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Thirty-Eight

ELSPETH

I stood on the front porch, sweeping away debris and leaves that the wind had blown in. The wind whistled around me, and a random vine snaked out from the side of the cottage, whipping me in the butt.

I jumped and rubbed the affected area, glaring at the house. “You know, it would do you good to be grateful for all we’ve done here. You’re practically shiny and brand new. No more cobwebs or dust or debris.” I pointed to the sparkling windows above. “We even figured out how to clean the grime off your windows.” The vine slowly slithered back into its place. “That’s better.”

Prue appeared from in between the trees, carrying a stack of books she’d gotten from the bookstore. Her face was flushed with excitement. “I just found the most amazing section in the bookstore full of books about the history of magic and how all the laws surrounding our use of magic came to be.”

That sounded incredibly boring, but Prue was so excited about it, I couldn’t do anything but feign my own enthusiasm. “That’s wonderful, Prue. I’m so glad you’re finally getting to experience the bookstore of your dreams.”

She nodded. “And I think the bookstore might be interested in hiring me. I was reorganizing some of the books.” She shook her head. “The catalogue system just didn’t make sense. Then a customer came in, asking for a recommendation for books about the Orc Wars. I have so many of those.” She waved her hand in the air. “So I helped them find a few, which they bought. The owner was so impressed, he said if I was looking for a job, he’d love to have me.”

“Wow, Prue.” I continued to sweep leaves off the little porch. “That’s amazing.”

Unless we were leaving soon . . .

Prue walked up the stone steps and set her books against the house. “I’ll turn it down,” she said quietly. “I know we’ll probably be leaving soon. Mama told me the cart is finally ready. I knew this couldn’t last forever.”

My heart stopped. The cart was ready? Mama hadn’t told me that yet. In truth, I’d forgotten about our cart recently, so caught up in Draven and whatever was happening between us. Adelaide had been making the payments, and she must’ve made the last payment for it to finally be fixed.

For some reason, disappointment filled me at the realization that we were free. We could leave Thistlegrove. Leave our cottage. Leave Draven.

Adelaide would likely choose to stay with Elm, which would change everything.

It would be so good for Prue to get a job in a bookstore, to interact with people every day. I thought of Draven. Could I really say goodbye to him forever? I knew the answer. If it came to protecting my family, I could do it. I could do anything to keep them safe. But I didn’t want to. And I was starting to think I didn’t have to. No one was suspicious about us here. No one looked twice or asked about our magic. Everyone loved our soup. We had a thriving business. A home.

My sisters were doing better than ever. Even Auggie, with all her secrets, was happier, less snarky than usual.

“Don’t,” I said to Prue. “Turn it down just yet.”

“Really?” She pushed her spectacles up her nose and gathered her pile of books in her arms. They teetered precariously. “We’re not leaving?”

“Well...” I said, my gut twisting as I spoke the words. Staying would be a risk. I thought of Draven, of all the nights I spent in his arms, of how effortless it was to just be with him. Maybe it was time to admit our relationship to my family. Well, first I’d have to confirm we even had a relationship.

But maybe it was time to come out of hiding. To stop being so afraid of everything. To stop running and start living.

Mama and Auggie appeared, and I smiled brightly, about to tell them the good news until I noticed the way Auggie’s skin had lost all color, the way Mama’s eyes were wild with fear. My stomach dropped as Adelaide emerged from the cottage.

“Is everything okay?” She looked at Prue. “I thought I heard something about a job at the bookstore?”

Prue looked from me to Mama and Auggie.

“What is it?” I asked with a shaky voice. “What’s wrong?”

Auggie swallowed. “Witch Superior is coming here to Thistlegrove. She’s set to arrive tomorrow.”

Prue gasped and dropped her books, all of them slamming onto the porch, rattling the boards.

My entire body went rigid. It was well known that Witch Superior traveled with her magistrates, who were trained to sniff out any illegal activity—including those living in the Witchlands without magic.

Those very magistrates had almost caught us once before. Because of Johanes. Because I confided in him, and instead of understanding, he tried to blackmail us, threatening to turn us in to Witch Superior and her magistrates unless we paid him. So we did, and the magistrates arrived anyway. We’d managed to get away and disappear, officially starting our life on the run.

“That’s not all,” Auggie said, swallowing.

“What else could there be?” I stepped forward, not sure I could handle any more bad news.

Mama’s eyes filled with tears. “It was Draven who asked her to come. He’s her grandson, Elspeth.”

The entire world went sideways, and I stumbled backward.

No. He’d mentioned his grandmother several times, and I knew they had a complicated relationship, especially after his parents had died and he took over guardianship of his sister. But he’d never once mentioned his own grandmother was Witch Superior.

My throat closed, and it was suddenly hard to breathe. To think, I’d been considering telling Draven the truth. Just because he and his grandmother didn’t get along, just because they couldn’t agree on how to raise Georgie, didn’t mean he wouldn’t turn us in. Not when his own grandmother was the leader of all the Witchlands.

My stomach turned. I felt sick.

“What are we going to do?” Auggie asked, panic in her voice.

I straightened, remembering what Prue said about our cart. It was fixed. “We’re going to leave. Pack your things.” I thought of Draven, his face, so serious and severe—except when he looked at me. There was always a softness in his eyes that I was coming to crave. “No time to say goodbye,” I said and turned to go into the cottage and pack my belongings.