Page 40 of An Oath at Midnight

“Of course, it is.” She chuckled. “You’re not nearly as jumpy as your sister.”

“You met her after being sheltered and sick for most of her life. You wouldn’t recognize her now,” I said, giving more information than I should to this witch, but I truly didn’t think she was as bad as everyone thought, the possible cannibalism aside.

Bram roared my name again, and goose bumps lifted all over me.

“You know why the fates chose a crow as your familiar, don’t you?” she asked.

“No, but I’m glad they did.” Her gaze remained steady on me. “Is this the part where you tell me?”

“You already know, Magnolia, but whatever, I’ll humor you.” Her gaze sharpened. “They chose a crow because they have an innate darkness in them. They’re born with it, and so were you. Your own darkness grew, though, and changed, after whatever it was that caused those scars all over your body. And your male?” She chuckled. “Well, there’s a reason a group of crows is called a murder.”

I stilled. “What do you mean?”

She motioned to my tea, and I quickly took another sip.

“The mother called you,” Agatheena said, ignoring my question and changing the subject.

I forced myself to meet her shrewd gaze. “How do you know that?”

Her lips curled up, and those sharp teeth had me biting back my next words.

“I know a lot of things,” she said. “You’re very impertinent for someone so much weaker than me. You’re lucky I like you, Magnolia Thornheart.”

There was a tone to her voice that said she was humoring me, that if I pissed her off, she’d cut out my tongue, or some other part, going by her choice of home decor. “According to my sisters, I have a death wish and anger issues,” I said, gripping my mug tighter.

“Are they right?” she asked.

“Probably.”

She laughed again, and I guessed as long as she found me amusing, I’d be okay. Bram roared, so loud my scalp prickled. I needed to get out of here. I took another sip of my tea, and she nodded her approval. This whole thing was so freaking weird.

“Your task, it’ll be a test of strength—magical, physical, but mostly…” She tapped the side of her head. “But mostly a test of what’s in here. Are you mentally strong, Magnolia? Because you’ll need to be.” She shot out of her seat and pressed a finger against the center of my chest. “And in here. Your heart will need to be sure, true.”

What did that even mean? I blinked up at her when she stayed where she was, standing over me. This close she was even more terrifying, especially when one of her pointed claw-like nails was digging into my chest. I assumed she was waiting for a response. So I nodded.

She pulled her hand back and sat. “If you’re not, and you fail, you’ll not only hurt your coven but you’ll lose everything and everyone you care about.” Her green eyes burned into me. “Including the crow.”

Fear filled me, so frigid it chilled me to the bone. “What do I need to do?”

“That darkness inside you, Magnolia, you can’t deny it, not anymore. You couldn’t even if you wanted to. It’s too late.” She didn’t look away. “If you accept it, if you loosen the binding you have around it, it can help you control that rage burning inside you that’s been burning for so long. But you need to be very careful. The spells you’ve created, they’re potent, but you already know that. Do you know why?”

I shook my head.

“Because they were created with hate in your heart, with rage and thoughts of vengeance burned into your soul. That’s the quickest way into darkness.”

She was right. That’s exactly how I’d created my spells and potions, every one of them in my book, I’d written in a frenzy of emotion, usually anger, and always pain.

She covered my hand with hers. “The darkness can be your friend…or it can be your enemy. But like any new acquaintance, you must be on your guard. Don’t trust it easily. It’ll lie to you, flatter you, try to bring you closer, to tip the scales. Only the strongest can walk the path between dark and light. Only the strongest can dip their toe into a pool of terrors and walk away only missing that one toe.”

“And the others, those not strong enough?” I held my breath.

“They become one of the terrors.”

CHAPTER 10

Magnolia

I walked out of the cottage, my mind racing as Agatheena’s words, her warnings, flew through my head.