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“I… I don’t know. I don’t think so, but…” I couldn’t think of anything I’d misplaced, but then I owned the entirety of Lightkeep Cottage now. I didn’t even know what half my possessionswere, let alone if I was missing any of them.
“Look, I think we can safely say that even if it wasn’t this exact spell, it was something like it,” Eva said. “I’ve heard of effigies and bringing inanimate objects to life in lots of different magical cultures.”
“Me too,” Zale said, eyebrows raised. “My grandmother likes to tell the story of a witch in the Scottish village where she grew up who enchanted a scarecrow to follow her lover around, and throw things at him in the street, because he’d cheated on her. I was terrified of scarecrows for like five years after that.”
“Okay, but we’re overlooking something kind of important here,” I said, more loudly than I’d intended, so that everyone jumped. “If we’re right and it was a spell to lure me down to the beach, that means someone basically tried to drown me on purpose.”
No one spoke. The silence hung heavy.
“I don’t understand. No one here even knows me. Why would someone want to kill me?” I nearly choked on the last two words.
“Maybe… maybe that’s not what theymeantto do,” Nova said, her voice shaky.
We all looked at each other. Not a single one of us believed that.
“The thing is, Wren…” Eva hesitated, squirming uncomfortably, “when a family is as famous as yours—I mean famous here in the Cove, obviously, notliterallyfamous—well, it can stir up some complicated feelings. There’s competition between covens, and sometimes there’s bad blood.”
She shot a lightning quick glance at Nova, who fired up at once. “Oh, sure, let’s just come right out and say it. The Claires and the Vespers lowkey hate each other. That doesn’t make us murderers, Eva!”
“I never said—”
“Hey, hey, everyone calm down!” Zale cried, jumping up and putting himself between the others. “Nova, that’s not what she said and you know it. Stop putting words in her mouth.”
“She didn’t have to say it! We found the spell in my library! Our families are in some stupid epic feud for the ages. Why don’t you all just ask what you want to and get it over with!” Nova snapped, her eyes glimmering now with unshed tears. No one seemed able to say anything for a moment.
“Nova, you were up on the cliff with us,” Zale said softly. “You came running down to the beach to help. You’re helping now, even though your grandmother would flay you alive for messing around with these books. No one’s accusing you.”
Nova chanced a glance at me and I nodded fervently. “I’m not interested in some stupid feud. I don’t even know if I’m a real witch, for heaven’s sake! I’d… I’d rather just be friends,” I told her.
Eva looked like she wanted to say something else but decided against it. She nodded too, like she was making a decision. “I wasn’t just talking about the Claires. This whole town is a hot mess of egos and coven pride and has been for generations.”
“So, what you’re really saying is that someone might want to get rid of me just because I’m a Vesper?” I asked, my voice hollow, defeated. Just when I’d thought I might find the place where I belonged…
“What are you doing?”
We all shrieked and turned to see Bernadette standing in the doorway, staring at us with round, inquisitive eyes.
“Bernadette! You scared the shit out of us!” Nova gasped.
“What are you doing?” Bernadette repeated, casting her wide-eyed glance down at the pile of books we’d accumulated on the floor.
“We’re just… uh, doing a little research,” Nova said, and she hastily began to pick up books and thrust them back on the shelf. We all hurried to help her.
“You aren’t supposed to use the books in that cabinet. That magic is very dark,” Bernadette said, and she scowled, shaking a finger at us like we were naughty toddlers.
“We know that,” Nova snapped. “And we aren’t trying to use it. We were just looking for information.”
As though Nova hadn’t even spoken, Bernadette turned to stare at me. “You’re the Vesper girl. I met you in the gallery at the Historical Society.”
“I… yeah, I remember. How are you, Bernadette?” I stammered as I picked up another book.
“I did not expect to see you,” she said blankly.
I had no idea how to respond. “I, uh… I liked your painting.”
Bernadette tilted her head. “Did you? I got the impression that you found it upsetting.”
I felt the color rise to my cheeks. Had I been that obvious? “Oh, no, not at all. Just… just surprised. It reminded me of… of something, that’s all.”
