by Jen Stevens
Blaire tapped her foot impatiently against the grass as Rayner continued his speech. “If he’s so worthy of the position of High Priest and taking over for the Quarters, why doesn’t he remove the black magic spell himself?”
Her mood never lifted to its usual peppiness after the town meeting. She’d adopted a new attitude toward her hometown and the people in it, specifically the Quarters. Instead of speaking against them as she always did, she began sounding like Tabitha, sympathizing with the four men who were being used as scapegoats to complete a larger agenda. She was no longer the naive, doe-eyed girl I met in the beginning of my trip, innocently taking whatever they threw at her and making the best of it. Now, she demanded respect. Her eyes had been opened to the corruption happening around her and she was angry about it.
“Because he can’t.”
I watched the man in question closely, taking note of his hand gestures and the way his eyes twitched when he was saying something especially ridiculous. It was like he knew the words he was spewing were nothing but hot air, but he enjoyed the way the crowd was so captured by him too much to stop.
“Exactly.”
We only lasted on that bench a few more minutes before Blaire stood up in a huff and began walking off. She took the back alley again and I followed. I’d given up trying to figure out the route after trying it a few times on my own and never ending up in the same place twice. Some things in Beacon Grove just weren’t worth getting hung up on and the seemingly shifting streets were one of them.
We passed the office and walked straight to my room, where we’ve been hanging out for the past few days. I managed to avoid Tabitha since the night she told me everything about the Quarters and I ran straight to Remy with my newfound information. Even though there was no way for her to be certain, I could swear she knew what I’d done and wasn’t pleased with me.
I didn’t care, though. She’d been wrong about him, and when he was ready to tell the others about what we knew, I was sure she’d be wrong about them, too.
Blaire fell onto my bed and laid back, releasing an exasperated sigh into the air above her. I wanted to ask what had gotten into her lately. It seemed like I wasn’t the only one avoiding the old woman sitting a few doors down. But I figured if she wanted me to know, she would have told me by now. That was just who Blaire was.
“Where do you plan on going when you leave here?” she asked when I laid down beside her.
We each stared up at the tiled ceiling, me considering my answer while she waited patiently.
“I’m not sure,” I admitted.
“I’ve never left Beacon Grove. Grammy wouldn’t ever allow it, and Mom was always too busy to plan a vacation.”
“We should plan something. Just you and me,” I suggested, turning my neck toward her.
She did the same and her eyes glowed bright even in the dull light the lamp was emitting from beside the bed. They reminded me of the unique shades the Quarters had, almost making her look inhuman.
“That would be great. I want to see the city. I don’t care which one.”
I smiled at that, remembering how much Aunt Ash loved the city as well. No matter where we went, especially at the end, she made sure there was a major city nearby for her to visit.
“I love the energy of it all. Everyone’s too focused on their own lives to care what anyone else is doing. It’s the perfect place to hide,” she’d said once when I questioned her about it.
I always thought it was peculiar that she spent her life wanting to hide when all I wanted was to be seen. Now, I knew why she felt that way. Beacon Grove felt like an impossible place to hide. Even if no one was looking at you, it always felt like eyes were watching.
“Sounds like a plan.”
Chapter 28
Remy
The Movement was gaining momentum against us by the day. Our coven and town were feeling the effects of the black magic that was being cast around them, and they needed a safe place to turn. Unfortunately, we weren't able to provide them with the same security they were used to having, which made them lose trust in our abilities. They had no choice but to side with the man who was promising them the world and making it impossible for them to resist.
Our fathers were essentially useless. While our gifts were fading away, theirs weren't growing any stronger the way they'd anticipated. Of course, thanks to Storie, I knew it was because they were instead flowing into our Counters to protect them from being abused. But no one else was privy to that knowledge yet. As hard as it was to watch my brothers practically fade away before my eyes, I knew they weren't ready to hear the truth yet. It wasn't worth losing Storie and our only shot at coming out of this alive.
She said Tabitha Granger had loads of history books stored away inside her home. I found that puzzling, considering she was suspected of hiding our Counters from us at birth and forced out of her position. What reason would she have to possess books specifically about Quarters and Counters? With the knowledge she had, it could be argued that in her attempts to keep us from killing our Counters, she actually saved our lives.
So, what was her role in all of this?
Storie seemed to trust her, so I decided to let it go for now. But eventually, I would come for those books. Though Storie wasn't able to confirm, I suspected she could also be in possession of the Quarter Book of Shadows.
“It doesn't make sense,” Rhyse grumbled from his familiar fallen log. We were back at our spot in the woods, soundproofing protection spells in place.
This time, I had to lift them myself since the others were too exhausted from the hike in. Enzo and Lux rested on the forest floor at my feet. “Why are we so weak, yet you feel nothing?”
They were growing suspicious of me, as they should. If I hadn't found Storie right before Hell broke loose on the town, I'd be lying in the fallen leaves right beside them.
“I have no idea.” The lie was getting harder to maintain, and my lack of explanation only caused more suspicion from them. “I'm grateful that at least one of us has the means to support us, though.”
“Of course, you are. Because that one is you.” Enzo's spite was a living, palpable thing. He was still mad about not being able to lift the protection spell in his own element.
“I hate to say it, but he's right. If one of us is able to hold onto his gift despite the Movement's attempt to weaken us, we should be grateful.” Lux leaned back onto his hands.
“We're going to figure a way out of this,” I assured earnestly. “You guys are my family. I won't let anything happen to you so long as I can still control my gift.”
I meant every word of that. The lies, the deception, it was all going to pay off in the end. It killed me to keep secrets from them, especially one that was so personally significant. I just needed to figure out how to explain it all without them jumping straight to their conditioning and getting them to focus on their instincts instead.
My phone rang, interrupting Enzo's snarky response. Without checking, I silenced the ringer and gave them my full attention again.
“Everyone's starting to turn against us. I went into The Grind the other day and practically had to beg for service. They think we're the ones taking those girls.” Rhyse slumped further into his log.
“I wish we could just end this, man. They don’t give a shit if we’re alive or dead. Why should we go through all this suffering for a bunch of ungrateful–”
“Because, it’s our job,” Lux cut in sternly. “We’ve been given these gifts from the gods. It’s not up to us or anyone else to decide when we’re released from our duties.”
“Yeah, well maybe if the gods want us to use our gifts, they shouldn’t have made it possible to be stolen from us by people who are obsessed with power and greed. We can't even find our own Book of Shadows to effectively do our jobs.”
“There's one person who keeps town records that we haven't looked into yet,” I began, tentatively planting the seed. I might not have been able to come out and admit that I knew
she was holding some of our secrets, but I could lead them to the trail.
“Who?” Lux was the first to bite.
“Tabitha Granger.”
Rhyse scoffed. “Come on, man. I thought you were being serious.”
“Yeah, she's already been thoroughly investigated. There's no way she's hiding Quarter information,” Enzo agreed disappointedly.
Lux's hand started scratching his beard. I knew he'd be the easiest one to get on my side.
“She was the town's midwife for decades. We know she's always kept her own records of each birth. What's to say she isn't holding onto other records as well? Quarter records,” I explained, carefully watching Lux’s reaction.
“That’s true. Our fathers have never trusted her. Maybe she knows more about us than she should,” he thought aloud, slowly working through the possibility in his head.
My phone buzzed again. I pulled it out and swiped to answer.
“Where are you?” my father’s deep voice filled my ear.
I looked to the other three, gesturing for them to stay quiet while I put my dad on speaker. “Just went for a walk.”
“You need to get back home. The mayor has announced that they’re considering cancelling the Samhain ceremony for fear of the town’s safety. We’ve managed to hold him off from his decision for now, promising the elders could handle it if things don’t get better, but no one is happy. It’s not safe to be downtown right now.”
The four of us exchanged panicked glances. This was it, the moment we’ve been dreading since the start of this nightmare. The town has officially turned.
“I’ll be home in a bit,” I said, but the line cut out when he hung up without a proper goodbye.
“If the town wasn’t against us before, they’ll definitely be against us now,” Rhyse groaned. He propped his elbows onto his knee and his head fell into his hands.
“It'll be fine. Silas will assure them they've got it under control, even if they don't. They won't let the Quarters fall,” Lux attempted to reassure us, but his tone was laced in doubt. Even the king of positivity couldn't believe the lies he was spinning anymore.
When no one had anything to say, he continued, “We'll lie low the way they want us to for now. This is good.” He nodded his head, slowly convincing himself. “This gives us more time.”
“More time for what? We've hit a dead end,” Rhyse complained.
“We can dig more into the Grangers for starters,” he said, looking to me for extra encouragement.
“How are we supposed to do that? Tabitha isn’t exactly our biggest fan and we’ve learned the hard way that the crazy librarian isn’t on our side.” Enzo sighed in defeat. His eyebrows were practically sitting in his hairline.
Lux’s eyes swung back to mine knowingly. “Remy has an in.”
“No. Absolutely not.”
“What are you talking about?” Enzo flicked his gaze between us, confused.
“Storie Graves. She’s practically a part of their family now. She and Blaire are best friends and Remy has been spending all his free time with her,” Lux explained when I refused to answer.
An uneasy feeling formed in the pit of my stomach. It seemed as if I wasn’t the only one who had taken an interest in my Counter. What else did he know?
“Why is this the first we’re hearing of this?” Rhyse demanded, his fiery gaze burning into me accusingly.
“Because it wasn’t worth mentioning. It still isn’t. She’s not going to betray their trust after all they’ve done for her.” I knew as soon as the words left my mouth, they were a mistake.
“We’ve already talked about this. We need to be certain that we can all rely on each other one hundred percent,” Lux lectured. He apparently got some of his energy back because he stood from his spot on the ground and stepped closer toward me, his finger pointed in my face. “You’re the only one who has even the slightest chance of finding answers right now. You’re also the only one who appears to still have his gift intact.”
“Yeah, we need to trust that you’ll put us before everything else, same as we would for you,” Rhyse added.
When I let their words linger in the air between us for a beat too long, Enzo pressed further. “Can we trust you, Remy?”
Of course, they could trust me. That wasn’t the issue.
The problem was that I didn’t know if I could trust them when the truth came out and they discovered that I’ve been going against everything we’ve been taught as Quarters and hiding my Counter from them all this time to keep her alive.
To keep my own gift while watching theirs fade away.
Would they believe in the connection I shared with Storie if they’ve never felt anything like it themselves? Or would they think I was another force working against them and eliminate me altogether?
Their expectant stares had me answering, “Yes, you can trust me,” before the weight of those words could suffocate me.
“Okay, then you’ll get into that house and find out what she knows. The rest of us will stay under the radar until then. We’ll stay out of town the way we have been until this blows over or Remy finds something that can help us.” Lux clapped his hands together as if it were all figured out while Rhyse and Enzo nodded their support.
Mayor Douglas has officially announced that all celebrations for Samhain are cancelled. Anyone who attempts to use magic on the night of October 31st will be subject to fines.
For those unaware, Samhain is a holiday celebrated directly in between the autumn and winter solstices to mark the beginning of the darkest part of the year. Ironically, this festival falls during one of Beacon Grove’s most historically dark times. Some even claim that if you look up at the sky, you can literally see a cloud of black magic looming just above our beloved town.
This news comes as another blow to morale after Beacon Grove’s Mabon celebration was cancelled just over a month ago.
“This news saddens me as this was an extremely difficult decision to make. Safety remains our number-one priority,” Mayor Douglas said in his most recent emergency meeting. Some townspeople remain bullish about the holiday, though, claiming that politics should not get in the way of any more traditions.
“Samhain is the time I get to honor my mother who passed away two years ago. It’s when I feel her presence around me the strongest, and I’m not willing to give that up over a silly feud between our town and coven leaders,” Beacon Grove local and boutique shop owner, Hazel Rubio, commented when asked on her way out of the meeting.
Others are more willing to comply with the mayor's newest orders, deciding to forgo this year's celebrations and begin moving onto those for the next wheel of the year. Andrew Hart comments, “We, as a community, are going forward. I am now focused on making Yule an event to remember for years to come.”
Chapter 29
Storie
The announcement of Samhain being canceled created an even greater shift in the town’s mood. Before, they’d been morose and gloomy. Now, they were angry.
They took their frustrations out on each other, constantly getting into small tiffs with anyone who appeared to look at them the wrong way. I saw it in line at The Grind when the barista got an order wrong, at the diner when Blaire and I met for lunch, and even at the library when I’d stopped in to do some digging on Lunet’s family.
The one thing they all seemed to agree on was that this was all the Quarters’ fault.
Each day, Rayner’s movement gained more followers as people grew tired of the lack of communication coming from their coven’s High Priest. It was almost as if the elder Quarters had intended for this to happen. That they wanted the town to rally against their sons and put their lives in danger so that they could swoop in and save the day.
The problem was, they never swooped. It's been weeks since Remy and the others were welcomed into town. They were forced to hide away in their homes and avoid contact with anyone outside of their trusted circles.
In the short moments when Remy would t
alk openly about the issue, he told me that their fathers expected to gain their gift back as the rest of the Quarters lost theirs. Evidently, that hadn’t happened yet, and the Quarters blamed their Counters for it.
“I have to ask you for an incredibly difficult favor,” he began one day.
He had been exceptionally glum and more distracted than usual, but I knew better than to ask him about it before he was ready.
“I need to get into Tabitha’s study.”
“Okay. How am I supposed to help you with that?”
“You’ve been in that room before. It’s likely protected with dozens of spells to shield it from just anyone getting in. But once you’ve been through those spells, the room is available to you any time, even without her,” he explained patiently.
I thought about what he was asking me to do. He was right, it was incredibly difficult, and I was angry at him for even putting me in the position of telling him no. But I had to. There was no way I could do that to the Grangers after all they’ve done for me.
My head moved in a negative shake. “I’m sorry. I can’t betray her like that. She’s like my family.”
Remy released a loud, frustrated growl, standing from his bed to pace the floor and put distance between us. “I would do it myself, but she’s probably got specific spells lifted against us. Especially if she’s hiding the information we think she is. This is our last hope. You’re all we’ve got.”
“Don’t try to put this on me. If you think she has the answer to fixing this mess, I doubt she’d deny you. She wants this to be over just as bad as the rest of us. Just ask her.”
The muscles in his neck flexed and his hands balled into fists. “You don’t understand. The Grangers have been accused of working against the Quarters for decades. If she’s in possession of this book, it’s because she stole it from us. We can’t simply ask her to give up all the information she has on us. She’d never do it.” His fists moved up from his sides to work against his scalp, mussing up his jet-black hair.
