Page 37 of The 13th Daughter
She was dreaming of a darkness coming – but what?
A boy appeared and then talk of a curse started and got the town all excited.
13 men and women betrayed – curse deals with the 13th daughter. Connection?
The town miscalculated – Emily knew the truth. Made a plan?
She was afraid. Someone came after her – in her diary.
Things I know:
Something weird is going on. Dad is pushing me to stay away from the Coven and Mom wants me to go. People are pestering me more than usual to go.
Dad freaked at the thought of my going. Went a little crazy.
Ethan – new in town. Says he's never been here before, but Mom says he has.
Who is lying to me? Why would either of them lie?
Thoughts:
This is crazy. What I'm thinking is impossible. Did the Coven kill my sister because she found out something she wasn't supposed to know? She said she couldn't keep me and Kay safe. From what? The curse? It had to have something to do with the 13 people who had been burned at the stake in Salem. The 13th daughter – 13 to signify the 13 that burned? Revenge maybe? She said it was in the book. What book? Warded by magic? It has to be in the meeting hall. I need to get that book. How?
Dad knows something, but he won't tell me. Maybe he can't tell me. That vow about protecting the Coven's secrets with their lives? Maybe he couldn't say anything because he was afraid they might kill him? I'm all he has left he says, that he can't lose me too. Did he know what they planned to do to Emily? Is that why he didn't answer his phone that day? Did he know they were going to kill her? Is that why he drinks himself into oblivion? Guilt? Please, Daddy, please don't have known.
Did Mom know? I can't believe either of them knew. They loved her. Mom cried for days afterward. You can't fake that kind of grief. Emily was their child, their flesh and blood. I refuse to believe they helped to plot her death. If they knew about it, then why have the cops show up at our door? There would be no point to it. They can't have known. They can't.
Well damn. I guess I do believe they killed her. The Coven killed her to keep her quiet. To protect their secrets. I have to find out what's going on. It's something big. Why else would the entireCoven work on a truth spell? The boy. Emily suggested they cast a truth spell. Maybe that's why everyone was working on it. The boy was back. Ethan? He did show up out of nowhere. And he feels older than a normal teenager, especially when he looks at me with those beautiful eyes. No, it can't be Ethan. But Mom said he'd been here before. Damn, I need that book Ems was talking about.
Emily's Book of Shadows. She said she put everything in there. Where did she hide it? I know where? No, I don't. Emily had hundreds of hidey holes same as me. Where? I have to find it. It'd be so much easier if I could just ask Kay for help, but every time I try, my stomach decides to shout, HELL NO. Instincts kicking in? Telling me not to trust my best friend? The girl I love like a sister? For now, I'll keep this to myself, but I may need her help in the end. I just need time.
Ethan. What am I going to do about him? Is he lying to me or am I being paranoid? Damn his sorry hide. How dare he? How could he do that to me? I didn't think I could ever hurt this much again. I'm not falling in love with him. I do love him. I've known him a week and I love him. How insane is that? Everything that's logical says it's too soon to love him, but I do. That's why this hurts so much. I love him. He's lying to me. My gut says he's lying. What am I going to do?
Find those books. That's what I'm going to do.
It's all I could do at this point. I got up and turned off the bathroom light. I put my notebook in my bookbag. I would start looking first thing in the morning. I crawled into bed beside Kay and whispered a quiet prayer to whoever was listening. I'd need all the help I could get.
Chapter Thirteen
A week and a half later,I had nothing to show for my efforts at playing Nancy Drew. I'd searched everywhere for Emily's Book of Shadows. Nothing. I'd scoured the attic, torn through the basement, and had ransacked the old tree house in the woods behind our house. The only thing I found was dirt and spider webs. Feeling useless and frustrated, I made my way to the cemetery.
Dad must have been here earlier. A bouquet of carnations decorated the grave. They had always been her favorite flower. I traced her name. She'd died three years ago today. October 15th. Tragic accident. Tragic accident my ass. No, my sister had been murdered, but I couldn't prove it.
"I'm so sorry, Ems," I whispered. "I'm trying, but I can't find it."
The wind whistled through the trees, a sad mournful sound. There was no other answer. I didn't expect one. She'd given me the only clues she could. It was up to me to solve the mystery and find her book. But where? I'd looked in all the obvious places with no luck. I'd even climbed up into the old tree she'd fallen out of and broken her arm. I thought I knew all her hidey holes, but apparently not.
"You were right, Emily, about everything. It's not nonsense. I went to Meg's initiation ceremony. I felt everything you said I would. I want to explain it all away, but I can't. It was too real. I felt them, the Elements. They greeted me when I entered the circle and then they went through me twice more during the ceremony. I can't even describe what it felt like. It was amazing and scary as hell. I'm sorry I didn't believe you. So sorry."
I'd thought long and hard about that night. The things I'd seen and felt couldn't be swept away by logic. They were real. I couldn't deny it anymore. She'd be so happy that I'd finally started to believe in the power of the Elements. I just wished she were here so I could hear her say I told you so.
"I miss you so much, Ems. There's so much going on, but more than anything, I really wish you could tell me what to do about Ethan."
"So do I."
My head snapped up. He stood there, not more than ten feet from me. How did he do that? Sneaking up on me seemed to be a habit of his. As usual he looked yummy and it was all I could do to remember to breathe. He was wearing a pair of faded jeans and his Hard Rock Café tee shirt – my favorite. It hugged his muscles and showed every ripple of his abs when he moved. His hair hung in gentle waves around his face and his eyes, his eyes looked haunted and worn.
"What are you doing here?" I asked him quietly. Damn, but why did he have to look so good? My own personal M&M come to torture me.
