“That’s what I’ve been saying,” I said, relieved she’d finally come around. “We can begin with—”
“Magicalandphysical,” she said. “And I’d really love it if you guys could help.”
“That goes without saying,querida,” Emilio said, and the others grunted out their agreement.
Her earthly concerns were not my priority, but theywerehers. As much as I wanted to ferry her away to the realm, I knew she’d never come to embrace hertruedestiny if she didn’t accomplish her tasks here first.
So when she looked at me for my response, I nodded brusquely and said, “I believe this is the first time all five of us are in agreement.”
Gray smiled, but there was no humor in her eyes, and the earlier exhaustion in her voice was quickly giving way to the fierce determination I knew she was capable of.
“We need to find that prison and save the witches,” she said. “Their lives are the priority. But once I know they’re safe?”
She met my gaze as if the answer was intended for me alone. The look in her eyes sent a shockwave through my vessel—some icy, primordial emotion that tightened my chest and raised the hairs on the back of my neck.
Fear.
It was a human response to a perceived threat, though I couldn’t understand why my body suddenly found her threatening.
“Gray?” I prompted. “What is it?”
The breeze whispered through the pines and stirred her hair, gently blowing the curls away from her face to reveal the grim set of her jaw. She clutched the book of shadows to her chest. Then, as smooth as water flowing over stones, she held out a hand before her, and a flame ignited in her palm, blue and beautiful and brighter than the moon.
The ferocity in her eyes took on a sinister cast in the glow, and in a voice all the more treacherous for its eerie calm, she made her proclamation.
“I’m going to watch him burn.”
Seven
GRAY
Back at the house, the walk from my bedroom to Ronan’s at the other end of the hall felt like a thousand miles, and when I finally reached up and knocked on the door, the sound of it made me jump.
“Come in,” he said, and my heart rate kicked into overdrive. I’d just showered and changed into clean pajamas, but already I was sweating again.
Ronan and I hadn’t been alone since we’d spent that one blissful night in each other’s arms, just before we’d rescued Asher from Norah’s attic.
There hadn’t been time to talk after that.
But now there was.
Taking a deep breath, I stepped into his room.
This side of the house had high, slanted ceilings, and through a row of skylights over the bed, the full moon winked down at us from above.
He’d also lit candles, always preferring them to artificial light, and I shut the door behind me, taking in the welcome sight of him in the flickering glow.
His thin beard had filled in a bit more, but his cheeks looked hollow, his eyes haunted.
“Hey,” he said softly, a smile touching his lips.
All the time we’d spent together, all the years we’d been friends, I’d never felt as nervous and awkward as I did just then, suddenly conscious of dumb things like whether I was slouching too much or my shirt was too see-through or what I should’ve been doing with my hands. They’d made incredible, awe-inspiring magic tonight, yet now they felt like two slabs of ham dangling at my sides.
Why didn’t these useless pajamas have pockets?
“You okay?” he asked.
“Yeah, it’s just… It’s been a long couple of days.”
