Page 19 of The Mist of Stars
“Holy crap, that storm picked up quickly,” I mutter, thinking about what my father said. Then I shake my head back to reality. “What if it wasn’t even a vision we went into? I mean, Alex proposed to me in it. How can that be the future?”
She gives a lazy sort of shrug. “I don’t know. You tell me.” When I give her an unimpressed stare, she sighs. “Look, even if it wasn’t a vision, this spell can help us figure it out. But I need to go to the store and get some supplies. Do you want to come with me?”
I eyeball the storm that’s going crazy just on the other side of the screen door. The tree branches are flailing around, leaves blowing through the air, and the rain is so thick that the houses across the street are barely visible. Thunder is booming, and lightning blazes across the sky, lighting up the clouds like some sort of strobe-light-obsessed club. But I’d rather go hang out with Aislin than sit here and obsess over everything that’s happened.
“Sure. Let me get my jacket.” I backtrack to my room, slip on my leather jacket, and then put on a beanie. Then Aislin and I head out.
We run to her Jeep, our boots splashing in the puddles. We’re fast, but even so, the bottom of my pants and my jacket are soaked by the time I hop in.
“Holy freakin’ troll babies,” Aislin says as she starts up the engine and flips the wipers on. She shudders as she swipes raindrops off her forehead with the back of her hand. “This storm is so crazy. And it came out of nowhere.”
“I know.” I reach for my seat belt. “My dad was acting weird about it earlier, too, and I got this feeling that he might’ve had a vision about it.”
With her hand resting on the steering wheel, she glances at me. “About the storm?”
I nod, fastening my seat belt. “Yeah. I don’t know what it was about, but that’s the vibe I got.”
“You didn’t ask him?”
“No. He never talks about the visions he sees. He says if he does, it could alter the future and make a big mess of it. I guess it’s like rule 101 in the foreseer world—never mess with visions or time reset.”
“They can time reset?”
“No, but there’s a device that can. Or so legends say. At least, according to my father.”
“That’s creepy.” She visibly shivers as she places her hand on the shifter. “What if we’re like in a world that’s been reset?”
“No, there’s no way.” Right? “Why would you say that?”
“No reason.” She shoves the shifter into reverse to back out of the driveway.
Aislin has never lied to me, but I have this feeling that she just did, but that doesn’t make any sense.
If time were ever reset, how would she know?
6GEMMA
The drive to the witch’s supply store is about fifteen minutes. We have to drive out of town and toward the surrounding mountains. At the base of the mountains is a small area where paranormal-like stores are located. Humans can’t see them due to a concealment spell cast over the space.
Once we arrive, we park as close as possible, which is close since no one is out and about, probably because of the storm.
“You know, they could put up a spell around this place to protect it from storms.” Aislin pockets her keys and zips up her jacket. “It’d make things way easier.”
“I wonder why they don’t,” I say, zipping up my own jacket.
“Probably because it’s a part of nature, and witches channel their power from it,” Aislin explains as she pushes the driver door open.
I follow, and then we sprint for the entrance.
The store is located in the middle of a row of other shops, ranging from bakeries to one that sells magical artifacts.
The bell dings as she throws the glass door open, and we rush in, breathing heavily as the rain seeps into the fabric of our clothes.
“You know, it wouldn’t suck as bad if it was at least warm outside.” I hug my arms around myself as shivers rack my body. “But it’s freezing.”
“Yeah, it’s way colder this year than in the past.” Aisin lowers her hoodie.
“That’s because the gods are punishing us.” A woman wearing a floor-length, emerald-green dress whisks through a doorway with beads dangling from the top. She has brown hair, and her eyes are the same color as the dress. Her makeup is flawlessly done, and her fingers are covered with rings.