“It will probably be bad tonight, even with another visit from Witchety,” Andrew said. “Talking about it stirs it up. We couldn’t avoid that any longer, though, for obvious reasons. So…be careful.”

“We’ll show you what we know,” Ray said. “Help you make a plan for tonight. Help you prepare.”

Kant’s shaggy hair caught the window’s light as he nodded. “Right now, you should rest. You’re safe during daylight. Get some sleep while you can. If you don’t want to go back to the house, you’re welcome to stay here for a bit.” He glanced at the others. “There’ll be time to make plans later. Let’s give her some space.”

Ray and Andrew rose, gathering coats. Nora gently pressed Margot’s arm one final time, a small gift of comfort even when her words failed. They were at the door when Ray hesitated.

“Ah…” He cleared his throat. “I know this is probably too much all at once, but the funeral home called. I was supposed to pass on a message.”

“Later,” Kant said.

Margot swallowed. After the previous days, secrets felt like poison. “No. You can tell me.”

Ray glanced aside, then cleared his throat. “There was, uh…vandalism. Involving your parents’ graves.”

Someone from town, glad to see them gone? Her eyes burned. Someone who wanted to leave me a message?

“Tunnels were dug down to the caskets. The funeral director is having them removed for inspection now, but he’s pretty certain the bodies are missing.” Ray fidgeted, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. “He sounded deeply apologetic. Said he’s never had anything like this happen before.”

Margot’s stomach was in knots. She dug her uninjured hand’s fingernails into her upper arm, feeling the ache in the back of her consciousness. “That’s connected to the curse, isn’t it?”

“We’re not sure.” Kant spread his hands, then folded them again. “I’ve only been here during your parents’ time, and they didn’t tell me everything. There’s still a lot we don’t know. But yes, we suspect so.”

“Okay.” Margot clutched herself tighter. Nora, Ray, and Andrew filed out, leaving the door open.

Kant reached for something at his side. “You’ll have more questions,” he said. “I’ll get you a drink, and you can ask what you like, but then, if possible, you need to sleep. There might not be much peace tonight.”

He drew the object into the light. A prosthetic leg. Margot had felt overheated before, but now she just felt cold as she watched Kant roll up his jeans’ leg and fasten the prosthetic into place, below the knee.

“The curse did that to you, didn’t it,” she guessed.

His glance was brief but not cold. “The hill takes something from most of us eventually.”