The day seemed to stretch endlessly after everything they had been through. The mansion, usually silent, felt heavier than ever. The tension that had been hanging in the air since Alaric's appearance had not yet dissipated, but the worry still lingered in the eyes of the three girls.
Mel sat on the couch in the living room, her legs pulled against her. She stared at the crackling fire in the fireplace, her mind running in circles. The revelations of the past few hours felt unreal. The pieces of the puzzle were slowly starting to take shape, but the more she learned, the further the answers seemed to push her away from what she had once accepted as truth. While they were both lost in their thoughts, Cassie walked in, closing the door with a sharp sound.
"Cassie..." Sky began, standing up.
"We... we found something... you were right, there was a secret compartment in..."
"The wardrobe," Cassie said, interrupting Sky.
Mel stared at her.
— How do you know there's a wardrobe in her room? she asked, her voice a little colder.
Cassie blinked.
— It's... a guess.
But something bothered Mel. Cassie had moved through the house as if she knew every corner of it. Earlier, she had mentioned the back terrace, and even talked about the greenhouse—places she couldn't have possibly seen yet. She decided to check her suspicions before telling anyone.
"Anyway... we found a letter, your name was on it," Mel said, handing her the letter. "I think it's addressed to you."
Cassie took it, a wave of emotion washing over her. After all, even if it was just through a letter, she felt like her mother, her biological mother, was speaking to her at least once.
She then went upstairs to her room without saying another word.
(Several hours later)
Mel found herself alone in the living room a few hours later, after Cassie had gone shopping with Sky. She couldn't shake the strange feeling that something was missing.
She decided to dig a little deeper, thinking it was time to clear up some things.
She went upstairs to Cassie's room.
While scanning an old bookshelf in a corner, she spotted a small leather notebook hidden behind a row of thick books. This notebook hadn't been there before. She picked it up, hesitating, and opened it. Inside, there were notes on rituals, drawings of mystical symbols, and incantations written in an ancient language.
Mel jumped, realizing that this notebook seemed straight out of a magic manual. She quickly flipped through the pages, discovering sketches of protection circles and summoning spells. Some pages were covered in dark scribblings, likely made by Cassie herself.
— This can't be, Mel murmured, her heart racing faster. Cassie never said she knew how to practice magic...
She abruptly closed the notebook and walked over to an old table where several strange objects were scattered. Crystals, black candles, and even potions in small vials. They all seemed worn by time, but their effects were obvious. Cassie was much more involved in magic than she had admitted.
A shiver ran down Mel's spine.
— Why did she lie to me? What is she really hiding?
She took a deep breath. Before leaving, she paused for a moment to look around. Mel could no longer ignore the truth. Cassie knew things she wasn't telling.
But what exactly was she hiding?
(The next day, after Cassie left for work)
Sky approached the sideboard where Cassie had placed the notebook earlier. She hesitated before picking it up. Her gaze fixed on the hand-drawn symbols and the words etched into the old cover. She understood much more now, but something told her that their search for answers had only just begun.
— We should've suspected something, Sky said, breaking the silence. Cassie... she's been involved in all of this for much longer than she lets on.
Mel didn't respond immediately. She finally stood up, her gaze lost in the flames.
— Why did she lie to us? she murmured to herself. Why is she hiding all of this from us?
Sky watched her sister, her expression a mixture of confusion and compassion. She knew Mel felt a blend of betrayal and fear, but she didn't know how to ease her worries.
Mel finally turned her head toward Sky, her eyes full of doubt and frustration.
— And you, do you really think we can trust Cassie? she asked. She's hiding too many things. Maybe even things we don't understand yet... But this... it doesn't fit with what we've experienced here. The triangle, the prophecy... And Alaric, he said there was a purpose, a role for the three of us... But there are also pieces of truth we can't see, Sky. I... I'm starting to believe Cassie always knew what she was doing. She's much more involved in all of this than she's willing to admit.
Sky sat next to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. She didn't know how to ease her anxieties, but she didn't want to let her sink into fear alone.
— Mel, we'll figure this out, okay? Maybe Cassie is hiding things from us. Maybe she doesn't even know what she's supposed to do herself. But one thing's for sure… we're in this together. And no matter what happens, we have to support each other.
Mel sighed, relaxing a little under the warmth of Sky's hand. It was true. They were in this together. Maybe Cassie was different, maybe all of this was beyond them, but they had to move forward together.
(Cassie Carter, Laboratory)
Cassie had locked herself in the laboratory, letting the noise of the house fade away behind her. The silence was heavy, almost comforting. She sat on a stool, a sigh of exhaustion escaping her lips. Her hands rested on the cold table, and her eyes wandered over the vials and instruments scattered before her.
She couldn't concentrate. Too many questions swirled in her mind. And then… that letter.
She grabbed her bag, dug into the pocket, and pulled out a carefully folded piece of paper. The letter. The one Mel and Sky had given her, the one they found in the secret compartment. She had set it aside until now, hesitant, uncertain if she even wanted to know more.
But today, she felt ready. Or rather, she no longer had a choice.
She unfolded the letter slowly, as if touching something fragile, almost sacred. Maria's words, her mother's, were spread before her, written in a neat hand, but charged with a strange urgency.
**~My daughter,
If this letter has reached you, then you are where you need to be.
You don't know everything yet, but you'll feel it soon. Things inside you will begin to move. This manor was built on a magical crossroads, a place of convergence.
You were kept away to protect you, but also because your light was too unstable, too powerful to be contained.
You are not like the others. Even among them, you are different.
You and your sisters are the only ones who can open the closed doors of the past. And the only ones who can close them.
Do not try to understand everything right away. The truth unfolds like a ribbon — slowly, painfully.
But remember one thing:
What has been broken by the light can only be rebuilt by the shadow.
I love you.
Maria. ~**
Cassie remained there, her eyes fixed on the last words. She hadn't moved, even after finishing the letter. What has been broken by the light can only be rebuilt by the shadow. Those words already haunted her, like a mist that wouldn't leave her.
She slowly stood up, a shiver running down her spine. What did it mean? Her powers. Her connection with the other girls. There was something more… something she still couldn't understand.
But one thing was certain: she was at the heart of all of this, and everything had just begun.
She placed the letter back in her bag, breathless, as if she had just discovered a secret too heavy to bear. The question hung in the air: how was all of this going to end? And most importantly... how would she handle what she had just learned?