A Salem Awakening

Chapter 39

Elizabeth Porter was not in town to witness Abigail accusing Tobias. When Joseph arrived home, he excitedly told her all about it. "You should have seen her, Elizabeth. I've seen no one comport themselves so well under such pressure, except perhaps Rennik. Tobias, or should I say Junius, was no match for her. She completely out-maneuvered him and set him up."

The story of Abigail's performance impressed Elizabeth. "It sounds as if she will do a fine job as Master, from how you tell it. Do you think the others will support her?"

"You can never be sure how the Order will react as a whole, especially the Dracul clan. But if she continues to behave as I witnessed today, she may become the most revered Master since Myrddin himself, and she might unite the Order as Rennik wanted."

Elizabeth was pleased Joseph was so excited. "I wish I could stay and hear more, dear. But I have errands to run in town. Do you think the crowd has cleared – would it be safe for me to go there?"

"Yes, I'm sure most have dispersed by now. You should have no problem."

"I'll be off then." She kissed Joseph on the cheek and headed to the town square. Joseph did not ask what errands she needed to run, nor did Elizabeth offer to tell him.

****************************

Abigail returned to her house to rest before Tobias' test at noon. She was not a violent person, and she did not condone violence of any kind. But she would have no mixed emotions about ridding the world of Junius for good. Still, she did not like the idea of being responsible for another person's death. This guilt was a feeling she knew she would have to overcome in her new role. There might be times where she would need to spill the blood of others in order to save her own blood. The bloodline was more important than any one person, including her. She knew it would take a while for her to come to terms with the need to use violence when necessary.

She was wary of Tobias, however. Her father tried to rid the world of Junius for many years, decades even. And her father was much smarter and stronger than was she. It seemed too easy this morning. She could not believe how easy it was to outwit Junius with mere words and accusations. She couldn't decide if it explained more about how easy it was to outplay Junius, or if it said more about how gullible the good people of Salem were. But either way, she knew she would have to remain vigilant until she saw his dead body. Until then, nothing was certain.

When Abigail arrived at her house, she stepped in and looked around. It was eerily quiet. She could not remember a time when she was home alone. Even if her mother were the only one there, some sound was being made. Whether she was doing laundry, dishes or preparing a meal, her mother always had something going on and there was always a cheerful noise in the house.

But now, the air was dead quiet. The only sound Abigail could hear was her heart beating – it appeared the beating came from inside her ears. She walked around, letting her hand fall upon the table, then the bookshelf. For the first time, she was thinking about how much she missed her parents. How was she going to survive now, with nobody to take care of her? And most important, how was she to go about convening a global coven and getting to England? There was much to figure out – all on her own.

She came upon the drawing of her parents on their wedding day she left behind the day prior. "I can't believe I grew up always thinking they were my grandparents. I missed out on so much." She left the drawing in its frame on the table. She kept it in her family home instead of taking it to the Porter's. They generously asked if she wanted to stay with them as they had an extra bed now – Millie's old bed. Abigail was happy not to be alone.

It was only about ten o'clock – Tobias' test was still two hours away. Her eyelids were heavy, and she struggled to keep them open. She decided an hour-long nap would help. She laid down but could not fall asleep. The entire time she was worried she would oversleep. If she did not show up, it's possible Tobias would sweet-talk his way out of the test. She could not allow that.

****************************

Mrs. Porter was in town making rounds in most of the shops. In some shops she needed to purchase goods, while in others she stopped in just to say hello to everyone. Especially in the current climate, it was important to maintain positive social connections. She missed the commotion from earlier, so in each shop she asked what happened. She was looking for any inconsistencies in the recollections from various people. It's in the inconsistencies where the true story lives and where one can find the easiest path to advantage. But each story she heard was remarkably consistent. In fact, the level of consistency surprised her. It seems Joseph was not the only one visibly impressed with Abigail. And most were equally in awe of Christina Anderson's bravery and Thomas Miller's honesty, though most felt Thomas should have known better than to allow Tobias to pressure him into accusing an innocent, costing her life.

There was one stop Elizabeth made that was not a shop. She was in the town hall for about five minutes, the location where Tobias was being held. She entered and left having drawn no particular attention to herself. Nobody thought anything of it and Elizabeth continued on to the other shops. About thirty minutes later, she headed home. She would have just enough time to freshen up and prepare to come back to town by noon on Joseph's arm, for Tobias' test.