“Druid,” he said.“Magic manifests differently in our line, but the root is the same as my father’s.Mine’s… stronger.Wilder.”He shrugged one shoulder.“More of a pain in his backside.”
“That’s why I’m angry he didn’t deal with the demon sooner,” Dougal said.“What were you waiting for?”
“I was waiting for the right moment,” Owen shot back.“You jumping in the middle of the street wasn’t subtle, in case you hadn’t noticed.”
“If I’d waited another second, that beast would have killed you and Piper,” Dougal said sharply.“Then where would we be?”
I leaned back in my chair, pressing my fingertips to my temples.“I don’t understand any of this,” I said.“Guardians.Druids.A ceiling-high demon with tusks.Queen of Hearts cosplay in my woods.”
“You will,” Dougal said.“In time.”
“Not the reassurance you think it is,” I muttered.
But something else niggled at the back of my mind.Something the Red Queen had said at the tree.
“The Red Queen told us Oberon is stuck in another realm,” I said slowly.“She said Titania is here trying to recover the Fae treasures to free him.Mr.McAllister, do you think Alice was keeping those treasures from Titania on purpose?Or does the queen not even know they’re here?”
He spread his hands.“I have no idea what arrangements Alice had with Titania.Or what Titania knows.”
I shot to my feet, ignoring the protest in my palms as energy buzzed through my veins like static.“Then I need to talk to her.Tani.Titania.Whatever she wants to call herself.”
“Now?”Owen asked.
“Yes, now.”I met his gaze.“You neutralized the demon.For the moment, at least.I need to get back to the house and find out what my fairy ‘friend’ has been lying about.”
“I’m coming with you,” Owen said immediately.
“Of course you are,” I said, a little softer.“Apparently you’re my official demon bodyguard.”
“Be careful,” Dougal warned.“That beast may be gone, but if the gate is still weakening, there may be more.And if someone was stealing bark from the hickory tree, someone else wanted that gate open.”
He was right.The thought of Alice alone in those woods, knowing danger was creeping closer, made my chest ache.Someone had killed my aunt.My guardian.My witch.My… something more, if the town gossip and mantel photos were anything to go by.
Whoever had done it was still out there.
“We’ll be careful,” Owen promised.
He took my hand again, gently to avoid my scrapes.His fingers were warm and steady around mine as he led me out of the office, through the antique shop, and back into the small-town late afternoon sunlight that suddenly felt a lot less safe.
Chapter Ten
Ichewedmythumbnailall the way back to the house on Snapdragon Drive.My knee bounced, foot tapping a frantic rhythm against the floorboard.I knew I was a nervous wreck.
“Hey, it’s going to be all right,” Owen said quietly.
“I know.”I didn’t.
“You should let me tend those scrapes.”
“They’re fine.I’m fine.”
My thoughts spun in tight, panicked circles.Had Tani had anything to do with Alice’s death?Why lie about the potion?Why give me a conjuring spell instead of something to seal the supernatural superhighway?And if the fairy queen had meant to summon someone else, who?
I would know soon enough.
Owen parked in the drive.I was out of the truck before he killed the engine.As soon as my feet hit the pathway, a loud crash sounded from somewhere inside the house.
We both bolted for the door.
