“I don’t know the high witches here,” I said. “At least, not well enough to make this request.”
The only one I’d known well had been Harper. I swallowed down a lump in my throat at the thought of her.
I also knew Makena, but I had a sense she wasn’t the type of person to do anything for free.
“Do you think you can introduce me to one here in the Haven?” I asked. “One you know I can trust?”
“I don’t need to introduce you to a Haven high witch,” Rosella said simply. “Because there’s one you already know.”
I wracked my mind trying to think of a high witch I’d had an actual conversation with in my time in the Haven. But for the majority of the time I’d been here, I’d either been training with Raven, or sleeping. I’d met some witches in passing, but that was all.
“She’s not currently living in the Haven,” Rosella continued. “And you met her before going to Utopia.”
Where was I before going to Utopia?
Home.
“Shivani,” I said the name of the Haven high witch who was watching the café while we were gone.
“Yes.” Rosella nodded. “You’ll get to her. I don’t know how—since your magic isn’t strong enough for you to teleport—but I know you will.”
I reached for the chain around my neck. “I take it that means you don’t know about Hecate’s keys.”
I assumed not—since she wasn’t a witch—but it didn’t hurt to try. Maybe her future sight gave her insight that no one else had.
Rosella was quiet for a second. Then she shook her head, as if coming out of a daze. “I’m sorry,” she said. “What did you just say?”
“Hecate’s keys,” I tried again.
She said nothing. It was like she hadn’t heard me at all.
“You’re right,” I said, giving up. “I can figure out a way to get there on my own.”
“I know you will. But memory potion takes a bit of time to brew, so you should get going. You don’t want anyone to realize you’re gone. If they do, they might start asking questions.”
She was right. I’d never been a good liar, especially when it came to lying to Mira.
Which was why I needed to take the memory potion.
If I didn’t remember being in love with Ethan, then I wouldn’t have to lie about it. And I’d feel better, too. I wouldn’t have this aching hole in my heart that no one would ever be able to fill.
But that nagging feeling still tugged at my soul. The one asking if I truly wanted to forget the greatest love I’d ever known.
“I’m going to decide to take the potion, right?” I asked Rosella.
If I knew what I’d do, then I could stop wondering and worrying.
“The decision is yours, and yours alone,” she said. “If I tell you the future I see now, it could influence you to make a completely different decision. All you can do is what you feel is right. Not just for you, but for everyone involved.”
I cursed inwardly. Of course it couldn’t be as easy as her telling me the right choice to make.
“You best get a move on,” she said, and she stood up to see me out. “The clock is ticking, and time waits for no one.”
5
Gemma
Rosella said goodbye, and she closed the door, leaving me on her doorstep.
I reached for my key necklace and stared at the lock.
I needed to get this over with. I’d feel so much better after I did.
So I stuck the key into the lock, turned it, and stepped into the ivory hall of the Eternal Library.
Hecate wasn’t there. But I didn’t mind, since she wasn’t who I needed to see. Talking to her would waste time I didn’t have.
I turned back around and stared at the door I’d just come in through. Using the key was easy—I just had to picture the place where I wanted to go. And, other than my room at home, there was no easier place for me to picture than the café downstairs. The old wooden floorboards, the shelves of books that lined the walls, and the tables surrounded by chairs and sofas. It was warm and homey—nothing like the chain coffee shops people loved in the city. When people came to Twin Pines Café, it was to sit down, enjoy their drink, and appreciate the view of the ocean from the back porch or outside the window.
I could almost smell the fresh coffee.
When I stepped through the door, everything was just as I remembered. It was dinner time, so the evening crowd was enjoying their sandwiches and drinks, along with plenty of tourists who’d stopped by at the end of their scenic drive along John Astor Road.
“Gemma!” someone said from one of the couches near the bookshelves. “You’re back!”
My best friend from school, Jillian. She was up in a second, and nearly gave me a hug. Then she froze, her eyes running up and down my clothes.
“What are you wearing?” she asked.
I looked down at my Haven whites, feeling stupid for not remembering to change.
“Long story,” I said, and I hurried toward the door to the back room. As far as I knew, Shivani had told everyone that my family and I had moved in with relatives in New Zealand. I did not have time to coordinate with her cover story right now. “I’m only here for a bit. Sorry.”
I disappeared into the back room, not giving her time to ask any more questions.
Hopefully Shivani could make a memory potion for Jillian, so she’d forget I was there. Slip it in her coffee or something. The taste of the coffee was strong enough that it might be able to mask the potion, especially on someone who wasn’t expecting it.
I hurried upstairs to Mom’s room/office. Shivani was there on the computer, managing the bookkeeping, just like Mom would have been doing if we’d been home.
She looked up from the computer, startled. “Gemma,” she said, and she glanced around, checking to see if anyone else was there. “What are you doing here?”
“I need memory potion,” I said quickly. “And I don’t want anyone to know about it.”
“So you came to me.”
“Obviously.” I was so eager to get this over with that I could barely stand still.
“All right,” she said. “But if I’m making you memory potion, then I need to know what for.”
“It’s a long story,” I said, hating that I had to go over it again.
It hurt too much to repeat. Talking about it was like opening a fresh wound.
“Then I suggest you tell me quickly.” She leaned back and crossed her legs, clearly not going to budge. “Because I’m not making you a memory potion without knowing why I’m making you a memory potion.”
I paced around the room and summarized the situation as fast as I could.
Once I finished, Shivani’s expression was solemn. “I’m sorry for everything you’re going through,” she said. “And I’m more than happy to help. It’s just…”
My heart dropped. “Just what?”
“I’ve never heard of nightshade doing such a thing.”
“Oh.” I frowned.
“But memory potion works on all memories.” She forced brightness into her tone. “You have memories of these moments with Ethan. So it doesn’t seem illogical to think you can drink memory potion and erase the false memories.”