Only when I start to turn away do I notice the worst part of. His hand is right up her skirt, and her panties… Well, they're around her ankles. I feel the earth tilt beneath my feet and put a hand out to stop myself from tipping over. I feel pathetic in that moment as he hears the door open and quickly pulls away from her, but it's too late. I saw it all. My world is fully imploding around me.

I feel it all at once. Betrayal, anger, hurt. So much hurt, it knocks the air right out of my lungs and threatens to make me throw up. I feel so much, I can barely move, but I know I need to get out of here. I can feel pure, unbridled rage rising up, and I know that the moment he speaks, I'll unleash it upon him, and I don't know how it will come out.

I put my hand over my mouth as I turn and start to head back out the door. Drew's calling my name, but I ignore him, blocking it out. I can't even look at him right now. I glance back, and Ash is blocking the doorway, not letting him out to speak to me. I can't see his face, but it's like I can feel his own anger radiating from him as Drew pushes at his chest in an attempt to get him out of the way.

Ash slams his fist into his face before I have time to react. Drew stumbles back, clutching his nose, which might be bleeding, but I feel nothing. Ash turns then, not giving Drew any more of his time, and walks towards me, taking my arm in his hand. "C'mon," he says simply, tugging me gently in the direction of the exit. I let him lead me out without a word, and he says nothing either as we cross over the car park towards his car. Only when I sit in the passenger seat does reality sink in. I'm alone again. My breaths come too quick, my chest rising and falling heavily.

As Ash gets in the driver's seat, I see Dawn heading towards us, her hair whipping around in the breeze, her face like a thunderstorm. She pulls open the back door and hops in, then immediately reaches around the seat and puts her arms around my chest, kisses my cheek gently.

"I love you," she says. The second time I've heard those words tonight. "And we don't need any boys, okay? It can just be me and you, and that's okay."

I love her more than anyone on this earth, and I close my eyes tight to stop the tears coming. I won't cry. Not until I'm on my own, at least. I think maybe I should have seen this coming. I should have known that no man would wait for a woman that wasn't ready to give them the thing they wanted most. I nod, just to let her know I hear her.

Dawn sits back in her seat as Ash starts the car. I wonder if Drew will even bother trying to contact me tonight. "This isn't your fault, May," Dawn is saying. "I won't have you think that it is. You could have waited forever to do more than kiss, and it wouldn't give him an excuse to touch the first whore that gives him any attention."

I turn to Ash to see if he reacts to the news that Drew and I have done nothing more than kiss, but his face is blank. I suddenly remember our conversation the day after we'd first met, when he'd mentioned he'd caught his last girlfriend with another guy. I'd wondered if catching Drew with another girl would make me realise I didn't like him much too. It hadn't. It just made me really fucking angry.

"He's lost all of us now, so I hope he's happy," Dawn's still rambling on, but I let her. "I'm never speaking to that vermin again."

We're driving up Dawn's long driveway now. It's dark out, but I see that some lights are on inside, meaning her mom is finally home. She notices too and sighs, then reaches around to kiss me on the cheek again as Ash parks.

"Are you going to be okay? You can stay here with me," she offers. I shake my head.

"I'm alright." I'm not, but it would be better to be on my own. "I love you."

She squeezes my hand and gives me a sad smile before saying goodbye to Ash and sliding out of the car. She waves back at us as she walks up the gravel to her porch. I turn to face Ash, who's looking back at me, his eyes soft.

"You probably think I'm pretty dumb, huh?" I ask, looking down at my hands. It's extra embarrassing to think that he was right behind me as I caught Drew.

"Why would I think you're dumb?"

"Being with someone like that for so long." I sigh and throw my head back. "I really didn't think this through."

"You're not dumb," he says, his voice steely. I flick my eyes over to him, and he's looking back at me with that intensity again. I just can't figure him out at all. Suddenly, before I can think better of it, I open my senses and reach for him, hoping to hear his thoughts, feel his feelings, anything. It feels like I hit a brick wall, an empty chasm of nothingness, and I pull back, stunned. I haven't used my magic much, I'll admit, but to get nothing from him, when it's usually so easy? I can't even begin to unpack what that means right now.

He turns away from me and starts to drive again. I'm trying not to scream as I think of Drew when he suddenly says "I won't tell anyone."

I think he means about Drew and Solidad, so I say "I think everyone will know by Monday anyway."

"No." He shakes his head. "I mean about the freezer."

A chill runs down my spine at his tone. Not unkind, but as soft as he'd spoken a minute ago. Amidst the drama, I'd somehow almost forgotten that happened. "What do you mean?"

He turns to face me again, but this time I shrink back. There's a panicked look in his eyes that I don't like. "You don't know, do you?" He asks. I blink back blankly. I don't know what he means. "May, you should be dead."

My blood sings with rage at his word choice and I sit straighter in my chair before he speaks again. "The temperature was turned all the way down, lower than usual. At that temperature, anyone would be dead or beyond help within fifteen minutes. I think you were in there for over forty five minutes."

His words take a moment to sink in. Forty five minutes? I supposed I must have blanked out, because it felt much shorter. It had stung, and I'd been cold, and had thought I was going to die, but only right at the end did it feel like I might. Then, ten minutes after being rescued, I felt totally normal, like nothing had happened at all. Besides the trauma, of course.

"You were like a radiator in my arms." He shakes his head. "I thought... I thought you were gonna be dead in there."

My chest rises and falls heavily. I can't think of anything to say. There's no sane explanation for it, and I can't trust him with the truth, but I can't stand the way he's looking at me. I don't know why I care so much. I should just say I don't know what happened, play it off as a miracle, but instead I stare ahead, breathing heavily, until Ash pulls onto his drive.

I sit in his car for a moment longer, my heart hammering against my chest. "I don't know what happened," I say finally. "I think… I think I just need some sleep."

He nods, the strange look gone from his face, replaced with empathy. I don't give him time to decide to walk me home. I call out goodnight as I scramble from the car and jog over to my front door. The second the door shuts behind me, I crumble to the floor, tears falling freely down my cheeks, sobs racking my chest. I can't tell if it's the trauma of being locked in the freezer, the image of Drew and Solidad clinging to one another that I can't shake, or the horrifying truth that it's going to be impossible to keep the magic a secret. It might be them all at once. I feel like I'm dying when mom finds me, pathetically curled in on myself right there at the door.

I jolt upright in the dark. I sit upright, and the cold hits me like a punch. It's so cold I can't form a coherent thought, my mind swimming. I wrap my arms around myself and try to stand, but my legs are stiff, faltering. I bang my fist on each of the four walls I can feel around me, but there's nothing here. Nothing and no one but me. I try to scream, but no sound will come from my mouth. I bang on the walls until I can feel my hands bleeding, can hear it dripping on the floor beneath me. I keep trying to scream.

I'm jolted back to reality so suddenly I don't even realise I'm no longer sleeping. My eyes fly open, I'm disoriented, but I make out the street lights in front of me, swaying despite my stillness. I feel something cold beneath my knees, and realise I'm kneeling again, but this time on something hard. Concrete. The road. I'm on the road.

There's someone beside me, speaking quietly. I sense them, the familiar tingle. I scramble backwards, trying to get to my feet, thinking of that damned balaclava again, but a hand reaches out and touches my shoulder gently.

"It's alright. It's me," Ash says. I don't relax. I still jump up, panic thrumming through my whole body, making my breaths shaky and my legs jelly.

"What's happening?" I ask. "Where am I?"

"You must have been sleepwalking again," he says. "We're right outside our houses, don't worry."

I turn and see my house right there behind us, but it doesn't make me feel any safer. I've just walked right out of my house and knelt on the road, right out in the open. I was practically inviting someone to kill me. I bend over, thinking I'm going to be sick, and I can't breathe.

"Breathe," Ash says calmly, placing a gentle hand on my back. I don't know how to breathe anymore, but I try, taking each breath slowly. "Come on, you're freezing," he says, and he starts gently leading me away. I notice he's guiding me to his door, not my own, and for a moment I bristle. What would Drew think if I was in Ash's house alone at night?

Then I remember, and the numbness washes over me again. I follow him into his house, and again wonder where his mom is as he takes my hand and leads me up the stairs. It's hard to remember that no matter what happens now, I'm not doing anything wrong. Not that I want anything to happen. Not that that's what he's thinking at all anyway. He probably realises I'm going crazy, and need help.

We're alone in his bedroom, and he closes the door behind him. I sit on the edge of his bed and put my head in my hands. It hasn't even been a day, and I feel so damn lonely on my own, that I want him to come over just to hold me. Just for some contact. Just to feel safe.

"I'll sleep on the floor. You can stay here, if it'll help."

I think it would be better to stay here than on my own again, so I nod. I want to tell him he can sleep on the bed beside me, but I'm feeling crazy, and I know him and Dawn are getting involved. I've only just left Drew. I haven't even officially left him. We still need to talk things through. The thought sends a shiver down my spine.

Ash pulls spare blankets out of a wardrobe and lies on the floor, and I feel guilty, but only for a moment, because once I sink back on his mattress I forget about everything. It's so warm in his bed, and it smells of him, I notice. I think he starts to say something, but I'll never know, because I'm asleep in seconds.

As I walk into school on Monday I try to keep my head held high. I deliberately dressed like this- black pleated skirt, thigh high lace tights and a pale grey knitted sweater tucked in. I haven't spoken to Drew at all. I'm not even sure I will today. Dawn's beside me, glaring at anyone that dares to stare until they look away.

I don't feel anything. I'd left Ash's on Saturday morning and hadn't had a nightmare since, but we also hadn't spoken. I should thank him for helping me, but I'm so confused when it comes to him. He's been so kind to me, but I can't help but think there was an accusation in his words when he spoke about me in the freezer.

Dawn leaves me to go to her own class, and I step into mine. Of course, I forgot it's one of the ones I share with Drew, and there he is, sitting at his desk. He sits up straighter as I enter, as if he expects a conversation, but I look right away and head to my desk. I still feel nothing but a twinge of anger and betrayal. It's funny, how we've hardly been apart for a year, how many times we've kissed, how many memories we have together, and yet he feels like a stranger now.

I keep my head down and don't say a word until class is over, and he follows me out. I know he's going to speak but I still wish he wouldn't.

"May," he says, and I sigh. I could ignore him, but he's just going to keep following me, keep trying to talk to me, until I listen, so I stop and turn on my heel, hoping my eyes show him how angry I am at him. He flinches. "I'm sorry, May."

"Sorry means nothing now, Drew." I start to turn away, but he reaches out and grabs my hand. I snatch it away instantly and glare back at him.

"Please, May." He shakes his head pathetically. "Don't leave me."

I blink, unbelieving. He really thinks there's still a chance we'll stay together, then. "You can't really expect me to forgive this? You told me you loved me. I… I said it back, and then you go off and get with her."

"It was a mistake," he says frantically, realising he's losing me. "I've loved you for a long time now, May. I just want you."

"It's over, Drew," I say, shaking my head. I turn and walk away, and there's some power in it. It's almost like I can feel a physical cord between us being cut in that moment, and I know in my heart that those words really ring true. It's over, for good. It's almost freeing, and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. For better or for worse, I'm on my own.

"Are you okay?" Dawn asks, putting a hand on my arm at lunch. Misty sits opposite us. She's threatened to kill Drew three times already in ten minutes. I'm starting to think she actually might. She's glaring across the lunch hall at him. Gary sits beside Misty, unusually quiet, probably processing the loss of Drew from our group. On the other side of Dawn is Ash, who's also been quiet. I'm not sure where Serena is.

"I'm fine," I say. "I think I'm realising that we were never going to work."

"Well duh," Misty says. "You argued all the time. He was a tosser."

"Misty," Dawn hisses, but I surprise her with a laugh. They all turn to me.

"It's okay, Dawn. She's right. He is. I wanted it to work so bad, I ignored all his red flags. I ignored the fact that I had no interest in sleeping with him at all."

"So you really didn't?" She asks.

I know now, after processing it all, that the lack of interest was the problem, not me. There's nothing wrong with me. I just didn't want him that way. I shrug. "It's not like I don't have an interest in other people."

Dawn leans across the table, suddenly very interested. "Who? Oh, you have to tell us now."

I hadn't had a particular person in mind, but the first name that comes to me is Ash, and I push that thought down, shivering. "No one in particular," I lie. I don't dare steal a glance over at him. I can already feel that he's looking. I hate the way my body is starting to involuntarily react to him when he's close, in a way it never did with Drew. For the rest of the day, I keep my head down and try to engage in conversation with him as little as possible.

The rest of the week passes the same. Drew doesn't try to talk to me again, even when we pass each other in the halls. I try my best to pretend he doesn't exist anymore, but I have to admit, it's a little hard when I see him standing by his locker with Solidad, grinning at something she said. It doesn't feel right for him to be moving on so easily before me, when he'd been begging me to take him back just days earlier. When he'd practically begged me for a date at the start.

And so, I decided that at the weekend, I'd move on too. I invited Dawn to come into the city with me. My invitation shocked her, but she'd accepted, unable to resist.

Now I was sneaking down my stairs, hoping I could sneak out the door before my parents saw the far too revealing little black dress and heels I wore. It wasn't my usual style, and Dawn was worried I was letting loose a little too much, letting out the hurt in the wrong way, while I swore I wasn't hurt at all.

I'm not.

Dawn drives us into the city, and leaves her car in a public parking lot, saying she'll come and pick it up the next day. I don't even question how we're getting home. I know I should, and I know it's dangerous to be out at night, even with Dawn, even in the city. I don't let myself think that I might be losing my mind a little. I don't think at all as I use magic and a flick of my hand to manipulate the bouncer to let me in without ID. At the bar Dawn orders us cocktails and we throw them back as we dance. I notice a lot of people looking our way, but I'm unsure if they're watching Dawn or me.

It's right after losing count of my drinks that a guy approaches, a mop of messy brown waves on his head, a handsome smile, charming blue eyes. He shouts over the music, asking for my number. Laughing, I hold out my phone, watching him save his number on it. I text him right away, eyes lighting up as my number pops up on his screen and he can save it. Then he hands me a drink.

Dawn's dancing with a blonde girl I've never seen before, their bodies brushing together, unashamed. I turn back to the guy, who introduces himself as Brendan, and tells me he's eighteen. Before long, I'm drunk, and we're moving onto another bar. Me, Brendan, Dawn and mystery girl, who I still haven't found out the name of. The moment we're in the bar, Brendan takes my shoulders and kisses me. A thrill runs through my whole body, setting my skin on fire, making my blood sing, whole body fizzing. Every nerve is alive. Then I close my eyes, and kiss him back, opening my mouth slightly, feeling free. A gentle ache builds between my legs.

Then I realise, with a cold horror that washes every good feeling away, that I'm picturing Ash. I pull away, eyes wide with realisation. Brendan cocks his head, confused, and I feel instantly guilty. It was stupid to think I could do this. That I could be casual like this. And Ash… Why did I picture Ash?

My head spinning, I walk away, out of the club, the music so loud it follows me right out. It's late now, past midnight, but the streets are alive with people in a way my small town would never be. A guy whistles at me as he passes, and I cross my arms over my chest, suddenly aware of how exposed I am, and how drunk I am too.

"May?" Dawn stumbles out behind me, dragging her new blonde friend out by the hand. "You wanna get out of here?"

Her friend giggles behind her, and I suddenly get the feeling that there is more going on than I realised. But then, what about Ash? I had thought there must be something going on between them, since they were spending so much time alone together, going on dates, flirting openly.

"Sure," I say, thinking it might be a good idea to go to bed.

"Good, 'cause here's our lift," Dawn laughs, stumbling towards a car behind me. I think she might be even drunker than I am. Her friend winks at me as she passes, and I follow her, turning to see where we're going, when I freeze. Of course she's asked Ash to pick us up. He's leaning over, looking out of his window at me as Dawn and blondie climb in the back. I can't help the groan I let out, throwing my head back a little.

Realising I have no choice, I stumble forward, pulling the door open and falling into the seat. When I dare a glance over at Ash, he's staring right at me, and seems... angry. He doesn't say a word to me, just pulls away and heads home. He still doesn't say a word as we pass over the bridge we rode over together on his bike. He doesn't even speak when Dawn and blondie start making out on his back seat. My jaw falls open, and I wait for some reaction from him, but it's like he hasn't seen a thing. Figuring he's not going to give a reaction, I go back to staring ahead as we pull onto Dawn's drive.

"Thanks for the ride," Dawn says, leaning between the seats to kiss Ash on the cheek before practically falling out of the car. The girl goes into her house with her. The silence is suddenly unbearable now that we're alone, and again he doesn't start driving right away. He turns to me, and the moment our eyes meet for the first time, a rush goes right through my body.

"You shouldn't go out like that when he's after you," he sighs, annoyed. I bristle defensively.

"I can't not live my life," I argue, crossing my arms over my chest again. The dress has rode up and now is barely covering my ass. Most of my thighs are on show. I want to reach out and pull it down, but that would only draw attention to it, so I don't.

Ash looks like he's going to argue, but then shakes his head and sighs. "Do you want to talk about it?" He asks.

I shake my head. I don't want to talk about Drew with him. I also can't tell him that I think the person I want is him. I can't tell him that I've realised every part of me wants to touch every part of him. I want to feel his lips against mine, want to press myself into him. I've never felt this way before, even for Drew after a year. I don't realise I'm staring at him and neither of us have said anything until he leans forward, and my heart kickstarts. He moves closer, until there's mere inches between our faces. I hold my breath. He's going to kiss me.

I close my eyes and wait for it. A second passes, and then I hear him move, and open my eyes again to see he's sat back in his chair, and he's pulling away. Disappointment hits me like a ton of bricks, settling right in my stomach. I don't know what I expected. It was stupid of me to hope for more when I'm clearly just drunk.

"I met a guy tonight," I say before I think. The minute the words leave my mouth, I regret it. I'm not this petty, to say things purely to see the reaction from someone else, but this time I can't help myself.

"Oh?" Ash asks, his face giving away nothing. He hasn't shown any interest in me so far, so I don't know why I bother. We're friends.

"I think he lives in the city," I say, even though I never asked Brendan where he lived. I didn't care enough. Before I can say more, my phone screen lights up in my lap. Brendan.

Hey, you okay babe? You disappeared on me. Call me sometime.

"That him?" Ash asks casually. I stare at my phone, debating whether to reply or not. It's not like Brendan is unattractive, and he's obviously interested in me. I sigh and close my eyes.

"Uh huh. Fuck."

Ash laughs, and the sound shocks me. My eyes fly open. "You can always block his number," he says. When I look over, his eyes are twinkling with humour, when they'd been so empty a moment earlier. Despite myself, I laugh too, and the tension is gone. We're just two friends in the car together again.

I flash him the phone screen. "But he's calling me babe already."

Ash pulls a face of disgust, and I laugh so hard I tear up. "That's gross," he says, swatting my phone with his hand. "No, like actually gross, stop showing me that." It makes me laugh harder. When I stop, I look over, and catch him looking at the bare skin of my thighs, his eyes darkening. My breath catches in my throat, and he looks away quickly, but his gaze lingers, making my skin burn.

We pull up on Ash's drive and I scramble out, trying not to stumble but failing. Ash laughs at my drunkenness, and it wipes at least some of the tension away. He walks me back to my door and I stand on the step, looking back at him, his hands stuck in his jacket pockets, and my heart swells in a way it never has before. "Goodnight, Ash."

"Goodnight, May." He smiles, and my breath catches in my throat as he turns to walk away. I want to reach out and stop him, but I don't. I just carry on watching until he disappears into his house.

My head hurts the next morning. The room spins as I sit up in bed, holding back the urge to vomit. I definitely drank too much. Mom is calling me down to breakfast, so I must have been quiet enough last night. I shout back down and go into the bathroom, splashing water on my face and brushing my hair thoroughly, hoping that's enough to mask the hangover.

After breakfast, I dress in black jeans and a sweater and leave before anyone can ask where I'm going. I note Ash's car still in his drive as I walk past his house.

It's probably dumb, what I'm doing, but I feel I have no choice now. Last night was proof enough that I'm letting my life crumble to pieces around me. I can't ignore my magic. I can't ignore the killer trying to murder me still. I need answers. So I walk towards the school, despite it being Sunday. I hop the fence and walk right past the building, over the field, to the dead janitor's house.

I look around carefully before closing my eyes. I rest my hand on the doorknob and hear the click of the lock. I look around me once more quickly before pushing the door open and stepping inside. All the curtains are pulled shut, but some light still filters in as I close the door behind me and look around the living room. It looks… normal, albeit a little dusty. I bite my lip, feeling guilty for even being here, but push on anyway, inspecting all of the furniture, looking for any sort of clue, hoping one will jump out at me once I spot it.

I pass through into the kitchen, which is also normal, and clean, and not out of the ordinary in the slightest. I walk through into the dining room, with its ugly long table and dated furniture, but still see nothing strange. I start to think that even if there were something here, I'd miss it because I'm not sure what I'm looking for. I don't even know where to start.

I want to give up as I circle back into the hall, but with a sigh force myself up the stairs. Ignoring the bathroom, I head straight into what I assume is the master bedroom, and instantly know that if there's anything to find, it's in here. It's a cluttered mess, and I know the police must have been in here, poking around for clues.

I pull open the wardrobe, but it's just full of shirts and jeans. I open the drawers one by one reluctantly, unsure what I might find, but they're full of normal things. I'm about to give up and conclude that it was a random killing and he was just a normal guy when I bend, peering under the bed, and spot it. One floorboard, slightly out of place. My heart pounds against my ribs as I reach for it, wrapping my fingers around one end and pulling. It comes right up, and I hold my breath as I reach inside, my fingers finding something cold and… I grab it, pull it out and sit up, breathing heavily as I stare down at a diary.

This could be nothing, I tell myself in an attempt to calm down. It could be full of gross, dirty secrets that I don't even want to know. Still, I can't help but feel like this is it. This is the answer I need.

I suck in a breath as I flip it open. His handwriting is messy, so messy I can hardly read it, and the diary is full. Hundreds of pages, over years and years. I flip back to the first page and start to read.

Dear diary,

A lot of people get a car for their eighteenth birthday. Maybe a new phone. Even some socks would do. What do I get? The news that I'm the next in line to protect my home town from witch hunters.

My breath catches in my throat, which dries up. Witch hunters. There it is, proof that this is all connected somehow. The word witch, written right there. My hands tremble as I read on.

Mom says I don't have a choice. I'm not even sure I believe her. I mean, what the fuck? I'm supposed to believe that in the eighteen years I've been alive, there've been witches walking around among us, and no one knows? That magic is real?

She says I have magic in my blood. A special type of magic. One that seals off all other magic, and that's how I'll protect us all. I don't know what to think at all.

I read the words over and over again. A special type of magic that seals off all other magic. That's what he was doing all this time? And once he'd died, no one was left to seal it, and mine had returned in full force. I turn to the next page, reading about his struggle to accept what he'd been told, his attempts to fight his unfortunate fate. After a few pages, my heart jumps in my throat.

Dear diary,

They killed her. Witch hunters. She was out of town, and they killed her. Dad, he says they don't know about her family, so we're safe, but I feel far from safe. I feel fucking destroyed.

Mom is gone, and her responsibility all lies with me now. I'm not even sure if I'm doing it right.

Dad says witches are rare. That I'm probably the last one in town, but that doesn't mean another won't be born. I'm thinking, if I'm the only one, let them come and get me. Let it be done, because I can't deal with this pressure. I don't want this life.

It's hard to digest what I'm reading. If witch hunters exist, was that what had killed him? Was that who was coming for me? Did they know about me, now that no one was sealing magic away? Could they sense it? I skim over the pages, over pages and pages of his grief, of his hatred for his own kind because of his role to play. Over time, the entries start to sound like gibberish, some of them making no sense at all, and I figure he must have gone a little insane over the years. My hands tremble hard as I skip to the final page, hoping it might give me the last piece of the puzzle.

Dear diary,

I've known this day would come for a long time. I've made peace with it, yet it makes it no easier. I can sense them flocking in. Even now my senses are tingling. More than one. Two have arrived already. I doubt I'll last a week before they find me.

Without me, they'll flush out the girl. I've kept a close eye on her for as long as I can, and now all I can do is pray she can defend herself.

Primum pythonissam. I have failed her in the end.

Any new arrivals must not be trusted, man or woman, young or old.

One to the east. One to the west, and it's already too late.

I reach out and clutch the bed to steady myself as I read the rambling at the end, thinking I might throw up. Flush out the girl. He can only mean me, which confirms my suspicions. Witch hunters are here, and they'd killed him, and now they know about me. My heart slams hard against my chest as I read the rest over again, and my breath catches in my throat.

New arrivals must not be trusted. That means the killer must be someone that only recently arrived in town, and-

My blood runs cold, the earth spinning below and around me as I struggle to breathe, panic clutching at my chest. It can't be true, and I shake my head as I scramble to my feet, stumbling back into the bedside table and dropping the diary. It crashes to the floor, loose pages spilling out. New arrivals, two of them. One to the west- my side of town. The fact that he could sense them, the tingling I knew all too well. The way I'd sensed the killer both times I'd encountered him, and the way I could sense-

Ash. Ash is a witch hunter.