I ground my molars together. “I don’t really know if that would make me feel better,” I said. “I just want the truth.”
“Rosemary has been ... struggling ... for some time,” she replied. “The weight of her grandmother’s expectations and her mother’s indifference had her feeling sorry for herself. She met Brian here, as you recall, and when he enacted a plan to get back at you for stealing his newspaper, he enlisted her.
“He romanced her, pretended to care about her, and gave Rosemary the things she’d always yearned for,” she continued. “Rosemary thought he really cared for her. Even when he showed up one day and was markedly different, almost as if another person was living in his skin, she believed he was her salvation.”
The amusement flitting across the thing that had taken over Rosemary’s face turned my stomach. “Somehow the thing inside Brian convinced her to open herself up to possession,” I surmised.
“That’s an ugly word. She’s not possessed. She’s simply sharing herself with another individual.”
“Except you’re the one in control here,” I argued. “You have all the say in what’s happening. Does Rosemary even grasp what’s happening?”
“Rosemary had no idea what she was agreeing to. She only knew that Brian wanted it, so she gave in. Now she spends all her time walled off in a prison of her own making. She doesn’t want to know what he’s doing. She doesn’t want to know what I’m doing. All the better for me.”
“Because?”
“Because there’s nothing I hate more than a vessel that rebels against the process.”
Something about the way she stated it piqued my interest. “You’ve been in other people before.”
“I prefer thinking of them as vessels.”
“If you strip them of dignity, make them things instead of people, it’s easier for you to ignore what you’re really doing.”
“And what’s that?”
“Raping them. You’re erasing what they were, forcing them to be what they’re not, and taking away their choice. You’re pretty much the evilest of the evil. What I want to know is how you got this way. You weren’t always a disembodied soul looking to invade people.”
“I certainly wasn’t,” she readily agreed, smirking. “I was human once. A long time ago. Before your Tillie even graced this earth. I knew your grandmother, Caroline. She made a name for herself selling potions and spells when it was unheard of for women to run their own businesses.
“Your grandfather was a philanderer of the highest order,” she continued. “He embarrassed your grandmother, even going so far as to bring another child home. I was one of the women he spent his time with, so I got to know him extremely well.”
A germ of suspicion invaded my mind. “Are you Willa’s mother?”
She laughed, the sound light and playful. The spark of evil in her eyes told me that I’d guessed correctly. “Why would you assume that?”
“You have to be obsessed with us for a reason. You’ve followed Aunt Tillie multiple times, which indicates that you’ve come to Hemlock Cove more than once.”
“I visited Hemlock Cove only once. But Walkerville was my home for a time.”
I searched my memory. What did I know about Willa’s birth mother? Even when Aunt Tillie dropped the bomb regarding Willa’s true parentage, she never filled us in on the salacious details.
“You abandoned Willa to be raised by my great-grandfather and great-grandmother,” I said.
“I didn’t abandon her.” Her expression shifted from delight to fury. “I was a single mother in a time when you couldn’t be a single mother. I demanded that your great-grandfather leave your great-grandmother and marry me. Decorum dictated he do so.”
“I’m guessing he said no.”
“He said it would cost too much to divorce your great-grandmother. I didn’t realize it at the time, but she was the primary breadwinner in that home. She owned the house. She made the money. She raised the children.”
“He had nothing to offer you,” I mused. “That must’ve been a hard reality to swallow.”
“It was impossible.”
“You had no choice but to leave Willa with my great-grandmother. You would’ve been branded and forever disparaged if you tried to keep her.”
“Your great-grandmother promised to take care of her. Then I left town.”
“You never saw Willa again?”
“I was ... otherwise engaged.” Her smile was back. “I moved to Detroit and got a different job, the sort that paid well but had an age limit. I put my dancing moves to good use.”
I nodded in understanding. “You lived a hard life.”
“And when I returned to Walkerville to check on my daughter I was not greeted with open arms. I was told to leave and never return.”
“I take it you didn’t follow those orders.”
“Oh, but I did. I moved to Bay City and got a job as a waitress. By then I was past my prime for dancing. I spent my nights slinging drinks and putting up with wandering hands ... and sometimes tongues. It was demeaning, but it allowed me to embrace my rage.”
I could pretty much figure the rest of it out. “You died, but your soul didn’t pass over. You were too angry to allow that to happen.”
“I drank myself to death,” she confirmed. “My liver gave out and I died in a puddle of my own vomit. I never did have that all-important moment of clarity when I was alive. I managed it when I emerged for my second life, though.”
“And then what? Did you try to reclaim Willa?”
“Reclaim her? No. But I did go to see her. Your great-grandmother saw me ... and Tillie. They banished me from the land. The spell was strong enough that I couldn’t overcome it.”
“But you kept coming back to test it.”
“Yes.” She nodded. “Even after Willa left, I returned. I owed your great-grandmother a debt that I never managed to repay.”
“Wait ... .” I was confused.
“I didn’t want to reward her with anything good. Don’t think that. The debt I owed her was death. She died on her own before I could make it a reality.”
“Well ... I guess that’s a bummer for you.”
“I still wanted to pay back her offspring.”
The realization of her true motivations was a kick in the ego. “This was never about me. It was always about Aunt Tillie.”
“Oh, look, you finally figured it out.” She rolled her eyes. “You’re the new power in this town. I have to take you out if I want a clear path to Tillie.”
“And Rosemary? Why take over your own great-granddaughter’s body? Don’t you have any shame at all?”
She snorted. “I don’t know this girl. I don’t care about her. A blood tie makes it easier for a soul to take up permanent residence. Rosemary isn’t strong enough to fight me off. She’s already given up and retreated to a corner of her brain where I can’t communicate with her. It’s best for everybody concerned.”
“Except Rosemary.”
“Give me a break. You’ve never cared about Rosemary.”
“She’s not my favorite person, but I don’t want her to suffer.”
“She’s not suffering. She’s been removed from this world.”
“And will you return her body when you’ve seen your revenge scheme through to the end? Will Rosemary have another shot at life?”
“This is my body now. I’m not giving it up.”
I was fairly certain I understood everything. “Your dark soul connected with his dark soul.” I pointed to the lobby, to where Brian paced. “He gave in to your friend first and brought Rosemary along for the ride. Then, along the way, you collected other souls.
“You’ve been killing people for the blood,” I continued. “You need to feed. Even though you’re not truly alive, the blood sustains you.”
“So smart,” she sneered.
“I just want to understand.”
“To what end?” She looked legitimately curious. “What do you think this will do for you?�
��
“Probably nothing, but I can’t rest without answers.”
“Fine. Finish it. What else do you need to know?”
“Brian was messing around with Paisley. He wanted to use her because she managed to tap into our magic once before. She turned out to be a disappointment, though.”
“She did.”
“What about her parents? Where are they?”
She shrugged. “Who can say?”
“You can. You’re responsible for whatever happened to them.”
“They’re in the woods, not far from where their daughter died. They followed her to the clearing and saw what happened. As Brian handled her, I took care of the parents. We buried them and returned their vehicle to the driveway so it would look as if they were taken from the house. They’re in the woods, if anybody ever bothers to look.”
“Why leave Paisley in the open and hide the bodies of her parents?” I asked.
“I can’t believe you’re this slow.” She heaved out a sigh. “We wanted to draw you in. We wanted you focused on Paisley rather than us. I needed to keep you off your game.”
“And then what?”
“This.” She gestured to the hallway. “We’re here to end you.”
“What makes you think you have the power? It’s just you and me. If I’m the new power as you say, you don’t have the strength to take me out.”
She leaned over and rested her hands on her knees, her round face splitting with a wide grin. “What makes you think I’m alone?”
Alarm bells went off in my head and I snapped my eyes to the hallway, where Brian had been pacing. He was gone, which meant he was on his way to the door Rosemary had used to enter the building. He was on his way to me.
“Crap.” I scrambled to my feet, prepared to fight, but nobody walked through the door. “Where is he?” I asked.
“He’s coming.” Rosemary didn’t look particularly bothered. “He should be here any second.”
After another sixty seconds, I glanced at her again. “Are you sure?”
“Of course I’m sure.” Despite the words, irritation radiated off Rosemary, and in a moment of fury she started toward the door. “What is he doing out there? How long does it take to walk between two doors?” She disappeared through the opening, leaving me with a choice.
I could drop the barrier and try to escape through the front door of the newspaper or follow her and try to best her. There really was no choice. I had to end this now. I raised my hand as I stepped through the opening.
I was focused, determined, and when I looked along the paver stones that made up the back walkway, I almost missed what I should’ve seen days before. There, in the corners of the stones, were the runes from the trees left near Paisley’s body.
There were four of them littering the stones. I only had a moment to wonder why. The stones had been there since long before I took over the business. William had built that walkway. Was he somehow involved in this? Did he know what was to come?
I would have to ponder that later, I reminded myself.
Rosemary, her back to me, scanned the area surrounding the door. “Where did he go?” Bewilderment was wild on her face as she turned.
I caught her before she could register how close I was, slamming both hands to either side of her head and freezing her in place. “Congelo!”
Her body went rigid as I searched through the dark corners of her mind. I was looking for one thing.
I found Rosemary — the real Rosemary — sitting in a library when I started kicking down doors. She seemed surprised to see me.
“What are you doing here?”
“Helping you.” I felt sorry for her, but I didn’t like her. “You’ve got to fight your way free. I can’t do it on my own.”
Rosemary hesitated. “I ... don’t know what you mean.”
“I’m going to expel her,” I replied, grimacing when I felt the shade fighting back. “I’m going to force her out. When I do, you need to take control. Whatever happens, you can’t let her back in.”
Rosemary’s lower lip quivered. “I didn’t realize what was happening. Brian said ... .” She trailed off.
“Brian knew what was going to happen. He took advantage of you. But now you have to take control when I say it’s time. Do you understand?”
For a moment, Rosemary looked so conflicted that I thought she might turn me down and continue hiding. But she nodded. “Yes.”
“Good. Get ready.” I sucked in a breath and increased my magic. “Now!”
I slammed back into the real world and tightened my grip on the flailing shade. “Apage!”
It took everything I had to shove the shade out of Rosemary’s body, and when the dark apparition took shape on the other side of Rosemary’s limp body, there was rage in her eyes.
“I’m not done with you!” she roared as she tore in my direction. She never made it. A magical net landed on her before she rushed more than a few feet.
Instinctively, I threw up my hands to protect myself, but when she didn’t touch me I turned to see who had stopped her.
Days from now I would wonder if Aunt Tillie’s appearance at that moment was destined. Her magical grip on the shade, her fingers squeezing the life out of the ghost even as the dark soul tried to escape, seemed meant to be.
“Where did you come from?” I demanded, watching with grim detachment as the shade started fraying at the edges. “What are you doing to her?”
“What has to be done.” Aunt Tillie narrowed her eyes and glared at the shade. “I need to put an end to this, and you’re going to help.”
I was resigned. “What do you want me to do?”
“What your instincts tell you to do. You’re a necromancer, Bay. You can end this once and for all. You just need to call on the right form of magic. And you need a poppet.”
I’d forgotten about that. A quick glance at the bushes told me I had more than a few to work with. Thistle had been making garden gnomes on and off the last few years and I’d taken to placing them outside the building as decorations.
I set my jaw and nodded. Aunt Tillie was right. I did know what to do. “Okay, but then we have to find Brian. He’s infected, too.”
“No need to worry about that.” Aunt Tillie’s lips curved in evil delight. “Your boy toy has him on the lawn in front of the newspaper. Landon keeps losing control of his fist. It’s kind of funny.”
“How did you know?”
“Viola. You told her to find shades. She found them ... and then warned us what was happening.”
“I guess I owe her.”
“No, you owe me. Now, let’s finish this. I have some games I still want to play with Willa.”
Only Aunt Tillie would think this was the appropriate time for torture.
“I’m coming.” I stepped toward them, raising my hands. Aunt Tillie was right. I did know what to do. Thistle’s art would live on forever now, just in a different way than any of us had foreseen.
29
Twenty-Nine
We left Rosemary unconscious on the ground — really, what else could we do? — and headed toward the front of the building. Sure enough, Landon had Brian on the ground, and the fury in my fiancé’s eyes made me cringe.
“Landon?”
He jerked up his head. “Bay.” He let out a relieved breath. “You’re all right.”
“Yeah.” I smiled as I moved closer to him, dropping to my knees and cupping his chin with my hands. “Are you okay?”
“I’ve been better. I was afraid for you, but when I saw Kelly coming out of the newspaper ... .” He trailed off.
“You had to stop him.”
“I was going to kill him.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“Because that’s not my job.” His eyes were brimming. Despite that, he didn’t let go of Brian’s wrists even as the other man bucked beneath him. “Give me a kiss.”
“Do you think this is the right time?”
“I need it.”
&n
bsp; I leaned in and smacked a loud kiss against his lips and then pulled back to stare at a furious Brian. “It’s good you didn’t kill him. He’s possessed.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. We just knocked a shade out of Rosemary and destroyed it. She was possessed as well.”
“Are you planning on doing the same to him?”
“Do you have a better idea?”
“We could lock him up and charge him with Paisley Gilmore’s murder.”
It was an intriguing option, but I shook my head. “I don’t think we can do that.”
“Why not?”
“He may be a tool, but he’s no murderer.”
“He might not have been in control of his faculties, but his hands wielded the weapon that killed Paisley Gilmore.”
“And Rosemary’s, which killed her parents. They’re out in the woods behind the Dragonfly, by the way. She admitted that before I entombed the shade in one of Thistle’s garden gnomes. It’s the one that looks like Gene Simmons from KISS. They were following Paisley because they thought something was up with her. Turns out they were right. They tried to intervene when Brian was killing her, but Rosemary ended them ... and then fed on their blood.”
Landon made a face of disgust. “Lovely.” He shook his head. “Okay, I’m not sure what to do about this. I need to talk to Terry. Before that, you need to get rid of this shade.”
I nodded. “I’ve got it. I know better what to do this time.” I pressed my hand to Brian’s chest and prepared myself, my eyes flitting between the garden gnome that looked like a frolicking fairy and the one that looked like a deranged clown. The choice was clear. “Aunt Tillie says Viola warned her that something was going on. Did she do the same for you?”
Landon was silent a moment, focused on struggling Brian, and then nodded. “I heard her.”
“That’s another bout with ghosts.” I was more amused than worried. “You’re becoming a regular ghost whisperer yourself.”
Prelude to a Witch Page 27