Free Before by Keeley Smith

She
knew that the fight between them hadn’t been good, they’d used
their elements on one another, something they’d never done, but she
thought they could bounce back.
    After spending seventeen years together, seeing each other
every day, laughing, crying together, she couldn’t understand how
he could just cut her out like this. She’d so desperately wanted
him to come to her aid as he had before, countless times. The
feeling of loneliness sank deep into her bones. She hadn’t realised
until recently how much he completed her life, how much she needed
him. How much it mattered that he cared for her. She had lost her
mother and her best friend in one traumatic day.
    She put her weaving down, looking at her hands before she
looked at her grandmother. She sighed.
    “ What is wrong, dear?” her grandmother asked, her hands a quick
blur as she continued with her knitting.
    “ Other than my mother being imprisoned, my wedding not going
ahead as planned and people constantly trying to kill us, nothing
is wrong.”
    Her grandmother smiled in response to her comment. Cora knew
that she always liked her quick tongue.
    “ I miss her and I miss him. Life isn’t playing fair right
now.”
    Her grandmother’s hands stilled as she looked at Cora. Her
eyes had lost some of the sparkle, her grey curls had lost some of
their bounce.
    “ Your mother will be back with us soon and your young man will
see the error of his ways. He will know once his head is free of
the thunderous, black cloud that our family would never harm his
and that our families are always here for one another.”
    “ I hope so,” she sighed as the door opened and her grandfather
walked in.
    “ I have news,” he spoke excitedly. “Anne is back.”
    She dropped her weaving and leapt off the stool, her heart was
already beating frantically anticipating what her grandfather would
say. Was this the news they had been waiting for?
    “ Which one?” Cora asked, barely containing her excitement at
the news.
    Her grandfather gave her a look before saying, “The
sister.”
    She hardly heard her grandmother call after her. Lifting up
her dress so she could run quicker, she sprinted to the dirt path
and up towards Jack’s cottage.
    Turning the corner she could see Jack walking towards the
patch of dirt at the front of the field, she caught the smile on
his face which sent heat straight to her belly. Firstly, it was
illegal that he should look so gorgeous. She couldn’t remember the
last time she seen that smile, especially when it had been aimed at
her. And secondly, if he was smiling, surely that was good
news?
    She ignored the nerves that were flying around in her chest,
and continued to sprint towards him. What had once been second
nature to visit him, to walk into his home, now felt strange. It
was like she no longer belonged here.
    Jack saw her running toward him, the smile on his face turned
into a scowl. That look let her know that she wasn’t welcome
here.
    “ What are you doing here?” he hissed as she came to a stop next
to him.
    She swallowed, her mouth suddenly feeling dry, and she tried
not to let her nerves show. “Grandfather told me your sister was
back, how is she? Does she know if mother will be out? What did she
say? Is your mother okay?”
    She asked a lot of questions but she had so many more. Plus,
she wasn’t sure how long Jack would let her stand here and ask
them. He would tell her to leave soon enough.
    Jack looked like he was chewing on a rock. “My sister is still
ill, more so since being in that place. We know witches don’t catch commoner
diseases but this is something different, something is wrong.
Mother isn’t with us and we don’t know when she will be back, but
we know who to thank, don’t we?”
    “ Jack, I-”
    “ No, it’s your mother’s fault. She did this.”
    “ How could she? And even if she had, why would she still be
held captive? Has Anne said anything, surely she can clear this
whole mess up.”
    “