Chapter Seventeen

R eese gently urged, "Drink some water." As she rubbed my back, I took a sip of the cold liquid. My throat throbbed from all the screaming and sobbing when it happened.

I flinched, unable to shake off the memory of the accident.

Fortunately, I managed to leap out of the way just in time, and the car collided with mine instead. The scratches and bruises felt like a small price to pay compared to the possibility of fractures and surgeries.

I was grateful that Reese had come to get me; she seemed to sense that something was off too.

The sound of the kitchen door clicking open caught my attention, and I felt a wave of relief wash over me when I saw Darius.

"I filed a report through Dimitri," he said, "and he informed me that the car owner wasn’t inside when it happened; the engine just started on its own. Thankfully, you’re okay, and I’ve ensured that the jerk covers your medical expenses." He leaned against the dining table, which I had placed in the kitchen to overlook the backyard filled with Ro's beautiful flowers, fruits, vegetables, and herbs.

"How are you holding up now?"

Despite my attempts to hold back the tears, I found it impossible. My body shook with visible tremors, and soon I was hiccupping and sobbing uncontrollably, wrapped in Reese's comforting embrace.

In that instant, I longed for Ro to be by my side, to wrap his arms around me, to kiss me, and to offer me comfort. He has a way of making difficult moments feel manageable.

"Did you give her anything for the pain?"

"She took the ibuprofen the doctor prescribed. But I think it’s more the shock from the accident; she hasn’t said a word the whole ride home."

Tears streamed down my face. Even with my friends around, I felt an overwhelming sense of loneliness. If only he could be here with me.

"Shhh... It's okay, Amery. I promise everything will be alright. Let’s get you settled in bed." Reese helped me.

I made my way to my room on the second floor, and with her assistance, I changed into my pajamas.

She tucked me in and turned off the lights, closing the door softly as she whispered, "I’ll be in the living room with Darius. Just call if you need anything."

Once she left, I turned to the side where Ro usually slept, closing my eyes and searching for solace in the memories he had left behind.

In my mind, he was there, gently stroking my hair, tracing circles on my cheek, and planting soft kisses on my forehead that felt almost ethereal.

I sighed in contentment, leaning into the sensations of my dream, but a faint whisper and the dampness of my tears pulled me back to reality.

A dark figure hovered above me, slowly coming into focus to reveal the most captivating face.

"Ro," I breathed, hardly able to believe he was actually there.

To challenge my own doubts and to convince myself that he was merely a creation of my mind, I reached out to touch his cheek. A hint of fear coursed through me, but he responded by kissing my palm and resting his face against it, gazing at me intently.

With each moment, as his warmth seeped into my flesh, he felt increasingly tangible.

"Ro," I breathed out his name again, a cry escaping me, and I noticed the darkness in his eyes deepen.

He gently wiped away my tears and leaned in closer, pressing his lips to mine. When he pulled back slightly, I sat up, observing him kneeling beside the bed.

"Mrs. Rowan, I turn my back for just a moment, and you find yourself in trouble," he teased, rising to sit beside me.

In a burst of spontaneity, I leaped into his arms, pulling him onto the bed with me. As he settled in the center, I crawled over him, wrapping my arms around him tightly and burying my face in the crook of his neck, sobbing like a child.

His hands caressed my hair and back, each touch feeling surreal, reminiscent of a distant dream from a time that hadn’t been more than eight months ago.

"I missed you," he murmured, placing a kiss on my temple.

"I... me too..." I managed to say, my voice shaky. Together, we sat up, his back resting against the headboard while I clung to him like a little monkey.

"Were you hurt, Mrs. Rowan?" His voice was laced with tension, filled with concern and pain for me.

I shook my head, and as my tears began to fade, small hiccups punctuated the words that escaped my lips.

“I should have realized it was a mistake to let you return to this town. I'm sorry, love... This is all on me.” He wrapped his arms around me tightly, and even though every part of me wanted to ask him what I was missing, I held back. Having him here felt fleeting, and I didn’t want to squander it on anything other than enjoying his closeness.

Perhaps that’s how the night slipped away, because when I finally opened my eyes, he was gone, just like a fleeting dream. However, I found a note on my bedside table, written by him.

I shut my eyes tightly.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

After running a warm shower and slipping into a black hoodie and leggings, I made my way downstairs to find Reese in the kitchen preparing breakfast. To my surprise, Darius wasn’t alone; Ace and Dimitri were there too, along with a new face.

"Good morning! Did you sleep well?" she asked, serving me pancakes, bacon, eggs, and fruit juice.

I nodded slightly and took my seat at the round table, starting to eat. My gaze, however, drifted to the man sitting next to Darius. As if sensing my stare, he looked up and smiled, introducing himself as Reginald, the Vice President of Darius' MC. I was taken aback; I had never met him.

It wasn't until I had finished, and Reese had given me my medications and tended to my wounds, that we finally reached the crucial part. The conversation.

"How are you feeling today?" Dimitri started.

"I've had better days," I replied, my gaze fixed on the files and the ring I had received from the studio yesterday, along with a diary resting beside them.

"That makes sense... My brother filled me in on the recent events, and I can only imagine how bewildered you must have felt when you first learned about it all. Unfortunately, without any concrete evidence against Willow, I can't initiate an official investigation, but I'm here to offer any other assistance you might need." He clenched his fist on the table and nodded politely.

Given my current state, I wasn't up for a lengthy discussion, and he recognized that, allowing for a moment of silence.

"I looked through the diary, not entirely but towards the early days; it belonged to a boy who documented his days at home. From his perspective, there wasn't much to note, but he repeatedly mentioned the dangers of being out after dark. His parents had strict rules about him not staying in town past four. According to his entries, he feared he would get lost and that the Witch of the willow tree would take him." Darius recapped.

Nothing seemed particularly surprising. For anyone living on the outskirts of town, venturing out at night was risky, especially for a young child.

"What else do we have?" My voice sounded hollow, devoid of emotion, but the fear had subsided, replaced by the trust I felt from Ro's visit the previous night.

"I'm not sure how much weight this will carry as evidence against Willow, but I explored your theories, and the very reason you encountered her when we trespassed on her property, and—"

"You did what?!" Dimitri cut in, his expression radiating pure anger. His gaze was fixed on my friend, but she merely rolled her eyes and dismissed him.

"—the point is, yes... She was indeed cultivating nutmeg in her backyard."

"So what? Do you really think it matters? What if she reports you? Do you even have a clue how that would play out?" Dimitri shouted again, but Darius pulled him back into his seat.

"Just be quiet, alright? Let the girl finish... And Ace, if he interrupts again, feel free to use the duct tape on him." He grinned, turning his attention back to Reese, who smiled back at him, winking and giving a thumbs up in appreciation.

Dimitri slumped in his seat, muttering to himself before falling silent.

"Anyway, where was I... Oh right... While I was looking for the nutmeg tree, I also discovered salvia flowers. Those are the same flowers she used to give Amir every time she came over. Luckily, he planted them in your backyard, which caught my attention, so I knew exactly what to look for when I was there." She beamed, eagerly awaiting praise.

Dimitri groaned, leaning back and shooting daggers at her.

"What do your findings even mean?" he challenged.

She scoffed and shifted closer to me, returning his glare.

"Honestly, I agree with Dimitri on this one. These aren’t facts you can use to accuse anyone. Nutmeg is a common spice, and salvias grow in the NC area." Reginald, who had been quiet until now, finally spoke up, siding with Dimitri.

Dimitri smirked, licking his lips with a smug expression as he continued to glare at Reese.

I couldn’t recall any history between Dimitri and Reese, but perhaps she just hadn’t shared it with me.

However, lifting her chin like a proud cat, Reese laid out her reasoning, silencing the boys.

"Nutmeg is native to Indonesia and was introduced to America during the colonial era. No one cultivates nutmeg here except in a few parts of Central America and southern Florida. It requires a tropical climate, so think about it: why would she plant a tree that can’t survive here? Do you even realize how much money she’s wasting trying to keep it alive in this climate, especially with fall approaching?" Reese stated flatly, raising an eyebrow.

I refuse to believe I was the only one who noticed Dimitri’s smirk, which hinted at something less than innocent towards my friend.

I drifted from the thought, focusing back on the ongoing discussion.

Reginald grumbled, clearly unimpressed. "Alright then, enlighten us, Miss Know-It-All."

"It's myristicin," she replied. "This chemical found in nutmeg can lead to hallucinations, drowsiness, dizziness, confusion, dry mouth, and in some cases, seizures. When consumed in excessive amounts, it results in what we refer to as nutmeg intoxication." Her words made me gasp, drawing everyone's attention.

I was taken aback. I had heard of nutmeg poisoning, but this was new to me.

"She used to bring spice cake to Ro. No one in town sells nutmeg, and Polly is the only one who uses it in her cooking, sourcing it through various means and only in small quantities for her winter menu, aside from the roughly 50 grams she keeps for special cakes." I recalled taking baking lessons from her to make Ro's birthday cake last year.

"Buying it would get her caught, but who would notice a tree in the garden? That's clever." Ace's face was blank.

"Wait, what about Salvia?" Darius interjected, his mind racing. I could tell he was just as perplexed.

"You got it. Lyreleaf Sage is the only Salvia native to North Carolina, but what she cultivates in her backyard is Salvia divinorum, which hails from Mexico. This herb is typically used by shamans and is legal in the U.S. The active compound, Salvinorin A, interacts with specific nerve cell receptors, causing shifts in mood, body sensations, visions, feelings of detachment, and altered self-perception. However, the effects are intense but short-lived."

"I'm curious, Amery, how did you know to suggest that Reese look for the same flower you have in your backyard?" Dimitri's gaze was fixed on me, probing for answers.

I shrugged, partly because that's the nature of scientific inquiry. We experiment and question everything around us, breaking it down into hows, whys, whats, and wheres.

"I conducted research on hallucinogens and the plants that typically produce them for a project during high school. That’s when I encountered the plant, but since I only recalled its appearance and what Willow gave Ro resembled something that seemed out of place in our garden, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to let Reese investigate it." I scrunched my nose, feeling a knot in my stomach at the thought of Ro being exposed to her sinister methods.

But why him?

"To think she would go to such lengths to cultivate two plant species that would struggle to survive in the climate and location she chose for them, I can’t believe her intentions are merely simple or selfish. If she has subjected Amir to these toxins for so long... Damn it... What does she even want from him?" Darius shouted, slamming his hands on the table as he rose, kicking his chair aside and pacing back and forth.

Ace ignored his outburst and set the chair back in place, though he too appeared worried, knowing that Willow could easily harm Ro if she wished.

"My next question is, who is this, Willow? Did you find any information about her?" Dimitri redirected our focus to the critical points we needed to address beyond our emotional distress.

Reginald pulled out his phone and opened a document.

"Nothing surprising. Just an artist who grew up in an orphanage, has no friends or adoptive family, and is a psycho painter. She doesn’t even have an agent. She lived in Nevada before moving to Willow Crest." He glanced up from the document, a frown forming on his forehead.

"That’s way too brief. How can someone at her level lack a social life? No matter how you look at it, if you’re making a living by appealing to people, you have to put yourself out there. Selling at her level without an agent or any public presence is strange," Reese remarked, tapping her chin thoughtfully.

Ace retrieved the file I had kept there, and I quickly snatched it from his grasp. I knew it was impolite, but I couldn’t shake off Ro’s message that lingered in my mind.

"I need to make a call to this number," I said, as I picked up my phone, and dialed.

The phone rang.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

No response.

On the fourth ring, someone finally answered.

"Hello, Montgomery residence. How can I assist you?" It sounded like a member of the household staff.

"Hi, this is Amery Rowan, Amir Rowan's wife. Could I please speak with Mr. Montgomery?" My nerves were getting the best of me, and I felt a tightness in my chest.

I couldn't shake off the memory of what I had read about the dragon sculpture and how Ro had stressed the importance of calling this specific number.

The line went silent for a moment, but after a few seconds, a deeper voice came through, sounding older, likely around my father's age.

"This is Elijah Montgomery. How may I assist you, Mrs. Rowan?" His tone was overly courteous for someone who had invested so much time and money into a project.

"Hello, Mr. Montgomery. I truly apologize for the issues regarding your commissioned artwork on behalf of my husband." I glanced around at those nearby, who were waiting patiently as I continued.

"Not a problem, Mrs. Rowan. I understand your circumstances, and Amir has already returned me the advance payment. I did tell him that if he could complete the piece, I would purchase it." There was a hint of joy in his voice.

I breathed a sigh of relief, glad that the deal was still intact.

"I'm sure my husband feels the same way, and once he finishes his current projects, I will encourage him to complete the sculpture. By the way, Mr. Montgomery, I need to ask you about something personal that only you can clarify for me." Taking a deep breath, I crossed my fingers, hoping he would be willing to share.

"Of course. What do you need help with?"

"It's regarding the inscription on the sculpture. In loving memory of my wife, Willow. Can you tell me where your wife is at this moment?" As I spoke, everyone around me looked taken aback. I had felt just as stunned yesterday.

I could hear him swallowing hard on the other end of the line, and it didn’t bode well.

"She’s gone. Last year, we were on a flight to America to see Amir at his exhibition in LA when she suffered a heart attack mid-air and passed away instantly."

I pressed my lips together, feeling my own heart skip a few crucial beats.

"I’m truly sorry for your loss. May she rest in peace... If it’s not too much trouble, could you share some more details about your wife? Perhaps a photo, if possible?" My breath quickened, my heart racing beyond its usual rhythm. I was apprehensive about learning more than I already knew, but for Ro’s sake, I needed to gather as much information as I could.

"I’m not sure why you’re asking all this, but since Amir was my wife’s favorite, I’ll share. Willow was a passionate artist, born and raised in Willow Crest. She later moved to Nevada with her first husband, Amir’s cousin. After he passed away, she met me during a trip to an auction in Egypt, and the rest is history."

I felt my jaw drop in disbelief.

My eyes widened as I stared at Reginald across from me, who raised an eyebrow, clearly puzzled. He seemed to be silently questioning what had just happened.

"Oh, that must have caught you off guard. Amir was just as shocked when I told him about my wife after I submitted a commission request shortly after her passing."

"I see... I have one final question... Can you tell me how Amir’s cousin died?" I couldn’t shake the curiosity.

If Willow was Amir’s sister-in-law, did his cousin live with his grandparents and marry in Willow Crest? Why had I never heard of this cousin before?

My gaze fell on the ring resting on the table, its metal glinting in the light, clouding my thoughts.

"He was murdered in their bed on their first night in Nevada. According to Willow, someone broke in, stole money, and killed her husband while she was in the shower."

I swallowed hard. Everything felt utterly confusing to me. "I get it. I appreciate all the details you've shared. I would also be grateful if you could send me a picture of your wife." I reiterated, more for my own reassurance, as the weight of acceptance hung over me like a double-edged sword.

"Of course. I hope we can meet when Amir finally decides to finish and deliver the sculpture."

I said my goodbyes and ended the call, and almost immediately, my phone buzzed with a new message.

I opened it cautiously, and there were those grey eyes looking back at me.