I was about to head inside to get something to eat when I heard someone clear her throat behind me.
“Um, Hadley?”
I turned around to see Emory standing with her arms behind her back, looking a bit flushed. She’d been with the rest of us for the beginning of the day, learning all the same spells we had, but then those with special skills were given some time to work on their own. While this was going on, I sent the others to start working on the physical side of combat. This was one of the only things Asher could get involved in, since it didn’t require magic. Just stamina and strength.
Because of the way we were breaking up our training format, I hadn’t seen Emory in a few hours by this point and was interested in hearing how things had gone.
“Hey, Emory. What’s up?” I asked, walking back over to her. “How was your private session?”
“It was good. Really good, actually. At first I was kind of nervous about giving all the spirits access to me, but after I started to let go, things became clearer, if that makes any sense,” she said. Emory began to play with the bracelet around her wrist. This one was a chain of real violets. “Hadley, when I was channeling, your mom came through again. There was some stuff she wanted me to tell you.”
I raised an eyebrow, my heartbeat quickening at the thought of communicating with my mom again. But I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to react to the news that she was trying to reach me from beyond the grave. As amazing as it was to talk to her, it was also a reminder of what had happened. That I couldn’t see her or talk to her anytime I wanted. In that respect, it was almost more difficult than not having her around at all.
“My mom never was one to hold back from telling me what to do,” I said, laughing nervously. “What did she have to say?”
Emory looked around as the rest of the coven made their way either inside or to relax in the setting sun. She lowered her voice. “She’s actually here right now. Is there somewhere we can go that’s a little more… private?”
“Sure,” I said, butterflies fluttering around my stomach. I had no idea what to expect, but I motioned for Emory to follow me anyway. “Let’s go for a walk.”
We turned away from the house, heading toward the woods and the growing darkness. The farther we walked the quieter it got; pretty soon all I could hear was the sound of our feet walking over leaves and sticks. Whenever a branch would crackle, I worried that it was coming from behind us or off to the side. Logically I knew I was the one making the noise, but knowing what our enemies were capable of, I couldn’t help but be on edge. If I wasn’t so worried about the others hearing what she was about to say, I wouldn’t have been venturing from the safety of the house at all. But I reminded myself that the invisibility spells that covered the house also extended to the land around it.
When I was sure we were far enough away from the others to talk openly, I slowed my pace and turned to face Emory. “She’s here?” I asked. The longing came through in my voice even as I tried not to let it. I reminded myself that this was Emory I was talking to and didn’t have to be worried about losing control in front of her. Sure, I was the leader of our group now and it was important for me to stay strong, but Emory wouldn’t judge me. She wasn’t like that.
“Yes. She’s been here the whole time, actually. Sometimes she just comes through louder than others. Today she was particularly vocal.”
“That’s my mom,” I said jokingly.
“She says she understands why you went off on your own,” Emory said. She paused then, and looked down at the ground nervously.
Why was she nervous? I was the one getting the lecture.
“She says it’s not going to be enough. If you try to defeat the Parrishables you will lose. We will lose.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I muttered, my heart sinking over what my mom was telling me. The last thing I wanted to do was disappoint her. Especially after all that had happened. And my biggest fear was that I would lead the others to their deaths. Hearing that it might actually happen deflated all the confidence I’d had before.
Emory took a step toward me and lightly placed her hand on my arm. “She says that a great leader knows when to admit defeat. She feels really strongly that you need to put the lives of the coven ahead of your own.”
I nodded, because at this point there wasn’t much else for me to say. She was right and deep down I’d known it. Nearly losing the fights at the mall and my house had proven that much. I just hadn’t been strong enough to do what needed to be done. I’d been too weak to truly offer myself up in place of the others.
“There’s something else. She says you know who the traitor is among you.”
I blinked. “I do?” I asked, still distracted by my thoughts.
Since my mom had first told me that I couldn’t trust someone in the coven, I hadn’t gotten any closer to figuring out who it was. But if I was truly being honest with myself, I’d always had my suspicions about one specific member. Had I been right the whole time?
Emory paused and looked at the space over my right shoulder. She squinted and after a few seconds, turned her attention back to me. “Yes. She says you know who it is and you must send them away. Now.”
“I don’t have any proof, though,” I said. Thinking someone was bad at his core was one thing, but actually banishing him from our coven… that would be much more difficult. At least if I had evidence, I wouldn’t feel bad about it. Still, this was coming from my mom and she’d never steered me wrong before.
Emory shook her head. “She says you don’t need it. She’s insisting that you’re right. She says you need to do it now, before it’s too late. This person’s intention is to turn you over to the Parrishables.”
My head started to spin. Could he really help the Parrishables destroy us? The truth was, I just wasn’t sure. I tried to push the thought way down and bring my focus back to what Emory was saying.
“And that’s it?” I asked, hoping she might have better news for me. So far, it had all been a bust.
“Sorry, Hadley. That’s all she’s telling me,” she said.
I sighed. It was so like my mom to be totally cryptic about something this important. “It’s all right, I’m used to it by now,” I said.
So once again, I’m doing everything wrong. Fantastic. At least I’m consistent.
“Maybe she’s wrong, Had,” Emory said supportively. “Or confused.”
“You didn’t know my mom,” I said, like this explained everything. I began to walk back to the house and Emory fell into step beside me.
She was quiet for a few moments as we both tried to take in what had just happened. I could feel the redhead’s eyes fixed on me, although I wouldn’t return her look. Finally she spoke up. “So what are you going to do next?”
That was the million-dollar question, wasn’t it? Everything was always so complicated. I couldn’t help but long for the days when I just had to worry about homework and disagreements with my mom.
“What I have to do.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
I spent the rest of the evening agonizing over what my mom had told me through Emory. Could I really leave everyone again? It had been difficult enough the first time; I wasn’t sure I had it in me to do it a second. And the idea of just giving up made me want to throw up. It went against everything I’d ever stood for.
It was also particularly confusing, given that my mom had always been the one to encourage me to fight. All those lectures about preparing for a possible battle… why would she have pushed so hard for that if she was just going to tell me to wave the white flag in the end? Unless she knew that things would be much worse if we didn’t.