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“Was this Charlotte’s mother?” I whispered.
“I don’t know. How do we find out? Who do we talk to, where do we go?”
Someone cleared their throat and we both looked up to see Hollie’s mother, Elaine, standing there.
“Mom, what are you doing here?”
She smiled, walked over to us, and sat down on the table in front of the sofa.
Looking from Hollie to me, she drew in a breath and then slowly exhaled. “Charlotte’s mother Elizabeth had a best friend named Sara Windsor. They were inseparable. I’m not sure if Sara had the gift of magick—it was only ever recorded in one place and the writing wasn’t very clear. She never married, and she was like a second mother to Charlotte after Elizbeth died in childbirth. According to Charlotte’s brother, Matthew, Sara wasn’t the least bit sad when Elizbeth passed away in childbirth. Matthew wrote in his journal that she’d started to take it upon herself to care for John, Charlotte, and Matthew more and more. Apparently, Matthew overheard Sara telling his father she was with child. She wanted him to marry her and to claim the child as his own.”
“Was he the father?”
“No. When Matthew asked his father about it, he told his son that he’d never touched Sara. He couldn’t do that to Elizbeth. In his journal, Matthew wrote that Sara became so enraged she threatened the entire family. He believed that Sara set fire to the homestead. He could never prove it, but he made a vow to his little sister that he would find out who killed her and their father. Matthew stated that a man from London named William Merlin showed up in Salem not long after. He was wealthy and looking for a wife to care for his young daughter after his own wife had died on their voyage across the ocean. Sara must have convinced him to marry her.”
Hollie’s mouth dropped open. “Merlin?”
Elaine nodded. “Matthew wrote that Sara was hellbent on condemning women she didn’t like, accusing them of being witches or whores. She had a rather nasty reputation in the community. According to Matthew’s journal, William Merlin had an affair with another woman, and Sara claimed she was a witch after finding out about it. I’m assuming that hatred for all things witch-related was passed down from generation to generation. Matt is still carrying on that tradition, although it has lessened with each generation.”
“Could Sara have placed a spell on all future generations?” I asked. “I mean, if she herself was a witch.”
“Lucy thinks so. She believes that Sara, or someone else at her urging, put a spell on future generations of Merlins, making them despise anyone who practices witchcraft. Matt’s father is the same way, though his dislike isn’t as powerful as Matt’s is. Lucy and Sarah seem to think that his love for his wife has softened him over the years.”
“Love is more powerful than hate,” Hollie stated.
I was suddenly transported to the past when a memory hit me out of nowhere. It was of Matt teasing and flirting with Sarah.
“Matt liked Sarah when we were younger,” I said. “I remember his father telling him to stay away from her and her family.”
Hollie gasped. “Because his father had a spell cast on him so he wouldn’t like our family.”
Mom nodded. “Even if a spell had been placed on Matt, his attraction for Sarah was too strong. The family moved away from Salem, but I don’t believe Matt’s father ever truly wanted to leave.”
“It was the spell,” Hollie whispered. “Attempting to separate the two of them.”
“They were destined to be together—there’s no doubt about it. When you girls cast that spell to make Lucas recognize his gifts, it also hit Matt. But not in the way we thought. We all just assumed he was a witch as well.”
“But what about his wishes coming true?” I asked.
“At first, Lucy, Sarah, and I all thought it had something to do with four of you casting the spell instead of three. It was too powerful.”
“Four?” I asked, looking at Hollie.
Smiling, she placed her hand on her stomach. “Charlotte.”
I couldn’t help but smile in return.
“But once Lucy figured out that Sarah still had feelings for Matt, we realized that her part of the spell was just that—a spell. Matt was under a spell. Everything he wished for came true. He wasn’t making them come true, the spell was.”
I laughed and shook my head. “That’s insane.”
“It makes sense,” Hollie said. “When we cast the spell, I wished that Lucas would accept his gift, and Sarah was supposed to be doing the same thing. But if she thought about Matt at any point, she probably wished for him to accept her or like her again. With his hair in the spell, it would have done just that.”
Elaine laughed. “I’ll say. Matt is back to his normal self, with the exception of one thing.”
“What?” Hollie and I asked at the same time.
“He no longer has a distaste for witches. I think the truth spell meant for Lucas cancelled out the spell that had been placed on Matt’s family years ago.”
