Page 23 of Bewitched & Bewildered
I need your help with a BUSINESS.
I meetRowan at our apothecary. This is happening too quickly, but I’m the one pushing it. I’ve gone from avoiding the place for a year to visiting twice in a day. I’m still uncomfortable here, and it seems like Rowan is, too.
She walks through the apothecary as if she expects the floorboards to disappear underneath her. Each step is delicate and calculated.
Rowan is about my height, but she’s thin and sprite. While I started dying my hair black years ago, she still sports her natural auburn—and a pair of baby bangs.
“It smells like mom in here.” Rowan frowns as she walks through the room.
“I know. It feels like her, too.”
For a spell, I only hear the furnace radiating and Rowan’s hesitant steps.
Whether being reminded of our mom is good or bad—I can’t say. I’ve spent a year running away from her, but it’s hard when I’m living in her old house. Now, I’m thinking about reopening her business.
Others who lost their parents say they forget them with time. They can’t remember the way they smell, sound, or laugh. I can’t imagine getting to that point. Everythingabout my mother is still etched in my mind—even the things I want to shake off.
Opening this shop means I’m intertwined with my mother in a way I never wished to be. It’s my choice, but it’s hers as well. She was the one who left me with this place.
I always loved her, but I hoped to be my own person… and my own witch. She was one of the most prolific witches in Maine, and I am constantly stuck in her shadow. We all are. I can still break free from that, but the pressure to carry her legacy is unbearable.
Why did she pick me to run this place? I don’t think she was trying to leave me with another burden, but she did.
Her death came too suddenly, and we never had time to talk about any of this. I never agreed to run the apothecary. Maybe she would have asked me about it…
If that demon didn’t take her from us so early.
“Is this the business you wanted to ask about?” Rowan looks at me over her spectacles.
She’s always been too perceptive—but I guess it became clear when I asked her to meet me here.
I nod, holding my breath.
“Are you sure?” she asks. “It’s a big responsibility. You remember how much mom worked.”
“At least I don’t have five kids to take care of.” I smile halfheartedly.
“You’re right. May as well count our blessings, I suppose.” She sighs and strides to the office.
It’s a wreck. The office was always messy, but I don’t remember it being this bad. There are papers strewn about. A floorboard is lifted. The filing cabinets are open, with thick files making it impossible to close. The desktop computer is ancient, and the layer of dust will likely set offmy allergies. I’m surprised Rowan didn’t come in to tidy the place up sooner.
At least I’m not the only sister avoiding her.
Rowan rifles through the files.
“Her books are a disaster,” Rowan says. “You wouldn’t know it, but this place was leaking money for years.” She slaps a crumpled piece of paper on the desk and smooths it out.
I look over Rowan’s shoulder. Even with my mother’s chicken scratch handwriting and my lack of expertise, I can see the problem.
“She’s been operating at a loss?” I ask.
“Mhm. If we reopen, we’ll have to raise the prices. That’s the only way we can make a profit.”
“Wonderful…” I sigh.
Rowan looks up at me. Her glasses slip down her nose. “You’ve been visiting Ozan’s new apothecary?—”
“I haven’t.”
