"I can't do this anymore," I let out a shaky cry into Maddox's chest as his big arms coil tightly around me. 

"I know. You won't have to anymore though, I promise you. This will never happen again," He murmurs softly into my hair. 

This time, he didn't make me leave. This time, I watched as both of our mothers and several other witches came to inspect the greenhouse and autopsy the bodies. 

My mother explained each step of what she was doing so that I could help out next time- even though the idea of a 'next time' made my skin crawl- and asked me a bunch of questions about what I saw and felt, presumably to gauge how strong my powers were. 

I wipe the remaining tears from my eyes with my sleeve and take a deep breath before turning to face them. The bodies are still hanging from the rafters above us and it takes everything in me to not come undone completely, but I force myself to look up at them. 

None of the faces are familiar, which sends a wave of relief over me, even though guilt quickly follows. It shouldn't matter if I knew them or not. 

Three innocent lives had still been taken. There were now three less witches in the world, three more wolves who would eventually turn as cold and cruel as Aiden without their mates to keep them whole, but of course that's exactly what Aiden wants. 

He's building an army, and it's obvious that he's willing to go to whatever lengths necessary to bring in new recruits. The thought turns my stomach, but I won't let it happen again. I would make sure another witch's life isn't taken because of him, even if it means putting my own in danger.

With an uncertain glance at Maddox, I take a few steps closer and close my eyes, trying to tune in with their life forces. They were stronger, their energy less... faded than the ones who had burned. With that news came a dark realization- they hadn't been dead for very long before I showed up. 

When I open my eyes again, my mother and Eira are looking at me patiently, waiting for my analysis with sorrow-filled eyes. 

"Their energy is still stronger, stronger than the others. They haven't been dead long, which means-"

"Which means Aiden is still close by. I'm going to go make a few calls."

Maddox kisses my temple softly before practically running out of the greenhouse door. He had already shifted by the time he made it outside and I watched as his wolf sprinted through the trees until he disappeared. 

"Poppy..." My mom calls my attention back to them softly. "It's okay if you don't want to do this. I know this is a lot to take in."

I shake my head vehemently. 

"No. I want- I need to do this."

I continue my appraisal of the scene in front of me. These witches had cast a protection spell over the coven, much like the last ones, and Aiden seemed to be going for old Salem Witch Trial techniques to kill them. 

It was the biggest slap in the face. The Salem trials were a sore spot in our history because of how glamorized it had become in the western world despite the hundreds of lives that had been lost.

Aiden knew that and was making a mockery of us.

What's different this time, though, is that we could actually see the victims. The last ones had been burned so badly, there was no way to tell who they were. 

These girls were still in tact, and as some of the wolves on guard pulled them down and laid them on the tables in front of me, I noticed something very odd on the side of their neck, where a mate mark would be if they had one- a single poppy, painted on their skin in a sticky red substance. 

This was a game to Aiden, one he was very sure he was winning. 

The witches form a circle around the bodies and say a prayer over them as some of the pack guards watch over us from the sidelines. My body starts to tingle as we all recite the latin words in unison. It's a weird feeling, an electric buzzing just underneath the surface of my skin that faded as soon as we were finished. 

I try to shake it off as a normal reaction to so much magic in the room, but something about it feels weird. I'd always been around magic growing up. My mother had always made sure Willow, Basil, and I were actively involved in the coven... so why had I never felt like this before now?

"It's just a new coven, that's all. New magic to get used to, new energy, and of course there's the little thing of being traumatized," I mumble to myself under my breath. 

No use dwelling on it, especially not with everything else on my plate. 

"Poppy, Darling."

My attention snaps up to Eira, who's walking gracefully towards me. 

The rest of the group disperses, talking quietly in smaller groups, but they all stay inside the greenhouse as the bodies are carted off. 

"Hey, Eira. How are you?"

"Exhausted. Heart broken. But I'll survive. What about you, darling? Still having those premonitions?"

I nod wearily in response, not wanting her or anyone else for that matter to worry about my stupid dreams. Especially not after today. 

"Are they the same every time?"

"Mostly," I nod again. "Except, they've been starting to feel more.. personal, if that makes any sense?"

"That's pretty normal, especially after such targeted attacks."

Had she noticed the poppies on their necks, too?

"And especially after all those war room meetings you've been attending. All this talk of Aiden can't be very settling for you," she says.

"It's okay. I'm glad Maddox has been letting me attend. I just wish I could find him already and rip his throat out myself for everything he's- oh my god. Eira, I'm so sorry. He's still your son, I shouldn't have- I, fuck I'm sorry!"

I groan internally at my own stupidity. I deserve to get my ass kicked after saying such a thing. I feel like a total bitch when Eira's face falls at my mention of her son. He might be a monster, but there's no doubt that all of this still has to be hard on her. 

"It's okay, Poppy. I don't blame you for wanting revenge after everything he's done. I-I... I wish I could hate him. I should hate him for this."

My heart breaks for the obvious pain in Eira's eyes. I've never seen her this vulnerable before. Even when news first broke that her son was behind all of this, she had been the picture of confidence and composure, but right now she couldn't help but show me how broken she really felt. 

I don't even think about my next move, I just lean forward to close the remaining space between us and hug Eira as tightly as I possibly can. The fact that she hugs me back equally as tight isn't was surprises me. No, what surprises me are the small sobs that wrack her body as she clings to me. 

I can't stop the tears that fall from my own eyes as I hold her, as I feel every ounce of her pain as if it were my own. Even though she isn't saying a word, it feels like she's pouring her heart out to me. We stand here, unmoving for what feels like hours, but I don't let go. 

I'll let her cry for as long as she needs it.