Salem

Even Witches Go To High School

Salem Town High School was housed in an old, red-brick building surrounded by brown grass and red dirt. The summer heat’s mark had yet to fade, and students were still reluctant to take their jackets and sweatshirts out of their closets. Annie Putnam’s stomach rolled as the school bus rolled up to its designated spot by the flagpole.

The entire town was buzzing about what Reverend Parris had stumbled across in the forest a few nights ago. Nobody seemed to know what to make of it, but several of the Leaders had visited the clearing, and all of them seemed to conclude that it warranted further investigation. She was sure it was only a matter before her father discovered it all. There was only so much that could be kept secret in a small town like this, and conjuring spirits was an unforgivable sin.

The squeal of the brakes jogged her from her train of thought and she jumped out of her seat as if it were on fire. Despite being seated in her usual spot in the back, Annie was the first person off the bus and into the school. The last thing she wanted to be hassled with right now was questions. Everyone knew Abby had been caught by the Reverend right alongside Betty. Nobody had heard from either of them and Annie was quite desperate to hear any news.

She spotted Mercy down the hallway at her locker and hurried over as quickly as she could without running and slipping on the polished tiles. She barely caught herself in time to keep from looking like a complete klutz.

“Mercy,” she said as she drew level with the older girl. Mercy Lewis had been Abby’s best friend ever since she had first come to Salem a few years earlier. Abby was an orphan and she wasn’t so broken up that she couldn’t remind everyone about it every chance she had. Almost everyone knew the gory details of the fourteen-car pile-up in Denver.

“Hey, Annie,” Mercy greeted, a small, almost indulgent smile on her face. Mercy usually had that kind of look on her face when dealing with someone from the Circle. Abby and Mercy had been the two girls who had brought everyone together for their nighttime forays. And both of them loved to remind the other girls of it.

“Have you heard anything from Abby?” Annie asked, swallowing back the snippy reply that rested on the tip of her tongue. Mercy had been an annoyance to her for a long time.

“Not really,” Mercy said vaguely. The older girl closed her locker door with a snap and pulled the strap of her purse further up her shoulder. Another coy smile was the only goodbye Annie got as Mercy walked off to her first-period classroom.

Annie rolled her brown eyes towards the ceiling and left for her own first period. She hoped Betty would be there. All of the school’s freshman students were required to attend a class called Freshman Seminar for their first period. It wasn’t supposed to be a study hall or a free period but most of the teachers didn’t care enough to actually do the learning exercises the district handed out each year. And for that the students were grateful.

She was the first one in her classroom that morning and Mr. Hanson gave her an odd look. He was normally the economics teacher for the juniors and the varsity football coach. But he had drawn the short straw and got stuck presiding over the freshman for a semester. Annie was normally the last one to class if she went at all. But today was not the day to skip in favor of gossiping in the second-floor girl’s bathroom next door to the art room.

That was where most of her friends were when they didn’t go to their own first period. But Betty wasn’t likely to be there this morning. Annie knew Betty very well. They'd been best friends since second grade when her father had taken over the Church. So, she knew that whenever Betty got in a jam, she usually removed herself from all things social.

Betty would be in class today. She just knew it and Annie had to talk to her.

Students began slowly filling in and by the time the tardy bell rang, every seat was filled. Every seat except Betty’s. Maybe Annie had been wrong. Maybe she wouldn’t be there at all. She pulled out her phone from her backpack, not bothering to be discrete as Mr. Hanson wasn’t even looking at any of the students. His eyes were glued to the screen of his laptop probably planning defensive plays. As the morning announcements blared over the PA system, she quickly went to Betty’s ** and tried to figure out where the other girl was.

When that turned out to be a bust, she fired off a quick text asking her where she was. Ten minutes later it was clear that Betty wasn’t going to answer. Thrusting her phone into the pocket of her jacket she grabbed her bag and left the classroom without even pausing to ask permission. Mr. Hanson didn’t appear to notice her departure.

Annie took the stairs two at a time and nearly ran down the hallway to the girl’s bathroom. When she got there, she saw that she wasn’t the only one who had thought to gather in a moment of blind panic. Most of the Circle was there. They were in the middle of a heated discussion it seemed but had paused and turned to see who had dared enter the bathroom in the middle of first period.

Once they saw that it was one of their own, they went back to talking about whatever it was she had interrupted.

“Abby isn’t in class,” Mary Walcott continued saying. Annie joined their little ring between the sinks and the stalls, pulling on the strings of her light blue pullover in a fit of sudden nervousness. “You don’t think they’re in real trouble, do you? Reverend Parris told Abby he’d send her away if she caused any more trouble.”

“Of course not,” Mercy Lewis snapped. “Abby’ll squeeze out of it just like she always does.”

“And what about the rest of us?” snapped Elizabeth Hubbard, twisting the bracelet that all the volleyball girls wore. It was blue and white with the school’s mascot on it. There must have been a game scheduled for later that night. The team only pulled them out when there was a game.

“Just keep your mouths shut and we’ll be fine,” Sarah Churchill chimed in. “It’s not like we did anything illegal. We were just having fun in the woods.”

“I heard that Parris had to take Betty to the doctor,” Susannah Sheldon reported. Annie felt her heart clench. She hadn’t known Betty was sick. “There’s something really wrong with her.”

“Like what?” Mercy asked, annoyed that she hadn’t known about it first. She had always been proud to be Abby’s second and the fact that something had happened to that family that she hadn’t known about would be a sore spot.

“Something with her stomach,” Susannah said. “What if we accidentally poisoned her? We could get in a lot of trouble!” There was a sudden ripple of terrified murmuring in the group. Annie started to feel sick. Not only was Betty possibly poisoned, but it might also have been their fault. Could they really be punished for such a thing? Annie pulled out her phone again hoping that Betty had texted her back to let her know everything was all right. She had no messages.

“Shut up!” Mercy said as loudly as she dared. “Listen! Betty’s probably just faking to get out of trouble. You all would do the same if your father was the minister. If everybody just shuts up about it all, none of us will be in trouble. Got it?”

Her words were met with silence. Nobody had a better idea about what to do or what might be going on. All they knew was that they could possibly be in trouble.

There was hardly a sound for a half minute before the door burst open again and Mary Warren nearly crashed into Susannah she was moving so quickly. The girl caught her and scowled at her clumsiness.

“Jesus, Mary,” Susannah snapped. “Walk much?” Mary was a mousy girl with limp hair and dull eyes. She was bony, flat-chested, and didn’t know how to put on make-up. She constantly looked like a frightened clown. The only reason was in the Circle was to run errands for Abby and Mercy. Everyone knew they treated her like a mule. Nobody cared enough about her to help her out though.

“Sorry,” Mary gasped as she straightened up and coughed nervously. “I just thought you guys should know that everyone is talking about the forest. They’re saying things about witches and spells!” By the time she was done reporting, she was nearly shaking in fright.

Mercy just sneered at her but Sarah Churchill took pity and patted her awkwardly on the shoulder. It was a weak and wholly insincere attempt at comfort but Mary seemed to calm anyway.

“Pull yourself together, Warren,” Mercy told her. “And shut up!” Mary’s eyes widened. She knew she’d done something wrong but she wasn’t sure what. Nobody bothered to tell her. Mercy pulled out her cell phone and punched a few keys.

“Who are you calling?” Mary Walcott asked as Mercy put the phone to her ear. The other girl held up a finger to shush her.

“Hey Abby, it’s Mercy,” she said after a few seconds of waiting. “Call me back when you get this.” Abby must have had her phone off or she would have answered. Abby always answered every text and every phone call. She was as glued to her phone as any queen bee should be.

“What now?” Susannah asked.

“Nothing,” Mercy said. “Everyone goes back to class. We didn’t poison Betty; we didn’t do anything wrong. Got it?”

This time her words were met with general agreement. The bell rang signaling the end of first period and everyone left.

Getting through the rest of the day was not as easy as Mercy Lewis would have liked it to be. Reverend Parris had apparently seen no need to keep his discovery to himself. By third period, even the freshmen were talking about the all-girl party that had been broken up last Friday.

“Hey Annie,” Jeffery Harris teased in gym class. “Where’s your magic wand?” His attempt at humor was met with a few snickers, mostly from his own friends.

“Right where I left it,” Annie responded. “Shoved right up your ass.” That elicited much more laughter. Jeffery turned bright red and went to find a basketball.

But Annie’s encounter with Jeffrey Harris was only the first of many. Everyone was taking the opportunity of what the Leaders had discovered to tease her. Annie knew that it was only a matter of time before her own parents heard about it all and she was desperately denying everything. Same as all the other girls.

It didn’t work.

When Annie got home that afternoon she was met by her mother, hands on her hips, and her bare toes tapping the carpet in an obvious sign of frustration.

“I just had the most interesting call from Reverend Parris,” she said.

“Yeah?” Annie replied, shrugging off her backpack in a purposeful show of disinterest.

“Oh yes,” she said. “He informed me of where you really were last Friday.” Annie looked at her with her eyebrows raised, daring her to continue. She knew how her mother worked.

The right amount of attitude at the right time and the woman would just eventually give up. Her father was usually a little different but he also left most of Annie’s behavioral problems to her mother. After all, Thomas Putnam was a busy man with more important things to do.

“Do you have anything to say for yourself?” her mother asked, this time sounding much more in control of herself, though she ruined the effect by running her crucifix along the gold chain around her neck. It was a nervous tick that Annie knew well.

“It depends on what Reverend Parris told you, I guess,” Annie said and tried not to giggle when her mother pinched her lips together. It always made the woman look like an odd, flat-faced fish. Annie could never take her mother’s angry face seriously.

“Ann Putnam!” the woman squeaked. “He told me you were trying to conjure spirits! Spirits! Like some sort of witch! What were you thinking?” The woman’s shrill voice did little for Annie’s sense of guilt. In fact, she was trying not to feel annoyed.

“We didn’t conjure spirits,” Annie told her. Her mother dropped the crucifix and folded her arms across her chest as if to shield herself. “We were just dancing.”

“Like a party?” her mother asked, almost hopefully.

“Yes, Mom,” Annie said. “Like a party.”

“And you promise that you didn’t do anything,” she paused here and swallowed as if it was physically hurting her to say the words. “Magical?”

“We never conjured spirits,” Annie insisted.

“Then why would Abagail Williams tell the Reverend that you were?”

Annie felt her insides twist. Abby would actually say that? Why? There was no way that admitting to Parris about the spell would end well for anyone in the Circle. In fact, it would probably mean that Abby would be permanently sent away to some other relatives she had in New York. Not that Annie would be sad to see her go. Abby was sort of mean and not easy to get to know.

“I don’t know Mom,” Annie replied truthfully. “Maybe she just doesn’t want to get in trouble for something.”

Her mother nodded, considering it. She poked her tongue out as if she wanted to lick her lips but knew that would smudge her lipstick. Instead, she tucked a strand of dark hair behind her ear.

“You would tell me if you did something wrong, right Annie?”

“Of course, Mom.”

“Because if something Magical really did happen in that clearing, it’s important that you tell me. Something like this could really hurt your father’s campaign.”

Annie really wanted to tell her that she didn’t care about her father’s bid for Mayor. In fact, her father could lose horribly and she really wouldn’t care in the slightest. She rolled her eyes to show her deep lack of caring.

“Nothing happened out there,” she said. “Abby’s lying.” It was a real risk, saying that to her mother but it was a risk she was willing to make if it meant ending this conversation. After all, her mother was going to be talking to Reverend Parris again once Annie went to her room. That much she knew. What she didn’t know was if her mother would have the sense to not accuse Abby of being a lair to her own Uncle. That would make the next Leaders' dinner very awkward.

“You’re certain there’s nothing I should know?”

“I didn’t do anything Mom,” Annie said, knowing she could swing her mother to her side. “I promise. Do you believe me?”

“Of course, sweetheart. But I had to ask.”

“I know,” Annie said, trying to let her mother know that she was really telling the truth.

Like always, her mother believed her.

“All right, go do your homework, I guess.”

Annie fled to her room before her mother could second guess herself and call her back for more questions. She had convinced her parents to give her the finished basement and had moved down there over the summer. Having the entire basement to herself was a definite plus as her parents had their room on the second floor. She had more privacy even without a door at either end of the stairs.

The room itself had been painted in eggplant and had a huge four-poster bed in the center. The fireplace had white bricks and the set of French doors led to a patio that she had also taken as her own. It was like living in her own apartment and Annie loved it. It was also the room most of her friends preferred to hang out in. She dropped her backpack on the white couch in front of the flat-screen television and went to her roll-top desk, also painted white. She grabbed her laptop and sat on the bed, her back resting on a multitude of plush, decorative pillows.

Powering on the laptop, Annie connected to the Internet and instantly went to f******k and Twitter hoping to see a status update from Betty. There was nothing. Annie was starting to get worried about her friend. It wasn’t like Betty not to text or post on social media. Even when she was grounded the other girl always found a way of staying connected.

But today, Betty had completely fallen off the map. It was mostly worrying considering they had been found in the woods. And with all the rumors circulating around the school and Reverend Parris calling parents the whole situation seemed to be coming to a head. The only comfort Annie took was in the fact that Mercy had seemed certain they had done nothing illegal. If Betty had been poisoned, it hadn’t been anyone's fault. She just wished that Betty would tell her that she was okay.

Annie didn’t know how long she sat there, flipping through various pages, trying to figure out what was happening in the town. Thankfully, nobody was talking about witchcraft, spells, or poisons on the Internet. Just in school hallways. Annie could live with that.

“Annie?”

She jumped when her mother called down the stairs for her. She quickly closed the lid to her computer, tossed it aside on the duvet, and clamored to the bottom of the stairs.

“What?” she asked, looking up at the woman.

“There’s a meeting at the Church,” she told her. “Your father’s asked us to meet him there.”

“Okay,” Annie said, trying not to sound scared or worried. She had no reason to be. She’d done nothing wrong. “Just let me grab my phone.” She used the few seconds it took to grab the phone from her bag to try and compose herself for what would be coming that night. If Reverend Parris really was telling about what he’d leaped in on, they would likely be gossiping about it all night. Especially the Leaders.

And that was actually quite a terrifying thought.