“You found a violet witch book?” Bri asked as Lina left the bookshelf, adjusting her chest one more time before stepping up beside them.

“We found a notebook,” Carys replied, shaking her head. “Come look.”

Bri hung her head in resignation, trying to ignore the sounds of ecstasy that still sang in her mind. For once, she looked forward to nightfall.

Chapter 28

Chapter Twenty-Eight

The group gathered around Cole, who stood leaning against a high table. His fingers traced line after line of text, his mouth agape. The midday sun highlighted him against the open doorway, revealing his paling face and widening eyes.

“What’s this journal?” Lina asked, reaching the other side of the table.

Bern shot her a look, a mischievous grin pulling up on his lips. So it wasn’t a secret at all, then. Everyone knew.

“It’s incredible,” Cole murmured, flipping to the first page and showing them the name.

“Adisa Monroe,” Bri read out. “Who’s that?”

“You remember that great-great-grandmother I was telling you about?” Cole’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline. “This is her. This is her journal!”

“It seems the witches collected all manner of witch relics here,” Neelo said, looking down the stacks. “Like a memorial to their old way of life.”

“I found a room of children’s books in the western wing,” Bri whispered. “It was eerie.”

“This journal was in an alcove on the main floor, just sitting right there.” Cole pointed to the side without looking up from the notebook. “Bern found it. I can’t believe it’s here.”

“You said she was a famous witch,” Carys said. “It makes sense that they would keep it.”

“She was a violet witch, after all.” Cole swallowed, his cheeks staining red as emotion overcame him. “I always thought my mother was joking, bragging about this violet witch ancestor but . . . but it’s really true.”

“So you’re part violet witch?” Bern cocked his head.

“Maybe that’s why you have such an interest in concocting new potions,” Lina said with a smirk. “It’s in your blood.”

“Enough to cast violet witch spells?” Carys asked, drawing looks from the group. “What? How far down the bloodline does this violet witch magic go? If he could wield it, maybe there are others out there who could too.”

“It’s hard to read her handwriting,” Cole said. “It’s written in very old Mhenbic, but it looks like this is the journal where she kept the notes about her potions. It’ll take me some time to decipher it all.”

“We should keep looking for more while you read this.” Carys nodded. “You’re the only one who can fluently read Mhenbic.”

“I can read Mhenbic,” Neelo said, arching their brow. “You can’t?”

“I can understand it . . . mostly,” Carys said with a frown. “But reading the words on the page is more difficult.”