chapter five
the witches

RETURNING TO THE Meeting House had been the last thing Cora and Harriet wanted to do, but their mother refused to let them out of her sight. Agnes had chosen to sit next to the Myers family. She forced Harriet to sit next to Colin, who slipped his hand in hers and gave it a small squeeze.

That hadn't comforted her. She wished she was with Isaac, who's touch always did well at grounding her when she was overwhelmed. She wished it was him holding her hand instead of Colin. Feeling her gaze on him, Isaac looked back at her and sent her a small, reassuring nod.

It's going to be okay, he seemed to be telling her. She knew he also wished to be the one holding her head instead of Colin.

Jakob Berman took the stand. "Hear ye! Hear ye! Good people of Union, listen! There is a dark and evil force at work here. If we are ever to end this misery, then we must root out the guilty."

"Jakob, please!" Solomon interrupted, earning everyone's attention. "Goodman Berman! The man responsible is dead! Pastor Miller-"

"The pastor," Jakob cut him off, pointing to himself. "Our pastor was a man of God, and this was not him! He was possessed by darkness. My child, my dear Constance, and many others are dead." Harriet glanced over to see her sister with her head hanging low. Harriet reached her left hand over their mother to squeeze her sister's hand. "Our futures. . . many of our entire bloodlines have been stolen from us. Someone must pay!"

Most people stood up, their voices overlapping in agreement. Agnes Watson took the stand for the first time ever. Jakob moved out of the way for her and Agnes cleared her throat, her brown eyes hardening. "Pastor Miller killed a dozen children," she began. Immediately, most of the men began yelling at her to sit down. "Constance Berman and Henry Fier were like children off my own, but I believe Cyrus Miller was possessed. The man that I knew. . . our pastor would never hurt a child. Whoever brought the Devil to Union. . . show yourself. For we will find you, and we will make you pay for what you have done."

It wasn't common for a woman to take the stand, but Agnes walked back to her children confidently. Harriet smiled at her mother. Agnes returned it as she sat. Everyone seemed to take in the woman's words as Mad Thomas stood in front of everyone. "I saw some little lambs of our town laughing, dallying on the full moon last!"

The crowd shouted for someone to explain and Isaac glancing back at Harriet. Harriet sent him a small nod, like he'd done for her, and pretended she didn't feel Colin's gaze burning into the side of her head. Isaac appreciated it as he walked onto the stand to explain. "There were some of us in the woods, but there was no. . . we drank Apple Jack. We danced. We are young! That is not a crime!"

The adults shouted at him and he sat back down in his seat. Thomas once took the stand. "Look upon your children!" he ordered. "For they will bear the Devil's mark!"

"Witchcraft!" Elijah Goode hollered. "Witchcraft!" He took the podium. "Yes, witchcraft. But just as my brother, Solomon, heroically expelled the darkness among us by killing our afflicted pastor, we too will punish and surmount this evil!"

"Yes, we will!" the crowd screamed.

"As survivors," Elijah continued. "Our faces always will remain toward the sun."

"Hear, hear!"

"I traced it on my patrol!" a man announced, taking the stand. "This scourge centers on Union proper! I searched the woods. It does not extend beyond the settlement. It's here! It's in Union! We are being punished, and I have a list of names." He slammed his hand down on the podium. Half the crowd began shouting once more.

"Enough!" Solomon shouted, standing up. "Enough! Listen to yourselves! Speculation! Chasing shadows! Imagined curses! I ask. . . do you have proof? No. Or you?" He looked at Mad Thomas. "Or any of ya?"

Relief flooded Cora's veins. She wanted Constance's death to be seen for what it was: a murder. Cyrus Miller had killed a dozen children. And people, her own mother included, were barely acknowledging that fact. They were pinning it down on witchcraft.

Just before Cora got too relieved, Caleb stood up. Harriet tensed, wondering what kind of lies he would come up with now. "I have proof!" he exclaimed. "It was some nights back when the full moon had risen just beside the sun. As I lay sleeping, she came to me. She witched me and led me to the woods. She was naked. . . and riding a red mule. And the red mule became a horned man. And she made me watch as she lay with the Devil."

"Who?" Mad Thomas demanded.

"As both of them lay with the Devil," Caleb finished.

"Both of them?" Elijah repeated.

Caleb turned his head, looking right at the older man. "Hannah Miller and Sarah Fier!"

"No!" Mrs. Miller cried out as she and Sarah's father stood up.

Cora and Harriet gasped, both exchanging looks with each other. He was lying, creating a false tale to cover up the embarrassment of his one-sided attraction to the Miller girl.

"Mother," Harriet frantically turned towards the older woman. "That's not what happened. He was horned."

"She was doing nothing to him!" Cora added. "You have to believe us!"

"Hannah and Sarah - they're not witches!" Harrier frantically shook her head.

"How would you two know that?" Colin inquired, reminding Harriet of his presence. She'd forgotten all about him.

"We were there," Cora answered, barely paying any attention to Colin as she pleaded with their mother. "Mother, please."

"Witches!" Thomas rose from his seat, as well as everyone else. "Witches! Witches!"

Everyone began shouting once more, but it died down when a few men backed up Caleb's story. "I saw Hannah Miller and Sarah Fier," the men said, convincing the townspeople more and more - except for Cora, Harriet, Isaac, and Solomon.

Caleb returned back on the stand, seeming pleased with himself for convincing everyone that Hannah Miller and Sarah Fier were witches. He glanced over out the window and pointed. "Witches!" he raised his voice to gather everyone's attention. "The witches!"

Men rushed over to the window to see Hannah and Sarah running off. They quickly grabbed lanterns and ran after the two girls.

Harriet and Cora both shot to their feet, following after them. They couldn't see everything that was happening because it was too dark. A few seconds later, they saw Hannah being dragged back with Mad Thomas taunting her. Sarah Fier was nowhere in sight.

𝒎𝒆𝒍 𝒎𝒆𝒍 !!