Page 54 of Witches of Dubious Origin
“Four of us?” He frowned. “Isn’t that a bit overkill?”
Olive stared at him with a look that would have sent me hiding under the table. Jasper just smiled at her until she rolled her eyes.
“You’re going with Eloise to tour the facility under the guise of having her admitted,” Olive said, “while Zoe and I interview the director about her mother’s death. I feel like something isn’t quite right.”
“What are you saying, Olive?” Agatha had come into New York with me and sat beside me at the meeting, lendingme her support, as she knew family stuff was my vulnerable spot.
“Juliet Ziakas was middle-aged and living in a well-appointed rehabilitation facility. It feels a tad convenient that she died of a sudden cardiac arrest, doesn’t it?” Olive asked.
I glanced at Agatha. She looked as gutted as I felt. It had never occurred to either of us to question my mother’s death. Mom had been gone for decades with only sporadic visits for an afternoon here or there. She’d maintained no contact with Agatha or me in between these abrupt appearances, which had ended five years ago. With no indication that I’d ever see her again, I had started to assume she was dead, because it hurt less than thinking she had abandoned me once and for all.
“Don’t beat yourself up, Zoe,” Agatha said. “There was no way for us to know that your mother had returned or that she needed care.”
“Hmm,” I hummed noncommittally. The thing was, I felt as if I should have known. I was her only child, her last living relative. I should have known she was back and about the grimoire, and I should have learned more about our Donadieu family history—all of it. To be left in ignorance hurt almost as much as the fact that she had dumped me off at private school and disappeared as if I were just some unwanted baggage.
The ache in my chest was fierce and it was hard to breathe. I felt Jasper’s pale gaze watching me and I forced my expression to go flat, to hide the hurt, to put on the mask I had worn since my mother had left me and my things at the front door of the school, given me a quick hug, made me vow I’d neverdo magic, and driven off with an expression of grim determination.
I shook my head and cleared my throat. Maybe after all this time, I’d finally get some answers.
I glanced at Olive and asked, “When do we leave?”
• • •
We arrived at Mystwood Manor early the next morning. The facility served patients who were receiving postsurgical care or recovering from a variety of ailments, such as heart attack and stroke. When Agatha and I had inquired as to why my mother had been admitted, we were told she had been admitted by a doctor in a Boston emergency room for severe weight loss.
The austere building sat on top of a hill in the suburbs of Boston. I had hoped it would be an overcast and dreary day, matching my mood, but the cheerful sun and bright blue skies mocked me as I strode from the rented SUV Olive had picked up outside the train station toward the large redbrick edifice, which perched on the hill like a castle surveying its kingdom.
Olive wore black sunglasses and a black trench coat over another completely black outfit. I wondered briefly what her closet looked like. I suspected it was like a small black hole. She could reach in and pull out anything, knowing it would match. Maybe she was onto something there.
Eloise followed behind her. She was wearing her camel coat and her ash-blond bob was styled meticulously to cover her missing ears. Tariq had procured a pair of stylish leather gloves for her that filled out her missing finger. I wonderedwhat the gloves were stuffed with, but I didn’t ask, as I felt it would be rude.
Jasper strode beside me. I felt his gaze on the side of my face and I knew if I looked at him, I’d see an expression of sympathy. I didn’t want that. It would do me no good to acknowledge all thefeelingsthat were rocketing through me at being here.
“I have a question for you, Zoe,” Jasper said.
I sighed. I didn’t want to answer any questions about my mother, my relationship with my mother, or how she’d ended up in this facility without my or Agatha’s knowledge. It was all just so sad. It hurt to think about, never mind discuss, and yet…
“Go ahead.” I braced myself.
He slowed his pace, dropping back from Olive and Eloise. I thought it was sensitive of him not to grill me in front of the others.
“What do I do if Eloise loses a body part—say, a significant part—whilst on the tour?”
Caught off guard, I snapped my head in his direction. There was a mischievous glint in his eye and I realized he was trying to distract me from what he knew had to be a difficult task.
I pursed my lips to keep from smiling and nodded, letting him know I knew what he was doing and that I appreciated it. I also decided to play along, as it would keep me from overthinking what was to come.
“Well, I suppose it depends on how significant,” I replied. “Are we talking a leg or an arm?”
“Leg would be tough,” he said. “I mean, what if we’re walking along and it just drops off? She’d have to hop on one foot for the entire tour. Hard to be nonchalant, carrying a leg tucked under my arm, yeah?”
I huffed a small laugh. “An arm might be easier. You could just stop by the infirmary and borrow a sling.”
“Very resourceful.” He dipped his head.
“Of course, she could go all Headless Horseman on you.”
He looked at me with wide eyes. “You think she could lose her noggin?”
