The Once and Future Witches

The Sisters continue with their planned third spectacle and assemble in the witches’ graveyard in New Salem in the middle of the night. There, they speak a spell that transforms a gnarled hawthorn tree into a golden apple tree bearing fruit. Suddenly, the women are ambushed by the police, confirming that someone has betrayed them.

The police seize Juniper on the grounds that she is wanted for murder. She conjures a confusion spell long enough for the rest of the witches to escape. Unfortunately, Councilman Gideon Hill and his police contingent arrest Juniper and take her to a prison called the Deeps. Agnes is able to get away, but Bella can’t keep pace. She expects to be captured any second when Quinn pulls her into a mausoleum and rescues her.

Bella accuses Quinn of betraying the witches, but the reporter denies this. Instead, Quinn confesses that she is one of the Daughters of Tituba, a group descended from the Black witch of Old Salem. Quinn was sent to learn how much Bella knew about resurrecting the Lost Way. She apologizes for concealing this information. Quinn guides Bella through the tomb to a set of connecting tunnels, which were originally part of the Underground Railroad leading out of New Salem and connecting to New Cairo.