“I was only three years old when I cast my first spell,” I said. I glanced over to see if the mention of magic would phase him, but it didn’t.

“I was sitting on the floor of our little trailer in the middle of nowhere Nevada when a light just burst out of me. Something on TV made me laugh, and the joy I felt manifested itself as a brilliant ball of light just hovering there in front of me. Whatever that light was, it made the TV blow a fuse. It made me giggle at first, but then my mother came rushing into the room, her eyes filled with pure terror I’ll never forget. I thought I’d done something wrong, and when I started to cry, the light went out.”

Nik didn’t say a word or act like he didn’t believe me, which is how I always imagined people would act if I told them about my abilities. Other than the demons who worked for Dominic, I had never known anyone who had any kind of magical abilities. I guess I assumed there were others out there, but until Nik had told me the truth about Willow Harbor earlier today, I had never guessed there were so many types of magic in this world.

I definitely never imagined there would be an entire town full of supernatural beings.

“I thought my mom was angry with me, and she told me never to ever let it happen again,” I said. “That night, she packed up all our belongings and moved us to a new town. I tried to keep the magic hidden, but I was just a child, and I didn’t understand how it worked. Sometimes, when I least expected it, I would make something happen. Like one time when the electricity went out during a storm, I made all the lights in our apartment building come back on. To me, it was simple. I knew I could do it, so why would we sit there in the dark? But it scared my mother to death. The next day, we were gone again.”

I sighed, thinking about those days and the look on my mother’s face every time I would cast magic or make something happen.

“Over time, as I got a little older and able to understand things better, I realized Mom wasn’t really angry. She was just worried. Terrified that someone would find out about me and want to use my powers,” I said. “When I was six, she finally sat down with me and explained that we came from a rare line of witches. A powerful line that many greedy people out there would kill to control. The gift of magic had skipped my mother, but her mother had been tortured for years for her abilities before she’d been able to escape. Mom told me I needed to be more careful and learn to control it, but since she didn’t have the magic herself, she didn’t know how to teach me.”

“That must have been terrifying,” Nik said.

“More than I can express,” I said. Feeling the weight of the next part of my story, I sat down in the sand, unsure if I could trust my legs to hold me up.

Nik sat down next to me, and I continued.

“I tried to control it,” I said. “Over time, I got used to keeping my emotions in check, and I started to understand what it felt like in my body right before the magic would take over. I learned a little bit how to stop it, but sometimes, it caught me by surprise. One day, when I was seven years old, my mom was working late at some department store. She had left me home alone, but her work wasn’t that far away, and I was bored out of my mind. I walked down to the store to find her, but she was on break when I got there, so her manager parked me in front of this giant display of televisions and told me to wait for her.”

I nearly choked on the words, my tears flowing now.

Nik touched my leg, and I looked away, not wanting him to see the tears streaming down my face.

“I wasn’t thinking,” I said. “I started flipping through the channels on the various screens, looking for any of my favorite cartoons. Only, I wasn’t using any type of remote-control. I was simply using my magic. When mom came out and found me there, she was furious. She immediately walked me home and started packing our things. That’s when the men in black suits came busting through our door.”

Nik gripped my hand, and I had to hold back sobs.

“Mom tried to fight them off, but they knocked her against the wall like she was nothing,” I said. “She kept getting up, screaming my name, but the third time they hit her, I could literally feel the life disappear from her body. The men murdered my mother and took me away because of what I could do. This is the first time I’ve been free since that night thirteen years ago.”

“I’m so sorry, Eva,” he said, wrapping his arms around me. There were tears in his eyes, too, as he held me. “I had no idea you’d been through something like that.”

“It was my fault they found us,” I said.

“You were just a child,” he said, pulling away to wipe the tears off my cheek. “You couldn’t possibly have understood there were people like that in the world.”

“Not people. A demon,” I said, wiping my face and turning back toward him. “His name is Dominic, and I’ve been his prisoner now for nearly thirteen years. He uses me as his personal lottery, in a way, and he’s kept me locked away in his private suite in Vegas for as long as I can remember. He used me to rig certain slot machines to pay out big jackpots to him and his demons. Over the years, I’ve made him millions, and the casinos have no clue he’s been robbing them this whole time. Even if they figured it out, they’re all too scared to confront him. He’s too powerful. Anyway, that’s why I’ve never seen the ocean or been anywhere on vacation. That’s why I’ve hardly experienced anything he didn’t want me to experience.”

“Oh my God, Eva, I had no idea,” he said. “But you did it. You escaped. You’re free now.”

I laughed through my tears. “I’m free right this minute,” I said. “But for how long? I’ve tried to escape before, but he always finds me. And every time he does, he punishes me a little harder for disobeying him. This is the farthest I’ve ever gotten, and I’m scared if he finds me this time, he’ll never let me out of his sight again.”

“I won’t let that happen,” Nik said, his jaw tensing. “If he comes here, this town won’t let him take you. We’ll fight back.”

I shook my head. “You don’t understand how powerful he is,” I said. “I could never put the people of this town in danger like that. Or you. I can’t stay here, Nik. He’s already searching for me, and it’s only a matter of time before he finds me. I shouldn’t be here when he does.”

“This is exactly where you should be,” he said. “This town isn’t like any place you’ve been before. There are magical borders set up to keep demons like him away, and if he does manage to slip through those protective barriers, the people of this town won’t allow him to hurt you or take you away.”

“They won’t have a choice,” I said. “He’s too powerful, and when he comes, he’s going to come with an army of both humans and demons with him. I can’t let that happen. I appreciate all you’ve done for me, and believe me when I say I wish I could stay here longer, but as soon as my car is fixed, I need to go.”

“Eva, this is the safest place you can be right now,” Nik said. “Stay here with me. Once you get to know this town, you’ll see what I mean.”

I looked out at the gorgeous moonlight falling against the waves and wished with all my heart that he was right. When I left Vegas, I knew that I would have to stay on the move for the rest of my life, just like my mom had tried to do before I ruined it and we were found. I wouldn’t make that mistake again. As long as I could keep my magic hidden, I would have a chance.

I couldn’t stay in a town where magic was known to exist. If Dominic knew anything about the existence of Willow Harbor, he would come looking for me here for sure.

“Look, we don’t have to figure this all out tonight,” Nik said. “Let’s get you settled at the Inn, and maybe after a good night’s sleep, you’ll be up for more discussion. Besides, tomorrow is Halloween. Trust me when I say you wouldn’t want to miss it. This town really comes alive on Hallow’s Eve, and there’s this amazing Fall Festival run by the local witches.”

“Seriously?” I asked, drying the last of my tears. I had never met another witch before, and I couldn’t help but wonder if they were like me. I also couldn’t imagine being so open with my abilities that I celebrated them with a festival.

The pain of wanting to really belong somewhere cut through all the fear for just a moment, and I imagined what it would be like to be able to stay and not be afraid all the time.

“Say you’ll stay,” he said. “Just for a few more days. We can figure this out, Eva. I promise.”

Nik stood and offered his hand to me.

Nodding, I took it and let him help me to my feet.

“Okay,” I said. “Just for a few days or until there’s any sign of Dominic coming remotely close to this town.”

Nik smiled and sighed in relief. “That’s good enough for now,” he said.

This time, I didn’t drop his hand or move away from him, and we walked the rest of the way down the beach together.