former witches who were brought back by an unknown witch. The only information they were given was that their goal was to teach you and help you find your Guardians.”
“Unknown witch?” I asked softly. “So, they knew I wasn’t the last witch all along?”
He nodded. “Yes, but the one who resurrected them told them they needed to make you think you were the last.”
“Why?” I asked. “Why did it matter if I thought I was the last or not?”
“Because, if you were the last, you would train harder. If you thought you were the last and that you had some major role to play, they thought you would try harder to master your magic,” Dad said.
“To what end?” I asked.
“So that you would be as prepared as possible to face the battle ahead,” an unfamiliar male voice said behind Dad.
In a split second, Dad and Nick had the person pinned to the wall, while Caleb, Gary, and Tom had me as far back from them as possible with their bodies shielding me from the newcomer.
Chelle had fallen off Dad’s shoulders, but just sat on the ground between our two groups and looked bored.
“Chelle?” I asked.
She tilted her head as she faced the newcomer. “He isn’t a threat to us. He is…” Her voice trailed off.
“He’s what?” I asked her.
“He should answer that,” she whispered after another silent moment.
“Thank you,” the man said and smiled at me over Nick’s shoulder.
Dad stepped back and sighed. “If you didn’t use that damn scent charm, I wouldn’t have even attacked you.”
The man patted Dad on the shoulder and beamed. “Where’s the fun in that, old friend?”
“Back down,” Dad ordered Nick. “He’s a friend.”
Nick growled and backed up until he was beside Chelle. He squatted down and whispered something to her, too quietly for me to hear. She yipped as she responded to him, but she didn’t allow me to hear her answer.
Dad and the newcomer hugged and patted each other on the backs.
“Glad you’re still alive,” Dad said. “Since I haven’t heard from you in a decade, I got worried.”
The newcomer smiled. “I’m touched that you were worried. Also, sorry for not contacting you, but I’ve been lying low for obvious reasons.”
“I don’t mean to be rude, but who the hell are you?” I asked and pushed my way between Gary and Caleb so I could stand in front of them and see the guy easier.
His eyes widened when he saw me and tears brimmed in his eyes. “You look just like your mother.”
I didn’t respond, waiting for him to answer me.
He chuckled and wiped his eyes. “And I see you have your father’s fiery temper.” He came into the kitchen and bowed before Chelle. “Greetings, Kitsune. It is an honor to meet one of your kind.”
She dipped her head in a bow but said nothing.
The man straightened and said, “I am Finnick, your godfather, and your mother’s formerly assigned witch husband.”
“Witch husband?” I asked. “What?”
“Your mother and I were part of a coven of witches where the leaders assigned the female witches a male witch who they would marry and produce witch offspring with,” Finnick explained. “Your mother wanted nothing to do with being forced to have witch offspring and dreamed of finding love. She ran away from the coven when she wasn’t much older than you, taking her Guardian, Thornton, with her. A year or so later, she met your father and the two fell madly in love. About three years later, I found them while they were out at a restaurant and after seeing how happy she was with your father and with you, I realized that I didn’t want to take her back to the coven.”
“After I kicked his ass,” Dad added with a smirk.
“You snuck up on me. It was hardly a fair fight,” Finnick grumbled.
Dad patted his shoulder. “So you keep saying.”
“Anyway, after speaking with your mother and spending some time with you and your family, I realized the error of my ways and vowed to fight the system the witches had created. Your mother asked me to help mask your magic since it was so strong, and I promised that someday when you were ready, I would come back to help you,” Finnick continued.
“So, you resurrected the fake Triune, so they could train me?” I asked.
He nodded. “And, so they could gather as many Guardians together as possible to ensure you found ones that were capable of protecting you.” With narrowed eyes, he looked at the four