She was thin to the point of scrawny, her eyes dark and haunted. Her wide nose pointed to a narrow mouth, and her face was so pale it appeared almost gray. She was chained in the same types of chains used to keep Mella in the library.
“Beatrice,” I said, taking a seat next to Keigan. “I’ve been looking for you.”
She nodded but her eyes were stuck on Vas. She began to shiver uncontrollably, her chains clinking against the steel table between us.
“I heard you turned yourself in?” I asked.
Behind me, Rose snorted. “She saw the writing on the wall and wants leniency in exchange for turning on her friends.”
Denial flashed across Beatrice’s face and was gone in an instant. “It’s okay,” I said softly. “Why don’t you tell me what happened? We know about the witchweed.”
She nodded. “I tried to buy as much as I could.”
“Why?”
One fearful glance at Vas. “I figured out what they were doing.”
“The demons?”
Her hands shook as she pushed dishwater blonde hair off her face. “No. The witches.”
I frowned. “Why don’t you start from the beginning.”
“I’m a descendent of the McCormick coven.”
“Yes. What is it that you and the other descendants are trying to achieve?”
“That’s just it. I didn’t want to achieve anything. Mary came to me a few months ago, saying we were practically sisters. She’d been approached by another woman— Veronica Holloway. Veronica’s grandmother was the leader of the McCormick coven. Mary invited me to this meet-up. She said it was like a reunion.”
How it could be a reunion when none of the witches knew each other, I didn’t know. But I nodded my head and Beatrice took a deep breath.
“I went. I haven’t been in Durham for long. I wasn’t ready to join a coven yet, but I guess I was feeling lonely.”
Loneliness could be responsible for all kinds of stupid mistakes. I nodded again and Beatrice gave me a tiny smile.
“It was an informal meetup at this other witch’s house. Her name was Theresa. We had a potluck dinner and introduced ourselves. Everyone was friendly. I was excited to have a group of women I had a few things in common with. And then Veronica got up and gave a speech.” She swallowed. “Could I have some water, please?”
Keigan glanced at Rose, who gave Vas a wide berth as she crossed the room. Beatrice waited until she reappeared with a cup of water, took a few small sips, and then glanced down at her lap.
“They want power,” she whispered. “They said they were tired of being at the Mage Council’s mercy. Veronica found some grimoires under the floorboards of her grandmother’s childhood home. In one of them, there was a spell. I had to join the coven before they would tell me what the spell would do, and I told them I needed to think about it. But when I heard about the first demon murder, I knew it was them.”
“How did they get the power to kill a high demon?”
Beatrice raised the cup and pressed it to her lips, subconsciously trying to prevent herself from saying her next sentence.
“They sacrificed a human. A homeless guy they found begging near a highway.”
The room went silent as we all attempted to process that. Vas was the first to break the silence.
“Why didn’t you turn yourself in earlier?”
She laughed wildly. “And risk my safety with the mages? I would never be believed. Especially after I bought the witchweed. It was stupid, I know, but I panicked. When I learned what they wanted to do, and that they needed a mass forget-me spell, I thought if I could just buy as much witchweed as possible…”
Yeah, it was stupid. There were plenty of ways for the witches to get their hands on what they needed. If Beatrice had been thinking clearly, she could’ve at least sent in an anonymous tip to the Mage Council.
“Who are you running from, Beatrice?”
She went so white I stepped around the table and pushed her head down. “Head between your legs. You’re okay.”
