James gave Nora an apologetic smile as he thanked Joann for taking care of his daughters.
"Does this mean you're leaving now?" asked Louise.
"I think it'd be best for us to try to go home," said James. "And fix all the damage from the storm."
"With all due respect sir," Michael said, stepping forward. "It's very unsafe for you to leave."
James held his hand out. "I think I know what's best for my daughters."
A loud clap of thunder shook the ground, and an old woman appeared in the doorway, soaked.
Officer Hays ran to open the door for her, but the moment he did, she sent a blast of cold air into the room, knocking everyone onto the floor.
The old woman's appearance quickly melted away to reveal her true identity: the evil witch.
The four Martin children screamed; James grabbed his daughters' hands and pulled them out of the lobby to a room down the hall.
"Get behind me!" Officer Hays shouted. He held his arms out to block the witch from seeing Nora and the Martins.
"Where are they?" she demanded. "Where are the three girls?"
"You can't have them!" Joann shouted.
"Nora," Michael whispered from behind the counter. "Follow me."
The second the witch turned her head, Nora slipped away from Officer Hays and followed Michael out the back door.
"Where are we going?" she asked once they were far enough away from the police station.
Michael sat down on a bench, hiding by a big bush and motioned for Nora to join him.
"There's this legend about an old, magical woman who lives in the forest," he told her. "They say she can counteract any spell or destroy any evil being. If we can find her by the end of the day, she can help us kill the witch once and for all."
"Can she help get us back home?" inquired Nora.
Michael nodded, a bit sadly. "Yes%u2026and she can also get Elizabeth back. I mean, the REAL Elizabeth."
Nora sighed and slid off of the bench. "So, where do we start?"
