A Lost Witch (A Modern Witch Series: Book 7) Read Online Free Page A

detail.”
    Truth.  Harvey freaked out if his white laundry touched his red socks.  Belinda had to be greeted with a song, preferably something cheerful and childlike.  Mason panicked if anyone turned off the lights.  “She’s new—she’ll learn.”  The good ones did—but they were hard to find for what the scrimpy budgets could afford to pay.  The rest left, exhausted in days or hours by the realities of Chrysalis House’s inhabitants.
    Hannah imagined they drowned in the hopelessness.
    But not Dr. Max.  Like the little engine in a book of distant memory, he never gave up.
    His hand touched her shoulder.  “There’s a new drug.”
    She’d learned long ago not to make a wish.  “Will it work?”
    “Probably not.”  He’d learned long ago that what she wanted most was honesty.  “But it might.”
    “Side effects?”
    He sighed.  “Bad.  And fairly likely.”
    Not a surprise—she’d long since tried all the less-evil drugs.  “Maybe later.”  She didn’t have the strength today.  The side effects, she could handle.  The trickle of hope that showed up every time they tried something new, that refused to die in the face of overwhelming evidence—that, she couldn’t deal with.  Not today.
    Today, she simply needed to be quiet and watch the rain.
    “If you need me …”  His words trailed off as he stood up.
    She turned away from the window.  He deserved that much.  Her face crinkled into a smile for the one man who had always thought Hannah Kendrick was worth saving.  “I know where to find you.”
    His eyes gladdened.  “Come see me later.  Sara made me some new drawings.  My wife says one might be a dragon.”
    This time, the smile was genuine—her hold on the real world was tenuous, but she was pretty sure his daughter’s three-year-old art skills weren’t up to scales and wings.  “I’ll come.  I have some weaving to do first.”
    A small play blanket for the treasured doll of a girl who might draw dragons one day—and who made her father’s eyes light with joy.
    Hannah turned back to the window, letting the raindrops be her tears.  And refused to wish for a future that could never be.
    -o0o-
    Lauren stood at the gate to Chrysalis House and looked around.  She knew how to evaluate a property from the street.  This one had excellent curb appeal.  Welcoming yellows dressed the surfaces of a well-maintained building.  Gardens full of whimsy and color—the kind that were the product of a gardener’s love, not just good landscaping.  Private little nooks and crannies in the yard, windows with a pretty view. 
    It felt almost homey.
    Tabitha smiled gently beside her.  “Some of what you fear does live inside those doors—but they work very hard to make a comfortable environment for the people here.”
    She could see that.  “I guess my ideas about mental institutions are stuck somewhere in the last century.”
    “Oh, those still exist.”  Tab’s voice was sad now.  “And we always seem to invent new ways to exclude and dehumanize those amongst us who are fragile.”
    Lauren reached for the arm of the woman who made strides with fragile children every day.  She wasn’t the only one who was going to find this visit very difficult—Tabitha had a strong dose of the empathetic side of mind magic.  “One at a time.  We help one person at a time.”
    Tab smiled.  “Let’s go learn what we can about Hannah.”
    The front doors of Chrysalis House opened and a man stepped out, his body language open and energetic.  “Tab!  Great to see you again.”  He pushed several buttons on a remote in his hand and the gate swung open.
    Lauren noted the squeaking and rumbling as it did—and almost missed the very discreet electronic lasers.  Security was tighter than it looked. 
    Tabitha had followed her gaze.  Safety isn’t an easy issue. I can promise you the people who live here are as free as possible.  He would tolerate nothing less.
    The man walking