They continued around the house, Casper loyally next to them. What Tilly didn't say was that she wasn't sleeping. Her sleep was irregular on the best nights with her perimenopause really leaning into the witching hour. But ever since she saw Astra's lips on his...
Her steps slowed as something caught her eye. When she stopped walking Jen turned to look at her in question. "These bushes," Tilly said thoughtfully, pointing to them.
"Yeah," Jen nodded confused. Then realization hit her and she said, "Ohh. Those were not that color a few minutes ago."
"They were not."
Where the bright green burning bushes had been when they'd come to The Lost Souls House moments ago, now the leaves were the most glorious red - a color they did not usually bleed into until summer sank away for autumn to take over.
"The cool air must have made them turn," Jen guessed.
Tilly bit her lip, thinking. It seemed more than an unseasonably cool change. Everything around them felt like they were teetering on the edge of something.
"Let's go." Jen gently took Tilly's arm and steered her toward the car where they waited until Eloise, Ursula, and a victoriousBess were in the backseat and they were on their way to check on one of their own.
"Should we interrupt or just...sit back?"
Ursula's question was answered by a floppy hat-wearing Crystal who set a wooden tray of tall glasses and a pitcher on the makeshift table that was a tree stump.
"Kick back. She's been out here for a while now. I think she needs this," Crystal said as she sat in one of the cafe chairs she'd pulled from the outdoor dining set.
It was déjà vu. They'd been here and done this not too long ago. But that had been a time of closure and healing for their dear friend. Afterward, once the glitter had settled on the barn floor and in their hair and the crevices of their shoes, they had burned targets of her ex-husband Rob, and then cheered to her divorce with honey wine and croissants around a bonfire.
Now they watched, achingly, as she grunted with each throw at his smiling face knowing this wasn't such a healing moment.
Not one of them lifted a finger to a glass. There was a pressure they could all feel, though Tilly was the one who felt a chasm of pain and fear that were not her own. There was a coldness to her chest and she imagined her ribs being covered by lacy frost.
"We're gonna hex him, right?" Bess asked the group as they watched. When the sensible adults talked to her about staying home, she reminded them that there was not a lot of sensibility about how she was being raised, winning her a seat amongst these women.
"We don't just hex people when we're hurt," Ursula replied to which Bess rolled her eyes.
Eloise nodded thoughtfully. "I mean, we could combine our hurts and make it a big hex. Chief cheating pants could use agood hex. No matter what he does his pants are exactly 2 inches too short."
Bess snorted and Tilly gave her a small smile.
"But I don't buy it," Bess said thoughtfully.
"Buy what?" Kelsea asked.
"The chief kissing psycho Abigail Williams."
Confusion crossed faces until Kelsea said, "The Crucible?" and Bess nodded.
"Nice," Kelsea said.
"What do you mean?" Tilly was caught on what Bess had said.
She looked at Tilly and shook her head. "I don't buy that he would do that. That abnormally tall vampire isintoyou. Like, he has Tilly radar."
"She's right," Carol chimed in.
"And," Bess held up a black painted fingernail in the air, "About a week ago, he was getting coffee," she paused, leaning in with her hand cupping her mouth in a secret as she finished, "and did you know he likes caramel in his coffee? I was shocked when he ordered it. Just the wordscaramel lattecoming out of his intense cowboy face was enough to leave me speechless for a solid thirty seconds."
"That is actually very surprising," Kelsea agreed nodding.
"Bess being speechless or caramel for Vampire John Wayne?" Eloise asked.
Bess glowered at her.
