The Warlock's Daughter - Chapter Three

Olivia is fed up with Toby but when she takes matters into her own hands, Olivia ends up biting off way more than she can chew.

After Toby’s apparent body guarding at the bar, I had taken him home with a fuming boyfriend lingering behind me and apologetic doll at my side. Toby had followed me into the house after the cab had dropped us off with such a long string of ‘sorry’s’ I was pretty sure he was just repeating himself.

“Please Olivia,” Toby cried, “I meant no harm.”

“No harm?” I snarled, “You basically knocked my boyfriend out!”

“It’s my job -”

“I don’t care, Toby!”

I was being too hard on him, I knew that and I understood that but I was absolutely furious. I could barely see straight and I knew right now all I was doing was displacing my anger for my father upon the doll. A doll who didn’t even know what a Robin was.

“Dad!” I screamed, “Dad, you better get out here!”

Toby had stopped behind me, his apologetic body peering out the window. He had fallen silent.

“Olivia, what is the meaning of this?”

It appeared as though he had been getting ready for bed or at least pretending too. My father usually seemed to know when my plans would go wrong. I mean, he usually was the reason they were mucked up.

“I put up with this because you gave me no choice in the matter, Dad,” I said with a snarl, “But I want nothing to do with your wooden bodyguard.”

“Oh, my daughter, what happened?”

“Don’t play dumb! He punched Ryan and the wooden fist of his did a little more damage to my boyfriend than it should’ve!”

“Oh.”

My eyebrow rose, “Oh? That’s all you can say?”

My father shrugged, “I don’t see what the problem is, Olivia. Toby is doing exactly what he was made for. He was protecting you.”

“Well I don’t want it.”

“Too bad for you,” spoke the man as he let out a fake yawn, “I’m not destroying him anytime soon.”

My father gave me a shake of his head and his bedroom door shut behind him before I could release a sharp remark.

“Dad! Get back here!” I snarled, “Mom would’ve never let you do this!”

“Olivia...” I heard whispered behind me.

“Yes?” I muttered.

“Would you really destroy me?”

I peered over my shoulder at the boy. He was sullen and sad and it looked like he was sorry but I knew nothing would change because he was made for this job.

“Just... go watch TV, Toby.”

“Olivia...”

I paused in front of my door, “What?”

“It is my job...”

“Yeah, I know,” and the door shut with a slam.

Though Toby was sorry and apologised constantly the next morning, nothing changed. The next four days had been long ones. Each and every morning I’d wake up to see the large eyed doll staring at the small television screen. When my father waltzed in because he was hungry, I’d make him food in silence.

He still wouldn’t remove me from Toby’s guard.

When I had finished cleaning I’d disappear into my room, barely caring as the sullen doll asked what we were going to do today. It wasn’t like it mattered anyway. He’d follow me like he did every day and screw at least part of it up, if not all.

He already nearly gotten me fired because he wouldn’t let me take care of some drunken buffoon taunting Hogan.

And I was pretty sure Ryan and I were on another break because of the kid. I had offered to make it up to my boyfriend by having a day to ourselves and I was pretty damn sure it would’ve happen if Toby didn’t stalk like a rapist.

Ryan left in a huff when I tried so hard to explain I couldn’t technically get rid of the kid and said that maybe some time apart would do us good.

Of course, this really wasn’t Toby’s fault. This was all my damn father’s doing but to fix this I had to get him to fix Toby and we all knew that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

So after four long days, I finally decided to take matters into my own hands.

“Dad,” I snarled, “We need some groceries.”

He chuckled upon the couch, a book in hand while Toby’s favourite travel show sang around the small room, “I don’t see why you’re telling me, Olivia, aren’t you the one who usually goes and buys them?”

The knife in my hand sliced through the head of lettuce upon the cutting board, “Yup and I pay for all them with my own money too.”

“Than what are you trying to state, Olivia?”

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe I do everything in this damned house and all you do is make my life even more miserable.”

“Olivia... We’ve talked about Toby.”

“Oh I know we have and if the kid is staying than I think the least you can do for me is go and take care of the grocery list.”

“Olivia, I have never been in the grocery store -”

“Dad!” I placed the knife down, “Just do this one thing for me, alright? Just take the list and give it to one of the workers there. They can find the damned food for you if it’s so hard.”

There was a frown upon his face but he agreed regardless, “If this means so much to you, Olivia, of course I’ll do it.”

“Thank god,” I snarled, “At least maybe you can do some good around here.”

“Daughter, I do plenty good -”

“Like what? Ruin your daughter’s life? I gave up my dream for you, Dad! The least you can do is pull your weight around here! If it weren’t for me, you would’ve already used all of mom’s insurance money and been kicked out of here!”

He just shrugged and tore the simple white sheet of paper off the fridge, “Well I guess I’ll be back in the next hour or two.”

“Right, you can’t drive,” I hissed but my father paid no mind as he wandered out of the house. Hopefully there was enough money in his pockets but I highly doubted it. It didn't matter anyway. All I needed was for him to leave for just a little while, just enough time to tare through his study and find something to tare Toby’s bond off me.

“Olivia, what are you doing?” Toby asked as I hurried away from the unmade meal, “I thought you were cooking.”

“Not anymore, Toby.”

“Olivia, where are you going?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

But he did. The doll followed me the second I reached my father’s bedroom and we both paused in front of the pretty door I had always wanted to pass through as a child.

“Oh Olivia, we should not go in there.”

“Toby, I don’t care what you do but I’m going in there to fix all this.”

“Fix this... but you’re not...”

“I’m not what?” I muttered, my hand nervously grasping the door handle.

“You’re just a human.”

“So?” and I pushed the door open without a second thought.

“So you don’t possess -”

“Look Toby just go sit down and watch TV -”

“No, Olivia, I am to protect you and I can assure you there are some things in here -”

“Like what? There’s just books and... Whoa... what is that?”

And before me, standing proud amongst the littering of books and papers and scrolls was an ivy covered archway leading to a glorious statue.

“Olivia, don’t -”

I brushed Toby’s comment off with a wave of my hand.

“I don’t believe this is so wise, Olivia,” Toby muttered but I couldn’t hear him anymore. I didn’t care to hear him anymore. “What do you want from here, Olivia? I’ll find you the book -”

“I highly doubt that,” I breathed as I walked around my father’s desk. The hardwood disappeared, vanishing as thick grass seemed to overthrow it.

“I know more than you believe, Olivia. Your father taught me much in my immobile days.”

“Yeah?”

I didn’t care.

“Please Olivia, just tell me what you wanted -”

“I wanted to know how to put you out of commission, darling.”

Toby had fallen silent as I stopped right in front of the pretty stone statue. My eyes followed the old creases in the grey rock and my hands, well, they quivered at my side.

“Are you really serious, Olivia? You don’t like me that much.”

I scoffed, peering over my shoulder at the boy, “It’s not so much you as your ‘mission’, Toby. If you could back off maybe I’d grow to like you.”

“I cannot do that.”

“Right,” I paused and a little laugh fell from my lips, “Still like me now, hun?”

“Yes.”

“Don’t lie to me, Toby, if you want me to like you at least be honest with me.”

“I’m not lying, Olivia, I really do like you.”

“Right.”

I turned back to the statue.

“So if you know so much, what is this thing?”

“It is Avalon,” muttered the doll, “Or at least part of it.”

“Avalon?”

“The world your father resides from. He... When he came here this was the piece he chose to keep and use as his...” Toby stopped.

“His what?”

Toby had come up beside me, something I hadn’t noticed as I stared at the pretty woman frozen in stone.

“I shouldn’t say. Please, Olivia, can we leave? I promise I will try and ‘back off’.”

“Tell me, Toby,” I reached forward, “You can’t just stop midsentence, it isn’t fair.”

“Neither is destroying me.”

He was right. Destroying him was out of line and even the thought of it was harsh but he wasn’t technically human or alive, was he? I frowned. He was a doll so did that mean he had no rights?

“Look Toby, I’m sorry,” My hand fell against the stone but it wasn’t cold, not like I suspected. In fact, it was quite warm, “I’m out of line I know that.”

“Can you remove your hand, Olivia?”

I didn’t.

“What does this have to do with Avalon?”

“Olivia, please remove your hand...”

A smirk slid over my lips, “Not until you tell me what Avalon is.”

“I already did, Olivia.”

“No, what this has to do with Avalon.”

And in that instance, I was blinded by a bright light. A screech left my mouth and my knees gave out from underneath me. I heard Toby scream my name, felt his wooden hand grab my shoulder in the hopes of pulling me away.

He wasn’t able too.

It felt like my entire body was frozen into place and in an almost instant, my eyelids slid shut and I was out cold. 

To be continued...