Peach Pies and Alibis (31 page)

“This whole scene feels ancient.” Ella Mae stared at the wooden dishes and clay cups.

“Our origins are just that. Ancient,” her mother replied, pouring two cups of wine.
“A toast. To your first harvest.”

The two women clinked rims and then Ella Mae drank. The wine was like nothing she’d
ever tasted before. It was as smooth and sweet as honey, but also tasted of the forest—earthy
and rich and very, very old. The drink came to life in her belly, sending tendrils
of warmth all over her body. For an instant, she could see silvery orbs of light hovering
about the heads of the people in the clearing. They looked like half moons. But when
she blinked, they were gone.

Everywhere she turned, there were familiar faces. She saw people she regularly bumped
into at the grocery store, the farmer’s market, the post office, or the bank. She
saw neighbors, customers, and fellow churchgoers. There were lots of strangers too.
She knew that people had traveled from distant parts of Georgia to attend the harvest,
but she was in awe of how many of her kind were present.

“Long time no see!” a woman said from behind her, and Ella Mae swiveled to find Suzy
smiling at her. Her pale hair glowed in the moonlight, looking as silver as her dress,
and her eyes shone like a sea reflecting a sky full of stars.

“Oh! I am so glad you’re here.” Ella Mae hugged her friend. “Now I don’t have to keep
any secrets from you.”

Suzy offered her an apricot. “Then I should start off by telling you that our grove
in North Carolina was turned into a subdivision called Ashtree Commons. That’s the
main reason I moved to Havenwood. The stuff about getting away from a guy was true
too.”

“I’d have to guess that your talents have something to do with books.”

“Yes, though it’s not obvious because Suzanne’s my middle name and means ‘lily,’ like
the flower. But my first name is Mneme. In ancient Greece, she was the muse of memory.
I can remember anything I’ve read in a book and I try to use my knowledge to help
women. Lilies are the flowers of motherhood and childbirth and all that good, girly
stuff, so when you put the two names together, I’m kind of like a female fount of
knowledge.”

Ella Mae was impressed. “Wow. That is so cool. And useful. I’d love to figure out
how I could do more to change people’s lives for the better.”

“Word is that you’ve just been Awakened. It’ll take some time for you to know the
extent of your powers. Besides, it’s no small gift to be able to make enchanted food.”
She waved her hand around the grove. “No one’s been Awakened at our
age, so you’re all anyone can talk about tonight. Other than wondering where the new
Lady is.”

At the mention of the new Lady, the silvery wash of light lost its sparkle for a moment.
Ella Mae turned, seeking the ash tree at the heart of the glade. The Lady of the Ash
was more stooped than before, and there were only a handful of leaves on her branches.
Several people were standing in a ring around her trunk. They had one hand placed
against her peeling bark and were holding on to each other with their free hands.

Suzy followed her gaze. “They’re saying good-bye. The Lady can talk to them now. Her
voice will be really strong and clear in their minds right before she passes. It’s
really beautiful. She tells them all the things they’ve done to make her proud and
what they need to do to continue to serve our kind. Then she’ll sing them an ancient
song of parting, which takes away their sorrow, and she’ll be gone.”

Ella Mae searched the crowd for the Gaynors but didn’t see Opal, Loralyn, or Tilda
anywhere. “Where are they?” she asked aloud, scanning the faces as a feeling of alarm
began to take root in the pit of her belly.

Suddenly, her mother was there by her side. “Tilda Gaynor’s been bitten by a black
widow spider. She’ll live, but she won’t be coming to the grove. We have no Lady.”
She shot a fearful look at the fragile ash tree. A haunting song floated from its
branches and drifted over the grove. Everyone fell silent.

“This is the end,” her mother whispered.

Ella Mae knew that she wasn’t talking about the last minutes of the Lady’s life. This
was the end of their magic too. The end of everything. And just when Ella Mae had
been hoping for a new beginning.

Ella Mae knew that she’d look back on the next few moments for the rest of her life.
She’d constantly wonder if she could have done something to change the outcome. If
she could have spoken powerful words or clung to her mother’s arm to prevent her from
moving. Had she known what was to happen, would she have had the courage to sacrifice
herself? To put herself in her mother’s place?

But Ella Mae did nothing. She stood still, watching in mute dread as the Gaynors pushed
their way through the crowd of magical beings. Already, the silver coronas Ella Mae
had seen around every head were becoming dim. The sweet and haunting melodies drifting
through the glade were growing faint, and the platters of plump, ripe fruit on the
banquet table had lost their luster.

“YOU!”
Opal Gaynor shrieked upon seeing Ella Mae. Her eyes were wild with fear and desperation.
Like everyone around them, she could feel her magic ebbing away. But she
was clearly shocked by Ella Mae’s presence in the sacred grove as well.

Ella Mae’s mother took a step closer to her, as if to shield her daughter from Opal’s
crazed glare.

“It can’t be!” Loralyn shoved past a couple holding hands. Ella Mae barely registered
that it was Kelly and Noel before Loralyn began shouting. “You? You’re not one of
us! You’re nothing!” She wore a look of naked hatred.

“The Lady!” someone cried. “She’s about to leave us!”

Opal swung around to stare in horror at the shriveled tree. “Ella Mae LeFaye should
take her place!” she yelled loud enough for everyone to hear. It was easy enough to
do because the grove was eerily silent. Only the low murmur of the Lady’s song drifted
through the crowd, spellbinding many into a hypnotic state. Ella Mae realized that
most of her kind didn’t realize that their powers were about to disappear forever.
The Lady’s song was supposed to fill those around her with peace, and that’s exactly
what it was doing.

But Ella Mae didn’t feel tranquil at all. And Opal’s words tore through her like a
lightning bolt. “What?” she asked, stunned. “Me?”

“No!” Her mother thrust out an arm as if to protect Ella Mae.

Opal strode forward, her cold and desperate gaze never leaving Ella Mae’s face. “She
could be the Clover Queen!” she declared at the top of her lungs. “She comes to her
gifts late in life. She was born the night of the spring equinox and is the child
of two magical parents! She might be the one we’ve been waiting for! She should accept
her fate and serve us! She should become the Lady and save us!”

People began to stir from their stupor. Murmuring broke out around the table, and
Ella Mae felt eyes on her. Too many eyes. Silently wondering. Hoping.

Her mother turned her back on all of them and took Ella Mae’s face in her hands.

“Look at me, Daughter. See only me.”

Ella Mae wanted to ask what Opal Gaynor was talking about, but she responded to the
gentle command in her mother’s tone and met her eyes.

“I am so proud of you, Ella Mae. You have been my greatest achievement. Your father
would have loved you dearly. As I do.” Her hands moved over Ella Mae’s hair, her fingers
passing through the silky locks, moving downward until they came to rest on Ella Mae’s
shoulders. “I love you so much. I need you to believe that. Your coming home allowed
my heart to open and bloom like a rose. You taught me about hope and joy and the true
meaning of family. I will always be with you, Ella Mae. Do not despair. I will always
be here when you need me.” Her hands fell away. “I love you, my sweet girl. Always.”

And then she kissed Ella Mae’s cheek, her lips as soft and cool as a snowflake, and
began to run.

“NO!” Opal shrieked again.

Ella Mae’s entire body felt leaden. By the time she realized what her mother intended
to do, she was too far away to stop her. A guttural cry welled up inside her, and
she ran toward the dying ash tree. The song had ceased and the Lady’s family had broken
their chain. They moved out of the way so that Ella Mae’s mother could press her back
against the peeling bark and spread her arms wide. She lifted her proud chin, and
her long hair came loose from the clasp at the nape of her neck and cascaded down
her shoulders, the black woven with strands of silver snagging on the rough pieces
of bark.

There was such a profound stillness in the grove that time seemed to have frozen.

“Accept me, my brothers and sisters. Accept my offer of service. I vow to be worthy.
I vow to keep you strong and lead you down the straightest path. I pledge my body
and my future to you. Take me if you will.”

“We accept!” a dozen voices replied in unison.

Ella Mae shouted “NO!” at the same time, but her protest was lost in the din.

A white light shot up from the ground and washed over Adelaide LeFaye. It was so intensely
bright that Ella Mae instinctively threw up a hand to shield her face. Alongside her,
her aunts did the same.

“Stop her!”
Ella Mae sobbed. She saw the tears streaming down her aunts’ cheeks. She saw the
despair in their eyes.
“Save her!”

Verena just shook her head and wept.

The light lost its searing edge. Ella Mae lowered her hand and watched in horrified
fascination as the trunk of the ash tree absorbed her mother’s body. It happened quickly
and gracefully. One moment, her mother was suspended on top of the bark, and the next,
she went under its surface as if she were sinking into a pool of water.

The tree immediately lost its aged appearance. It grew taller before their eyes, and
leaves sprouted along every branch. The bark turned smooth and the limbs straight
and strong. And then, without warning, thousands of fireflies descended from the sky
and covered every inch of the tree with their ethereal glow.

“NO!” Ella Mae called out. Before the fireflies landed, she could still see the outline
of her mother’s figure. Now, the moving, glowing swarm obscured her view, and panic
gripped her heart like a vise.

This can’t be happening!
she thought, unable to push the words out. There was no breath in her lungs. There
was only the luminescent ash tree and the empty place beside her where her mother
had once stood.
This can’t be happening!

She stumbled over to the tree, and when she reached out to touch it, the fireflies
parted.

“Mom,” she whimpered. “Not you. Please. Not you.”

The tip of a slender branch brushed against her cheek.

“I’m here,”
a voice whispered inside Ella Mae’s head.
“I am transformed, but I am still your mother.”

The fireflies began to alight from the twigs and leaflets, gradually revealing the
new Lady of the Ash. The trunk had curved hips and the swell of breasts, and there,
carved into the bark, was the face of Adelaide LeFaye. Her eyes were closed, but Ella
Mae could see her within the tree.

Ella Mae threw her arms around the firm, warm trunk, and her mother tried to soothe
her. To the others, her words sounded like the rustle of wind, but to Ella Mae, her
mother’s voice murmured,
“Hush now. It’s all right. You will have the life I dreamed for you.”

“I don’t want it without you,” she cried into the bark.

“You are worth any sacrifice. You’re my daughter. The light of my heart.”

En masse, the fireflies lifted into the air. They hovered just above where the people
had gathered in front of their new Lady, and then the insects unfurled their legs
and dropped silver rose petals onto the magical men and women. The petals shimmered
like spun moonlight and everyone cupped their hands to receive them.

“Hail to the Lady!” Verena called out, her eyes shining with tears.

The entire assembly dropped to one knee and bowed their heads in homage. “Hail to
the Lady!” they shouted.

With her palms flat against the trunk, Ella Mae turned to look at the gathering. The
moment the rose petals made contact, the people looked like they were burning. An
orb of light grew outward from the center of their chests until their entire bodies
were engulfed in a pure white radiance. It was like watching a hundred stars being
born. It was the most beautiful thing Ella Mae had ever seen.

“The renewal,”
her mother explained.

“I don’t want magic. I want you back.” Ella Mae’s voice was hoarse from heartbreak.

“You’ll speak for me. For all of our kind. You will be the most important woman in
Havenwood. I am tired now, my sweet girl. It takes great strength to communicate with
you like this. Go join the others. Do not be sad. Continue to hone your gift. Find
love. Live fully.”

And then her mother fell silent. Ella Mae couldn’t sense her in her head anymore.
She glanced around. People had begun to laugh, to feast, and to dance. Music had sprung
out of nowhere and it was no longer the soft, lulling songs she’d heard upon first
entering the glade. This was fiddle, fife, and drum music. The music of the carefree.