Chapter 4
Nevan
It was still dark out, stars twinkling in the purple-pink sky, as I snuck through the silent streets of Fairwitch Isle, hood covering my head. I’d decided that if I was going to visit Enid, it had to be at a time when no one would see me.
I walked down the cobblestone road that wound around the castle.
Businesses lined either side, and green smoke rose in the air from the bog, its scent sweet and slightly acidic.
Not many were brave enough to venture into the channels and marshy land surrounding our city, not when so many creatures and dangerous plants lurked within its depths.
Enid hadn’t exactly been forthcoming about any of it.
We knew the bog was sentient, likely from the earth godwitch’s magic.
What we didn’t know was how Enid seemed to have such a command over it.
All the godwitches had left pieces of their magic in our world when they departed thousands of years ago.
We had magical animals, magical plants, magical objects, and buildings like our castle.
The thing was that humans couldn’t control the magic.
The magic never answered to us. We just used it and hoped it would cooperate.
I glanced back at the white stone castle that rose tall into the sky. Our castle was a perfect example. The magic did what it wanted. The castle chose its ruler—it had chosen my brother years ago.
Between the dress shop and the bakery, a flower with eyes swiveled in my direction, unblinking and watching. I gave an awkward wave as if it might wave back.
Enid’s cottage appeared in the distance, right at the bend in the road.
It was stuffed between the blacksmith and the cobbler, both owners often loudly complaining about being next to Enid, but there was nothing that could be done about it.
We couldn’t move an entire cottage. It had just been the way our city landed, her cottage shoved into that exact spot.
I glanced around to make sure the road was still empty. If anyone saw me going to Enid’s cottage, the rumors would spread far too quickly, and my mother would have a lot of questions. Everyone would have a lot of questions.
I’d have to give my mother an answer about who I was courting soon, and I needed Enid to be on board with this, or I’d have to admit I lied, and my mother would be devastated.
I approached Enid’s cottage, sending yet another cursory glance behind me.
I wiped my damp hands on my trousers, not sure what I was about to walk into. As I went over the proposal in my head, it sounded ludicrous.
I couldn’t believe I was about to do this, but I had no choice.
The wooden steps creaked as I walked up them, careful to step over the vines that snaked across the porch. I’d seen too many people accidentally, or purposely, step on them, only to be swatted or shoved away.
I cleared my throat and raised my fist to knock but hesitated. This was stupid. It would never work. What had I been thinking? I couldn’t do this.
My stomach clenched at the thought of telling my mother the truth, at how upset she would be. Then my brothers would be upset. Then my father would be upset. And then I’d be upset. Basically everyone was going to be upset because of me.
Mother’s face would crumple like it had yesterday, tears streaming down her cheeks. My stomach twisted tighter at the image, and then I thought of another time her face had crumpled like that—a horrible, dark time for our entire family. I pushed that particular memory away.
The door swung open, and I was about to jump back when something wrapped around my ankle, yanking me to the ground.
I crashed to the floor, my spectacles flying off my nose and landing out of reach. Pain shot through my head and back, and I stared at the ceiling, dazed and not entirely sure what had just happened.
Enid’s pinched features came into my periphery as she leaned over me, my view of her upside down.
Her green cheeks flushed pink as she picked up my spectacles, looking through them at me while her vine dragged me across the floor.
My spectacles enlarged her eyes, the deepest umber with flecks of gold.
I’d never seen eyes so dark, so full of depth.
Whatever had a hold of my ankle gave a sharp yank, and I looked behind me to see Enid’s vine wrapped around my leg. I flipped onto my stomach and clawed at the wooden floorboards, but the vine was incredibly strong. It had crushed an entire crocodile once, so this shouldn’t have been surprising.
Enid stared at her long black nails. “Throw him in the bog.”
I should’ve been terrified, but I was struck by her charming, lyrical accent.
I’d rarely heard her speak, and I’d forgotten she even had an accent.
It was one I’d never heard from anyone else.
Light and musical and so utterly adorable.
Basically the opposite of everything I knew about Enid.
I wanted to hear her speak again, but then reality crashed back down as the vine continued to pull me across the room.
“Wait,” I said as it yanked me toward the back of the cottage.
I gaped in horror when I realized there was no back wall.
The entire back side of her cottage was open to the bog behind it, the green channel calm, the view of the marsh breathtaking.
So many possibilities out there. Plants and magic that could be used in wondrous ways.
Too bad I’d never gotten to explore any of it, not when it would likely kill me if I tried.
“Wait, please. We can help each other,” I shouted, still clawing at the floorboards.
Enid scoffed and flipped her long, shiny black hair over her shoulder. “You have nothing I want.”
Before I could stop myself, I blurted out, “I can keep you from getting exiled!”
Fuck. I could’ve at least eased into the proposal. There would be no going back after that declaration. Now I had to tell her my idea, and the thought that she might actually accept, that I might have to fake date her, made my stomach flip.
Even without my spectacles, I could tell I’d surprised her as her thick dark brows shot up. The vine stopped abruptly, and for a moment, I was relieved. Maybe I wouldn’t die today.
Then, the vine slithered up the side of the wall and lifted me by the ankle so I was dangling above the green water.
I hung precariously over the bog, smoke curling into my face, partially obscuring my view.
A bubble popped below my head, water splashing onto my hair. If the vine let go, I would drown.
I was thirty-seven years old and had never learned to swim. I’d always been too busy reading books and tinkering with potions to join my brothers when they snuck out of Fairwitch to take a dip in the ocean.
I swallowed thickly, sweat beading my brow as I sent a nervous glance below me.
The vine dipped me down, my head plunging under the icy water, murky and impossible to see through.
Oh, godwitches, I should’ve thought this through.
How in the world had I ever thought Enid would agree to fake date me?
Everything I knew about her—which, admittedly, wasn’t much—was about how dangerous and destructive she was.
She had no scruples from what I could tell, and she loved terrorizing people.
She’d have no problem torturing me for daring to come to her cottage.
My lungs squeezed tight, fire shooting through my throat and burning as I swished in the water.
“Wait!” I heard her muffled voice call.
Just like that, I was yanked up. I gasped for air, drawing in deep lungfuls, swearing to myself I’d never take breathing for granted again. The vine dropped me onto the cottage floor, and I lay there for a moment, gathering my breath and my wits as water pooled around me.
Finally, I pushed myself to my hands and knees, breathing still ragged, not sure what was going on.
“What do you mean you can keep me from getting exiled?” Enid took a few steps forward, her tall black boots clacking against the floor.
She held out my spectacles, and I took them as I stood, perching them on my nose, the entire space becoming clear once again, Enid becoming clear in her long-sleeved black dress.
I needed a moment to gather my thoughts, to come up with a good response. I turned, pretending I was taking in the view of her home.
It was actually rather beautiful.
I’d never been inside Enid’s cottage before. I wasn’t sure anyone in Fairwitch had, and despite how terrifying she was . . . her home was amazing. Like it had sprouted from the earth.
Green moss covered the walls, dotted by all kinds of flowers.
The counters and cabinets were made from wood, but it wasn’t polished.
It looked like a tree had walked in here, split itself apart, and created all of this.
My gaze trailed to the stairs that led to a loft area with a bed pushed against the wall.
From down here I could see that the frame and headboard were made from vines and other plants. It was like a nature sanctuary in here.
“Wow,” I breathed. “This is beautiful.”
“I asked you a question,” Enid said, her arms crossed as I turned to face her. “How can you keep me from getting exiled?”
Right. I was supposed to be crafting a good response, but I’d gotten distracted. She stared at me expectantly. Okay, here went nothing. I only hoped I didn’t get thrown back into the bog. I took a deep breath and said, “I want you to be my girlfriend.”