Page 38 of A Ghost’s Guide to Haunting a Witch

Theo didn’t hesitate. He nodded almost instantly.

Augustine turned the card. The High Priestess. Her stomach dropped.

“Who is she?” Theo frowned slightly. “What does she mean?”

Augustine didn’t answer, instead focusing on the image in front of her — the silent woman seated between two pillars, guarding knowledge that wasn’t meant to be spoken aloud. She’d loved this card, once upon a time. Loved the dark-haired woman, mysterious and ethereal, in her blue robes, a scroll held tight in her palm.

Until that day.

Put it behind you, she ordered herself. Just keep to the reading. Don’t make it personal.

Still, something uneasy stirred in Augustine’s chest. The Ten of Swords had been dramatic, yes — brutal even — but not unexpected. Theo had already told her he’d been murdered. A card about betrayal and collapse almost felt inevitable.

But this? This felt . . . different. Off. The High Priestess was out of place in this spread, Augustine was nearly sure of it.

Except that she wasn’t out of place, was she? Theo had chosen her. The Fates had offered her. She was exactly where she was meant to be.

“What does she mean?” Theo asked again quietly, and Augustine dragged her eyes away from the card.

“Well,” she said slowly, choosing her words with care, “The High Priestess represents hidden knowledge. Secrets. Someone who sees beyond what other people can.”

Theo leaned forward slightly, studying the image.

“So . . . someone wise?”

“More than wise,” Augustine said. “She’s higher than that. A woman who can see between the planes. A woman who understands things most people never even realize exist.”

Theo looked up at her. “My girlfriend?” he asked.

Augustine exhaled softly. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “Maybe. But this card doesn’t usually represent something so ordinary.”

Theo’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean, ordinary?”

“I don’t mean your girlfriend, whoever she is, is ordinary. I just mean that the High Priestess isn’t just a woman,” Augustine said carefully. “She’s a guardian of knowledge. Someone who stands between what’s known and what’s hidden. But for some reason, this High Priestess betrayed you.”

Theo’s gaze flicked between Augustine and the card. “You mean like you?”

“I’m sorry?” Augustine froze.

Theo swallowed. “Well, you’re kind of like a high priestess. You can see between the planes. Maybe this card is . . .” He stopped, thinking carefully. “Maybe it’s like you.”

“No, it’s not like me. Not at all.” Augustine looked at him sharply. “What? You think I betrayed you? Shot you? I’m trying to help you, remember?”

Theo lifted his hands immediately, red crossing his cheeks. “Sorry, I didn’t mean you, I just . . . I meant someone like you.”

“Someone like me?”

“Well, you know . . . a wit—” He abruptly stopped himself and lowered his hands. “Forget I said that. I’m sorry, okay? I’m just trying to work this all out in my mind. It’s a lot to take in.”

She nodded slowly, and silence settled between them again as Augustine looked back down at the spread as a slow, uneasy thought crept into her head.

A woman with knowledge of the unseen. A woman who understood the forces moving between worlds. Maybe he’s not wrong.

A witch . . . a witch could have done this.

The idea sat heavily in her thoughts. Then, deliberately, Augustine pushed it aside.

Not yet, she told herself. I’ll think about that later.