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“Why do you want the music to be real?” Breena asks, much kinder than I could be right now.
“Because it’s so beautiful,” Lorelei says, then her face crumples, and she bursts into tears. “It just makes me feel so happy. It’s like beautiful light flows through me every time I hear it. It’s not real?”
“No, baby.” I pull her to me and hold on tightly as the sun comes out, warming us. “It’s not real.”
Suddenly, Lorelei tears herself out of my arms and rushes over to the pier’s railing, emptying her stomach over the side.
“She’s always nauseated after hearing the music,” I inform the others grimly as I hold her hair back for her. “It’s been getting progressively worse as time goes on. At first, she was just a little queasy, but now, well…it’s this.”
“Why did it kill Marydell?” Lucy wants to know. “What could it have possibly wanted with that sweet woman? She’s never hurt anyone.”
“The energy,” Jonas replies. “The power. And for the fun of it. We all know it doesn’t care if it hurts someone who’s good.”
“I have to call the authorities,” Giles says, pulling his phone out of his pocket, but there are already sirens, and they don’t sound far away.
“Someone already did,” I reply. “How in the hell do we explain this?”
“We don’t,” Lucy says. “She was washed out by the water and somehow got tossed back. That’s all we know. It’s not a lie. It’s exactly what we and everyone else on the pier saw.”
“That’s fucked-up,” Giles says. “It’s just all so fucked-up.”
“I’m not going back home,” Lorelei declares. We’re all sitting in my living room, just an hour after the whole ordeal, trying to calm down together. Breena made tea with valerian root, which is excellent for calming, and the aunts dropped off some soup, but none of us has been ready to eat anything yet.
“What do you mean?” I ask Lorelei with a frown.
“Just what I said. The water scares me now. It’s not safe for me, and if it’s not safe for me, that means you’re all in danger. I won’t have anything happening to any of you because of me. So, until this is all over, I stay inland.”
“I understand what you’re saying,” Breena says slowly, thinking it over. “But, Lorelei, you gain the most power by being near the water.”
“Not anymore. Or, at least, not right now. I get physically sick and am apparently hearing ghost music that puts me under some kind of fucked-up spell. We have too much to do, and all it wants is to scare and distract me. It’s working. I’m going to take that piece of his power off our plate. Xander and I will stay here. And before you ask, yes, it pisses me off more than you know. I miss my shoreline already, but this is just how it has to be for now. We’ll destroy this piece of trash, and then life can go back to normal.”
“I think you’re right.” This comes from Jonas, who’s watching Lorelei with narrowed eyes. “It’s all a distraction. Removing that piece will certainly anger it, but it will be an advantage for us. It’s less power it can use.”
“I’m fine with us staying here.” I reach over to rub Lora’s thigh. “Do you want to go home to get your things?”
“No.” She shakes her head stubbornly. “I’m not going anywhere near there. But I will need some clothes, my computer, and my notes. And there’s food in the fridge that shouldn’t go to waste.”
“I’ll go.” I kiss her head softly. “I’ll go pack up your things and the food.”
“I can help,” Lucy offers and then turns to Jonas, who nods. “We can both help.”
“When do your mom and grandmother arrive?” Giles asks me.
“Friday afternoon. Two more days.”
“We really need that coven meeting,” he responds.
I glance over at Lucy. “Can you help me get the word out?”
“Of course. I’ll get the aunts to help. Saturday morning?”
“Friday night,” I counter. “Mom and Grandma should arrive at around four in the afternoon. Let’s set the meeting for six.”
“Great.” Lucy steps out of the room, her phone already pressed to her ear.
“How is the tapestry coming?” Lorelei asks Breena.
“I only have a couple of rows left.” Breena beams with happiness. “It’s so close. I’ll have it finished by early next week.”
“Excellent,” Jonas says. “Good work, Breena.”
“Thanks. I’m so relieved it’s almost finished. I don’t think I’ll do any kind of weaving ever again.”
“I don’t blame you,” Lorelei replies. “I think it’s time we get a plan in place. For lifting the curse and destroying that son of a bitch.”
“The aunts are on it,” Lucy announces as she walks back into the room. “They’re calling everyone. We’re going to meet at their house, as usual.”
“Thank you.”
Lucy smiles at me. “That was easy.”
