WHAT? What is happening right now? I had so many questions but there was no way in hell I was being escorted back to Prince Thorne. Then I’ll explain everything. I wanted that. I wanted it so bad. Because my heart wanted to believe he wasn’t bad, that I hadn’t misjudged him and got tricked. And that need scared me.
But I wasn’t going to get answers here…and I wasn’t going to find my way home either.
I glanced up to him and nodded.
He pulled me into a slow walk. We were silent for a few steps and then Riah shouted in alarm and dropped to his knees. He grabbed my hands and flicked my wrists, firing my golden magic into the backs of the Knights in front of us and half of them toppled over.
The tunnel opened up right beside me. Riah dropped my hands.
I dove through the opening without hesitation.
Chapter Fifteen
Saffie
I slammed into the ground with a hard thud. My bones made a sickening crunch and my breath was knocked out of me. For a moment, I just stayed there sprawled in the dirt while I caught my breath. The sky above me was dark but it carried the hint of blue, like sunrise was approaching. There was something oddly familiar about this view…as if I’d been in this exact spot before.
With a frown, I sat up — and gasped. I knew exactly where I was. The recognition was instant. I knew this open field I’d landed in. I knew the forest tree line off to my left. I knew the horses in the pen in front of me. I knew the smell of wood in the air. I knew the row of wooden houses to my right.
Oh my Goddess.
I’m home.
Home home. Salem, 1692 home.
And the dark wooden building in front of me was my house.
My pulse fluttered. But then I realized the lack of magic and energy in the air. I frowned and pushed my own magic out…and nothing met it. My stomach tightened. The Coven was not here. I didn’t feel the presence of a single witch in the area. Which meant…which meant…my heart sank. That meant my mother was not here. I didn’t have to go inside to check. I knew she would not be in there.
Dammit. I would have given anything to see my mother’s face again. It’d been over two centuries since I’d seen her or heard her voice. I needed her more than I allowed myself to realize. I stared at my old home for a moment longer, then jumped to my feet and sprinted to it.
The door opened without a hitch and slammed into the wall as I flew over the threshold.
It was empty. The house had been gutted. The only things left were the wooden pieces of furniture too heavy and cumbersome to travel long distances with. Tears filled my eyes and I didn’t try to hold them in. It still smelled like my mother in here so I knew she hadn’t been gone long, which only made it worse. I strolled into the kitchen and my stomach growled. I didn’t even know the last time I’d eaten but there wasn’t a single piece of food left behind.
My chest tightened. “Mother?” I shouted, knowing it was futile but helpless to stop myself.
Silence.
I sighed and pushed my hair back.
“RIAH?” I yelled. “RIAH!”
Riah had sent me here for a reason. He’d said he was going to tell me the truth. He’d promised the way Seelie fae promised, on a sea of spider lilies, to explain. That was an unbreakable vow. But he was not here. A little whimper left my lips as I tugged on my hair. He’d dangled the fruit in front of my face and I desperately wanted it. The hope that he wasn’t the monster I thought he was surged so high inside my chest it was suffocating. I should have let him explain the first time he asked.
The hardwood floor creaked behind me.
I gasped and spun around. “RIAH!”
But the man standing on my threshold was not Riah. He was a few inches too short, with rich black hair instead of pale blond, and his eyes were a soft pale hazel. He yanked his hat off of his head and pressed it to his chest. His eyes widened at the sight of me. He licked his lips and took a step forward. “Saraphina? Saraphina Proctor?”
I froze. He knows me? I didn’t know him. I nodded.
He smiled and his cheeks flushed. “Wonderful! I am Pierre Bernard.”
Pierre Bernard? I know that name. Why is that so familiar? And then it clicked like a snake had bit me. I hadn’t ever met him because he’d been new to town before Tegan and them arrived. “You fancied my mother.”
He grinned and gave me a little bow. “I still do, which is why I am doing this favor for her.”
My pulse skipped beats. “A favor?”
Pierre reached into his coat and pulled out a piece of parchment paper. “Your mother and I left with the rest of The Coven after your and your uncle’s disappearance. But then she dreamed of you. She saw you coming here. She described you perfectly, and I have to say I had never seen such a dress as the one you wear, but your mother had. She knew right down to the day when you’d arrive here. Elizabeth Bishop had seen it as well. But our Hierophant would not allow her to return here to see you. She said the ramifications would be extreme. Instead, they sent me back here…and Elizabeth let her leave you this letter. I promised I would come here and wait for you. But I’ve only just gotten back so what luck on timing that is.”
He’d said a lot of words just now, but there was only one question that mattered. I cleared my throat. “Is-is she okay?”
Pierre grimaced. “She’s sad, but she knows she’ll be okay. Dreaming of you helped her. She insists she will see you again in the future but won’t tell me how she knows that.”
Sounds like mother.
And I know how she does it.
“Oh, here,” Pierre said in a rush and held the folded up parchment out to me.
I reached out and took it with trembling fingers. Breathe, Saffie. Carefully, I unfolded it — and gasped. Mother’s handwriting. My eyes watered. I collapsed onto the wooden bench beside me and forced my eyes to focus on the words on the page.
My dearest Saraphina.
A sob ripped its way out of my throat. I wiped my eyes with my arm and sniffled.
My dearest Saraphina. My Saffie. I dreamed of you this night and it filled me with hope, a hope I admit had worn thin since you were taken from me. I saw you standing there in our kitchen in that unusual purple gown…you looked beautiful. And grown up.
I choked on a gasp and covered my mouth with my other hand. My chest tightened and burned. My breath singed its way up and around the lump in my throat.
I went to Elizabeth with this dream, told her what I saw, only to have her say she’d had the same. You were coming back to Salem, we both knew it. I do not know how long it has been for you since we have seen each other, but Elizabeth assures me that for me it has only been a few weeks. Even if they feel like centuries. I have an idea to attain a longer life so that I may still be alive once your curse is broken. Now, I only pray it lasts long enough to see your face again.
A broken sob tore from my chest. Tears streaked down my cheeks. The paper trembled as my fingers shook. I sniffled and wiped at my eyes.
I love you, my darling daughter. My heart aches for you. I hope you do not suffer too much. I hope something brings you peace. And I long for the day we may be reunited, whether it be in this life or the next. Love always, Mom.
P.S. I have left something with Pierre for you…something that would not survive without you. Olli. I would have taken him with me and loved him with every beat of my heart, but once I saw you would return I knew he had to go with you. Take him. Elizabeth insisted as well.”