Chapter 28

Depression enveloped Fiona as she stood beside her grandmother’s bed. Sarah was still and quiet.

Marcus sat in a chair on Sarah’s right side, his voice rough as he read aloud from his wife’s favorite poet, Irishwoman, Katharine Tynan. The stirring words of “Any Woman” were a tribute to female strength and courage.

Fiona waited in vain for Sarah to respond.

Soon, she fled the room and went downstairs. The poem’s words were shards of glass piercing her heart, each one reminding her she was the reason Sarah was lying in that bed, lost to Marcus and her beloved coven.

At the bottom of the stairs, Fiona took deep cleansing breaths. Keeping her eyes closed, she focused on her energy and magic, wiping away the depression and sadness that had plagued her since Bailey walked out earlier today.

He had not returned.

His car was not at the inn.

Fiona could not bring herself to go in and ask if he had checked out. She was too afraid. Instead, she had tried again and again to summon Anna and the spirits of New Mourne. Their silence sent her to the home place. Here, her strength and magic usually found fuel. Still, she could not find peace. Even the Granny ghost was missing from the house.

Maybe trying the crystal ball would help. She went to the dining room where the younger witches were gathered. The crystal ball had absorbed moonlight for two nights, gaining strength and illumination for this session.

The elder aunts were in a weakened state, depleted by Sarah’s continued enchantment. Delia and the others of her generation were working on spells, trying to draw power from Connelly stone and dirt in order to help Sarah.

Only the five youngest members of the coven gathered around the ball. The five who were in line to die, Fiona thought. She could not help wondering if that would break the grip of evil on Sarah’s life. If the Woman had her tribute, surely the demon would be silenced. Without him, Albert’s power was moderate at best.

Eva Grace sat at the end of the table with the ball in front of her. Brenna and Fiona were on her right; Maggie and Lauren sat on her left. Curtains covered the windows. Candles were lit—white for calm and peace, light blue to help clear the mind, and yellow for divination. In addition, a crystal lay in front of each of Eva Grace’s four companions.

A distinct, violet aura surrounded Eva Grace. As the priestess for this session, she had prepared with intense meditation. She was the seeker of truth tonight, something they all needed.

“Each of these crystals has a special purpose.” Her voice was hushed but steady. “Brenna has the moonstone, which will give her the wisdom to lead our small coven group. Fiona’s stone is a carnelian, to help alleviate her sorrow and strengthen her focus on what is ahead for her. For Lauren, I chose a rose quartz for insight in difficult situations.”

She turned to Maggie, who was shivering. “We know these troubled times have brought you great anxiety, dear cousin. You are the only one among us who is a mother. You take that responsibility very seriously, and it leaves you constantly on guard. I chose selenite for you. It will enhance your powers and aid you in making decisions.”

Folding her hands in front of the crystal ball, Eva Grace looked from one to the other of them. “Let’s all take three deep breaths and clear our minds. The focus needs to be on the ball. You know what to do. Stare deeply into its core and look for the truth. We are searching for the past of the Woman in White, the story of who she is.”

The women breathed in unison and then focused on the glass orb in front of Eva Grace. Fiona could see the ball stirring with wisps of color and light.

“Now picture yourself in the midst of the magic you see.”

The lilting melody of an Irish ballad drifted through the air. Fiona pushed herself until she could feel the color and light surrounding her.

“Think about the Woman in White and expand your space.”

Fiona could picture the spirit, her long, white dress with its old-fashioned collar and sleeves, her golden curls lifted by the breeze, and her translucent complexion, stained by anger.

No matter how hard she pictured the ghost, however, nothing appeared in the magic space to aid their quest.

Eva Grace told them to take another deep breath and back away from the magic space in the ball. The glow in the center faded. When the ball went dark, the music ended, as well. Fiona felt the familiar heaviness return. They had reached another dead end, and time was running out.

“That was futile,” Brenna said bluntly.

“I could see the Woman,” Maggie said, her voice tentative.

“She was angry,” Fiona added.

“What did we Connellys do to make her so furious? We have to find out.”

Brenna sighed. “I got a call from that college in Savannah that Bailey told us about.”

“And?” Fiona prompted.

“Bailey’s family made a sizable donation to the school. In exchange we get full access to those papers about the first missionaries in the area.”

“Rodric and Aiden left this morning to study them,” Eva Grace added. “They called just a little while ago. There’s evidence that our Woman’s father was not very popular among his fellow missionaries.”

“Too much fire-and-brimstone,” Brenna explained. “The leaders were concerned about sending him so far into the wilderness and away from supervision.”

Thinking of her vision in the cave, Fiona nodded. This new information fit what they suspected.

“Rodric said the records show his wife died before they left Savannah.” Eva Grace stared into the empty crystal ball. “This MacCuindliss headed west with a few followers just days after her death. His trip was not altogether sanctioned.”

“So he took off on his own.” Brenna picked up the moonstone in front of her.

“With his daughter,” Fiona murmured. “Can you imagine her riding off alone with just her father and few other men?”

“There were most likely some soldiers with them at first,” Maggie suggested.

“Probably not for long,” Eva Grace said. “They knew she had to help the men carve out a settlement, and they were alone.”

“Except the Cherokee people,” Brenna said.

“At first, she was probably waiting for savages to set upon her at any moment.” A cold draft made Fiona shiver. She looked up, hoping to see Granny Ghost. There was nothing but a feeling of desolation and fear.

“I found out something more about MacCuindliss,” Lauren said, leaning forward. “On Coven Glan, there’s some discussion about an ancient family of evil sorcerers by that name.”

“Could the Woman in White have had magic before she died?” Brenna looked concerned.

“I have put questions out online about that family,” Lauren said. “I’ll keep looking.”

“I need to go to my mother’s,” Maggie said. “She’s babysitting Rose, but she’s missing Dad so much, we don’t leave her alone much.”

As Lauren and Maggie left, Brenna went up to check in on Sarah.

Eva Grace and Fiona remained at the table, still looking at the large, darkened crystal.

Eva Grace’s head tilted to the side. “I feel as if the whole truth about the Woman is just beyond our reach.”

“But what if she was a black witch?” Fiona said. “If so, there could be no reasoning with her, even if we learn why she cursed us. Even if she finally comes when we call.”

“Maybe.” Eva Grace shifted her gaze to Fiona. “You’re really down. Where’s Bailey?”

Fiona told her cousin about Anna. She began to cry as she relayed how Bailey had finally asked her to use her medium abilities to reach his sister.

Eva Grace moved closer and wrapped an arm around Fiona’s shoulders. “He has to understand that we’re dealing with strange circumstances with Albert and the demon on the loose. You’ve told him that most of the spirits are in hiding.”

Wiping tears from her cheeks, Fiona said, “I failed him. Just as I failed the family by setting the demon free. My gifts are not making a difference to any of the people I love. The awful part is I have no idea what to do about it.”

Soothing warmth moved from Eva Grace and into Fiona. “You shouldn’t waste your energy on me,” Fiona said.

“It’s never a waste when it’s someone you love.” Eva Grace pulled her close, as she had done so often when they were younger and Fiona was upset or frightened. Though Brenna had been Fiona’s hero, Eva Grace was the constant who anchored Fiona when the dead who needed her were overwhelming.

“Take this.” The redhead pushed the carnelian into Fiona’s palm, and then closed Fiona’s fingers with her own, holding the dark red crystal in place.

Irish music filled the room once more, and colors danced in the magic ball. Fiona could feel strength moving into her body and spirit.

“Thank you,” she whispered to her cousin. “You’ve made it better, just like you always do.”

“This is your time in the cycle,” Eva Grace said with sudden calm. “I can feel it. Can’t you?”

“For weeks now, I’ve known. Even before Bailey came, I knew. But something about him being here helped me understand. It’s like Willow told him, he’s part of our fate.”

Eva Grace looked uncertain. “I’m not sure what all of this means, Fiona. I wish we could talk to Sarah.”

“And maybe we will soon.” Fiona hugged her cousin. “Soon.”

****

Half an hour later, Fiona stood in the quiet of the coven’s sacred clearing. She slipped on her cape and used magic to light her candles. With a turn of her hand, the flame jumped to a bundle of sage for purification. Her mind fixed on the Woman in White with determination.

Fiona knew she was in danger of death, but she did not offer herself to the Woman. Instead, she wanted a confrontation. After two-and-half centuries the Woman owed her family answers.

Fiona stood in the circle with her hands upraised and felt the atmosphere change.

“I, Fiona Connelly Burns, call to the Woman in White. I summon you to come to me and help me with my quest. I am here to be your conduit, your voice, your vessel.” She opened herself to the spirit world.

When she opened her eyes, however, she looked into the smiling, evil face of Albert Connelly.

“Hello, niece,” he said. “We’ve been waiting for you. We’re so glad you’ve come to us willingly.”

Fiona worked hard to tamp down her panic and fear. “You flatter yourself,” she said evenly to the squat and ugly ghost. “I’m here for someone else.”

“Yes, I know.” His laugh echoed through the trees. “Your Woman in White, yet she is strangely absent, isn’t she? This is your second attempt, and you’ve failed again.”

“There’s always a chance you won’t find what you’re looking for when you begin your search.” Fiona hoped she sounded confident and unafraid of the evil she was facing alone. She recalled Eva Grace’s words about it being her time in the cycle of things. Fiona’s cousin had been more correct than she’d known.

Albert walked around Fiona’s circle like an animal marking his space. “It seems we’ve solved another of your problems, niece.”

Fiona turned so he wasn’t at her back. “What do you mean?”

“We have the other spirit you seek,” he said, indicating an area behind her.

She jerked around and stifled her scream. A black aura encased Anna’s small spirit.

Once again, Albert’s shrill laughter rang through the clearing, and Fiona felt lost. How could her plan to help her family go so wrong again?