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Twenty-Nine
Three months later…
Milkweed, nettle, and thorns from my blackberry bush sat crushed in my mortar. The contents would fill my witch bottles, replenishing the protections around my home.
The moment Isabelle had become queen, my nightmares erupted in full force. Tortured visions of myself or Roarke being beaten and punished within the depths of hell was a favorite of hers. And despite knowing it was all a dream, I woke nightly, my throat raw from screaming.
With my ingredients prepared, I poured them into four jars, along with shards of glass, stick pins, and a snippet of my hair, covering it all in red wine.
Sealing the lids, I pulled on my boots and coat, then walked to each corner of my house. With the quick work of the shovel, I buried a jar beneath the snow in each direction. It might not stop her from torturing me in the dreamscape, but at least it would help protect me and Jenks from anything she might choose to will into the real world.
Besides in my nightmares, I hadn’t seen Roarke since walking away, and his words haunted me more than anything else. “If you do this, I’ll be forced to choose another queen. And you will never see me again. If you relinquish your magic, your dreams will be like everyone else’s, and there will be nothing I can do.”
Tomorrow was the first day since my last encounter with Isabelle that I’d be traveling outside of Rhode Island. I needed to follow up on a clue I’d found buried in a tattered manuscript I uncovered at the library in the next town over. It wasn’t a smoking gun by any means, but there were mentions of a witch named Agitha traveling through the surrounding region, so I had to give it a shot. Keelyn continued to let me borrow her car as long as I continued to deliver fresh ingredients and cook her a meal or two every now and again.
Pulling my coat tight, I fought the wind as I headed back inside. Winter was in full swing, and while I usually enjoyed this time of year, I couldn’t help but notice its exaggerated effects on me. My body felt weaker than it ever had before, and even the warmest fire couldn’t chase the chill from my bones.
Wrapped in my afghan, I reviewed my plotted course. I would be traveling to Hartford, Connecticut, a place I’d never been before, but the librarian I spoke with there said she had a variety of old newspaper clippings and brochures from around the same time as the book I had discovered. She agreed to have them prepared and laid out for me when I arrived, so all in all, the trip shouldn’t take me long.
I had never spent the night in a hotel or taken a vacation of any kind, even when Mama was alive. If she ever did have to venture away from home, she was only gone for the day, selling our wares or trading for new crystals and tools. And any farmers markets we visited in the nearby towns were close enough we were able to return home each night, the structured habit growing comfortable over my younger years. With my track record of what happened in Maine with Isabelle, I wasn’t exactly looking forward to leaving my home, but I couldn’t let Roarke down. I would search to the ends of the earth to find the answers we needed.
With the fire stoked, I finished the last of my chamomile tea and climbed into bed. “I would ask you to join me, sweet boy, but I’m afraid I might hurt you with all my tossing and turning.” I petted Jenks on the head and lowered him to the floor, signaling he should sleep in his own bed instead.
Tucking a piece of amethyst, black tourmaline, moonstone, and pink calcite beneath my pillow, I lay down and closed my eyes. Isabelle had broken through every ritual I previously tried, but hopefully, tonight would be different—though somehow I knew the nightmares would come all the same.
Roarke’s screams lingered in my ears even after I woke. The chilling scene had taken on a familiar tone until an anaconda the size of a twenty-foot tree wrapped itself around me, keeping my dream self from helping while Roarke was skinned alive.
I wondered if he knew how Isabelle was torturing me or if she’d taken over the dreamscape so completely that he couldn’t do anything about it even if he wanted to.
I tried not to think about them working side by side every night. The images my mind conjured brought their own set of nightmares that I couldn’t possibly face.
My mind and body yearned to reconnect with Roarke even as I continued to feel less and less like myself.
Forcing down a light breakfast of toast and tea, I gathered my map and notes and bundled up in my boots and coat. Stumbling along the path, I meandered through the woods, my restless nights getting the better of me as I headed to the library to retrieve Keelyn’s car.
Hartford was approximately seventy miles away, and it should only take about an hour and a half to get there. I smiled, happy I’d be able to return home again tonight.
“Morning—” Keelyn began but startled when she met my eyes. “Honey… are you okay? You look like death on a cracker.”
“Gee, thanks.” I slid into a nearby chair, my legs barely able to keep me upright after my hike through the woods. “I haven’t been sleeping well.”
“I can tell. Are you sure you’re going to be okay to run your errands today? It’s not about the car…” She rushed on. “But you don’t exactly look alert enough to drive.”
My eyes drooped just as I heard her say, “Let me get you some coffee.”
A scream pulled me upright, and Keelyn was there, shaking my shoulders.
“My god, Milly. What is going on? You fell asleep in the chair, and the next thing I knew, you were screaming like a banshee.”
I looked around the library, thankful no one else had entered yet this morning. “I’m so sorry. How embarrassing.” I took the coffee she offered, its bitter, unfamiliar taste a shock to my system. “Thank you.”
“Of course. Now why don’t you come with me to the back office and lie down for a bit?”
“I can’t. I have a meeting in Hartford I don’t want to miss.”
Keelyn looked around the library, noting it was still just the two of us inside. “Then how about this… I’ll close the library for the day and drive you myself instead. Will that work?”
My head dipped, sleep ready to pull me under again. “Yes. Thank you. That would be great.”
