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My mother loops her arm through the witch’s and leads her to our cottage. I follow close behind, trying to catch their words. My bad habit is becoming lost in my own thoughts. Sometimes they sweep me away, and my body just continues without me.

Their conversation remains light. I’ll be evicted from my room and set up on a mattress roll in my mother’s room until our visitor leaves. I linger in their peripherals as they discuss the outside world.

An alpha stealing witches, decimating covens. Demons bursting through the barrier at an alarming frequency.

“Something has to change,” Cecelia says. “Please tell me something changes.”

My mother glances at me, then back to her friend. “It will.”

“We’re fighting a losing war,” Cecelia continues. “That’s why I’ve come. To plead for you to return. To take a stand⁠—”

“I cannot risk it,” my mother hisses. “What would you have me do with Astra? Leave her here to grow up without me?”

“No—”

“Come, my darling.” My mother holds her hand out for me.

I rush to her side. Her arm curls around my waist, cinching me close.

“Cecelia is a very special type of witch,” she says in my ear. “She can talk to the dead.”

My mouth drops open. “How?”

“She’s a spirit witch, like me. But as you know, it evolves inside each witch differently.” She traces a pattern on the table. Her nail catches on one of the knots. “Cecelia will teach you how.”

Her friend opens her mouth to refuse. She shakes her head at us, but my mother just stares steadily back.

I don’t know how she always gets her way, but eventually, the friend folds. Cecelia gestures for me to pull out the chair between them and sit. I tuck my legs under me, resting my forearms on the table.

“Spirits are souls,” Cecelia begins. “Some dead haunt—those are what humans would call ghosts. But spirits exist peacefully, and they can travel the astral plane, which makes them excellent sources of knowledge.”

“What kind of knowledge?”

“Locating things or people. Especially if they have any connection to the dead.” Her eyes gleam. “This is not like what a blood witch does, Astra. A blood witch uses dark magic to call demons to this world from the shadow realm. They are a bastardized, imitation version of a spirit witch—and it’s important for you to know the difference.”

I soak up her words and dutifully nod. Mother briefly mentioned blood witches, but this might be the first opportunity to learn more.

“Spirit witches simply ask the spirits to help us. And when we’re done, we let them rest.”

“A demonstration,” my mother prompts.

I jerk awake, my pulse hammering. I glance at the clock on the nightstand, unsurprised that it’s the middle of the night. My vivid dream is a memory. The fact that I’m having it seems like a message straight from my mother.

Outside my open window, wolves howl. It sounds mournful, although I don’t think it’s meant to be. There are many different voices tonight, calling to each other.

Wolf howls have long haunted my dreams. I suppose it’s lucky that I didn’t dream of them tonight, too.

Either way, Kian and his pack are preoccupied. Maybe he’s saying goodbye? One last run under a waning moon?

I pause. The demon came through the scrying glass so close to a full moon, it should’ve been impossible. I hadn’t considered that last night, in the heat of things. It doesn’t help that Kian fries my nerves, and his wolf seems set on tormenting me whenever he can.

We leave in the morning. I’m not sure where we’re headed, but I’m not convinced Kian knows, either. I’m fairly sure we’re both flying blind. I could be wrong. He holds his cards close to the vest. It’s possible he has a plan, and I’m along for the ride.

After the little fiasco of a morning meeting, he took me for a walk along the property. I saw a fence in the distance, guarding a grove of old, twisted trees, but we didn’t get that far. He seemed content to let me stretch my legs in the sunshine without interacting with anyone else.

At one point, I stopped and tipped my head back to let the sun warm my face and relish in the flourish of life around me.

I don’t know if he realized I continued to restore my meager power as we went.