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I shoved all doubt from my mind as I rose. I could do this. I would do this. I said it again and again in my mind as I put the stinky pot on the altar next to the cup with the secondary potion and my own candle.
Everyone stood around me—werewolf, fey, witch, werewolf, fey, witch. All mixed together.
Eli was standing on a tree limb above us. I couldn’t see his wings, but now that I knew they were there, I’d always see them. Those wings weren’t something I could unsee.
He was on standby to seal the bond when needed. But until that happened, we were on our own.
I took a breath and let it out slowly. My hands were shaking and sweaty. I wiped them off on my pants.
You’re going to do fine.
I nodded. I just don’t feel ready. I was so busy dealing with Eli and spending too much time in Underhill that I didn’t prepare anything for the spell. It all feels so rushed. What if something’s not right? What if someone forgot a step? What if—
Stop. You can’t think like that. No doubts, remember? And the words don’t count. You know what Tía Rosa said. It’s all about the sentiment behind them and how much you believe in them.
He stepped into the circle, and grabbed my shoulders. You have to trust everyone in this group. They’re the ones who helped put together the spell. Leading is about getting everyone to work together, and part of that is delegating. You can’t do everything by yourself. You’ve always leaned on us for support. Now you’ll have to lean on everyone here in this circle a little more. That means you don’t have to do all of the busy work and can focus on more important things. Like making sure the next Luciana isn’t hiding among the covens. This is a good thing.
He was right. I knew it.
Claudia walked over to me. “You’ve got the spell?”
I pulled out the crumpled piece of paper that she’d handed me not five minutes earlier from my pocket. “Yup. Got it.”
“Okay. Are you ready?”
I swallowed and looked into my mate’s glowing amber eyes. “Yes.”
“Then let’s get started,” Claudia said.
Dastien pulled me in tightly. You’re the one that can make this work. So do it. No doubt. No questions. Nothing else but you and the magic.
My chest tightened as he stepped away from me. It was a lot of pressure. So much riding on getting this right. My breaths felt hollow and my fingers tingled.
I had to get this right.
I couldn’t doubt. I couldn’t question myself. I couldn’t let a single inkling of doubt slip into my head that maybe this might not work. I needed confidence. The first step of that was addressing everyone who had come to fight.
“Before we get started, I want to say thank you. You’re Alphas and Cazadores. You’re fighters. And you’ve protected everyone, fighting for good, and for those who couldn’t fight for themselves, and never asking for anything in return. Knowing that humans and supernaturals alike were safe was all you needed.”
I looked out into the gathered men in black. “And you’re here today. We called for help, and you came. Thank you.” I paused for a second to let that sink in. I wanted them to know that I meant it. “Tonight will be hard for everyone here and some of us will get hurt, but after? Everyone’s safety won’t be on your shoulders. Now that everyone knows we exist, it’s time for something new. Something stronger and better. Tonight we’re breaking down barriers between supernaturals. Together, we will rise stronger. So, when shit goes wrong—because it will—I just wanted you to know what we were fighting for. It’s bigger than just Astaroth. So, thank you for being here. Your support has been and will always be invaluable.”
The Cazadores stood around me, watching silently. I wasn’t sure if they’d liked what I said, but I didn’t feel okay about starting without acknowledging them.
With that done, I closed my eyes and pushed all the doubt out of my mind. I was going to do this. I was going to nail it. And fucking win. Because that’s what I had to do, no matter what.
I opened my eyes. With my intentions and will focused on what I was doing, I grabbed a supersized container of salt and stepped just behind Dastien. It was a lot of salt, but we needed every bit of it. The circle was about eight feet in diameter. The spout opened with a pop, and I bent down a little. There needed to be a solid ring of salt to set the circle, but I also needed it to last around the entire thing. We had a backup container, but it’d be better if I didn’t have to break the process of going around in the circle. The slow stream of salt fell to the ground as I walked with a gentle, steady whoosh that reminded me of the ocean.
“I set this circle with light and love. I set this circle with light and love. I set this circle with light and love. I set…” I said over and over with each step as I walked inside the line of salt.
As I neared Dastien, I felt the pressure in the circle start to build. And when the circle was finished, there was a little pop in my ears.
The circle was strong and holding. Not even a whiff of sulfur in the air.
Good. This was good. It meant that when Astaroth showed up, he’d be outside the circle.
The next step was going to be less fun. I grabbed a blade from the alter and walked back to the start of the circle. “Get ready.” It was going to take a ring of my blood to activate the circle and set off the start of the spell.
I scrunched my eyes shut as I swiped the blade across my left wrist. The blade was so sharp that it took a second for me to feel the sting. I stuck the blade in the ground, just inside the circle and started a crouching walk around the circle. I wasn’t wasting one drop of my blood and I had to move fast, because even though I’d cut myself pretty deeply, the wound would heal in a minute or two.
