Page 81 of Bad Witch

“Tempest,” Magnolia cried when she saw me. “Hurry.”

I ran, rushing into the room. Draven was on the bed with their babies, all three of them were gray, unconscious, and Iris was draped over them, sobbing. The sound reached inside me and squeezed my heart. If I’d had any misgivings about what I was doing, that all washed away now.

“I need to give them each a drop,” I said to Magnolia.

Iris lifted her head, and the devastation on her face made me flinch. “It’s too late,” she gasped out. “Oh goddess, it’s too late. Th-they’re…” Tears slid down her face. “They’re…c-cold.”

“Are they breathing?” I moved closer.

She nodded, numbly, but she knew what cold meant. The people she loved the most in this world would be stuck in living death for thousands of years until their bones finally rotted away. But they were still breathing, and I refused to give up. Not now. “Then there’s hope.”

“What is that?” Magnolia asked as I filled the dropper.

I took a steadying breath and met her eyes. “Agattealia Pontella.”

“What?” Magnolia rasped.

Iris shot to her feet.

I ignored the looks on their faces. “This is not a reanimation potion,” I rushed out. “They’re not dead, their immortality means this should heal them. We’re not trying to bring the dead to life. If this works, they will return to full health.”

“And if it doesn’t?” Iris said.

“I don’t know for sure. There are no guarantees at this point.”

“Do it,” Iris said. “Do it now.”

Magnolia opened their mouths one by one. I placed a drop on each of their tongues and stepped back.

“How is that enough?” Iris said. “That can’t be enough.”

Draven’s skin was still gray.

“How long before we know if this is going to work?” Iris said, holding her tiny sons’ hands in hers.

“I’m not sure. The patients I used it on weren’t immortal, and they weren’t as sick, but there was improvement quite fast.”

Iris stilled, lifting Tate’s hand to her mouth and pressing it to her lips. “He feels warmer.” She turned to her sister. “I’m positive he’s warmer. Check his temperature. Does he feel warmer to you?”

Magnolia quickly checked and a tear slid down her face when she nodded. “Yes.”

Relief washed through me as they checked Raff and Draven as well. All three were warming. Trembling, I backed up, needing to get out of there. Their core temperatures had risen, but we weren’t out of the woods yet. I had no way of knowing if it would work, if they’d even wake. They were different than the others I’d treated, this was all trial and error. I started down the hall, heading for the main doors. I needed air, just for a moment.

“You had that the whole time?” Magnolia said from behind me.

I turned.

“When did you start using it on the patients here?”

“Two days ago.”

She stared at me, and she didn’t have to say what she was thinking, it was written all over her face.

“What are their chances? Really?”

I reached for the wall, feeling shaken, confused, scared. “I don’t know. Only time will tell, but it’s their best option, and as of right now, their only one.”

Her hands curled into fists at her side. “You had that the whole time, Tempest, and instead of using it, you let people die.”