Empire of Eternals (Book 1 of The Eternal Series) ✔️

Chapter 33 | A Vampire, A Witch, And A Girl With Unstoppable Problems

Johnson residence, Hilversum

***Hermione Garcia POV***

I clutched the blue dagger in my hand, holding it close to my chest as I stared at the black concrete beneath me. The magic that radiated off from the dagger was undeniably powerful, so powerful that it burned to even hold it. Because of that, I had been keeping it with me at all times, securing it in a box occasionally and hiding it from Paige or Dexter who came by once a day.

With an inner conflict that had lasted me almost the entire morning, I hid the dagger in a black box, shutting it tight as I placed the palm of my hand on it, drawing my breath as I prepared to do something I had never done in the past few weeks.

"Uzávěr." I muttered, a yellow glowing hue appearing at the palm of my hand as I heard a tick come from the box

I placed the box in the trunk of Paige's car, hiding it in the far left side as I settled my backpack in front of it to keep it from being seen. I couldn't let Paige or Dexter or Aiden find it. If they discovered I had the dagger since last week, they'd be suspicious of me.

I wasn't going to resurrect Jenna, that was for sure. As tempting as Josephine's offer was, it didn't seem right. Jenna was happy in The Aether. It's where she belonged; away from all the pain and suffering from the real world. I wasn't going to snatch it away from her.

The past few days had been depressing. I was tempted to summon Jenna's manifestation to fill that hole in my heart, to put the grief that ran through my veins to ease as the pain subsided for the time being. But, it was wrong. In a way, Paige was right. I felt like I was slowly losing my mind.

It was almost as if I had become a drug addict, just not to drugs. I was constantly hearing Jenna's voice in my ears, feeling her eerie presence behind me as she placed her hand on my shoulder, the deathly aura laced on her touch.

Eventually, I would wake up from the horrifying nightmare, my clothes drenched in sweat as my heart was racing in my throat. My entire body would become erratic the second I bolted up, convulsing under the fear of the dark dream.

But, as horrible as it all sounded and the only solution to it was summoning Jenna, I wasn't going to give in. Like Paige had said, I was going to move on. Jenna was my past now, and I had to leave her behind if I wanted a bright future for myself, a future in which I didn't regret my past decisions.

"Sorry, coming through." Paige grunted, her shoulder colliding with mine as she threw the heavy suitcase into the trunk, my view of the black box gone

"I could have carried that." Dexter called from behind, adding another suitcase to the pile

"Well, if you did, then I wouldn't be stronger than I was 3 minutes ago."

"I'm sorry, how long is this trip? Where are we even going?" I interrupted them, my voice forcing them to look at me

"Milan, Hermione." Paige answered

"Weren't you listening? We're going on a girl's trip to Milan."

I reluctantly nodded my head, my eyes darting to the pavement as I took in what she said. It sounded horrible, but I hadn't paid any attention to what Paige had said 2 days ago. I was so busy remembering Jenna that I missed the plan.

But, I did know this: Dexter and Aiden were oblivious to what was happening. Adriana had only told me and Paige, who had been told everything by Alexander. They were on their way to Austria right now and Paige and I were going to go to Milan - the birthplace of the first witch - so we could channel the magic needed to locate the bloodstone.