but nothing woke them all night long.
Quinn was the first one up. He had Legacy stuff to do this morning. He heard he boys as he passed their room and got them up, changed, and dressed before he took them downstairs, put them in their high chairs, and alerted Donetta that the boys were in the dining room. Then he went to his office and called into the bank for a conference call about loans and such.
He approved the loan for Calvin and Marie Moreau and denied a loan from another couple who wanted to buy a house for the first time. Neither had been at their current job for over a year so they didn’t fit the criteria for the loan. He was done after that and went to the dining room to have breakfast with his husband. His brother and sister came down while they were eating.
It was Sunday and that meant that Josephine was coming for two hours today. She’d be there by noon. Then he’d be getting the manor ready for Calvin and Marie to come to dinner. He wanted fresh flowers which he would help grow and thrive, and he wanted the dining room in tip top shape.
They polished the table and he made the flowers grow. Since initiation he had greater control over that power. They didn’t reach for he ceiling as much as just sprout new bulbs and open them like to the sun. When he finished in the dining room he went to the lounge and did the same thing there. When he was finished those two rooms looked like they had mega bouquets in them.
Charlie took one look at the plants and smiled at him. He smiled back and then took the boys into the living room and put them in the playpen. He made sure that they could get to their toys without much help and then sat down.
“How was your morning?” Charlie asked.
“I approved Marie and Calvin’s loan and denied another,” he said. “The other couple hadn’t been at their current jobs for a year yet. They didn’t fit the criteria for the loan.”
“That sucks for them but they should reapply when they’ve been at work for a year,” Charlie said.
“That’s what I told them when I called them with the news,” Quinn replied.
“Well it could’ve been worse,” Charlie said. “You were out of the office much sooner than usual.”
“Well I didn’t have marketing reports and budget sheets to look at this morning,” Quinn said. “I had all of those on Friday.”
“Why were you doing business on Sunday?” Charlie asked.
“The Legacy doesn’t close on weekends,” Quinn replied.
“So now that you’re initiated do you still go to classes with Pierre?” Charlie asked, changing the subject.
“No,” he said. “I’m all done with classes. I can study on my own if I choose to. But I’m done with the structured classes. I’m sure Pierre would make time for me if I had a problem.”
“Oh I’m sure he would,” Charlie said.
They had a light lunch and Donetta cleaned the dining room once again. Then they started on dinner. He wasn’t sure what they were making, but the house was soon full of aroma from what they were cooking.
He sat on the floor with the boys for a while and then Josephine showed up. She sat in the living room watching Quinn play with the boys until he got up and told her she could have some time with them. He went and sat in his chair as he watched her try to play with the twins. They didn’t really want much to do with her. Unlike the way they played with him and Charlie they were a bit stingy with her.
She stayed for two hours and then she left. Quinn told her that she could come back on Thursday but she said she had something to do on Thursday. So he told her he’d see her on Sunday. Then she was gone and he felt better.
Right before Marie and Calvin showed up Lorette walked through the door with necklaces in her hand. She went on and on about something but she was talking too fast as she handed Quinn a necklace with a red amulet on it.
“Slow down and say it again,” he said to her after he’d handed Charlie and Revanche their amulets.
“They’re working on unbinding Josephine and Angelique,” she said. “I whipped up these amulets to ward off spells and curses. Where’s Giselle?”
“Upstairs painting,” he said and then she was gone to go upstairs to Giselle.
So that was why Josephine was acting so strange when she was there. She knew that someone was working to unbind her powers so she was antsy. Quinn was furious. He didn’t know who was trying to do this but they’d have hell to pay when he found out who they were.
“So they’re unbinding their powers and we’re wearing amulets to stop them from casting spells on us or curses?” Charlie asked.
“That’s the gist of it,” Quinn said.
“Who would be stupid enough to unbind those two?” Revanche asked.
“I don’t know but we’re about to have dinner guests,” Quinn said. “We can find out who and where later.”
Calvin and Marie showed up a few minutes later and Quinn met them at the door. He welcomed them to the manor. They were impressed by all that they could see. Then he gave them a tour of the downstairs from the lounge to the office and solarium. Then there was the kitchen, the dining room, and the living room. They were back to the door again.
He invited them to have a seat in the dining room. Lorette joined them for dinner and Donetta set her a place at the table. Revanche and Giselle came to the table a minute later.
“So tell me when you’re planning to open the grocery store,” Quinn said to Calvin.
“We’ll start renovating the building Monday now that we have the loan,” he said with a smile.
“Well I’m eager to get you up and running in Keller Village,” he said. “There are no grocery stores in the village.”
“We’re the first?” Marie asked.
“The very first,” he replied.
“Good,” she said. “Maybe the rest of the family will get over their prejudice long enough to make us successful.”
“I’m trying to change the way the family treats you,” Quinn said.
“We know, and we’re very happy about that,” said Calvin. “Pierre letting us attend classes and circles is a new thing as well.”
“Well he never had any prejudice against those in the family without magical ability,” Quinn said. “None of you had expressed an interest in joining the classes and circles before.”
“We didn’t think we’d be accepted,” Marie said. “You’re new to the family but this prejudice is generations deep.”
“I’m sorry for that,” Quinn said.
“Don’t be sorry,” said Calvin. “You’re one of the forward thinkers in the family.”
“What are you planning to call your store?” Quinn asked to change the subject.
“Moreau Food and Sundries,” said Calvin. “We plan to sell some hardware too.”
“Good for you,” he said. “That’s versatile.”
“That’s what we were thinking,” said Marie.
“We’ll shop there,” said Revanche. Giselle nodded.
“Thank you,” Calvin said. “That means a lot to us.”
“We don’t think it’s right that they hold the fact that you were born without magic against you,” said Revanche. “There are some in the family that I’m starting to think were born with no soul.”
“Revanche,” Quinn admonished.
“You know who I mean,” Revanche countered.
“Yes, I do but it isn’t nice to speak ill of the less fortunate,” Quinn said.
“Really,” Charlie said, glancing at Revanche. He was trying not to laugh which was hard for Quinn too.
“We just want to be part of the family, too,” said Marie.
“You are part of the family,” Quinn said. “We’ll have dinner from time to time and I’ll check in on you from time to time like a normal family member.”
“Here here,” said Lorette. “I’ll shop in your store and have you to dinner at my house once we build it.”
“Thank you,” said Marie, smiling.
“So you see there are family members who don’t care one way or another about your magical ability,” Quinn said. “You’re just as good as any other member of the family.”
“It’s good that you see us that way,” Calvin said. “My own parents couldn’t wait until I turned eighteen. They allowed me to marry Marie when I was sixteen.”
“That’s both awful that your parents did that and wonderful that you found love at sixteen,” Quinn said.
“His choices were fewer then,” said Marie. “There weren’t as many of us as there are now.”
“My parents talked about the fact that it was because people were polluting the bloodline with people who didn’t come from a magical background,” said Calvin.
“Oh that’s just plain stupid,” Quinn said, angry at his parents for spreading that nonsense.
“That’s what they believed,” Calvin said.
“Well we’re going to change that if I can help it,” said Quinn. “We’ll start with your store.”
“Now that you’ve approved the loan others will come with ideas,” Marie said. “They told us you’d never approve a loan for one of us.”
“But I have,” he said. “And I will seriously consider all who come to the Legacy for a loan.”
“That’s to the good,” Calvin said. “I’ve had a great time with you tonight, Quinn. All of you.”
“I’m glad,” Quinn said with a smile. “I think I need to clean up my boys though.”
“Yes, we should be going we have a contractor to hire,” Marie said as she stood.
“Quinn it was a pleasure and I hope we can do something like this again,” Calvin said as he shook Quinn’s hand.
Quinn saw them out and then tackled the boys with Charlie’s help. They gave them a bath and then put a diaper on them and their pajamas. They took them back down to the playpen after that.
That started a trend. Quinn and Charlie had dinner with five couples without magic and all had similar stories. Quinn approved two more loans one for a nail salon and one for a clothing store in Keller Village. Both were for couples without magic.
On Thursday his amulet heated up. He looked at Lorette and she was nodding her head. So they’d been successful in unbinding their powers. He supposed he didn’t much care as long as they stopped trying to cast spells on him.
When Josephine showed up on Sunday he told her to stop trying to cast spells on him. She swore it wasn’t her. She said it had to be her mother but she didn’t talk to her much. She told Quinn that Angelique was after getting custody of one of the boys. He told her that would happen over his dead body.
Suddenly they were studying for final exams. Spring was upon them. Quinn took two finals and then had some more time to study for the others. He’d taken five classes this semester and each had a final exam. They’d scheduled them on different days.
By the time he was done with finals he was spent. He still had Legacy stuff to do. He was happy that Calvin and Marie’s store was now having its grand opening. He made it down there to buy a bag of chips and a soda or at least that’s what he went for. He ended up buying a tub of ice cream with cupcakes, two bags of chips, a loaf of wheat bread, a package of processed meat, and a pack of cheddar cheese. He didn’t get the soda. Lorette was there with a full cart. Revanche and Giselle had bought sandwiches from the deli and sodas from the grocery.
The nail salon was up and running and very busy. It seemed the townspeople were happy that a nail salon opened. There were four girls doing nails in there. The clothing store was open and again the store was packed with people.
Quinn made it home that Sunday just in time to be there when Josephine showed up. She played with the boys but didn’t say much. When she left she didn’t even say goodbye. He wondered what was up with that but Pierre wanted to celebrate being free from school for the summer by taking the boat out and making a day of it.
Quinn, Revanche, Giselle, Corbin, Lorette, Franklin, and Charlie went on that little boat ride. The boys were with Donetta and Lilly. This was the first time that Quinn and Charlie had left them at the same time for more than an hour.
They had a great time out on the boat and were headed inland when it happened. The boat began to lurch back and forth. The seas were calm so he didn’t understand it at first. Then he saw her. Josephine was sitting on the dock staring at the boat and muttering.
“She’s casting a spell!” he cried.
“But she isn’t casting it on us,” Lorette said. “She’s casting it on the boat.”
“We’re going to tip over,” said Pierre as the boat lurched further and further to the left and right.
Then the boat flipped! It really flipped! They were all in the water. Quinn swam for the dock with all of his might. Revanche was right behind him. He hoped the others were coming as well. He got to the dock and Charlie was already there. He told him that Revanche was turning blue. Quinn performed CPR on him. Sirens could be heard approaching their location.
Pierre swam up with a limp Charlie under his arm. Charlie’s moth was blue. His eye sockets were blue. But he was standing on the deck as dry as a bone. Then the horrible truth crept up on him. Charlie was dead. This was a new power. He could see and talk to the dead.
They lost three people that day. Giselle and Corbin had been in the cabin when the boat flipped. They had drowned. Charlie’s head had struck the side of he boat and knocked him out and he’d drowned even thought Pierre was trying to pull him to the deck to save him. Revanche lived through it and started to cough water as Quinn gave chest compressions.
He’d lost a sister and a husband. Josephine sat there not three feet from them laughing! She was laughing about what she’d done. He stared at her in shock at first. Then she spoke and he was livid.
“You have no husband now, Quinn,” she laughed.
He pushed at her head with all of his power until her pupils blew and she slumped over on her side. He’d killed her. She’d be the fourth casualty reported from this freak accident. They made it home as the sun went down. Pierre would need a place to stay. Quinn was beside himself with grief but refused to show it. He just sat there with his boys in his arms and stared at the floor.
Lorette and Pierre kept talking to him but he ignored them. He just kept staring at the floor. Charlie’s ghost was telling him to snap out of it but he ignored him, too. He just stared at the floor. When they took his sons from him he wept. A sob rocked his body. Then Angelique was standing before him. She slapped him across his face. He looked up at her with tears spilling from his eyes.
“You killed her!” she screamed.
He didn’t think about it. He just let his power enter her head and pool around the lace that covered her brain. She continued to scream at him but he just continued to pool his power around her brain. She slapped him again and he yanked his power back, taking the lace with it.
“What have you done?” she demanded putting her hands to the sides of her head. “You’re going to kill me?”
He hadn’t killed her and it took only a few more minutes for her to figure out what he’d done. She screamed and fell to her knees. She rocked back and forth there in front of him on the floor and he continued to weep. She got up and stood there before him. She was crying now.
“First you killed my daughter,” she said in agony. “Then you take my power? I hope you rot in Hell Quinn Moreau.”
“I’m already in Hell you bitch,” he snapped. “Your fucking daughter took me there today. You bitch that I killed your daughter? She killed three innocent people today. She took a father from my boys. She did that. She nearly killed Revanche. She did kill Charlie, Giselle, and Corbin. You dare to stand there and call me a killer after that?”
“I can’t feel it anymore,” she said. “This is torture.”
“You’ll never feel it again,” he said. “I took your magic because you use it for evil.”
“Oh shut up Quinn,” she snapped.
“Get the fuck out of my house you bitch,” he said calmly, shocking her and everyone in the room. “If you’re not gone by the time I come back I’ll kill you, too.”
He got up and left the room. He went upstairs to wash his face in his bathroom. He looked around the room at all of Charlie’s stuff and wept some more. He decided it was a lost cause and went back downstairs. Angelique was no longer in the house. He sat in his chair and just wept.
Lorette knelt before him and tried to wipe his tears, but he took her hand and said, “They’re gone but he’s still here. I can see and talk to his ghost.”
“Oh, Quinn,” she said. “You have to let him go. He has to be reborn.”
“I know that,” he said. “He won’t go.”
“I will never leave you Quinn,” Charlie said. “You are my soul’s mate.”
Quinn wailed at this and cried some more. He scared Lorette so badly that she fell on her butt. Franklin came to help her up. She stood there looking at Quinn and shaking her head. She turned to Revanche but he was crying, too.
“I can’t believe this happened,” she said.
“I want to know who unbound their powers,” Quinn said. “Because they’re just as responsible for the deaths of those three people as she was.”
“Quinn I already know who unbound their powers,” she said. “Wynn did that. He used the power sync on the beach to do it.”
“Then Wynn is a dead man,” he said and got up. He left the house with all of them calling his name.
He wouldn’t stop. He couldn’t stop until Wynn Moreau was dead. He drove to Keller Village and pulled up in front of Wynn’s house. He got out of the car and began to yell his name. Wynn came out of the house in a bath robe and slippers.
“What is the meaning of this?” he demanded.
“You unbound their powers,” Quinn said. “Do you know what Josephine did with her power today? She killed my husband, my sister, and her boyfriend. I killed her for it. Angelique came and slapped my face. She called me a murderer in front of my children. I took her magic for it. Here me now, Wynn Moreau I’ve come to kill you for what you’ve done.”
“Quinn I had no way of knowing that this would happen,” he said. “Angelique has been the one in the family that I always turned to when things went pear shaped. You have to believe that I wouldn’t have done it if I’d known that Josephine would put her power to this use.”
“Save it,” Quinn said and let his power touch Wynn’s heart.
Wynn flinched and grabbed his chest. He moaned out that he didn’t want to die. Quinn just kept pushing slowly. He wanted the man to hurt as bad as he did before he killed him. He wanted him to suffer like he was suffering.
“Quinn!” cried Charlie’s ghost. “Stop. He didn’t do this to us. He didn’t know. Quinn don’t become a senseless killer over this. Stop!”
Quinn pulled his power back and Wynn lay there panting on his front lawn. Quinn got back in his truck and pulled way from the house and drove back to the manor. He got out and went in the house.
“Did you kill him?” Lorette asked in fear.
“No,” he said. “I won’t become a killing machine. Not over this. Too many are dead already.”
“Oh thank the Goddess,” she sighed.
“I wanted to kill him,” he said. “I wanted to really badly. Charlie’s ghost snapped me out of it. He told me not to become a senseless killer over this. He said that Wynn didn’t know what would happen. How could he, he doesn’t see the future.”
“No he doesn’t,” she said. “His power is to know the truth when it’s spoken. He’s one of the weaker witches in the family.”
He couldn’t stop crying. He just kept going. The tears wouldn’t stop. Oh how this hurt him. He’d lost his sister! The other part of him was dead and at Josephine’s hands. He couldn’t believe that the pitiful girl he’d seen come to play with their boys could do what she’d done.
But she’d done it. The world was a dark place for Quinn now. He couldn’t believe this had happened. He’d been through it but still couldn’t believe that it happened. How could she have done this? How could she have done this and thought that he wouldn’t kill her for it?
Oh how his heart ached. He was right this was hell and he was trapped in it. He didn’t know what to do to make it stop. He just continued to feel it in waves. Charlie was reduced to a ghost. Giselle was dead. She was dead! He just kept praying to the Goddess to make this day not happen.
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