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That would explain the bushiness of her brows…

"And a rather old one at that My name is Marcilla Marcilla, of the Brownback tribe, from The Woodlands"

The Woodlands The realm of the olves, where I had visited briefly

So the fae are stealing ghosts away froh there were still hundredsfrom information overload I needed to first process what I’d learned so far

"Thank you, Marcilla, for answering my questions," I said

"You’re welcome… Joseph, I believe the witch called you?"

I didn’t bother to correct her withback The rest of the ghosts in the pond were still silent, eyeing h they had wanted the conversation to continue I guessed the drama that followed the arrival of a new recruit was the only entertainment they had all day

Now I needed to be alone Alone withmy mother, sister and River back in that oracle’s cave had sparked a fire withinto escape, no matter what the pain or sacrifice I had to I’d made a promise to River, and I intended to keep it, no matter how impossible it seemed

On the subject of the oracle… damn the wouous wording, I probably wouldn’t have bothered to float through the tunnel walls I probably would have followedfro had been the faint possibility she’d planted with that one little devious answer…

"You’re tellingme back to my old life?"

"I never said it would," she’d countered "Though I never said it wouldn’t, either"

I hadn’t even been aware at the ti on my subconscious But now I saw it all Why else would I have bothered venturing through the tunnel walls when I’d already been told that "the other side" lay somewhere beyond theht to blindly follow the oracle’s suggestion, and trust that I would be better off for it