Ian flicked open his watch, then shook his head when it gave him a negative reading. “Nothing,” he said, careful not to confuse Mrs. Dower with talk of ghosts and witches. The thought had occurred to Edwina as well.
Confused, she scrutinized her sister’s body from head to foot, trying to make sense of what was laid out before her. Then her eye spotted the corner of an envelope poking out of the lining of the coffin lid. Ian saw it, too, and retrieved a small card, the sort one might send with a bouquet of flowers.
“It’s addressed to you,” he said to Edwina, then opened the envelope with her approval.
He slipped the note loose of its sleeve, and they leaned together to read the handwritten note:
Dear Miss Edwina Blackwood,
A token of my esteem. Until we meet again.
Yours truly,
An Ardent Admirer
The signature, written in iridescent green ink, was smeared nearly beyond recognition from a misplaced drop of muddy water. Yet the indication was clear.
Someone had been watching her.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
As always, I need to thank a number of people for helping deliver The Raven Spell into the world. Without their guidance and expertise, it would be a much different book. To my wonderful agent, Marlene Stringer: thank you once again for believing in this story when it was just a single chapter based on what if. To my acquiring editor, Adrienne Procaccini: thank you for taking a leap of faith with me on a second series. To my editor, Liz Pearsons, who graciously stepped up to oversee the novel through production: thank you for doing double duty.
I’ve also been fortunate to work with many of the same developmental and copy editors on this series at 47North as I did with The Vine Witch, which made the work feel more like a reunion. To Clarence, Jon, Kellie, and Stephanie: your critical scrutiny of the work is what makes the words publishable, and I thank you all. You are word witches of the highest order! And to the people working behind the scenes—Kristin, Grace, Lauren, Leonard, and the rest of the team at 47North—thank you for all you do. And a final thanks to Shasti O’Leary Soudant for her spot-on cover concept.
APPENDIX
Borrowed Written Works and Poems in the Public Domain The Pirate by Walter Scott
“The Sick Rose” by William Blake “Ashes Denote That Fire Was” by Emily Dickinson “The Moon” by Robert Louis Stevenson Borrowed Nursery Rhymes in the Public Domain
“Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary”
“Who Killed Cock Robin?”
“Three Blind Mice”
“Ladybird, Ladybird”
“One for Sorrow”