Chapter 13 #2
“Yeah, I do. She’s literally put her life on the line to help me, and she came tonight to help you with no questions asked—or at least, with a lot of her questions left unanswered. I trust her completely.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Nova’s cheeks were flushing.
I didn’t look at her, though, because among the many things I trusted about Nova was the fact that she would absolutely deck me if I caught her being even remotely vulnerable.
Jess had no interest in how Nova was reacting.
All she cared about, evidently, was what I had to say.
And after I’d said it, she nodded once, decisively, and that seemed to be it.
If I trusted Nova, apparently so did she.
“Okay, Vesper. Now that we’ve established you’re both trustworthy, that means your word means something.
So I need both of you to give me your word that you won’t tell anyone anything I’m about to divulge to you, unless I tell you it’s okay.
It’s for my protection, as well as the protection of the people I love. It will also keep you out of danger.”
How could we not agree? We murmured the required promise.
Jess’ shoulders relaxed, and her voice was a little less tense as she continued.
“Good. Now, this conversation will probably be a little bit easier than it usually is, because you both already understand that the world is more complicated than most people believe,” Jess said.
“For instance, I don’t have to convince either of you that ghosts are real. You already accept that as fact.”
I nodded. Beside me, Nova did the same. It seemed like we were both holding our breath.
“I belong to a sort of… sisterhood. Our sisterhood has many families—we call them clans, and each clan is a separate bloodline that passes the same gift down through the generations. Correct me if I’m mistaken, but I think your covens work in a similar way?
” she added, looking back and forth between us.
Nova and I locked eyes, each of us silently asking the other if we should answer.
Here I’d been expecting answers from Jess, but I hadn’t really been counting on giving any of my own.
But she was giving us what seemed to be secret information, and so it didn’t seem fair to refuse a trade in kind.
A secret for a secret? Nova made a movement somewhere between a nod and a shrug, and that seemed to be enough discussion.
“Yeah, that’s right,” Nova said, as we both turned back to Jess. “And just like you, there might be some questions that we can’t answer.”
“Fair enough,” Jess said. “Anyway, throughout history, members of our sisterhood have often been labeled as witches, and even burned at the stake or hanged for the mistaken association, so you’ll have to pardon me if it seems like I’m trying to put distance between us.
No disrespect meant. It’s just that my only run-in with witchcraft prior to this was kind of disastrous.
But we’re not meant to wield your sort of magic, and I imagine the reverse is also true. ”
“Well, since our first run-in with your type of magic involved reanimating corpses, I think it’s safe to say the feeling is mutual,” Nova said dryly.
Jess snorted. “I like her. And technically, I wasn’t a corpse. At least, not in the usual sense. Let me back this up, though, I’m getting ahead of myself. My sisterhood is called the Durupinen. We are the keepers of the gates between the worlds of the living and the dead.”
A shiver, delicate and fluttering, shot up my spine like the fingers of a ghost.
“There are places in the world where the veil between the world of the living and the world of the dead are very thin—thin enough that trapped spirits can slip through with just a little help. As Durupinen, we help lead them to those places and provide that help, if they need it.”
“So you’re like… what, psychic mediums?” I asked.
Jess snorted. “Psychic mediums wish they were that cool. There are others out there who can sense spirits—we call them sensitives. But only the Durupinen have the control of the Gateways—we call them Geatgrimas, in our lore. But the point is, spirits who are lost find us—they seek us out, and we help them however we can, whether it’s completing their unfinished business for them, or simply helping them find their way across to the spirit world. ”
“This is all super interesting,” I said. “But I’m struggling to understand what it has to do with us and the grimoire.”
“Well, I lied to you,” Jess said. “About how I came across the book? I’m sorry about that.
It’s just that sometimes it’s easier to interact with living people if I don’t mention the ghost stuff.
I thought you’d believe me more easily if I gave you a mundane story about how I found the book and tracked you down, instead of the real story. ”
“Which is?” I prompted impatiently.
Jess’ expression softened. “Your grandmother. Asteria.”
“But how—oh!” I gasped. Of course. Of course. “She came to you? As a ghost?”
“That’s right,” Jess said. “It took some time to understand exactly what she needed from me, but eventually I figured it out.”
I frowned. “So I was her unfinished business?”
“Yes,” Jess said. “She reached out to me several times because it was important to her that you have that book I delivered to you.”
“And she didn’t say why?”
“Unfortunately, no. Much as I’m careful with my secrets, it seems your grandmother is, too. She wouldn’t tell me exactly why you needed the book, only that it was important to your family and to this town that you get it back.”
Out of nowhere, I was swallowing against something in my throat, something that threatened to choke me with an onslaught of tears.
“Hey, are you good?” Jess asked, her eyebrows pulling together in concern.
“Yeah, I…” I tried to shrug nonchalantly, but only Nova could pull off shit like that. “I guess… I wonder why she didn’t just come to me.”
“Well, most people wouldn’t be able to communicate with her in her current form,” Jess said gently. “It’s not that she didn’t want to speak to you, I’m sure. She probably just didn’t think she’d be able to make contact.”
I knew she was trying to make me feel better, but her words just felt like a slap across the face.
I tried to take the blow stoically, but I could feel the tears welling up in the corners of my eyes, like traitors.
Here I was, working night and day to develop my powers, and Asteria had to find someone from halfway across the world to deliver a message to me.
“Wren?” Jess prompted, looking concerned now. “Have I upset you?”
“No, no, it’s just… my gifts as a witch… well, connecting with spirits should be one of them. But I seem to have developed some kind of block. It’s not progressing as well as my other skills.”
“Wren, you’ve only been at it for a few months. You’re doing fine,” Nova snapped, sounding almost impatient.
“So you are a sensitive?” Jess asked. “And it’s a new power?”
“I’m supposed to be,” I replied. “And I’m not sure if it’s new so much as… undeveloped. I’ve only known I was a witch since June.”
Jess’ eyebrows disappeared into the curling mess of her wet hair. “But isn’t your whole family…?”
“Yeah. My mom sort of… ran away and hid it all from me. It was only when Asteria died that it all came out,” I explained.
I watched with confusion as a smile broke slowly over Jess’ face, followed by a chuckle that built into a gale of laughter. I stared, blinking at her as she seemed to come unglued.
“Jess? Are you… good?” I asked. Beside me, Nova looked as disturbed as I felt.
“I’m sorry,” Jess choked out, trying to compose herself. “It’s just… I’m starting to understand why your grandmother was drawn to me of all the Durupinen she could have connected with.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Well, obviously it was because of the book. I had handled it before, and knew where it was, but I wasn’t the only one. No, I think it was because you and I have so much in common, Wren,” Jess said.
“Why, do your spirit abilities suck too?” Nova asked. I whacked her on the arm and she grimaced. “What? It was only a joke.”
“I think it’s because Wren and I both came into our powers later than most,” Jess said, focusing her gaze on me now, as the rest of her laughter died out.
“My mom spent my whole childhood running from our legacy—literally. I moved more than twenty times before I graduated high school. She died when I was seventeen without ever telling me what we were. I had to figure it out the hard way.”
For a moment, I felt like I couldn’t breathe.
I tried to imagine what it would be like, discovering I was a witch entirely on my own, and then trying to grapple with all the ramifications of that, without my mother and my aunts to guide me—without, in fact, an entire town full of people who could help me.
I couldn’t do it. I looked back at Jess to see that she was watching me carefully as I absorbed this information.
“I’m sorry, but I’m getting a bit off track here,” Jess said, when I had sat in silence for nearly a full minute. “I was trying to explain what happened tonight, and I’m not doing a very good job. Can I continue?”
“Of course,” I said, in need of a distraction from the complex feelings still roiling inside me, like a brew in Rhi’s kitchen cauldron.
“I came here with only one purpose in mind, and that purpose was given to me by your grandmother,” Jess said.
“I needed to pass along that book. It took me a little while to find you—no one in this town is very forthcoming to outsiders, but I assume you already know that. Regardless, though, I found you and delivered your book. Mission accomplished.”
“But that was two days ago,” I said, momentarily distracted from my own insecurities. “So why are you still here? When you left my house, you made it sound like you were on the way out of town.”