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“That’s not like her. Let’s poke around.”
I checked the mailbox as Kyla shifted, hunting for any scents she didn’t recognize. Virtus strolled up the steps to her porch and peered in the window. He liked Selina.
The lock on Selina’s mailbox was warded. From what I could see when I peered into it, it was also nearly full. Two copies of Durham Denizens had also piled up outside her front door.
“She might’ve gone out of town suddenly,” I said when Kyla reappeared. Virtus turned and padded down the stairs.
“I’ll ask Aubrey if he knows anything,” Kyla said once she’d shifted. She pulled on her sweats and a T-shirt and frowned at Selina’s house. “In the meantime, we should keep an eye on this place. Now what?” she asked me.
I sighed. “You’re not going to like it.”
* * *
Evie
“Are you serious?”Kyla groaned as I gave her the address.
I was right. She didn’t like it.
Neither did Virtus. He laid his head on my shoulder and sighed.
“You can stay in the car if you want,” I told him, giving him a scratch.
He ignored that, readjusting his body in the back. Kyla had folded the seats down, but the griffin barely fit. Usually, he liked shoving his head out the window and terrifying any humans in the vicinity. But today, he was staying still, likely because the stubborn creature was still in immense pain as he continued to regrow his bones.
Kyla was driving in a slow, careful, and distinctly un-Kyla-like way, ensuring Virtus wasn’t jostled too much. Her hands tightened on the wheel as she scowled at me.
“Look, we don’t have much choice. Gemma’s dead.” My voice cracked, and Kyla softened enough to send me a sympathetic look. “The coven will be too busy replacing her to help, and half of them want nothing to do with other paranormals anyway. Selina’s gone. Hannah’s our only shot.”
“She’ll probably demand your firstborn child as payment,” Kyla muttered.
“She prefers Venmo.”
Kyla showed me her teeth, and I smirked as she parked outside Hannah’s.
“You can stay in the car, too,” I told her.
She got out, opening the door for Virtus.
Hannah’s mint-green bungalow looked freshly painted. I wasn’t surprised. She’d earned enough helping us take down Lucifer to upgrade to a bigger house entirely. I had a feeling she enjoyed living on the edge of witch territory, though.
She took a while to come to the door. She may have been busy in the kitchen. Or it may have been a power play. With Hannah, it could go either way.
Finally, she opened the door. She was wearing an apron, and the house stank of black magic. My mind helpfully offered me a variety of spells she could be cooking up in her kitchen at this very moment. None of them was good.
“Evelyn,” she said, nodding at me. “Kyla. And your pet griffin.”
Virtus ignored her. She knew he wasn’t a pet. Hannah sighed, obviously put out that she hadn’t gotten a rise out of him.
“You’re injured,” she said to the griffin.
Kyla bared her teeth warningly at the black witch. “That doesn’t make him vulnerable. Not with us here.”
Hannah just rolled her eyes and turned, hobbling into her kitchen. The witch was looking older, her curly white hair a little sparse on top, while the lines next to her eyes had deepened. This was a good sign since it meant she wasn’t sacrificing any humans to keep her youth.
Although that didn’t mean she wasn’t sacrificing them for other spells. With Hannah, it was best to prepare for the worst.
Virtus padded directly after her, clearly unconcerned. Kyla prowled after him, and I followed them, a headache beginning to pound behind my eyes.
