“I know,” Lucy says with a nod. “But there’s much that I can say, and knowledge is power. I’ll just start at the beginning, if that’s okay. Otherwise, I’ll get all turned around. My mind is clearing, but it’s still kind of jumbled, too.”
“Just take your time,” Mama says kindly. “You drink that tea and take your time.”
Lucy nods and sips her tea.
“I arrived in New Orleans a day earlier than when we were supposed to meet to go over the plan with you all. I wanted to soak in the city a bit before the eclipse. I’ve been here several times, and it’s one of my favorite places. Anyway, I went out for dinner the night I arrived.”
“Alone?” Cash asks.
“Yes. I don’t mind being by myself. Especially in this city. I had a delicious meal and a couple of glasses of wine. I wasn’t drunk. I left the restaurant and strolled down the street, peeking into gallery windows and being lazy about walking back to my hotel. I wasn’t in a rush. Then, suddenly, a man brushed past me and stuck me with a syringe. Drugged me.”
She sips her tea again.
“He pulled me into a waiting car. I noticed he was alone, but then I passed out. And let me just say, I’m still confused because I have some powerful spells for protection, yet he was able to take me.”
“He’s a powerful witch in his own right,” Millie says.
“Yes. He is.” Lucy clears her throat. “When I woke up, I was in that house. With the other girls. One was dead when I woke. I tried so hard to cast some spells to protect the others, but it didn’t work. It was like something blocked my magic in there.”
“It very well could have been,” Miss Annabelle adds. “I know you don’t know any of us, and we’ll introduce ourselves later, just know that all of us are part of the coven, and you’re safe here. I only wanted to add that he likely did cast a spell on that house to ward off any kind of witch.”
“I felt powerless,” Lucy admits softly and stares down into her tea. “And I knew that I couldn’t let on that I was a witch because, well…you know why. He would have made it hell for me. Even more than it already was. Anyway, we heard you earlier today. We heard you walking through the house. The other girls screamed for you, pled for you to save us.”
“But he’d cast a spell, preventing us from seeing or hearing anything,” Lucien says, frustration in his voice. “We were right there. I’m so sorry.”
“He was furious,” Lucy continues with a shiver. “He ranted and raved, stomped around. And then he killed everyone.
“Before that, when he killed a girl, he was always calm about it. Methodical. He clearly enjoyed it. But today, he killed in a rage. I was the last.”
She blinks, then frowns.
“How did you come back to life?” Brielle asks. “How did you heal that wound on your throat?”
Lucy smiles softly and turns, pointing to the tattoo on the back of her neck before turning back to us.
“I assume each of you has an affinity. A gift. Daphne’s is psychometry.” She smiles at me. “I cast a spell on this tattoo. It prevents me from dying at the hands of anything supernatural.”
The room is silent. Finally, Miss Sophia stands and crosses to Lucy, examining the tattoo on the younger woman’s neck.
“I’ve heard of this magic before,” Miss Sophia says. “Whispers, anyway. But we believe that we shouldn’t interfere in life and death, so it’s not something I’ve ever pursued.”
“It’s a spell that can only be cast once for each person,” Lucy says. “So, I cast it on this tattoo. I’ll never lose it. And I agree, we can’t interfere with life and death. But there are some crazy things afoot in Salem, and ninety-nine percent of them aren’t human. I needed the added protection.”
“I wonder,” Millie says, tapping her lips with her finger. “Could this spell be cast on stones? To protect the witches who are coming here to help us? He’ll try to kill them tomorrow.”
“I’m sure I can do that,” Lucy says with a nod.
Suddenly, Millie’s eyes widen, and she looks at Lucien. I can see they’re having a telepathic conversation.
“We’ve never tried that before,” Lucien says thoughtfully. “Never in any other lifetime. It could work.”
“What could work?” Brielle demands.
“I need to do some quick reading,” Lucien says as he stands and hurries from the room.
“You’re all so interesting,” Lucy says and spoons up some soup. “I have so many questions, but there’s no time. We have twenty-four hours until the eclipse.”
Millie turns to Miss Sophia, who now has a broad smile on her beautiful face.
“You’ve figured it out,” she says as tears fill her eyes. “I’m so proud of you.”