(You can find Bethina and the others in the Amaranthine saga & Brothers of Darkness. This story takes place at the Cotterill Plantation in Virginia in 1947.)
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Bethina folded the last sweater and stuffed it in the well-worn suitcase. The luggage had seen many years, and many trips, some before she was born. Her parents had taken it on their honeymoon, such as it was, a story she'd heard a dozen times or more.
With nothing else to pack, she snapped the suitcase shut and gave the familiar bedroom a last look. She could feel her mother standing in the doorframe behind her and imagined the frown on her face and the unshed tears in her eyes.
"Are you sure about this?"
Bethina sighed and turned to face her. "Yes, Mom. I'm sure. What else am I going to do?" Her mother started to answer, b
