Chapter 4

The color drained from Mom's face.

"She's doing homework in her room." She avoided Grandma's eyes and fussed with the silver ribbons on the table.

Grandma said nothing. She only watched her.

"Homework? I'll go see her."

"Mom!"

Mom hurried to stop her. "Wren was throwing a tantrum. I was afraid she'd upset Celia, so I put her in the basement storage room to think about her behavior."

Grandma stopped moving.

"You did what?" she asked, each word distinct. "You locked Wren in the basement?"

"She kept claiming she was sick and pounding on the door. She knew tonight was Celia's last..."

Mom's voice dwindled until even she could no longer defend herself.

Grandma's expression darkened. She rose so quickly that she swayed. When Mom reached to steady her, she shoved the hand away.

"Laura! Wren is your daughter too. I know Celia has suffered. She was born carrying that damned Moon-Debt Curse, and you have spent sixteen years fearing you would lose her. You wanted to place every good thing in the world at her feet. But what about Wren? Do you think she hasn't suffered?"

Tears filled Grandma's eyes as her voice rose.

"What has she ever received? Celia's old clothes. Food Celia couldn't finish. Even your love had to wait until Celia no longer needed it before Wren was allowed a share."

"Mom, that isn't true," Mom tried to protest, but her voice lacked conviction.

"Both girls are good children," Grandma snapped. "Celia did nothing wrong, and neither did Wren. You took your fear and turned it into favoritism. The Moon Goddess marked Celia with a curse. That did not give you permission to treat your other daughter as if she did not exist."

Mom collapsed into a chair and covered her face.

Grandma turned toward the basement, but Dad stepped into the hallway and blocked her path.

"Mom, Wren had enough strength to argue with us earlier. I brought her food. She'll be fine."

"Then open the door," Grandma said coldly. "Let her out now."

Dad glanced at Celia's closed bedroom door. "Wait a few more hours. The countdown is almost over. If Wren comes out and starts shouting again, Celia won't even have peace on her final night."

Grandma stared at her son in disbelief.

"You may be denying those sisters their final chance to see each other. Celia has protected Wren her whole life. Do you want her to die with that regret?"

"I only want Celia to spend tonight peacefully," Mom sobbed through her fingers. "I don't want Wren upsetting her again."

Grandma argued with them for a long time. Dad refused to surrender the key. He promised again and again that he would release me at dawn.

Grandma did not leave. Instead, she sat on the floor outside the basement room.

"Wren, Grandma is here," she said through the locked door. "Don't be afraid. I'll stay with you."

Tears slipped down my face.

Grandma did not know that only my spirit remained to keep her company on the other side.

Time passed. The moon-shaped candles burned away, and the house sank into darkness. Outside, the sky faded from midnight blue to gray. The first rays of dawn shone through the windows and lit the dust floating in the air.

A faint sound came from Celia's bedroom.

Everyone looked up.

Grandma rose and approached the door. She lifted her hand to knock, but it hovered there for a long moment.

"Celia," she finally whispered. "It's time to wake up."

Footsteps sounded inside. The door opened slowly.

Celia stood there in a silver-blue nightgown. Her face was still pale, but her eyes were bright.

"Grandma. Mom. Dad."

She gave them a small smile.

Mom leaped to her feet and crushed Celia against her chest as though trying to pull her into her own bones. Dad came forward too, touching her face with a shaking hand.

"Celia," Mom choked out. "You're alive."

Celia looked above her head. The black countdown that had haunted her for sixteen years was gone. She closed her eyes and searched inside herself. Her wolf spirit was still there, alive and whole.

"I'm all right, Mom." She patted Mom's back. "The countdown disappeared. I survived."

Dad fell to his knees and covered his face, sobbing with relief. Mom held Celia and thanked the Moon Goddess over and over.

Grandma stared at the empty space above Celia. There was little joy on her face. Instead, she seemed to sense something none of the others had understood.

Suddenly, she spun toward the basement.

"Wren! Let Wren out!"

Only then did our parents remember that they had left me locked away all night.

They laughed through their tears.

"Yes, Wren is still downstairs. We have to tell her Celia is safe. Our family can finally live a normal life."

Mom took Celia's hand while Dad grabbed the key and hurried toward the basement. The joy of people who believed they had escaped death still shone on all their faces.

Dad unlocked the storage room and pushed the door open.

He stopped.

The thick, bitter scent of wolfsbane rolled out of the dark, freezing room.

The smile vanished from his face. He stared into the far corner, his entire body beginning to shake.

"We were wrong," he whispered, stumbling backward. His voice was so broken I could barely hear it. "We were wrong."