Wicked | Ambrose Spellman and Nicholas Scratch [2]

22 | ghosts

However, she stops in her tracks once she feels a cold chill go down her spine. She looks around, only to see her old step-mother standing in the middle of the graveyard a few hundred yards away.

"Selene?" Sabrina breaks her out of her thoughts. Selene looks at Sabrina just for a moment before snapping her head back towards Constance. But her step-mother's ghost is gone. "Are you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost."

She makes a mental note to take care of her step-mother's ghost, but she shrugs. "Yeah, fine. What's up?"

"We need to have a family meeting."

And that's exactly what they do. The Spellman's and Selene gather in the parlor where Sabrina explains that her father's ghost visited her earlier. "And then he told me that Father Blackwood was responsible for his and my mother's murder."

"Edward told you this?" Zelda questions, the skepticism clear on her face. "My brother, who's been dead for 16 years."

"His ghost," Sabrina clarifies, knowing how crazy it sounds. Selene stays silent as they talk, wondering if her father's really capable of killing his closest friend and his wife. It's a monstrous act, even for someone as cruel as her father. But the motive is certainly there. When Edward died, the job of High Priest fell to Faustus.

"Oh, spirits do love a witch wedding," Hilda smiles, trying to lighten up the situation like she always does.

"The Council did an investigation after your parent's deaths," Selene points out, her mind racing. "It was ruled an accident. And Brina, I looked into their deaths years ago. There was no sign of a fixed investigation."

"Exactly," Zelda nods, not wanting anything to ruin her perfect day. "Your ghost is ill-informed."

"My father also told me that I was to finish his work," Sabrina informs, clearly not going to let this go. "He said something about a manifesto."

"Oh, yeah, Edward did have one of those, do you remember?" Hilda asks, looking at Zelda and Ambrose questioningly.

"I read an early draft," Zelda huffs, clearly not buying into what Sabrina's saying. "Romantic musings about mortal-witch intermingling, nothing more."

"Why are you dismissing everything I'm saying, Aunt Zelda?"

"I don't know, something to do with the fact you were sitting in a bar drinking absinthe in the middle of the day when you had this visitation," Zelda remarks, not hearing it. "Now, case closed. And consider your bridesmaid's duties rescinded."

"Well, in that case, I have to go get rid of my step-mother's ghost," Selene tells them, rising to her feet. They all give her curious looks, and she frowns. "I saw her earlier in the graveyard. She's probably just mad my father moved on so fast."

"So, no one is worried about what my dad's ghost told me?" Sabrina huffs in disbelief.

"Not until I hear it straight from the horse's mouth," Zelda rolls her eyes dramatically. "Do send Edward my way if he appears to you again, won't you? And feel free to invite him to the wedding."

She chuckles, the sarcasm clear as Sabrina storms out of the room angrily. Zelda and Hilda watch her go, but Selene and Ambrose jump up and follow her out of the room. They then follow her to Sabrina's room, and Selene closes the door firmly behind them.

"Sabrina, I think you might be right about Father Blackwood," Ambrose admits hastily, making a point not to make eye contact with Selene. "I had a terrible Tarot card reading in which he ordered me to murder all of you. You too, Selene."

"Murder me?" Selene's eyes widen, staring at him in shock. She wants to believe her father wouldn't do that, but she knows deep down that he only does things that benefit him. She then realizes why Ambrose has been acting jumpy all day. He's been walking on egg shells around her, like he's afraid.

"And there's more," Ambrose continues. "Blackwood introduced me into a club. A secret society. We meet tonight, ahead of the Anti-Pope's arrival."

Selene curses under her breath, knowing her father wants to make a good impression on the Anti-Pope, the man that oversees every coven and the Council. And she happens to know exactly what society her boyfriend is talking about. It's a group of his most trusted warlocks—ones that would literally do anything for him. They basically worship Selene's little brother, Judas. She doesn't know any of the members, but she's heard of them.

"Is it called the Judas Society?" Selene raises an eyebrow at her boyfriend, and he nods. "It's a group of warlocks that follow my father blindly. They have undying loyalty, but I don't really know a lot about them. I've heard whisperings among the coven, but everybody changes the conversation when I try to bring it up since it's warlocks only."

Sabrina then looks at them with wide eyes. "We have to find out everything. It's like the High Priest is preying on our family. I mean, first, my mom and dad, if my father's ghost is to be believed, then you. And now he wants to marry Aunt Zelda? Too much is constellating around this wedding to be a coincidence."

"What piece does the Anti-Pope play?" Ambrose quips as Selene sighs, keen on figuring out what angle her father is playing at.

"I don't know, but we're gonna find out."

UNEDITED