Think. I get the feeling that Sage would explain everything, but all I have is my mom, and she’s made it very clear that she will not be discussing her past with me. How about the aunts? Will they let me in, or will they honor my mom’s wishes?

I stare up. Stars spatter the sky, and the ghostly shadows of the houses around me stand like sentinels. Where do I go from here?

If only I could talk to my past mom. The one who decorated things in glitter and wrote magical spells with her twin sister. Would she let me in? What could have possibly happened that was worse than what she already told me about her mother?

And then it hits me. The Book of Shadows. That’s how I’m going to figure this out. That’s why Poppy gave me the key in the first place. To give me a starting point. I’d been reading a story literally titled Bell Family when Bea called. The story Violet told me to find.

The story began, as many stories do…

Are my answers in there?

A certainty burns through me. Before I can lose my nerve, I rush back into the house.