I sigh. “Fine.”
Nana tousles Kat’s short, dark hair. “You darling girl. How come you never bring your friends over, Josephine? They’re wonderful.”
“Uh, the witch thing?”
“Oh, right.” She goes back to her spell book, now propped on a stand. “Ash of the shepherd dog and golden eagle’s tears.”
It’s a very short reagent list, but eagle tears aren’t easy to get a hold of. Nana goes to the special cabinet behind her desk—the one with the most valuable and rare items. Then she grabs a bottle of ash from the shelves. She pours a little mound of the ash in the copper bowl, then drips four tears on top. As she holds her hand over the mixture, it liquefies into a silvery pool.
“The flesh to be protected,” she whispers.
Before I think too much, I’m cutting at my forearm. It definitely doesn’t feel good, but I try not to be a baby about it because it’s much easier than Kat’s part. Once I have the chunk, I place it in the bowl and it foams. Grabbing a bandage, I wait for the next part in a fit of nausea.
“The shield to protect.” Nana eyes Kat. “Do it quickly. Hesitation will only make it hurt more.”
Kat sucks in a breath, her tiny frame stretched as tall as it can go. She removes the ice from her left pinky finger and clamps the pliers down. She closes her eyes. Her muscles flex.
That’s when I look away.
She screams once, and it’s cut short by a gasp of agony. Regardless of being cold and numb, it probably still hurt like hell. I look back just in time to see her place the nail in the bowl. Her finger gushes blood, and her hands tremble as she grasps the bandages. Her strained breathing fills the silence as we watch the liquid turn gold.
Nana holds up the bowl. “Drink, and become bound.”
I take the bowl and drink. “Huh, tastes like honeysuckle.”
“Really?” Kat says.
“Yeah. Go figure.”
She takes the bowl from me and sips. “Not bad.”
We freeze at the same time, so I figure she feels what I’m feeling. A warm sensation, like sunbathed grass, tickles at my legs. It fills in every piece of me, bit by bit, and by the time it gets to my head I’m keenly aware of Kat’s well-being. Her finger kills, but other than that she’s . . . happy. Definitely not in any danger.
She gasps. “Wow, it’s like ultra-sensitive intuition.”
“Yes.” Nana shuts the book. “Almost as strong as blood.” I watch her, and all my instincts scream that she’s hiding something. Honestly, I don’t want to ask. Not now. There’s been enough trauma today. Which means, of course . . .
“Time for some pudding!”
UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE
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..................................................................
ELEVEN
My father sleeps almost all of the next few days, and we let him, though there is so much we need ask. He’s so weak, and I feel bad pushing him more than necessary. Nana says it’s okay, since our hunters can’t see us anymore.
But this evening, Kat and I help my dad downstairs, and we spend all of dinner talking about magic. They have lots of silly questions like “Why don’t you teleport everywhere?” or “Can’t you conjure your food?” Most of which can be answered in one way: sometimes the payment isn’t worth it. If I teleported everywhere, I’d be freaking bald. We use magic when the benefit outweighs the payment, when it’s necessary, and, of course, when others pay us to help them out at their own risk.
“So all of Willow’s End has a magical barrier over it?” Kat seems to be having a hard time wrapping her mind around it. “How? What does it do?”
“It warns us if there are any threats to us,” I say as I clear plates from the table. “If someone who intends to harm us tries to get in, it blocks them. The head of house is tied to the spell, so she can sense any attempts to breech it.”
Nana nods. “Our home works much the same way, but the spells are even stronger. No one can step foot on our land without our permission, if they can find it in the first place. Only the truly desperate can be led here without effort, which is probably why Joseph didn’t have any trouble finding the address.”
“I was pretty desperate,” he admits.
After we clean up, Nana pulls out her best pudding for Joseph—pistachio, butterscotch, chocolate peanut butter, devil’s food. She orders it through the mail, and every month we get a big box of exotic flavors.
“Isn’t that one divine?” Nana sits next to him, seeming way too happy that he’s here.
He nods. “I had no idea pudding could be more than a second-rate dessert.”
She slaps his arm. “Bite your tongue, young man.”
“This is so strange.” He searches for his water glass, and I push it into his hand. “Thanks. It’s frightening how much of Carmina I can hear in your voices. I’d always thought she didn’t get along with her family, since she refused to introduce me. Never would have guessed it was against the rules.”
“Not against the rules, necessarily,” Nana says. “You could say it is . . . distasteful. Most of us consider it selfish to risk the lives of those we love.”
“No offense, but that’s a load of crap.” He takes a long drink while we stare at him. I’m not sure if I’m offended. At times I totally agree. “If you want to protect something, you keep it close. You don’t push it away and hope nothing will happen. I could have been here for her, maybe not as protection, but as support. And it seems like this house is impenetrable, if whatever was in me can’t enter.”
“It’s probably good you can’t see Nana’s face right now,” I say. She looks positively murderous. I didn’t make the comment, and I’m cowering.
Nana finishes off her pudding, letting the silence work its dark power.
My phone decides this is the perfect opportunity to ring. I check the window and see it’s a text from Winn.
We really need to have an actual date. I smile.
I’m game. Friday?
“Who’s that?” my dad asks, since Nana is still fuming.
“Umm . . .” So it turns out no matter how much you know your dad, it’s hard to announce that you are in a relationship.
Definitely, Winn replies.
“It was probably Winn, the boy she’s dating,” Kat says for me.
His eyes widen. “Oh.”
“Back to the matter at hand.” Nana puts her fingers together, as if she’s plotting. “There was a time I would have made you blind for good if you said such things.”
My jaw drops. “But—”
She holds up her hand to silence me. “Joseph, now that we’ve made you welcome and you’ve healed some, we must discuss the evil that sent you here. I need to ask why you decided after all this time to come here. Every detail you can recall could be important.”
He sighs. “I wish I had more information. A letter was sent to my office—that’s it. There was no return address, and the handwriting looked like it was done with an old ink pen. Inside, there was a picture of Carmina. On the back there was just ‘Willow’s End, Iowa.’ No exact address. But it was enough for me.”
“They knew we were here?” I say, shocked. How did they find our town?
“Do you still have the letter?” Nana and I ask at the same time.
“It’s with my stuff at the bed-and-breakfast.”
Nana looks at me. “Fetch his things after school tomorrow, but don’t touch the letter.”
“You mean . . . he’s staying with us?”
“Can’t have him going out there and getting cursed again.” She pulls herself up with her cane. “I’m beginning to think some traditions would be better left forgotten, and it seems he wants to stay anyway.”
He smiles. “I do.”
“Good night, then.” Click goes the cane, then a long creak, over and over as she ascends the stairs.
“I better get home, too. My mom has texted me twice. Let me know if you need anything.” Kat gives
me a hug and leaves, her footsteps echoing down the hall.
“At least you can always hear people coming in this place,” my dad says.
I let out a little laugh. “But . . . can you stay? I mean, you have a job and a life and, well, don’t you have a family or friends? You don’t have to stay out of obligation, really. We protected you for almost two decades, and we can again.”
He shrugs. “I can work things out. It might not be easy, but the answers I’ve always wanted are here. As long as I have an internet connection, I’m sure I can talk my company into letting me telecommute for a while. I do half my job on conference calls anyway.”
I’m not sure if that means he’s in a relationship or not, but I decide I’d rather not know for now. “We don’t have internet.”
“I can fix that.”
I smile. “If you can get Nana to install internet and a TV, I will love you forever.”
He snorts. “Your love comes cheap.”
“You think convincing her will be cake? How little you know.” I’m surprised it’s this easy to talk to him, like there’s a connection between us already.
He sips at his water. “I don’t know. I think she likes me.”
I shake my head, refusing to admit it’s true. Nana is so easily charmed by men. It’s a wonder she didn’t have more daughters from the way she talks sometimes.
My phone beeps again.
I was really hoping you’d call me today.
“I’d better do homework,” I say to my dad as I type.
Will in like 10 min.
“Do you need anything?”
“I’m figuring out how to get around.” He smiles. “The house will probably cave in if I fall, so you’ll be tipped off.”
“True.”
As I head upstairs, I can hardly wait to talk to Winn. But as I pass Nana’s door, she calls for me. I open it as softly as I can. She’s at her writing desk, a quill in hand. The quill isn’t her sticking to some anti-technology thing. Though she’s admittedly old school, that’s how we speak with other witches. “Are you writing the Crafts?”
She nods.
“Why?”
“A few inquiries about the strange shadow we saw. I can’t get it off my mind.”
Here we go. Out comes the serious stuff. I shut the door. “Me either. Have you ever seen something like that?”
“No. It was very dark magic. Perverted. Insane. Whoever created it has to be entirely lost to the blackness, far more than we can comprehend.” She keeps scribbling as she talks, and I picture the Craft sisters watching as her scrawl appears on their enchanted paper. “I don’t want to jump to conclusions, Josephine, but I think you sensed what it might be.”
I suck in a deep breath, the reality of what she’s saying hitting harder than ever. If she felt it, too, then I can’t pretend it away anymore. “The Curse?”
She nods. “We barely escaped the trap, my dear. It almost had you.”
“I know.” It comes out in a whisper, the image of that shadow and its desire to consume me all too real even now. This is why witches run. But it’s too late for that option. They already know where we live, might even have us surrounded.
“I will never let it take you. I will die protecting you if I have to.”
The reality of our situation hits again, and I have to force myself not to shake. “Is that why you let Kat and my father in? You think their comfort can replace you?”
Her pen stops for the slightest moment, and then she keeps going. “We need to read the histories for any clues. We’ve been attacked many times, and our bloodline will survive this as well.”
My throat tightens when I realize what she’s not saying. Her entire purpose is making sure I live, and that’s how it has to be. “Of course we’ll survive.”
She looks up at me, her smile sad yet confident. “That’s my girl.”
UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE
HarperCollins Publishers
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TWELVE
There are just over two weeks of school left, and they feel utterly useless. At lunch, everyone flees campus as if they can’t stand looking at the cafeteria one more second. Winn and I sit under a tree with our friends, opening our recently bought fast food. The chains here in Denison are a treasure to those of us who live in towns too small to have them.
“Let’s skip the rest of school,” Gwen says as she stretches out next to Adam. “It’s so nice today.”
She has a point. The weather is perfect: warm and not too humid. Give it a month, and Iowa will turn into a steamer. The corn seems to love it. My hair? Not so much.
“We do have finals,” Kat says.
“I kind of want to pass my classes, what with that whole college thing in a year.” Billy runs his fingers through his dark hair, and it sticks up all over. He totally pulls off the cool-guy indifference thing. He always seemed like such a poseur, but at a closer look he’s more like a well-dressed intellectual.
“Psh.” Adam spits French fry as he talks. “It’s review all week until Friday. Not like we’re missing anything. Study later.”
“Or we could let our teachers tell us all the crap on the test, and have the rest of the day to chill without studying,” Winn says.
I bump his shoulder. “I like your thinking.”
“Good.” He grabs me around the waist, which surprises me, but I don’t mind at all. “Because we’re hanging out today, even if I have to go bug catching with you and your grandma.”
I laugh, at least until we get pummeled with greasy food wrappers. “Hey!”
“I warned you about the PDA,” Kat says. “A few days and you’ve already forgotten.”
I point at her. “You specifically said making out. We’re nowhere near that.”
“If only,” Winn says, and I shake my head.
“Still.” Gwen sips her Coke. “It’s a slippery slope.”
I roll my eyes. “Fine, but we’re so allowed this. It’s not even a full-on hug.”
“I agree.” Winn squeezes my waist, and it makes me laugh.
Kat sighs. “Just don’t push it.”
My eyes meet hers, and that intuition thing kicks in. She only said that because she knows how happy I am; otherwise she would have thrown more stuff at us. “I swear we won’t.”
Gwen eyes us, then zones in on Kat. “You’re getting soft, girl.”
Kat ignores her. “Billy, would you mind reading through my English paper? I really need a good grade, and you’re always getting the highest score.”
He nods. “Sure, on the bus?”
“Perfect.”
“Subtle, Katie.” Gwen moves so her legs are in the sun. The boys probably don’t get it, but Kat and I know she’s pissed. I can guess why—she thinks she’s missing out on something. Her jealousy over Kat’s healing necklaces has been pretty obvious, and it makes me feel awful. She hates not being in the loop, which might become a serious problem now that Kat is.
“Good idea.” Adam scoots beside her, pulling up his pant legs to reveal some seriously pasty skin. “Gotta get ready for bathing-suit season.”
Gwen tries not to smile, but she can’t resist humor. Adam’s pretty funny. Not as cute as Winn, but not bad, with his wavy brown hair and strong frame. If he’s game, my bet is that we’ll be punishing them for making out in public before Winn and I do.
After school, I get off the bus with Winn, and we walk hand-in-hand down the long dirt drive to his family’s big house. I’ve driven by here all my life, but I’ve never actually been to his farm. The yard is beautiful, filled with old trees that shade our way. The smell of grass floats in the air, and wild flowers dance in the soft breeze. Underneath all that, there’s the faintest hint of magic, like at the willow tree.
“So what are we doing today?” he asks.
I already planned this, and yet it’s still hard to say. “Funny story, actually.”
He raises an eyebrow. “Yeah?
”
“Remember that guy who was kind of stalking me?”
His hand tightens around mine. “Is he giving you more trouble?”
“Not exactly. Turns out he’s . . . my dad.”
Winn stops and stares at me, as if he’s waiting for the joke. I’m not sure what else to say. Nana might not be happy I told him at all, but I can’t lie to him about everything. And if my dad is staying here, people will find out at least that much. “For real?”
I nod. “My mom never told him she was pregnant, but I guess he recently went looking for her and found out about me.”
“Wow.” He shakes his head, as if pushing away the shock. “And you’re okay with this? I mean, that’s pretty crazy for him to just show up.”
“He’s . . . really nice. He loved my mom a lot. She was the one who left, so it’s not like I can blame him for not being there. The second he found out, he came looking, which has to mean he’s a decent guy.”
“So you’re happy?”
I smile. “Yeah. I think so.”
“Good.” He pulls me into him, which takes my breath away. I’ve been hugged plenty of times, but this isn’t the same. I can’t explain except for holy-crow-this-feels-so-good. I put my hands on his back and sink into him more. He lets out a small laugh as he says, “Of course, this isn’t so great for me, is it? I kind of liked that I never had to meet your father.”
“Trust me, Nana is way scarier than him.”
“I doubt it.” He pulls back a little and looks at me. “So what does that have to do with what we’re doing?”
“I’ve been commanded to get his things from the Shirleys. He’s a little sick, and Nana has decided he shouldn’t overexert himself.” I wince, suddenly feeling bad for asking Winn to run my errands. “I figured it would be easier if I had your truck.”
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