Alexei held his delicate, new daughter in his hands and said to her fiercely, “I will be the best father you could ever hope to have.”
That moment. That one moment was everything.
After the first of the year, Sarah stopped accepting treatment of any kind. When Molly, Alexei, and her nephew Sam protested, she enfolded each in a hug.
“I’m done,” she said. “I wanted to hold that new little baby and to ring in the New Year, and I’m so glad I did. But you need to understand I’m ready to go. Death has been waiting for me for a very long time, and there’s something on the other side. I don’t know what it is. None of us do, but I’m excited to see it.”
“God, when you put it like that,” Molly exploded. She had to walk away while her eyes sprang another leak. Once again, when she didn’t mean to be, Sarah was still her best teacher.
Sarah died in late January, slipping out of her body from one breath to the next. Everyone knew it was coming. The coven had kept a bedside vigil so she wouldn’t face the crossing alone.
No matter how Molly had tried to brace herself—no matter how well in advance she knew it was coming—she was still utterly devastated.
Everything had been decided, the end-of-life business done. The coven had accepted Molly as Sarah’s successor. Alexei and Molly had already purchased the grand old Victorian house, and Sarah had transferred her liquid assets to Sam. Sarah had handed the mantle of the coven’s protection spells to Molly. The only thing that remained was the hardest part.
They scattered Sarah’s ashes just as she wished, on the bluff overlooking the ocean. Hundreds of people came to pay their respects and celebrate Sarah’s life. Flowers, donations, and notes of condolences came from every one of the grand families in the witches demesne in Louisville.
Molly did everything she could that day to the best of her ability, all with a broken heart. At one point, Alexei found her hiding in their bathroom.
“Everything’s all right,” she sobbed. “I just can’t stop crying.”
He said nothing, wise man that he was, and just folded her in his arms.
Finally, when the day was over, Molly went to sit in Sarah’s bedroom in the old chair by the empty bed while Alexei took Elisa upstairs to tend to her.
A knock sounded at the open door, and Molly looked up. Sam stood in the doorway, holding a leather-bound book in his arms. He gave her a smile. He was as red-eyed as she was.
“I’m sorry, Sam.” Molly wiped her eyes. “I thought you’d already left.”
“Not yet—don’t get up. I was just heading out, but I had one last thing to do.” Walking over, he offered the book. “Sarah wanted me to give this to you once the memorial was over.”
She accepted it with a murmured thanks. “You know, we might have bought this place, but you’re still welcome here anytime, Sam. Come for dinner next week.”
“That sounds good. I’d really like that. Get some rest, will you?”
“You too.”
Sam kissed her forehead, then left, and the house settled into peacefulness. The floorboards creaked as Alexei walked with Elisa in her bedroom. Molly listened, breathing deeply. The house loved having a baby again, and it always knew when everything was all right.
After a time, she relaxed enough to sit back in the chair. Alexei walked in, carrying one of the chairs from the other room. Setting it beside her, he sat and rested a hand on her knee.
She gave him a lopsided smile, and then her attention turned to the leather-bound book in her lap.
She opened it to the first page. It was dated in the spring from two years ago, and written in Sarah’s strong, steady hand.
My dear,
At some point in the future, you are coming into my life, and I don’t know yet who you are, but I love you already. From time to time I can see glimpses of you. They shine like bright fireflies on a warm summer evening.
I wish I could tell you what I see, that you are stronger than you know, more kind than you realize, and so much more powerful than you believe. You are good, whole, and perfect, just the way you are. You always have been, and the people in your life—the people you are even now getting ready to leave—should have told you so. Their loss is my gain.
I’ve discovered we’re not going to have as much time together as I would have wished, so I thought I would use this book to jot things down as I think of them. That way I can visit with you as much as possible before you ever appear. These are just notes, so use them or not as you need.
You’re coming into your Power, and it is such a strange, lovely time of transcendence, but it can be frightening too. The most important thing—the only important thing—is to remember that your Power lies within you. It’s not out in the ether, it does not belong to anyone else, and you can’t give it away.
Nobody can steal that from you. No matter what anybody else does, or what happens in the world around you, that Power is yours, completely and forever.
All you have to do is claim it.
All my love,
Sarah
With a light finger, Molly touched Sarah’s signature on the page. Then, rocking gently in the old, comfortable chair, she turned the page and began to read.