Adelaide?
My head spun, hearing that name. I’d heard it before—it was the name Esther had accidentally called me.
It was the name of the girl in the picture with Mom, her best friend.
Why would they call out her name?
‘Drop the box, Violet,’ the same kind voice urged.
Like I was in a trance, I moved without thinking and dropped the box. There was a loud thud on the ground, all heads turned to me.
The panic I had been holding back, slowly began to release itself, and before I could stop it, tears blurred my vision.
“Violet!” Dylan rushed to my side, then wrapped his arms around me. When he held me close, I realized I had been shaking. I tried so hard to keep it together, but it was all too much. The voices, the whispers, the temptation.
A sob escaped my throat, and I buried my hea
