Isabella rolled her eyes, the cat leaping from her arms to stalk through the grass and do whatever ghost cats did. “Do you expect me to remember every little detail of each day of my life? I don’t know. It was a Thursday. What information do you need?”
“This is getting us nowhere.” I pinched the bridge of my nose. “The police discovered a bite on your body during a full moon. They think a vampire or a werewolf killed you. Although, according to the news, your body wasn’t drained of blood, and why would a werewolf stop after only one bite?” I flinched at my own morbid thoughts.
She paced back and forth, nibbling on her nails. “That would do it, wouldn’t it?”
“What do you mean?”
“I have… had a rare genetic condition where if my blood ever mixed with any other magic, I’d die. I’m unsure who had knowledge of it. I didn’t go around telling people, but I didn’t hide it either.”
“Doyou think the person who attacked you was aware of it?”
She shrugged. “How should I know?” But then she spun toward me. “Wait. I keep a journal… kept a journal. That should at least give you details about my daily life.”
“Where is it?”
“There’s a false bottom in the lowest drawer of my dresser.”
I rose. “I’ll go to your house and ask your parents if—”
She made to reach for me, her hands passing through my arm. “No wait, you can’t.”
“Why not?”
“My parents are unaware I was… I was assisting specific individuals.” She breathed in deeply before continuing. “I was mixing fae power with witch’s potions, making remedies that are forbidden for those who needed it.”
“Like the wolfsbane potion?” My thoughts flashed to Frank.
“I… it’s all listed there in the journal.”
“You don’t want your parents to find out you were helping people?”
“Some names, if they were to get out, could put my… clients in danger. I doubt if my mom and dad would show such discretion.”
That was the last thing I’d expected from someone who’d seemed so self-absorbed.
She gazed at me. “But I can trust you, can’t I?”
I hadn’t chosen to be a medium. Nevertheless I was. Just by talking to Isabella, I was making myself as forbidden as Frank or any other of Isabella’s clients.
And yet, Frank needed me. “You can trust me.”
Her shoulders relaxed. “Then you have to find a time to get it when they aren’t home.”
I ran my hands over my arms, tugging my coat closer against the cold. “I know of a time.”
“You do?” Hope sparked in Isabella’s eyes.
I nodded, looking at the open grave in front of me. “There’s a candlelight vigil tomorrow.”
Chapter 5
Thesunspillsitsgolden rays across the world, a divine whisper of warmth and life that stirs the earth to bloom and the heart to beat. Death magic, in its twisted hunger, seeks to unravel this sacred gift, drawing its strength from the shadowed silence of the grave, where existence withers and fades. It is a dark defilement of nature’s cycle, an unholy force that robs the soul of light and leaves only the cold void in its wake.
How could words be so beautiful, so inspiring, and yet so damning at the same time?
I mulled the passage over in my mind as Mom, all my sisters, and I walked along the sidewalk. The townsfolk,wrapped in soft scarves and the gentle glow of golden autumn light, proceeded with us toward the little chapel. Each person’s footsteps carried with them a quiet, comforting sense of togetherness as they crunched with ours on the crisp fallen leaves.
My ghost cat also sauntered down the street with our group like she was a part of the family. She’d followed me home from the cemetery and since then had gone wherever I had, as if she was my special companion. Despite that, I wasn’t sure she cared for me. She always kept her distance and ran away when I got too close. Her ears flicked back and forth as she walked, her head held high.
