Mr. Green gave me an odd look over the rims of his glasses, probably wondering why I’d focused on that, of all things. Whatever he saw in my face convinced him, though, and he finally shrugged. “It says, ‘We are the Hopeless’.”

  My breath seized in my chest, an icy lump of unease settling in my stomach. The words were morbid, sure, but they unnerved me to the bone and I had no idea why. I just knew something was very, very wrong. Why? Because those weren’t the words of a child. Or children.

  And when it came to Haven Hollow and all the supernatural power here, you could bet your butt that anything seemingly ‘strange’ was actually paranormal.

  The Hopeless…

  Could it be a curse? Maybe. Or a group of poltergeists or ghosts? Possibly.

  All I knew was that I needed to call Wanda, to see if she could sense any hinky magic going on. Bailey would be able to tell if there was a spiritual presence at the school, or even Darla could. Being a former ghost had left Darla a scarily strong medium in her second go at life. And she had a personal grudge against poltergeists.

  “Actually, Ms. Morton, I’m glad you stopped by today. I’d been meaning to talk to you about Finn.”

  That snapped me out of the spiral of my thoughts. “About Finn? What’s wrong?”

  Papers rustled as Mr. Green folded his hands on top of a pile of forms. “Well, as I said, we’ve been having a rather severe truancy issue lately. A handful of students, including Finn, have been skipping school for some time now. Even today, your son wasn’t at roll call this morning.”

  “That’s not possible.” I shook my head, my hair whipping around my shoulders with the force of the motion. “I just dropped him off myself. He’s here at school.” He’d even given me a half-hearted wave before trudging inside with his bag draped over one shoulder.

  Mr. Green’s lips tightened as he shook his head and fished around in the mess of papers on his desk to pull up another sheet. “This is the roll call sheet from this morning.” He turned it around so I could see it. “Do you see how other students have a check beside their name? That means they were present in class this morning.”

  He tapped the page by Finn’s name, and I could see clearly there was no check mark there.

  It didn’t make any sense and, I stared, open-mouthed, because I couldn’t wrap my head around it. I’d dropped Finn off just a few minutes ago! I’d watched him walk into the building. I told Mr. Green as much and he simply shrugged as if to say, ‘that’s great but he hasn’t been showing up.’

  Where was he going if it wasn’t to school every day?

  The principal ran his hand back through his thinning hair, looking tired and frustrated. “I’d been meaning to talk to you about Finn’s absences for some time, but with everything else going on with the school, I just haven’t had a chance. I’m glad you came in today, because if Finn has any more absences, he’s in danger of not passing the year, and I’d hate to have to hold him back.”

  All I could do was stare at him, my thoughts whirling.

  Shortly after we’d moved to Haven Hollow, a group of crazy Winter Fae had kidnapped Finn and a few other local children to use as bargaining chips to blackmail the town. Everyone had come together to get the kids back, but Finn had been traumatized by it all. He’d been stuck to me like glue for months afterwards.

  If something like that was going on again, then my son was in danger.

  It couldn’t be kidnapping, though, because he came home from school everyday—we worked on homework every night, for Pete’s sake! And that raised another good question—if Finn was skipping school, where was he getting assignments from?

  I almost blurted the question out loud, but the look on Mr. Green’s face stopped me. There was a kind of tired sympathy there, almost pity, and I realized it wouldn’t matter what I said. To him, I was a single mother struggling with a teen son who was acting out and cutting class. No matter what evidence I brought up, he’d just assume I was parroting lies Finn told me. There wouldn’t be any help from him.

  Somehow, I managed to thank Mr. Green for his time through numb lips. I couldn’t stop shaking, and I had to fold my arms over my chest to hide the tremble in my hands as I walked out of his office, down the hallway and out into the drab light of the sun which was obscured by dark clouds.

  What was going on? Where was Finn at this exact moment? Where had he been going and why? And why hadn’t he told me?

  It took me two tries to get my phone out of my pocket once I was outside, and even longer to get my shaking fingers to actually dial. I stood right there on the steps to the school, my legs jiggling uncontrollably with the need to move, to do something. The two rings it took for Wanda to answer stretched out to a lifetime.

  “Well, if it isn’t Poppy, the living rainbow,” Wanda’s voice drawled across the line. “What nauseatingly cheerful thing are you calling about this time? Is there a puppy parade I simply must see?”

  “Wanda.” My voice broke, and I had to swallow to keep the tears from taking over.

  Wanda paused, and when she spoke again, her voice was sharper, having lost the sarcastic lilt. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  My breath shook on the way out, but I held it together. Falling to pieces wouldn’t help Finn, and it would only annoy Wanda. “Can you do a scrying spell for me? I know they aren’t really reliable, but if you can just give me a general location to start looking, then I could call Roy. He’s good at finding people.”

  That was an understatement. Roy was a Sasquatch. As well as being bigger and way stronger and tougher than any human, he also had some seriously enhanced senses, and unlike Wanda’s squeeze, Lorcan, Roy could help during daylight hours. It would be awkward, asking for help, but I didn’t care. Roy loved Finn. He’d help, I knew he would.

  “Poppy, slow down.” Wanda’s voice cracked across the line like a whip. “A scrying spell for what? Who are you looking for?”

  “Finn,” I gasped. I had to clench my eyes shut tight to stop from crying. I could fall apart later when Finn was home safe, but he needed me to help him here and now. I had to get to the bottom of whatever the hell was going on with Finn and Ms. Rose and these absences and ‘The Hopeless’. “Finn is missing. Has been missing during the day for, God… I think it’s weeks? I don’t know what’s going on, or why he didn’t tell me.”

  “Poppy. Listen to me. Breathe, or you’re going to pass out and not be useful to anyone.”

  I took in a shuddering breath. Wanda wasn’t exactly kind, and she’d hex you bald if you accused her of being so, but there was a dependable kind of abrasiveness to her, and she had a core of iron—and it was that strength I needed right now. Her words helped me focus, helped me keep it together.

  “I’m going to send Astrid over to your house to get something of Finn’s, and we will attempt to scry his location. If there’s something supernatural involved though—”

  “Then they’ve probably hidden him magically.” Inhale, and exhale before I spoke again. At least it made the black spots crowding my vision fade. “I know. I just… we need to try.”

  “We’ll find him, Poppy.” Most people would have said it as a consolation. Wanda made it sound like a threat.

  I felt a little better, with Wanda in my corner. If there was something magical going on, having a witch as backup was the best way to go. And as witches went, Wanda was the most powerful one I knew.

  A thought popped into my head, a suspicion that I couldn’t shake off.

  “Hey, Wanda? What can you tell me about magicians? What can they do or what are they capable of?”

  “A magician?” A note of surprise threaded through Wanda’s voice. “You mean the traveling magician… the handsome one?” She sighed. “You think he has something to do with this?”

  I breathed in deeply. “I don’t know.”

  “A magician is a very uncommon breed of human that possesses and can wield magic. They’re even rarer than Gypsies.”

  “Are they… bad?”

  “No, if anything, they’re the opposite. They’re known mostly as protectors of children and the innocent, but they’ve been known to intervene with souls in desperate need, as well. They’re best known for keeping children from losing hope.”

  The tiny bit of doubt I’d been carrying around like a shard of ice in my heart melted away. The relief was staggering. I hadn’t been wrong to trust Andre. Whatever it was in me that recognized him so completely, that wanted to trust him, it probably wasn’t a trick or a trap. He and his book weren’t trying to hurt Finn, just as Finn had said.

  On the heels of that thought came an idea.

  My pulse pounded in my throat, so heavy I tasted metal on my tongue. I had to wet my lips before I could speak. “Can magicians find each other? Can they sense each other’s presence?”

  “I mean… I don’t know but I’d think so? Maybe?” Wanda said, slowly. “But I don’t know for sure.”

  A plan was taking shape in my head, and every nerve in my body started twitching to move, to get out there, to find my son before anything could happen to him. “Okay, thank you. I’ll call you back.”

  “Poppy, what—”

  I hung up before Wanda could finish her protest and called Roy. I’d have called the Half-Moon bar and grill, but it was hours too early for anyone to be there, and I couldn’t bear to wait a second longer. Besides, Roy was the owner, he’d probably booked the magic show himself. If any of them were likely to be able to contact Andre, it was him.

  “Poppy?” Roy’s voice sounded thick with sleep, and confusion. “Hey, how are you?”

  I stomped down hard on the twinge of guilt that tried to raise its head. This wasn’t the time for regrets. “Hey, Roy. Sorry to bother you so early. Do you have a phone number for the man who did the magic show at the Half-Moon the other day?”

  “Yeah.” There was a lengthy pause. “Why do you need it? Getting tired of Marty already?”

  I didn’t have time to get angry or unpack all of the shitshow that his question entailed, so I just ignored it. “Roy, please, Finn’s in trouble and I need to talk to Andre.”

  Roy’s tone immediately changed, and he suddenly sounded more awake and almost brusque when he spoke again. “Is Finn okay? Can I help?”

  “Yes, I need Alixandre’s phone number.”

  “Give me a second.”

  I couldn’t stop the wistful smile that curled the corner of my lips. Roy was a really good guy. I knew we weren’t right for each other, and that he had a destined mate in Fifi, who was just waiting for him to acknowledge her, but every once in a while he did something that reminded me why I’d been crazy about him in the first place.

  He gave me Andre’s number.

  “I’ll call you back when I know more,” I answered as relief suffused me. “And Roy?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Thank you.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Uncrossing Oil.

  Fiery Command Oil.

  A Banishment Potion.

  All of them went into the bag.

  I had no idea what I was going up against, but I wasn’t risking Finn’s safety by being under prepared. I’d do whatever I had to.

  The dark green bottle waiting on the counter seemed to call out to me, silver light flickering through it like a thunderstorm. Druid’s Curse. I’d never used it before, and hadn’t really imagined I’d find a use for it, but now I could see the appeal—it was a potion that was meant to allow one to gain power over others. It was a strong potion, and I’d need that strength if some monster had its claws in my son.

  I couldn’t believe it had been just yesterday that I’d brewed the Druid’s Curse with Astrid. I owed her one for that. Not that I’d ever tell her. If I encouraged her sneaky side, I was sure I’d live to regret it. Still, I was beyond grateful to have the potion on hand when I needed it most.

  Mint exploded across my tongue as I tipped the bottle to my lips. Rich, herbal flavor was chased by the smell of petrichor, wet earth and clean rain. I could feel every little mote of power in the potion as it trickled down my throat, filling my body with energy and tightening my focus like I was about to step into a dueling ground.

  For all I knew, I was.

  The bell over the door tinkled merrily as Andre stepped inside, looking cool and collected in his dark slacks and turtleneck sweater—he looked like someone had just airdropped him from the city streets of sophisticated London to the roads of Haven Hollow.

  Something in my chest relaxed as he strode towards the counter, as if I could finally take a full breath again. It didn’t make any sense. He was a stranger that I’d met all of three times, one of them being on stage or in a closet together, and our last meeting hadn’t ended well at all, because I’d completely gone crazy-mom on him. But now that he was here, all I felt was relief. It was this strange feeling that between the two of us, there wasn’t anything we couldn’t handle.

  And I still hadn’t even broached the topic of how he was able to visit me while I was dying in the emergency room or how it was his voice I’d heard while I was unconscious. But that was a conversation that would have to wait. It was just one of the many conversations that would have to wait.

  “Poppy,” he said in that deep and melodic voice, blue eyes searching my face. His accented words washed over my frayed nerves like a balm. “You weren’t very forthcoming over the phone. What’s going on?”

  I snatched up another couple of potions, slipping them into the padded sleeves of my bag. “Finn’s in trouble.”

  His expression fell. “What do you mean?”

  “He’s been uncomfortable about school for a while now, about one of his teachers in particular. I thought he was just struggling with math, or that he was too embarrassed to ask her for help.” I stopped myself from rambling, taking in a calming breath as I tried not to let everything rain down on top of me—if I let it do that, it would sink me.

  “Poppy,” Andre said, his voice washing over me like warm water. “Just breathe. It’s all going to be okay.”

  When I looked up at him, his smile was so serene, so kind, so full of promise.

  “Can you tell me what happened?” he continued, reaching out to take the bottles from my hands as he placed them on the counter, before returning his hands to my own. When he touched me, a feeling of almost static warmth embraced my fingers and judging from his eyes which suddenly widened, he was as surprised by the static as I was.

  “He didn’t want to talk to me about it,” I managed. “I figured it was because he’s now a teenager, and what teenage boy wants his mom in all his business? But this isn’t just a difficult teacher or trouble with math, Andre.” My fingers tightened around his and he returned the squeeze.

  “Then what is it?”

  “Cruelty,” I answered, feeling the sting of tears again. “His teacher saw the tattoo Finn got when he learned one of Vellum’s tricks… er, Ouire’s tricks…” Andre nodded and I could tell he wanted me to get to the point, because his eyes were narrowed and I was fairly sure he was holding his breath. “When she saw the mark on Finn’s hand, she tried to erase it. With steel wool.”

  Andre sucked in a furious breath and his grip on my hands almost became uncomfortable. “Is there more?” he managed.

  I nodded. “According to the principal, a bunch of kids have been skipping classes, and there’s been a lot of vandalism all over Finn’s school.”

  “Vandalism?”

  I nodded again. “Kids breaking things. Even graffiti. But the graffiti isn’t the normal rude sayings, words or pictures you might imagine a kid spraying.”

  Andre swallowed hard, and I had a feeling this information wasn’t all too surprising to him. “What does the graffiti say?”

  “We are the hopeless.”

  It was only because I was focusing so hard on Andre’s expression that I saw all the blood drain out of his face.

  That wasn’t a good sign.

  It was all I could do to keep from shaking or crying. I pushed back the burning threat of tears. Falling to pieces wouldn’t help Finn.

  “Finn’s been missing for most of the day, even though I dropped him off at school this morning and watched him go into the building. He’s not the kind of kid to miss class, not willingly, anyway.” I looked up to meet Andre’s eyes. It felt like a demand from within my own body, but even I didn’t know for what. Help? Reassurance? I wasn’t sure what I wanted him to give me.

  I took a deep breath and forced the words out. “I’m afraid something has control of my son.”

  “This teacher,” Andre said, and his lips were tight, his eyes almost predatory. “The one Finn’s been having trouble with. What’s her name?”

  The question caught me off guard, but I answered immediately, figuring Andre might know something I didn’t. “Ms. Rose.”

  No matter what the principal or his staff list said, Finn had been very clear on that part.

  Any remaining color fled Andre’s face, and he cursed softly under his breath. My heart pounded against the inside of my ribs like it was trying to kick its way free. Andre didn’t seem like the kind of man to curse for no reason. In fact, he didn’t seem like the kind of man who lost his composure—but now he was doing both.

  He raked a hand back through his black hair, dishevelling it. “You’re right to worry. If this teacher is who I suspect she is, then those children are in a great deal of danger.”

  My throat tightened like someone had yanked a noose around it and I had to lean against the counter so I didn’t lose my balance and topple against the floor. My heart was pounding in earnest and I felt dizzy with concern.

  “What is she?” I asked, my voice hollow.

  With a sigh, Andre braced his hands against the counter and shook his head, and from the expression on his face, I could read how serious this situation was.

  “Regina Rose was another magician, once upon a time. But she went dark.”

  “What… what does that mean?”

  He turned to face me and tried to give me a consoling smile, but failed. “When magicians lose their way and cross over, they become what’s called ‘the Magicless’, they become beings that take hope instead of inspiring it.” He took another deep breath and started pacing in front of me, still running a hand through his hair. “In the short term, their presence will make children ill. But it only gets worse from there.”