Chapter 308

Tessa’s POV

Just like that, my entire heart shattered in my chest, and I felt sick to my stomach. I thought I was going to vomit on the ground in front of everybody. They all grew silent; Derek stared at the girls with his mouth hanging open in shock while Bennet and Cole were staring in shocked silence.

“Austin didn’t come out and say that he remembered any of this,” Laura continued, breaking the silence. “But after we ate and slept for most of the day yesterday, when we woke up, most of our memories came back in snippets throughout the day and that was the first one that came back to me. Remembering the moment Austin cast that spell and killed his own parents.”

“And I remembered Lucias coming to get me and asking for some help to get rid of some bodies,” Amy chimed in, grimacing from her own admittance.

“Where was everyone else?” I asked, glancing between the men in the room.

“Everybody had their own thing,” Amy said, shrugging. “Lucias was big on appearance and wanted to make it appear like we were normal humans living in a small town. Patty owned her bakery as you know, and the rest of us had our own things that we did.”

“I worked at the local library,” Laura said, lowering her gaze. “I remembered loving that job even while I was under his control. I liked reading before I joined this coven and I still like it now. It was a good fit for me. I only worked there a couple of times a week though. Most of the time I helped Claira around the house. She was basically the housekeeper of the coven, but I think she was out grocery shopping or something.”

“Some of the guys played sports and had part-time jobs as well,” Amy added, glancing at Bennet and Cole. “So, nobody was home at the time except for us.”

“The worst part of it was… we didn’t think much of it. It was just a typical day and none of us felt remorse,” Laura whispered, wrapping her arms around her body like she was trying to hold herself together. “Any of us could have done the same thing.”

“I felt nothing when I created the acid spell to melt their bodies,” Amy said, her shoulders slumping. “It was because of the mind control thing. It didn’t make us… us.”

I nodded, still trying to process all they had told me.

“Austin never told us…” Bennet whispered. “All day he’s been a ghost of himself. We all had been, so I didn’t think much of it. But I had no idea it was that bad.”

Derek shook his head, his face paler than usual.

“And I thought my memories were bad,” he murmured. “I couldn’t even imagine what he must be going through.”

“It’s no wonder he left the conversation as soon as it started. When Hannah brought up wanting a ceremony for Lucias and Amy freaked out, Austin said he couldn’t stand to be around this shit and went to his room. He’s been in there for the last couple of hours,” Cole chimed in, glancing up the stairway over his shoulder.

“If you guys are all remembering stuff now, why would Hannah want a ceremony for that monster?” I asked, furrowing my brows together. That part still didn’t make sense to me; I wondered what had gotten into her suddenly.

Amy scoffed and rolled her eyes.

“She’s confusing fake feelings with present ones,” she muttered, shaking her head with disgust all over her face. “It’s pathetic and she needs to come back to reality.”

“Someone wants to clue me in?” I asked, raising my brows.

“During the mind control, Lucias was apparently lonely and wanted a girlfriend,” Laura explained. “Hannah was the prettiest—”

“I beg to differ,” Amy sneered.

Laura rolled her eyes; I’d never seen her act so sassy and be so vocal before. I liked this side of Laura; I’m glad she was coming out of her shell and being open and honest with us.

“To Lucias, she was the prettiest,” Laura corrected. “So, he chose her to be his girlfriend. Used his mind voodoo thing and basically forced her to be his girlfriend. He forced her to have feelings. They weren’t real because it was all mind control. But Hannah—”

“Remembers those feelings,” I finished the sentence for her, quickly understanding where it was going.

They all nodded.

“Under the mind control, she was head over heels in love with him,” Laura continued. “She’s just confused right now. To her, it feels like her boyfriend of years just died and now she’s heartbroken. But she also knows that Lucias wasn’t a good guy and she’s aware of what he did… so she’s conflicted. We really can’t blame her.”

Laura shot Amy a look and Amy sighed.

“I’m sorry I hurt her, but she needed to know we aren’t having a fucking ceremony for that creep,” Amy said through her teeth.

Before I could say anything more, Patty stepped into the room from the kitchen. Her eyes were puffy and bloodshot, and I could tell she’d been crying. The memories must be returned to her as well. They all looked so tired and worn out. I knew it must have been a very long day for them. I hated that this was happening, and I wished there was something I could do to make it better.

“Dinner is almost ready if you all want to wash up,” Patty said, giving us a small smile, though it didn’t reach her eyes.

“Thank you, Patty,” I said gently, also smiling at her.

She nodded and went back into the kitchen without saying a word. Bennet was right; everyone was a ghost of themselves, and my heart ached even more.

Just then, the front door opened, and Joseph walked into the room. He paused when he saw us all standing around, looking worn out and depressed no doubt. His brows pinched together.

“What’s going on?” He asked, his eyes meeting mine. “Is everything okay?”

I sighed.

“Their memories are coming back,” I told him. “It’s been a hard day for them.”

He nodded in understanding.

“I heard that can happen,” Joseph surprised me by saying. “I know this doesn’t make anything better, but just know that none of it was any of your faults. It was all on Lucias. He’s the monster behind this. He’s the killer and the one who has been trying to get to Tessa. None of you are at fault, regardless of what it might seem.”

I gave him a small smile, silently thanking him for his kind words towards them. It took a bit for them to warm up to Joseph, but they seemed to be adapting to him well. They understand that Joseph is a huge part of my life and he’s not going anywhere anytime soon. They either had to get used to it or find a new place to stay.

They chose the first option.

Dinner was soon ready, cutting into our conversation. We decided not to make everyone sit together for dinner because of all they’d been through. Most took their food and disappeared into their rooms. Esme returned moments into dinner with bags of groceries and made Cole, Bennet, and Derek help her bring in the items and put them away. Once they were done, they each grabbed a plate of food, Bennet grabbing an extra to bring to Austin who still hasn’t left his room.

The only ones who sat at our long dining room table were me, Joseph, Patty, Claira, and Esme. We ate and talked a little. Patty and Claira shared some of the stuff that they remembered. Some are good, and some are not so good. The not-so-good made me shudder but the good made me smile; it was a nice balance for once.

Joseph asked about Austin and why he wouldn’t come out of his room, which was pointed out when Bennet grabbed an extra plate of food to bring him. I spent time catching them up on everything we talked about before he arrived.

The ladies gasped when I spoke the story told to me. Joseph just remained silent as he listened to me and processed all that I was saying.

“That poor thing,” Patty said between tears. “I had no idea… I was too busy with the bakery.”

I gave her a small smile.

“And flirting with my dad,” I teased, knowing very well that she remembers that now.

Her face grew incredibly pink.

“Don’t remind me,” she said, lowering her gaze. “It was the mind control thing, that’s all.”

“I doubt Lucias wanted you to flirt with my dad,” I said, a hint of a smile on my lips. “That was all you, Patty. Mind control or not.”

Her face reddens even more, and she wouldn’t meet my eyes.

“I don’t know… I didn’t remember having feelings for him, but now I do. It’s hard to distinguish reality from the fakeness that once existed,” she admitted. “It’s all a bit blurry.”

I also told them about Hannah and her relationship with Lucias. Only Esme was surprised by this; Joseph looked a little taken aback too, but he still listened with patience and ease. The others only nodded along.

“Yeah, he found her hot, so he wanted her for himself,” Patty muttered. “She was like his puppy. It was sad looking back.”

“Well, now we have two very upset coven members and that doesn’t sit right with me,” I said, sighing as I stood up from the table. “I’m going to talk to them and see if we can come up with a conclusion and resolution for both of them.”

Joseph grabbed my arm, stopping me from going anywhere.

“Let me help,” Joseph said, standing to his feet. “I want to be able to help you during this time.”

I nodded, feeling grateful to him.

“That would be great,” I breathed.

He smiled and wrapped me in his arms, kissing my temple softly before pulling away.

“Great, I’ll talk to Austin, and you talk to Hannah. Maybe between the two of us, we can figure out how to help them.”

I nodded; and between the two of us, we did just that.