Ava sucked a breath through her teeth. “It’s the only thing that makes sense with these results. I mean, itcould’vecome from The Blessed Haven, but why would any of the benevolent gods possess something so sinister? I think these crystals are being created or supplied by someone from the dark realm.”
“That’s impossible,” Kallie said, like she was trying to convince herself of it. “How would the Warden get his hands on them?”
“The gods send us gifts all the time,” Ava reminded her. “My mom owns a relic that was given to our people directly from the ancestors in our Ancestral Lands. It’s not a stretch to think the Warden could be making a deal with a demon to get his hands on these.”
“What kind of deal?” I asked.
Marcus shifted beside me. “We study demonic rituals in the Miriamic Coven. We’re not supposed to perform them. They’re more or less horror stories to keep us from making deals with demons, but I know anyone can do them. Demons usually want something like a piece of your life force or your magic.”
“The Warden is already immortal, and I doubt he’s giving up any of his magic,” Ava said.
“I don’t know what he’s trading, but we can be sure it isn’t good,” Marcus replied.
“It doesn’t matter what deal he’s made,” Kallie cut in. “He already has his hands on these crystals. What matters is stopping him from using them.”
“Itdoesmatter,” Marcus retorted. “Do you have any idea what we’re up against if the Warden is getting help from another realm, let alone some demon in hell? This should terrify you.”
“It does!” Kallie shouted. “So I’m going to focus on what we can do about it. What else do you know, Ava?”
“I discovered one other anomaly,” Ava replied. “The frequency that these crystals vibrate… it’s off the charts.”
“That must be the ringing we heard,” I said thoughtfully. “It’s that frequency that made us sick. I’m certain of it.”
“But why us?” Marcus wondered.
“We know demigods are capable of magic that’s greater than even the most talented supernaturals,” Ava said. “Magic itself vibrates, but demigods don’t have to draw magic from an outside source. We’re supposed to be able to create energy from nothing. What ifwevibrate at a different frequency than everyone else?”
I pressed my lips together thoughtfully. “That makes sense. That’s why the crystal only affects us, because its frequency interacts with ours. To anyone else, the vibration just passes through them— like a radio wave they can’t tune into.”
Kallie huffed. “And to us, that radio wave is like a dog whistle.”
“Exactly,” I stated. “Dogs can hear frequencies that humans can’t. It must be like that with demigods. We can sense things others aren’t able to— namely, these crystals— and it blocks our powers.”
We sat in silence for a minute as we all absorbed the information. Marcus spoke first.
“Could we create something as a counter-frequency?” he suggested.
“You mean, to cancel the crystal out?” Ava sounded intrigued, but I detected a hint of worry in her tone. “It’s something we’ll have to look into.”
“How long are we going to be able to hide what these crystals do to us in the meantime?” Marcus asked.
“As long as possible,” I said. “We can’t slip up. The second the Warden confirms we’re demigods, he’ll take us. It won’t matter who your parents are.”
“I know, I know. You’ve only mentioned that a million times.” Marcus sighed. “I’ve gotta go talk to the Dead Men. Let me know what else you find out.”
Kallie waited until Marcus was out of the Lair before announcing, “AndIhave a hot date. I’ll see you guys later.”
She was obviously avoiding having to walk back with him. It was awkward as all hell.
As Kallie left, I stood. Ava shuffled through her papers. I suspected it was to avoid talking to me. Beside me, Oberi wagged his tail, and it smacked into my leg.
He nudged his nose against my hip.Go talk to her.
Don’t tell me what to do, I growled. But Oberi knew my heart better than I did. Iwantedto talk to Ava. I just didn’t know how to anymore. I dared to take the plunge.
I cleared my throat. “Ava?”
“I should burn these,” she blurted. “I wrote all the results out on paper, but I should destroy them before anyone else finds them.”
