Page 60 of Death Card

“Wow,” I say. “That’s really sad.”

“Depends on how you view it. Death is nothing more than another adventure and a chance to see the ones we’ve loved and lost.”

She makes it sound like something to look forward to, which isn’t easy to hear when my own potential death looms over my head.

“Take that letter with you so she’ll know that I sent you,” Aunt Roberta says. “Sabine left the coven, but she didn’t leave Louisiana. You’ll find her out in the bayou, not too far from the return address listed on that envelope. I’ll write out more detailed directions for you.”

I can’t help but burst out of my seat to hug her. This is the first major positive development we’ve had.

My aunt squeezes me back. “I’ll never understand why that girl wanted to mess around with all that nonsense,” she murmurs. “But if there’s anyone who can help you, it’s her.”

Sabine is our only hope. This could be the breakthrough I’ve been searching for.

“Thank you, Auntie. You don’t know how much I need this.” I pull back and look into her eyes, deciding to open up to her even further. “I’m running out of time.”

I take my seat and reveal the secret I’ve kept from her—about my vision and Joelle. Her expression grows stormier by the second.

She swats my knee. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

“Because I’m scared! But I handled it. Joelle’s not in my life anymore.”

She covers her mouth with her hand. “I’m not so sure that’s the way, Mikaela. It sounds like you angered the girl! Do you know for certain that she’s not involved with all this demonic business?”

The thought jolts me. “What? Joelle would never. She wants to be a witch.”

“It sounds deeper than that. She wants the power to heal her mother,” Aunt Roberta muses. “You should talk to her. If youwant to end things, make it right between the two of you first. But someone needs to keep an eye on her, especially on the day of the full moon.”

“That’s the last thing I want to do,” I groan.

“We all have to do things we don’t like.” Aunt Roberta stands and pushes her chair in. “Call her.”

I stare down at my phone with a rock in the pit of my stomach. I’m afraid that if I speak to her, I’ll get sucked back into my whirlwind of conflicted emotions. But my aunt has never steered me wrong.

27

I call Joelleon my way home. As the line rings, I cross my fingers that she won’t answer. I’m not ready to hear her voice again—not after the way things ended the last time we spoke. To my dismay, though, she answers on the third ring.

“Hello?” Her voice is guarded and low. “What is it? I thought you made it very clear that you didn’t want anything to do with me.”

I sigh, pausing to kick a pebble down the sidewalk. “I want to apologize,” I say. “There was a lot going on that night, and I said some things I wish I could take back.”

Joelle audibly sighs. “It all came completely out of left field. I thought we were friends.” Her voice cracks. “I thought I’d met someone who understood my interests, but I guess I was wrong.”

Everything I feel for her is real. I admire the way she sticks to her ambitions, and I adore her little quirks, like how she bites her lip when she’s focused. The sound of her voice is music to my ears, and I could spend all day watching the flecks of gold in her eyes sparkle in the light. My heart nearly goes into cardiac arrest every time she laces her fingers through mine. I wish I could tell her all of that, but I can’t.

My vision was real too, and I have to do what I can to prevent it from taking place. If that means letting her go, then so be it. The stakes are too high. My aunt spoke of death as a gift, but it wouldn’t be like that for me. I’ve got too much more to do with my life to let go now.

“You’re not wrong. I do understand, more than you’ll ever know. But…” I bite my nail, considering what I want to say. “It’s never going to work out between you and me, Joelle. I want to be your friend. Hell, I want to be more than that, but I’ve got a lot of family responsibility, and it’s taking up all of my attention.”

“That sounds like an excuse.”

I clap my hand to my forehead and blurt out the words before I can take them back. “Look, I saw something in the cards.”

She pauses on the other end of the line. “What did you see?”

I tread carefully. “That first reading that I gave you told me more information than I let on, and I’ve been trying to make sense of it this whole time, but I can’t deny it anymore. We’re not meant to be in each other’s lives. You’re going to hurt me, so I can’t be around you.”

It’s vague as hell, and she won’t understand, but it’s the only explanation I can provide.