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A hush.

“It isn’t safe…because of the curse.” It felt surreal. Devra had come here to interrogate her mother on this very topic, but she hadn’t been prepared for her to actually believe in it.

“Yes. The curse. Of course the curse. It’s always been about the curse. You understand that now, do you? You know? And you admit it? I wasn’t sure you ever would. Your father never allowed it to be spoken aloud. The man was always trying to pretend.” She scoffed. “I was the actress, and yet he knew how to play a role better than I did. Demanding we continue to celebrate each year, pretend the season was joyful when we both knew the truth. Always just…trying so damned hard.”

“He did try.” Devra prickled at the woman’s derisive tone. “He always tried. Tried to keep our family together. Tried to keep our spirits up. Tried to give us a normal childhood!”

“But it wasn’t normal,” Charlotte said. “Nothing was normal. And yet he wanted to ignore what was right in front of our faces, to play house and happy family as we suffered year after year because of—”

A server entered the room holding a crystal glass decorated with sliced cucumbers. “Your gin and tonic, Ms. Montgomery.”

“Thank god.” Charlotte stumbled toward the server, grabbed the glass, and took a long sip.

“Would either of you care for—?”

“No,” Devra replied before the man could finish. “Leave us, please.”

The server looked to Ms. Montgomery for confirmation before making a hurried exit.

Charlotte finished her drink with a relieved exhale. Then her expression drooped. “I’m so sorry, Devra. I am. You must know that. Truly. I did something unforgivable. I know I did. I feel it every day when I look in the mirror and see your lovely eyes reflected back at me. But now that you know the truth, you must understand why I had to do what I did. I mean, look at me now.” She widened her arms to showcase the lavish private room. “Look how much I’ve accomplished by leaving…by leaving behind the curse.”

Devra wanted to scream, to spit expletives at this woman. In a strange way, she also understood. She’d tried to flee the curse too, but moving out of their childhood home had done nothing for her. Or for David. Or for Papa. That house belonged to someone else now, and yet their lives continued to be marked by pain, year after year. But for some reason, this woman had gotten away scot-free.

“You did it, didn’t you?” The thought snapped into place. “You caused the curse. You traded our souls, sold us out, for this? This life of fame? Didn’t you? Admit it!”

Charlotte stepped backward. “What are you—?”

“What did you do?” Devra shouted. “What deal did you make that allowed you to leave while the rest of us had to stay and suffer?”

Bradley stepped out from the corner where he’d been standing. He placed a hand on Devra’s shoulder. The effect of his touch washed over her, reminding her muscles they were capable of relaxing.

“What Devra is trying to say is we have come here to break the curse,” Bradley declared like a knight declaring his intent to slay the dragon. “And in order to do that, we need your help.”

Devra knew he was reminding her as well. She’d almost forgotten why they’d bothered to track down this horrible woman in the first place. They had a purpose, a goal. They needed answers only Charlotte Montgomery could provide. Devra could tear her to shreds afterward.

“Break the curse?” Charlotte shook her head in disbelief. “Is that…is that even possible?”

“Of course it is,” Bradley said.

“But…how?” Charlotte’s eyes were wide. “And who the hell are you?”

“Oh, sorry about that. My sisters are always telling me I get a little carried away when I’m on a mission. I’m Bradley. Bradley Mann.” He stuck out his hand. Charlotte blinked down at it. “It’s really nice to meet you, Ms. Montgomery. Devra has told me…well, she’s told me things.”

After a long moment, Bradley dropped his hand. “Anyway. As I was saying. We’ve found some reliable resources, and I think we’ve got a solid chance of undoing the curse. That is, if we can track down its origins. That’s where you come in. We’re looking for any sort of unintentional or improper use of magic that may have brought a hex upon your family. Maybe a spell done without the proper research. A potion without the proper ingredients. Anything, really, that involves a possible misuse of magic.”

Charlotte continued to blink.

“I did say unintentional, didn’t I? We’re not interested in laying blame here.”

Devra snorted her disagreement.

“We’re only interested in answers,” Bradley continued. “That’s all. We aren’t here to judge. We’re not looking for retaliation. We just need to know what happened so we can undo it. Was there anything you might have done, a spell or an enchantment you might have dabbled with, or a trade you might have made with someone…disreputable, someone familiar with the dark arts? Anything like that, around the time the curse began?”

“Spell?” Charlotte’s eyelids fluttered like tiny butterflies. “Enchantments? Trades? Dark arts? What are you even talking about?”

“Think, Mother,” Devra spat out. “This is important.”

“I don’t…” Charlotte looked between the two of them, visibly flustered. “No. Nothing like that. But why are you asking me? Why on earth would you think I—”