"Brianna, you have to learn that I know what's best for you. And it is best for you, since you were not given the gift of sight. I did everything I could to awaken your gift, but you're just like other ordinary people. The only thing that sets you apart is your blood. Power runs through your veins, my child. You are the first in a long line not to have a vision of your future husband. So I have to do this for you, since you haven't given me a choice. I know this means that this marriage won't produce another Bruma, but it guarantees that it will produce a very powerful species."
"I don't care about any of that, Dad. I won't marry that man to satisfy you. Why do I have to get married? That's so outdated..."
"It's not outdated, Brianna. Have you ever seen a decent young woman your age without a husband? We're not in... Our land. I know that habits here are modern, but... I prefer to stick to our traditions."
Brianna stood up.
"Dad, don't think about it anymore. I have Mom's inheritance. I know how to manage the assets she left me, and I can move out of here, and I won't bother you with my presence anymore."
"Sit down, Brianna."
She glared at him, but obeyed. Her grandmother was terribly afraid of him, and she felt she was about to find out why.
"I don't want to get married to get rid of you. I love you."
"Then why do you want me to get married?"
"Because I need a powerful ally who can produce strong heirs to replace the ones you can't have with the gift of sight."
"And you think that if I marry that man, I'll have that heir?"
"I don't think so, my child. I'm sure of it. That boy has been watching you for a long time. When you go to the dressmaker, when you go to school, when you go to the ballet, and even when you go to the opera with your friends. He's madly in love with you. And he's the ideal candidate. It can only be fate that put him in your path. You may love him one day. And I'm responsible for your future. I have to make sure that you're not left destitute in this life."
"Now I'm scared." Brianna said with an air of debauchery. "A man who has the time to spy on me and follow me doesn't sound like someone I'll ever be interested in..." As she said these words, the blue eyes of another man appeared again in her mind.
"You'll marry him on a blue moon, just like your mother did, and you'll give me an heir. There's no way you can refuse him, Brianna, without me coming after you and killing everyone who comes near to help hide you. I am the man of this house and I have rights over everyone who lives under my roof. And because you are my daughter, because you have my blood, you are obliged to submit to my will."
Brianna opened her mouth to challenge him, but closed it again. She had never argued with him before. Perhaps there was a middle way, so that he could have what he wanted without her having to marry that boy.
"Where's he from? He didn't look Irish to me..."
"He's American."
"He's from the New World? How do you know that his family comes from a generation of wizards?"
"I did a lot of research until I found them. It took me a few years to convince him to marry you, since he's much sought after by... Women of his lineage, because as well as being a handsome young man, he owns a fortune, which he inherited from his deceased parents."
"Does he work at anything?"
"His business is the same as ours. You won't be surprised to live with him, because his life is similar to ours."
"Dad... At the risk of sounding too vulgar... Because I just get pregnant and... He doesn't even need to know that I'm going to bear his child."
The gleam in his grandfather's eyes revealed that this was an idea he liked.
"But it would have to be on a blue moon, along with some incantations and the four elements of nature..."
"I'll invite him to camp. I can choose a spot near a waterfall, and I can also ask him to light a fire. There's air everywhere, and we'll be on top of the earth."
"That would be very nice, but he's very much in love. He's not going to accept staying just one night with you."
"I don't care what he wants."
"He's a dangerous man, Brianna. We mustn't do anything that could make him turn against us. And there's one more thing... He wants you to go with him to the United States. The blue moon will be in seven months. He promised he wouldn't touch her until then. Until you're married."
Brianna stood up angrily.
"He wants to take me away, and you let him? I'll run away. You'll never see me again!" Brianna shouted. "You didn't call me here to make a deal. You called me here to tell me about the deal you made with that strange man! Is he... Is he a witch? I don't know. I didn't feel magic on him, no, Grandpa. I felt that he wasn't human!" She said, and hurried off.
Brianna's grandfather was surprised. Not just because of Brianna's defiance, but also because for the first time, even without her realizing it, he had revealed that he felt magic.
His eyes turned dark. She had probably dreamt of the man who was to be the father of the next Bruma. And he understood that someone had told her to lie to him. And it didn't take long to think of a solution. If he asked her, she would deny it, or make up some story, but if he stuck to his decision, she would find a way to find the man of her dreams. And when the child was born, he would steal her away. But he wanted the other children she would have with Dester. A line of werewolves with witch blood was unheard of, and he would like to see this phenomenon up close.