“The hunters died,” Cassie said, still hardly able to believe it herself. “The spell killed them all, even Max’s dad.”
Her mother’s naturally pale skin appeared to whiten. She pitched forward, ignoring the pancake currently sizzling and smoking in the pan, and motioned Cassie to continue.
“Now the whole Circle is possessed. To perform the curse, we had to call upon Black John’s ancestors, and they’ve taken hold of everyone and won’t let go. I’ve been poring through Black John’s book trying to find a way to save them, but I haven’t been able to find anything remotely helpful.”
“I told you to leave that book alone.” Her mother’s voice sounded severe, like a scolding. She turned off the stove and abandoned her pancake batter, then reached for a dish towel and wiped off her hands. She was quiet for a few seconds, twisting the towel sorrowfully in her fingers.
Cassie knew she should have listened about not touching her father’s book. Maybe her mother thought she’d gotten what she deserved.
But when she finally looked up, the only emotion on her mother’s face was concern. “Is it awful that all I can think right now is how happy I am that you’re okay?” she said. Her long dark hair framed her face like a shroud.
“That’s one way of looking at it,” Cassie said, but the look she gave her mom betrayed her true concern.
“Possession is serious, Cassie. If there’s a way to save your friends, it won’t come easy, and you surely can’t do it alone.”
Cassie’s heart sank like a heavy stone.
An odd expression crossed her mother’s face, a flash of discomfort, of pain. “There’s a man,” she said. “On the mainland. In Concord. He used to live in New Salem a long time ago.”
Cassie waited for her mother to say more, but she didn’t.
“Who is he?” As far as Cassie knew, her mother had broken ties with everyone from her past days in New Salem.
“Last I heard, he was the head librarian at a research institute that specializes in the occult.” Her mother began cleaning up—something she always did when she was ill at ease. “He may know something.”
“Why haven’t you ever mentioned him before?” Cassie asked.
Her mother averted her eyes. “We didn’t exactly part on the best of terms.”
“But you think he can help?”
“If there’s a man alive who knows how to perform an exorcism, it’s him.”
Exorcism, Cassie thought. Just the word brought a shiver to her spine. She imagined heads whirling around like spinning tops, projectile vomiting. Was that what was in store for the people she loved most?
“He’s a scholar, an academic,” her mother said. “Not a priest or anything like that. His name is Timothy Dent.”
She focused on the task of collecting the broken eggshells from the countertop and dropping them into the trash. “We should go see him right away. The more time that passes, the worse it’ll be for your friends.”
Cassie took a sip of her mother’s cup of coffee and found that it had already become cold.
“Have a little more to eat.” Her mother placed a plate of pancakes and a bottle of maple syrup on the table in front of Cassie and handed her a fork and knife. “You can’t help anyone else if you don’t take care of yourself first.”
Cassie nodded, but the last person she was thinking of right now was herself.
CHAPTER 2
Cassie’s mother waited in the car while Cassie ran inside the Cup for two to-go cappuccinos and some biscotti for the road. She opened the door to the coffee shop with a shakiness she couldn’t name—part exhaustion, part dread. Why was her mother so tight-lipped about this man they were going to see? Her stomach felt too queasy for biscotti.
Once inside the shop, she inhaled a deep breath of coffee-scented air and tried to steer her feelings toward hope. The Cup was crowded as usual, which gave her a few minutes to collect herself. She observed the line of people waiting at the counter: a twenty-something girl yapping on her cell phone, a taller, older woman deliberating over apple or strawberry rhubarb pie. Then Cassie spotted broad shoulders beneath a black T-shirt that she recognized instantly—Max. Her breath caught in her throat.
With everything that had happened, it was hard for Cassie to believe that only a few hours before she’d seen Max at the caves, where he’d watched his fellow hunters fall dead at the hands of the Circle. Cassie knew she would never be able to forget the way Max passed his eyes over each member of the Circle as his father breathed his last breath in his arms. How he’d glared at Diana, threatening her not to follow him, before running from the cave and disappearing into the night.
As if sensing her gaze, Max turned around and locked eyes with Cassie. He froze, his face reddened, and then he quickly ducked off line and headed for the exit.
“Max, wait,” Cassie called out, chasing after him without knowing what she would actually say if she caught him.
Max stormed through the bodies obstructing his way toward the door, trying to make a quick escape. In his haste, he bumped into a double-seat baby carriage. It was just the holdup Cassie needed. She reached out and caught him by the bicep.