Mrs. Hodgins sat in the flickering light of the mansion's hearth, her voice low and steady.
"I couldn't manifest this place alone," she admitted. "Forevermore needed belief. Fear. Rumor."
She looked at Mira.
"So I used the egregore. I seeded whispers—stories of a haunted cabin in the woods. A place that swallows people whole."
Mira's breath caught.
"That's… Leo," she whispered. "He was obsessed with ghost lore. He used to talk about that exact rumor."
Her eyes widened.
"He must've entered Forevermore."
Anne stirred.
Her eyes fluttered open.
She saw Mrs. Hodgins.
And the lamp.
Her heart raced.
She lunged forward, but Brittany and Lily held her back.
"Anne," Mira said gently. "She's powerless now. The egregore's gone."
Mrs. Hodgins didn't argue.
She simply watched.
Brittany, meanwhile, had a different thought entirely.
The genie was so hot, she mused silently. Even when he was choking me.
Anne stepped forward and grabbed the lamp.
She rubbed it.
Nothing happened.
She tried again.
Still nothing.
Her hands trembled.
Her eyes filled with tears.
"I might never see him again," she whispered.
Silence fell.
Mrs. Hodgins finally spoke.
"There's one way."
Everyone turned.
"The lamp is bound to Forevermore. And Forevermore has a heart."
She paused.
"The Eden Tree."
Anne's eyes lit up.
"You're saying… I can ask the tree?"
Mrs. Hodgins nodded slowly. "If it accepts you."
"But I won't lie," she added. "I don't want you to go. My wish of reversal hasn't been fulfilled."
Anne didn't respond.
She was already packing.
She moved with purpose, her pendant glowing faintly.
It was as if the lamp had become her heartbeat.
They gathered supplies.
Maps. Charms. Lanterns.
Anne refused to listen to anyone.
She was going.
Mira watched quietly.
Then stepped back.
"I'll stay," she said. "Someone needs to guard the mansion. And… I need to find Leo."
Anne nodded.
Brittany, Lily, and Anne stepped into the fog.
The path to the Eden Tree was long.
But they didn't look back.
To be continued…