As the Jones's and the officers arrived, Charlotte agreed that it was time to see if the Friend was in the alleyway. Needless to say, everyone looked nervous. Well, expect for Officer Barker. Charlotte guessed that this was not the first time she had done something like this.

Heather wished them luck as they left the bakery. Charlotte waved confidently, hoping that it would rub off on the others. She didn't believe that this person meant them any harm, but with the reports of religious extremists and a potential serial killer, they were in their right to be worried.

The alleyway looked deserted, and Charlotte's heart sunk. She prayed that this wasn't some sort of set up. Barker with drew her weapon, looking around as well. There was a cough at the back of the alley, and Charlotte stepped forward.

"Are you the Friend?" Charlotte asked as a figure stood from behind a trashcan. They stepped forward as O'Conner pulled his weapon out as well.

"I see you brought Bureau officers with you," a deep voice informed as an older man stepped from the shadows. He had grey streaks in his dark brown hair, but his light brown eyes shown brightly. He stopped a couple yards in front of them before bowing. "I apologize for meeting you here so abruptly, and suspiciously. I'll be honest, though, I didn't think you would show."

"You mentioned my parents, I had to come," Charlotte answered. The man nodded before clearing his throat. Barker and O'Conner aimed their weapons at him, waiting. "Who are you?"

"My name is Issac Moore, and I was an associate of your father's. We worked together on the recent history of Strathmore," Issac explained, rummaging through his pockets. He pulled out a small ID, showing that he was indeed Issac Moore and that he worked at the Strathmore Grand Library. He also showed an old photograph of himself with Charles Blackwood standing together in front of an old building.

"If you worked with my father, how come I never knew you?" Charlotte asked, thinking that this was a little too coincidental.

"As ominous as this is going to sound, I left Strathmore to interview people in the communities that surround the city. I wasn't able to return before your father got married. After that, I saw very little of him. I doubt that you would recognize me, but I did frequent that shoppe. I stopped after he was murdered," Issac explained smoothly. He placed the picture and identification in his coat pocket again.

"You said that you had information," Lynn spoke up, standing next to Charlotte. Issac nodded solemnly.

"I do. Just before your parents died, Charles reached out to me. He needed something from the library, but his access credentials had expired and he was worried it would take too long for what he needed to do," Issac began. "He was researching something that he thought was odd. As he was new the witch community, he had questions that no one really had the answers to. Even Wendy couldn't answer some of them."

"What kind of questions?" Charlotte wondered.

"The kind that would attract the wrong kind of attention. He had questions about Forbidden magic, such that isn't taught at schools regularly. There was one particular question that he posed that intrigued his wife, the question that he reached out to me for," the man continued. "See, Charles had found a book at a bookstore, that had somehow ended up there. I'm still investigating that, but he found Forbidden practices that haven't been talked about in decades."

"If they haven't been spoken about in decades, how do you know?" Charlotte asked.

"I went to the Council with his question. Your father wanted to know why the practice of a Seance had disappeared. This book had dated back to before the practice was Forbidden, and the practice worked. Someone had perfected contact between the living and the dead, and done it so well. The book mentioned that the dead spirits were able to remain in the living world for days," Issac explained before taking a deep breath. "I briefly read the book, just so I could understand the question. However, when I brought up the question to the Council, they told me that I shouldn't be meddling in it. When I insisted, they said that it broke down the walls between reality and the spirit realm."

"So this practice worked so well that ghosts could come through as they pleased?" Lynn clarified, hardly believing what she was hearing.

"I know you're mocking me, but you're correct. The Council made me swear that I would never mention this to anyone, however with the recent deaths, you needed to know," Issac insisted.

"How does this story have anything to do with my parents' deaths?" Charlotte urged, confused.

"Because your father convinced your mother to try it with him. They agreed to never tell anyone, which they broke and told me later. It had worked, and it had worked too well. They had ripped open a portal in the back room at the shoppe. Wendy was unable to close it, and they asked for my help," Issac answered. "I was able to close it, but we had no idea if anything had come through. Three days later, they were found dead."

"Do you think that this portal was related to their deaths?" Lynn whispered. Issac nodded.

"Did you get them killed? Did you tell anyone else about this?" Charlotte demanded. If her parents had indeed played with Forbidden magic, and if Issac had blabbed to someone, that would be enough to paint a target on the Blackwoods.

"If I had told anyone this, you wouldn't have been allowed to continue studying at Rinsine, let alone a potion shoppe," Issac informed angrily. "I didn't say a word until now. The only reason I mentioned it is because I thought that you might want to go and investigate the recent deaths related to the Forbidden practice. That's all. When I saw you at the ravine, I knew that I could tell you."

"Why were you at the ravine?" O'Conner demanded. Issac looked at him and bit his lip.

"I was investigating. I was in the library when I heard about the murders. When I went to go see for myself, I found that Charlotte was there. I also noted that the murders were similar to the Blackwoods', so I sent a letter, hoping that I would get a response," Issac replied honestly. "And I was correct in doing so. And I also would like to say that I'm very glad that the Bureau is here. At least now I can come clean."

"What happens now?" Charlotte asked O'Conner. It was true that if this got out, Charlotte would be stripped of her Name and have the shoppe taken away from her. Barker sighed and shook her head.

"As far as I'm concerned, the situation has been dealt with. I will personally investigate this book, but that's all. I will not report anything on the Blackwoods. Their death was punishment enough. I won't sully their name as well," Barker informed, looking at Charlotte. She whispered a thank you in response before turning toward Issac.

"Wonderful," Issac smiled before stepping forward. He held out a small piece of paper towards Charlotte, since she was the one closest to him. "This is the title of the book and the bookstore location. I hope you can figure this out."

"Thank you," Charlotte informed as he nodded. He bade them a good day before walking down the alley. Charlotte turned around, looking at the paper as the officers lowered their weapons.