Page 106 of Hollow

I mull that over. Could my mother have conjured a spirit to bring Brom back? That does sound like something she’d do. But why not tell me?

Unless there’s a reason why she didn’t want me to know.

“And there’s another complication,” Crane adds, in teacher mode now. “The spirit should have left you. The Hessian decided to stay. He’s both tied to you in his spirit form and in your physical form.”

“Does that mean that if this is truly Brom right now, that the Hessian soldier is out there?” I ask, looking at the dark fields around us.

Crane shrugs. “I don’t know. Perhaps he’s coming here as we speak. Perhaps he’s waiting for the right moment to take over Brom again. He’s just beneath the surface, Brom. I can see him there. It’s like looking at a dark lake, ripples on the surface of something underneath.”

“You need to get him out of me,” Brom says in horror. “Please.”

“That’s exactly what we plan to do,” Crane says, stopping in front of us and gazing down at Brom. “There are a few rituals that the three of us can try that might just free you from him.”

“Well, we need to do them now,” I cry out, flooded with impatience.

“They aren’t that easy,” Crane says slowly. “They might take some…convincing to get everyone on board.”

“I’ll do anything,” I implore him.

He gives me a quick smile. “I have no doubt you will, sweet witch. But it’s Brom that may need convincing.”

Brom frowns. “I will do anything. I promise.”

Crane gives him a rueful smile. “You say that now,” he says. “But until you remember what I need you to remember, I’m not sure how easy this will be.”

“What do you need me to remember?”

Crane exhales, tilts his head as he holds Brom’s gaze. “I’m going to need you to remember me. And what I was to you. I need you to remember us, Abe.”

Chapter 32

Crane

Brom stares at me deeply and I know he’s trying to remember who I am, where we’ve met before. But every time it looks like he’s on the cusp of something, he freezes. He’s afraid. I know that fear. I know how debilitating it is. I’d seen that same fear in New York City before he’d submit to me.

He swallows hard and looks up at Kat, who is still cradling his head in her lap. A moment passes between them, something instinctual, a product of two people who have known each other a long time, but instead of feeling jealous of their relationship, I just feel love for them instead.

God Almighty, am I in love with both of them? My pretty boy and my sweet witch?

The realization is terrifying.

But I don’t run from it. I embrace the fear.

Because it’s magic.

“Don’t be afraid,” I tell Brom. “Don’t block it.”

“I tried to tell you,” Kat says softly, stroking the side of his face. “I tried to tell you that you knew each other in New York.”

Brom’s dark brows come together, and he swallows hard. “I don’t remember.”

“You think you don’t want to remember,” I tell him. “But I can help.”

His jaw goes tight. That fear again.

“Maybe we should get off the road,” Kat suggests. “Do you think you can stand, Brom?”

He nods, and I go behind him, putting my hands under his arms and pulling him to his feet. But I don’t let go of him. I keep my arms around him, holding him from behind. He’s a tall, muscular man, but I have half a foot on him, and I rest my chin on his good shoulder, my hands flat against his chest and pushing him against me. “Don’t fight it,” I urge him.

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