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“Shall I show you to the house, then? Sir Jacob will be there, getting everyt
hing ready for this evening. I can show you to your guest room, where you can refresh yourselves before the festival.”
“Thank you,” said the mysterious beauties with one voice, like a choir of sirens.
“Ah, and I should mention something about Sir Jacob. Well, you see, he—”
“We know all about Sir Jacob. Don’t worry,” said Lucinda, interrupting Gothel.
“How do you know about him?” asked Gothel.
“We saw him in your mind when you mentioned his name. We saw the image you hold of him in your mind,” said Martha, smiling.
“I see.”
“Of course we expected necromantic servants in the dead woods,” Lucinda said.
“Yes. Of course you did.”
Gothel felt out of her depth with the witches. She was interested in seeing what Hazel made of them, whether she would be able to tell if they had good intentions.
“Come this way,” she said as they walked the long path that led them to the new courtyard, which was now filled with beautiful statues surrounding a large fountain. In the center of the fountain was the massive statue of a striking Gorgon. She had a wide evil grin with sharp teeth and wild curling snakes for hair. Her large stone eyes somehow sparked with life. She looked pleased, the stone Gorgon, as if she had just turned the frolicking dancers that surrounded her into stone, and it seemed to Gothel that during the Gorgon’s height of glee, she perhaps caught a glimpse of her own reflection in the water, turning herself into stone as well. Gothel wondered what her sisters made of the new fountain. She wondered if they found it beautiful, like she did. She talked with her sisters very little those days; she was so busy trying to make the house beautiful for them that she somehow managed to neglect them.
“And don’t forget your magic. You’ve been studying your mother’s magic, trying to find a cure to help them,” said Lucinda, reading Gothel’s mind.
“Yes. That’s true.” Gothel wasn’t sure she liked having mind readers about. Now she understood why the thought of mind reading unnerved Primrose.
“We look forward to meeting your sisters,” said Lucinda as they reached the vestibule, which was still under construction. Sir Jacob was there, directing the minions like a great general at war.
“Sir Jacob, I would like to introduce Lucinda, Ruby, and Martha. They will be our guests for the longest night and the solstice.”
Jacob stood for a moment saying nothing. Gothel didn’t know if it was from the shock of seeing strangers in the dead wood, or if it was something else. Whatever his reasons, he looked unsettled.
“Welcome, ladies. Please let Lady Gothel know if there is anything I can do to make your stay more comfortable,” he said, eyeing the sisters, his face strained but not from the twisted smile Gothel had grown so fond of.
“Thank you, Sir Jacob,” said the girls in unison. It was almost like a song the way they said it. Gothel wondered if this was the way she and her sisters would be if they were identical, and if her mother would have been happier if these had been her daughters rather than Gothel and her sisters. Would she have tried to kill them if they had been identical, like these girls? Her mother’s voice echoed in her mind.
Indistinguishable witch daughters are a blessing from the gods.
Had her mother ever said anything kind to them? Gothel couldn’t recall any encouragement from her mother—not until the days preceding her death. But now she was almost sure everything her mother had said in those days was a lie. She felt foolish for believing that her mother would be anything but traitorous.
“Don’t discount everything your mother said to you in those final days, Gothel. Not all of it was lies.”
Gothel looked at Lucinda with a blank face. She needed to remember those girls could hear all her thoughts.
“We can teach you how to block people from hearing your thoughts,” said Ruby.
“No offense, but I think I would like that very much.” Gothel realized she had been rude to poor Jacob, who had been standing there the entire time, almost mesmerized by the sisters. Almost afraid. Maybe that wasn’t the right word: afraid. But clearly there was something about the sisters that bothered him. She would have to talk with him later when the sisters were occupied in their rooms.
“Thank you, Jacob. I won’t keep you from your work. I will come see you later before we start the longest night.”
“Yes, Lady Gothel.” And he went on his way, directing the minions to finish putting up the decorations and setting up the candles around the house.
The strange sisters laughed. Gothel liked the sound of their laughter. It wasn’t teasing or nasty; it was musical and happy. She missed laughing with her sisters that way. She missed spending time with them.
“We’ll do what we can to help your sisters. We promise,” said Martha.
“Thank you,” said Gothel. “Let me show you to your rooms.”
