Dani swallowed hard.
Sometimes she hated how easily her mind made him from shadows.
Aurelia had his eyes. She always had. Those piercing blue irises that saw more than they should. And though Aurelia’s hair was a tangle of red curls inherited from Dani’s grandmother, the tone, dark, earthy auburn, belonged tohim.
Every day, Dani prayed no witch would look too closely.
Every day, she prayed Aurelia would never ask the question she wasn’t ready to answer.
She reached the High Sister’s chamber and forced her shoulders back.
Inside, three senior witches stood in a loose half-circle: High Sister Lavinia at the center, calm and unreadable; Sister Rosetta, tall and statuesque, hands folded; and Sister Penelope, whose resting expression remained permanently unimpressed.
“Dani,” Lavinia said warmly, spreading her hands out, the long grey sleeves of her gown trailing against the worn carpet. “Thank you for coming.”
“Of course,” Dani said, bowing her head. “How can I help?”
Lavinia gestured to the table. “We received correspondence yesterday. From the far west.”
Dani’s stomach dropped.
“West?” she managed, voice steady only through force.
Lavinia lifted an envelope sealed with crimson wax, a familiar sigil stamped into it.
Dani’s lungs froze.
“I should sit,” she whispered.
Lavinia nodded gently.
Dani sat.
Penelope wasted no time. “A shifter pack has requested our aid.”
Dani stared at the seal, pulse hammering. “Shifters? Askingwitchesfor help? That makes no sense.”
“It surprised us as well,” Rosetta said, “until we read the letter itself.”
“What does it say?”
Lavinia unfolded the paper, smoothing it across the table.
“Hybrid sightings have increased significantly in Alaska. A nest has been spotted moving through the northeastern mountains. Multiple missing persons, shifters, vampires, humans. They believe the threat is rising faster than any one species can manage.”
Dani shook her head. “Still. Shifters would never seek out witches.”
“They have,” Lavinia said softly.
“Who signed it?” Dani asked, folding her hands over in her lap.
Lavinia refolded the letter with long, elegant fingers. “One Julian Rook.”
Dani frowned. “I’ve never heard of him.”
“Why would you have?” Penelope asked quickly, eyes flashing with mistrust.
Dani breathed slowly, trying to calm her heart. “You know I come from Alaska. Every witch alive has heard of the Volkhov, has seen their sigil. And Julian Rook is not their leader.”
