Page 109 of Freed By the Witchbone Knife

The smell should have made my mouth water. Instead, my stomach was still twisted in knots.

“You need to eat, sweetheart.” Axel didn’t look up from where he was grating cheese. “Can’t have you wasting away on me.”

“I’m not hungry.”

“Don’t care. You’re eating anyway.”

I took a sip of tea, letting it work its magic. Or trying to. My mind kept replaying the confrontation. Ambrose’s face. His threats. The way he’d known about the cave.

“How did he find out?” I asked for the third time. “About what we’re doing?”

Axel’s jaw tightened. “Could’ve followed us.”

“But you would have smelled him.”

“He’s a witch, yes? Isn’t there a spell or somesuch for disguising scents?”

I slouched. “He could have easily used magic to mask his scent, yeah. But I just don’t understand how he put two and two together. He would have to know about the knife. Know that it’s in there, that I need it to break the curse. Otherwise, for all he knows, we just enjoy hiking and…spelunking or whatever.”

“Perhaps someone has been feeding him information.”

Denial was on the tip of my tongue.

Then I thought about it. How many people knew what I was up to?

“Elle wouldn’t,” I said. “She’s been helping me search for the knife since before I even came here.”

“Not saying it’s her.” Axel returned to grating cheese.

I ran through the list of everyone in my head. Elle. Axel. My siblings. But they didn’t know much. Vera knew I was looking for a way to break the curse, but not the specifics. Just that there was an artifact. Robbie thought I was just here for work, though…if Vera had told him. And if he told my mom and dad.

“Oh God.” The realization hit. “Robbie could have opened his big mouth again. Which would mean my parents could have easily said something to Ambrose.”

I set down my mug before I dropped it. “I should call Mom. Vera’s right. I should have told her when Ambrose hurt me. If she knew what he was really like⁠—”

“Would she listen?”

I opened my mouth. Closed it. Because the truth was, I didn’t know. My mother had been so focused on breaking the curse, on restoring the family’s magic, that she’d encouraged me to stay with Ambrose from the start. Even after I’d broken things off, even after I moved across the country, she’d still given him my number.

Would she stop now? Or would she convince herself she was helping?

“I don’t know,” I admitted.

Axel finished with the cheese and moved to the stove, stirring the pasta. “Then maybe it’s time to stop sharing details with anyone who might talk to him. Keep your cards close.”

“You mean don’t tell my family about the knife.” That would mean keeping secrets even from Vera. I loved my sister so much. We told each other everything. But…

“If you find it? If you break the curse?” He glanced at me. “That’s your call. But until then, the fewer people who know, the better.”

My phone buzzed on the counter. I glanced at the screen, half expecting another text from Ambrose. But it was Vera. As if she knew we were talking about her.

Vera

Mom’s being weird about you again. Asked me if I’d heard from you. I didn’t tell her anything but thought you should know.

I showed the text to Axel. His expression darkened. He went back to fixing dinner.

Me