After I said goodbye to Mason, I’d crept back into the hotel room, trying to imagine what my mom would be doing post–dramatic visit to the willow tree. Sobbing into a fluffy hotel room pillow? Writing her innermost thoughts in a diary? Eating a pint of ice cream while watching reality TV?

I was prepared for nearly anything except for what I actually found her doing—which was sitting at her desk, laptop open, binder spread out in front of her.

She was working. Like nothing even happened.

I’d done a quick sweep of her room, ready to spot evidence of the woman kneeling at the willow tree, but everything was exactly the way it was when I left for the moon ceremony. Even her shoes were lined up the same way at the door, which made my entire system flood with frustration. How am I supposed to ever feel close to her when she’s this committed to hiding her inner life?

This time, I wasn’t having it. I’d flopped onto her bed, aiming pointed questions at her. “So you stayed in working? You didn’t go out at all?”

Her shoulders had fallen forward slightly, and for a moment I thought she might confess to something—anything—but then she said, “Phoebe has been looking into how quickly we could manage an estate sale. It shouldn’t take long.”

Sage’s magical rooms had crowded my mind, setting off a typhoon in my chest. The house was the only place I’d felt at home in years now, and she was going to liquidate it? I’d sat up in shock.

“But, Mom… don’t you think you should take some time to think about it? Or at least… go inside? What if there’s something you want?” We’d come all this way, hadn’t we?

She’d pulled off her glasses, rubbing her eyes wearily. “I can say with absolute confidence that there is nothing in there I want. If I never see Salem again, it will be too soon.”

Her voice was strained, but even so, it felt like a tiny glimmer of an opening, so I’d attempted to pry a bit more. “Mom, why do you hate it here so much? Is it because of the aunts? Are you embarrassed that they’re witches?”

She’d laughed aloud. “Of course not. Magic and I have always had a complicated relationship, but I think everyone finds it in their own way. I may not believe in spell casting and moon ceremonies like the aunts do, but sometimes I feel like things work out in a way that I can’t account for with logic.”