‘Nor will you find it on the menu. Another perk of our relationship with the owners.’ She took a deep drink, savoured the wine then returned her attention to me. ‘Let’s start over. I would like to tell you a story instead, one that’s been passed down through Bell family witches for as long as we’ve been in Savannah. It is a story about a very special witch and all the wonderful things she will do in the world.’
‘Like run the New York marathon and winAmerican Idol?’
‘Entirely possible but the finer details of her life are missing from our version of the story. What we do know is this witch will do three things: revive the dormant powers of her sisters, protect our magic from its greatest enemies, and …’
‘And?’ I prompted. ‘I’ve read a lot of books about prophecies and they hardly ever end in “then she spent the night bingeingFriendson the sofa and lived happily ever after”.’
Catherine put down her glass and nodded. ‘The prophecy says she will be strong and gifted, the most intuitive witch in centuries, and she will be able to access all the magic of her ancestors rather than connect to just one ability.’
So far so yikes.
‘That’s it?’ I croaked. ‘Apart from the greatest enemies bit, that doesn’t sound too bad.’
‘The final part of the prophecy says this witch will either save the world or end it.’
I stared into my grandmother’s eyes, the exact same shape and shade as my own, and searched for a single shred ofuncertainty. Nothing. Whether the story was true or not, she believed it.
‘Save the world or end it?’ I repeated. ‘Why would anyone want to end the world?’
‘Why does anyone do anything?’
Just what this moment needed, answering a question with another question.
‘There will come a time,’ Catherine continued. ‘We do not know when, but when it comes, this witch will be faced with a choice. Only she will be able to make the decision and act upon it. The choice will be hers and hers alone.’
‘If I’m honest, I’m not loving the plot twist,’ I said as Catherine reached for her wine again, the look on my face driving her to drink. ‘Any idea who this witch might be?’
She gave me a look and I felt the last shred of denial slip through my fingers.
‘The witch will come from Emma Catherine Bell’s line, born and Become under a full moon, and on both days, the tides will rise to meet her. The day you were born, Savannah experienced a King Tide eleven feet high. You’re already expressing multiple abilities, finding your way to magic I couldn’t even conceive of. Emily, it’s you.’
‘No pressure then.’ I pushed away my plate, appetite disappearing altogether. Even for the jalapeño poppers.
‘I don’t mean to scare you,’ Catherine said. ‘But it is my duty to prepare you.’
‘Assuming you’re right,’ I replied, quietly reeling. ‘What happens next? Is there a handbook or an instructional video? An instruction video would be so great.’
She said nothing but I was sure I saw her imperceptibly shaking her head.
‘There are a lot of different ways to interpret saving theworld,’ I added. ‘I could encourage people to recycle, maybe convince some celebrities to give up their private jets.’
‘I think your sisters might need a little more from you than that,’ she said as I let my head loll backwards with frustration. ‘I know this is a lot to take in—’
‘And everything would have been easier if my dad hadn’t taken me away.’
I finished the sentence before she could because as much as I might not like it, she was right, about both things. If I’d grown up learning about our magic, it might not seem so overwhelming now.
‘Prophecies are hard to interpret,’ Catherine said as I rolled my head back around to look at her. She was so hard to read, there was sympathy in her voice but her expression was pure exhilaration. ‘Especially one passed down through generations; words change, their meanings are altered—’
As she was speaking, something occurred to me.
‘If your prophecy girl is supposed to revive her sisters,’ I interrupted, using a jalapeño popper as a pointer, ‘there must be other witches out there?’
‘Dormant ones, yes.’
‘And if there are witches, there must be other supernatural creatures?’
‘Yes.’
