Chapter 17

" P sst, October, are you ready?" Maddie whispered through my bedroom door, the heavy mahogany muffling her voice.

It was nearing midnight, and I had yet to climb out of the pile of warm bodies surrounding me, cocooning me in a protective embrace. I wanted to sink into the bed with all these strong limbs thrown over my body.

"Give me five minutes," I whispered back, waiting a moment until I heard her feet padding down the creaking hallway.

Turning my head to the side, I grinned at a sleeping Jason muttering in his sleep. He scooted closer, burying his face in the side of my boob with a contented sigh whistling through his parted, pouty lips. The feel of fingers tightening on the curve of my hip had me whipping my head in the other direction. Norman was sleeping on his back with his heavy arm thrown over the middle of my back, his fingers curling against my waist in a possessive hold that made my belly do backflips.

I was directly on top of a snoring Freddy. His wide chest was all hard muscle yet velvety soft under my cheek, making him the perfect pillow. Michael's head was using my ass for a cushion, and the man kept groping me, even in his deep sleep. I was utterly pinned down, a little overheated at the moment, but loving every second of it. I finally felt like nothing could get to me.

I was protected, and it reminded me that even when I wanted to hate them, I couldn't help but love every single one of these assholes that stole my heart so long ago. When I thought about it, everything they ever did made sense. I really should have caught on earlier. Little snippets of that last few months before graduation came back to me in waves.

"Miss Hallowell!" Mr. Myers' voice echoed loudly through the crowded hallway. Students were scurrying around, trying to get to their next class on time, but I heard him, even through my headphones.

The noise level was deafening as I pulled out an earbud. Seniors rushed past me, chatting with their friends, and the excitement of the weekend made everything louder. Mr. Myers was frantically waving me down as I pushed through the bodies with my books held tight to my chest, elbows shoving roughly into my sides. People snickered when I was jostled into a locker or tripped over someone's foot. They thought it was hilarious to make a target out of the loner goth girl who used to be a queen bee.

"October, please see me in my office. We haven't had a session in a while," Mr. Myers said, loud enough for the eavesdropping athletic assholes to hear. They were crowded right outside the school counselor's office door, apparently just for this.

Their smiles made my skin crawl. They wanted to make my life a living hell, but the funny thing was, I'd already been to hell, and I found I preferred it to this fucking place. So the joke's on them. I just wanted to crawl into a little hole and stay there long enough to hide from the world, only popping out to pretend for my aunties so they wouldn't feel the need to ship me off to the looney bin.

I followed the counselor into his boring, ordinary office painted in a gross-looking taupe, staring pityingly at the poster of a baby ducky behind his desk and wondering what in the world he'd been thinking.

"Don't be the follower; be the leader," the duck poster said in bold white Comic Sans. I shivered.

How about I just do neither? I'll just stick to being me, October, the girl who wakes up every morning wondering when time will speed the fuck up so I can get out of here and far away from my tormentors.

Speak of the devil, and he will arrive. The door opened the moment I sat down with my bookbag between my legs. I turned to see Jason walking inside, looking pissed off as usual when he saw me in the chair.

"Ah, Mr. Evans. Thanks for coming. Have a seat." Mr. Myers gestured to the empty chair next to me, and I didn't even bother to hide my annoyance.

If the rest of the guys showed up, I was out of there and didn't give a damn what anyone said. I couldn't even breathe without one of them jumping down my throat, goading me to punch their smug faces as they made a laughing stock of me in front of their teammates and friends. I wouldn't normally care, since being inside my own head with just my thoughts for company was fine, but the constant bullying got to me sometimes.

The shoves that happened to make me fall to the ground at their feet, the name-calling that set my eyes blazing with murder, and the pranks that still make me cringe to this day. I couldn't count the times I'd had trash thrown over my hair, and damnit, I loved my hair. It was especially cruel on their end because they knew this. I thought what got to me most was knowing that at least one of them went on real, actual dates with the girls who made fun of me just because of how I looked.

"I've called you both in here today to discuss an issue that's come to my attention. You see, friends grow apart or sometimes blossom into more, but I wanted you two to talk about what happened yesterday afternoon after school. Mr. Evans, you're supposed to be an outstanding role model for your basketball team, but to get your teammates to attack Miss Hallowell is crossing the line." Mr. Myers threaded his fingers together and placed his elbows on his desk, raising a brow as he waited for Jason to say something.

I knew I had nothing to say and was absolutely not willing to talk about or relive the trauma they'd caused me yesterday.

"What are you talking about?" Jason growled darkly, leaning on the edge of his seat and shooting daggers at my profile, but I didn't bother looking at him.

"You didn't know about this? It's a shame that it's come to this, but I expect you to get your team in order. Whip them into shape or there will be consequences, possibly ending in someone getting kicked off the court." Mr. Myers clucked his tongue and slowly shook his head in disappointment.

It set my teeth on edge, realizing how no one in this damn school cared about anyone hurting inside, just like what happened to our sports team.

"What happened?" Jason's knuckles were clenching the wood of his chair as he hissed at the counselor.

"It would seem after school, two of your teammates cornered Miss Hallowell under the bleachers and... well, did some unmentionable things." He threw me a pitiful look that only had my molars grinding.

I was about to bolt, my hands shaking, because there was no way Jason and the guys hadn't put Howard and Eddie up to it yesterday. Their cruelty extended beyond the four of them, and I was fed up with it all.

"What. Did. They. Do?" Jason demanded, and I didn't understand why he was pretending. He probably set the whole thing up.

"They duct taped Miss Hallowell to the bleacher poles... in her underwear, and spat some very ugly words at her. I believe something about your parents?" Mr. Myers glanced at me for confirmation, scratching his head, and I had to wonder how the hell he was a counselor when he appeared to have no real concern for his students.

He was the one to find me taped to the pole in utter humiliation and exposure as he walked out to his car. He didn't report it to anyone but gave them a slap on the wrist as he ordered them to get me down. So yeah, I was in this idiot's office waiting for the floor to swallow me up and spit me out so I could finally sleep.

It was almost scary quiet for a few minutes, and I nearly jumped out of my chair when Jason's chair squeaked over the linoleum as he turned to me. I didn't look his way. I couldn't take the laughing, mocking eyes staring back at me, so I continued looking at the duck picture behind Mr. Myers.

"What about your parents?" He asked so softly that I almost didn't hear him. Just to give the sick bastard what he wanted, I told him exactly what Eddie and Howard said. I just wanted Jason to leave me the fuck alone.

"How does it feel not having parents, freak? Don't you wish you could just die too? Maybe you'll stop acting like a zombie and just become one.'" I ground my teeth as I repeated it and grabbed the strap of my bag with tears in my eyes.

Jason didn't say a word. He literally just got up and left, with a flabbergasted Mr. Myers yelling after him. I for sure wasn't going to stick around if he didn't have to, so I bolted before Mr. Myers could stop me. It was a waste anyway, and yeah, I cried for a long time, until my makeup ran down my face and my eyes burned. Maybe Eddie and Howard weren't so far off.

Who would care if I dropped off the face of the earth besides the aunties and Maddie? No one. Maybe that's why I dragged my feet like a zombie every day, with only music to keep me above water. I went from class to class in a daze, not rushing through the hallways once the final bell rang like everyone else, and I didn't look up from my feet until I stepped outside the front of the school.

A large crowd was gathered around the flagpole, and when I pushed my way through to get to the buses, I stopped in my tracks with my jaw dropping to the ground.

Duct-taped to the flagpole were Howard and Eddie, completely stripped down to their underwear as students laughed and took pictures. They cursed behind their taped mouths, wiggling to try to get free. I stopped staring at them, scanning the parking lot, and stopped on the cherry red Mustang with four of my ex-best friends leaning on the bumper, small smirks displayed on their faces. My gaze connected with Jason's for a split second, and I knew he did this. Did he do it for me?

Pulled out of that memory, I think I knew even then that they loved me and showed me the only way I would allow at the time—through anger. They may not have seen the big picture, but each of them saved my life that day. That was the day I started questioning everything, like why I was still alive.

They kept me alive by bringing my anger to the surface and letting emotion take over instead of going down the empty road I was heading. For that, I think I loved them even more. Deciding it was time to stop living in the past and look at what was right in front of me, I let all the guilt and resentment go and started really living with my guys.

"Michael, I've got to get up." I reached behind my back, sliding my hands through his hair.

He grumbled grumpily, which I found freaking adorable, and rolled off my ass and onto Norman's leg, wrapping his arms around it while snuggling into his calf.

I quickly but quietly slid away from Freddy and out of Jason's strong hold on my waist. Norman slipped onto his side with his mouth pursed in his sleep the moment I made it to the end of the bed.

I wished I had a camera to capture this moment in time as I held back a giggle with my hand. Freddy patted his chest, a frown mirroring his brow, when he couldn't find me in his sleep. That was until he found a willing victim. He wrapped his arm around Jason's chest and smiled in his sleep when his new snuggle buddy started slipping his fingers through his hair, thinking it was me instead of his best friend.

I glanced at the tree branch Jessica slept on but still found it empty. I missed her like crazy and wondered if I could somehow find her without being eaten alive by her family if I went to the Hangry Forest. I didn't know what it was, but something inside me had been pulling me to reach out to her, just to make sure she was okay. She'd been missing for three days, and her absence was noted by everyone.

With a heavy sigh, I grabbed the Society cloak from under my bed and slipped it over my shoulders. I found it on the doorstep a few days ago and couldn't help shaking my head at how creepy that was. I mean, they could have rung the doorbell to hand it over. I wasn't dressed to impress since I'd just been laying in bed earlier with the guys in charcoal gray tight-fitting sweats and a Van Helsing T-shirt that I may have stolen from Freddy, the only shirt from the mortal world he had with him. He didn't seem to mind, if the gleam in his eye last night was anything to go by. Norman had taken one look at the shirt and rolled his eyes at the famous vampire slayer.

The cloak material was black and maroon with gold stitching of half moons and stars. It was pretty and completely matched my style. I slipped out the door, looking back one more time and wishing I didn't have to go to this stupid Society thing. I didn't tell the guys because they'd been up my ass for the past few weeks about not going anywhere alone. They weren't invited to attend, and I knew each of them would've demanded to watch over me. I needed answers about my parents, and this was my way to figure out who they were once and for all.

"It's about time. I thought you were having an orgy in there," Maddie whispered at my back, making me jump a foot in the air as I spun around with wide eyes. "Oh my god, were you?" She gripped my shoulders, looking me up and down before sighing in disappointment at my lack of guilt.

"Let's just get there and get back before they wake up. I want this over with and behind me," I muttered quietly as I shut the door and looped my arm through hers. We snuck down the stairs, avoiding all the creaking steps.

"This is kind of exciting. I feel like we're on a secret special mission, and we're about to discover something important! You look hot, by the way, in a comfy, steal your boyfriend's clothes kind of way!" she whispered loudly, grimacing at the way her voice echoed in the dark, empty hallway at the bottom of the stairs.

"Thanks," I said through a chuckle. "I know, boyfriend material looks good on me. "

Her face sobered. "Feels kind of sketchy, right?" she asked.

I met her eyes in the darkness and nodded reluctantly. "I have the same feeling, but it could just be the moons. Tomorrow is the blood moon, like the one when we first got here, except it's an eclipse. That's got to mean some spooky shit's about to go down." I shivered, trying to put the bus crash that seemed like a million years ago in the back of my mind.

I looked up and down the entryway, seeing that the coast was clear as we made our way to the front door, only to stop when the walls vibrated with a loud knocking sound that had us both jumping.

"What is that? I swear I hear that noise at least twice a day!" Maddie cocked her head to the side, straining to hear anything at all, but we were only met with silence.

"Hell if I know. Probably the aunties bubbling up something vile in the cauldron again?" I grumbled dumbly, wanting to get out before another green bubble of slime exploded again. In the back of my mind, though, I knew that wasn't what it was.

I pulled Maddie along behind me and cracked the front door open with my breath held. I didn't start breathing until the door was shut behind us and we were walking down the street under the half moons towards the university.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Maddie stared in disbelief at the door that read Broom Closet.

The moment we entered the basement part of the west wing, we found a note sticking out between the cracks of the brick with a red candle wax stamp that said E.S. As if that wasn't a clue enough, it had my name on it. With an eye roll, I tore it open, and it said in simple words to head into the broom closet with a small star drawn over it and follow the you are here arrows leading the way through a short maze of passages. I didn't understand why someone couldn't meet me here, but whatever.

"Why are my palms sweating?" I asked with a nervous giggle and rubbed my hands down my cloak.

"Let's see what's on the other side, shall we? No worries, Tobs. I'm here, and I'll stick to the shadows when they sacrifice you to the great pumpkin," she said with a straight face until she broke out in a maniacal cackle as I punched her arm.

"Don't say shit like that; it's like my worst nightmare right now. I'm totes picturing myself laid out on an altar as some weirdo hums and chants mumbo jumbo around me."

I hopped in place, preparing myself to open the door, when Maddie rolled her eyes and just swung the door open before I could stop her.

"Well, I was expecting something more epic." Maddie trailed off, staring at the same thing I was in confusion.

"It's a freaking broom closet," I deadpanned. "Like a real one with brooms and shit." I poked my head inside, flipping on the single light bulb, and continued looking around as if it were a practical joke. I swore, if Payton was behind this...

Handcrafted brooms made of wicker and smooth carved wood lined the walls of the tiny closet, and I stepped inside with Maddie, watching her run her fingertips over the handles with a sly grin.

"I wonder if I could fly one of these bad boys?" She grabbed the wooden handle of a mahogany broom in the corner of the room. The moment she pulled the handle, the wall beside it shifted with a groan that made me wince at the sound. It opened with a creak and a cloud of dust billowing out.

"Seems like it's the right place." I shifted closer to the opening, seeing that it was dark, completely covered in shadows and cobwebs, and led down a series of stone steps into a tunnel.

There was a low, flickering light down there, and I knew I had to go that way, even though my brain told me not to. A cold draft swept up from below, leaving behind what sounded like a long, drawn-out howl.

"I'm just going to wait right here. Good luck and don't get killed." Maddie pushed on my back with a small pat and gave me a thumbs up when I turned to look back at her like she was crazy, then I stepped past the threshold.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence. If I don't come back in thirty minutes, send backup." I swallowed thickly and offered a small grin just before blending in with the darkness.

I moved along the stone steps carefully, my hand skimming the wall to help me balance in the darkness, and ignored how wet the walls were under my palm and the heavy smell of mildew in the thick air. I kept my eyes on that small spot of light up ahead, watching it grow bigger and bigger the closer I got.

My hand was trembling with nerves by the time I got to the bottom of the stairs. I had to duck down under low ceilings and finally saw that the light was a torch with a handle attached to the stone wall. I grabbed the torch off the wall and bumped the ceiling with my head as a noise startled me—the sound of humming emanating from the tunnel straight ahead, with more flickering flames in the distance.

"You are a motherfucking badass, October. Stop being a chicken butt and follow the creepy noise to your destiny." I muttered in a half-assed attempt to boost my confidence and nodded in complete agreement with myself.

With a deep breath, I hunched over and most likely headed straight into my own demise, because who in their right mind would traipse into a cult meeting at midnight in a freaking underground tunnel? I swore it was like being in a mummy movie—every noise startled me, and the lights played tricks on my eyes. The flickering flame made it look like shadows were moving in creepy swirls. The noise grew louder the closer I came to the end of the tunnel, and it sounded like multiple humming voices in tune with each other.

"She's here; she's here. The legacy has arrived," a lone voice whispered as I stepped into the light. "Join us, October Grimm." I stepped into the opening of a circular room.

Grimm . My dad's real last name… A legacy.

The ceiling was shaped like a dome made of bricks that were covered in moss from aging and crumbling through the years. Columns ran in a circle around the room, each supporting flickering torches and casting a spooky orange glow on the eight figures standing in a circle with hoods drawn over their faces.

"Elite, elite, elite," they were chanting in low, humming voices that echoed, bouncing off the walls, until it seemed like hundreds of people were talking at once.

Then suddenly, they stopped. The abrupt silence was deafening as their hooded faces turned to face me in sync. I couldn't stop shuffling on my feet, feeling the pressure of their heavy gazes. I could feel them judging me.

"Um, hey. Hi. What's up?" I cleared my throat with a nervous chuckle and decided it was a tough crowd when no one said anything. I straightened my legs awkwardly.

Shit, did I just curtsy? Oh god, I totally did .

"You've been chosen to join the Society. Since the beginning, we have built and structured this university. Carried it on our very backs, on our legacies. We are creatures born with great power and unbroken bloodlines. Welcome, necromancer." A hooded figure stepped forward with his arms wide open, laughing lightly as he spun in a slow circle until he was facing me again.

No fucking way...

"Cal?" I asked in disbelief, and his answering chuckle let me know it was indeed that little liar under the heavy cloak. "Why didn't you just tell me?" I punched him in the shoulder. "God, I feel like an idiot!"

"That's enough of that! We didn't come here to make friends!" an all too familiar voice said with a sneer. She stepped out of the circle and closer to me, a cat-that-ate-the-canary grin spreading across her red, painted lips that I could just barely make out under the hood.

"Seriously, Payton? I can't say I'm surprised, actually. Were your parents super-powerful clowns or something? Did they tell extra funny jokes?" I was pushing it, but she was a huge bitch and needed to be put in her place.

"Aren't your parents rotting underground?"

I stilled, my hands curling into my palms painfully. I suddenly pictured a million ways I could kill this bitch and hide the body. She swirled her sickening green hair around her finger, playing the same game as I was, and I really wanted to punch her in the boob until she looked like a crying clown instead.

"Shut the fuck up, Payton. She belongs here just as much as we do, and you know it, so pull that red booted foot out of your bony ass," Cal said with a dark glare at Payton.

I raised a brow. There was a different side to the mayor's son that I didn't think he showed very often. Something dark and a little dangerous. I'd have to warn Mads about that side of him, but I was pretty sure she'd only clamor to get his attention even more.

"As if, Cal. She doesn't belong here! She didn't work her whole damn life to join the Society. It was just handed to her because her parents were important in the Society. She's a stupid fucking mortal!" Payton fumed, her breathing growing erratic as she pointed a gloved finger in my face.

"Hey! Said ex -mortal is standing right in front of you! You've got something to say; say it to my face, you coward!" I made a ‘bring it on' motion with both hands.

The rest of the hooded figures stepped back and slowly blended in with the shadows. I didn't care how dumb we looked right now; I was ready to tie my hair back and duke it out if she provoked me.

"You want me to say it to your face?" She was spitting mad, her white powdered cheeks turning red, and it probably didn't help matters when I stepped close enough to touch my shoes with hers.

"Why do you hate me so much? What the hell did I ever do to you?" I stared into the purple of her eyes and felt the hate pour off her in thick waves.

"You fucking exist in the first place, bitch," she sneered. "You think you're hot shit just because your daddy was a necromancer? You're nothing and will always be nothing, just like your mommy. She took everything away from my mother. And like mother, like daughter, you're trying to take the title I've actually earned!"

Cal stepped between us. "Stop being a bitch, Payton. You're just butt hurt because your crazy ass mother didn't get my dad to fall in love with her when he loved someone else. He won't ever love her, so stop trying to please your mommy. Grow up," he added through his teeth .

Cal glared at her, confusing me for a second before it clicked. The picture in the library, the love-struck look her mom was throwing at the mayor as he stared at my mom. Icahbod had a thing for my mom! And now Payton seemed to be up my ass about wanting to take shit from her? I wanted nothing to do with it or her creepy Elite. In fact, I didn't even know what I was still doing here. We were standing around arguing like little children. And there I'd been, shaking in my boots over a bit of chanting and hooded robes...

"Well, it's been a pleasure, and I'm sure it would have been fun, but I'm going to bounce and call it a day. I deny entry into the Society." I saluted them all and stepped back into the arched entrance, but I froze when Cal and Payton both glanced my way.

"You don't want to know anything about the Society? Your parents were in it after all." Cal pointed it out, his expression confused, as I continued backing up. "They practically ran the Elites."

"From what I was told, it sounds like a group of friends who were like family until they weren't. I don't need to join this little club to connect with my parents. I have a feeling this isn't a family but a cult." I waved my hand around, gesturing to the silent members, who were watching our little standoff. They were still sort of humming under their breaths.

"You stupid mortal," Payton hissed. "You'll join and follow my leadership. I'll take my rightful place, and you'll be the one submitting to me. It's my destiny, not yours." She then whipped out a small knife from her cloak pocket and grabbed my forearm in a tight grip. "‘I pledge my loyalty, my life, and my so-called legacy to the Society. I will concede under your rule.' Repeat it!"

Payton tried to slice and dice my arm like a psychopath, but I punched her in the boob with my other fist. She released me with an astonished glare. I suddenly knew her tatas had to be fake, because that should have hurt like a son of a bitch. Cal was standing next to her, watching warily as he rubbed the back of his neck, not looking me in the eye. He didn't even try to stop her.

"Fine, bitch! You're just a pathetic mortal anyway. You don't deserve to be elite. I don't care if your parents were the leaders back in the day or that Cal thinks it's your rightful place. He's wrong. I don't even know why I allowed you to come. I've earned this, not you!" Payton was spitting nonsense as she screamed in my face, snapping her fingers at one of the other members. "But you don't get to walk away like you're better than us."

Her smile was suddenly sinister. I needed to get out of this crazy town because this chick was off her rocker. I didn't even want to be here, and I didn't give a shit about any legacy anymore. It wasn't going to give me any of the answers I was looking for, apparently.

"Listen, I don't want to join. It's yours, Payton. My parents were happily married, and my mom loved my dad, not Ichabod. Your mother can totally go after him if she wants; I'm sure they would make a lovely couple." I was rambling, backing away, and ignoring Cal's grimace at the thought of them becoming siblings.

I felt that, I really did. A hooded member stepped forward, her yellow skin peeking out through her cloak as she handed something small to Payton. The crazy bitch turned back to me with a creepy smile edging around her lips. She opened her palms for me to see what was inside.

My breath caught in my throat, and my heart dropped to my stomach. Tucked in a small ball in the center of Payton's palm was my familiar, her eight little beady eyes half-lidded as she stared up at me, trying in vain to get up, but her legs collapsed under her.

"Did you drug Jessica?" I cried out, stepping forward to grab her, but Payton held her out of reach.

"Why, yes, I did. It's been a trip watching her for the past few days and listening to her cry out for you. Necromancer's love dead things, right?" She grinned as she held the small knife over Jessica's body. Her little legs were trembling as she reached for me helplessly.

"October…" Jessica whispered softly, her voice weak from the drugs or whatever potion she'd been given. I couldn't help but whimper because I felt her fear as if it were my own. I was about to lose my familiar. She was part of me, and I didn't think I could handle losing her too.

"Payton, what the fuck are you doing?! You can't harm a familiar; it goes against our laws! Give her back to October right now!" Cal ordered, his hands fisted at his side until, at the last moment, he reached forward to grab Jessica.

He was too late. I was too late.

"Maybe Jessica can say hi to your parents." With an unhinged chuckle, Payton brought her knife down, piercing through Jessica's fur and exoskeleton and straight to the heart.

"No!" My legs buckled as agony rippled through my body, endless pain that I felt the moment the blade sank in.

"That's what you get when you try to take what's rightfully mine," Payton sneered down at me, but I was hardly listening as she dropped Jessica in my lap.

I frantically cradled her close as blood coated my fingers, and I didn't even realize someone was trying to get me to stand by pulling on my elbow until I looked up through my tears to see Cal's worried face.

"We need to get out of here. Let's get her to the manor!" He helped me to my feet as I frantically checked on Jessica, finding a weak pulse under her neck.

"It's going to be okay... I'll fix you. You're m-mine, damnit. I'm going to take care of you." I kept muttering to her gently, praying I had time.

By some miracle, we made it back to the broom closet with the sound of Payton laughing behind us. But nobody seemed to be laughing with her. I had a feeling she'd crossed a line, even for the Society. Maddie gasped the moment she saw us, dropping the broom she had between her legs.

"Oh god! What happened? Cal, what are you doing here?" Her gaze swung back and forth between us before landing on Jessica in my palm. "Oh no!" Maddie rushed over, pushing a pacing Cal away to hover over Jessica as tears gathered in her eyes, too.

"I'm going to get a message to my father and have this handled. Maddie, fly her back, and I'll meet you there." Cal shot off, not seeing the hurt look Maddie threw his way or the betrayal deep in her eyes.

Maddie wrapped an arm over my shoulder and led me to the broom she was playing with seconds ago. We heard a muttering voice and looked behind us to see Cal talking down at something in the shadowed corner.

"Tell my father that a sacred law was broken tonight, and tell him the whole story. Make it quick." I watched in shock as the dummy in the trench coat stepped out of the dark with his little porcelain hands shoved in the deep pockets of his coat. He looked at me with genuine pity.

"I hope that spider gal will make a quick recovery. I quite like her." I watched his lips move, the small square of his mouth coming unhinged as he turned just his head in our direction before running away with his porcelain heels clicking on the ground at a fast pace up the stairs.

"Oh my god, he's real. Jessica kept trying to tell us, but we didn't listen. Maddie said sadly, her voice laced with guilt, and narrowed her eyes at Cal before scooting forward on the broom so I could climb on back.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know she had her," Cal said with a look of genuine remorse in his amber eyes.

He then pulled a vile from his pocket and threw it on the ground with a puff of smoke that swallowed him whole in seconds. I didn't bother to watch him fully disappear because he should have told us about the Society earlier, and someone should have seen Payton for what she was before Jessica got hurt.

I tucked Jessica into my chest, applying a small amount of pressure to her wound, and prayed we made it back in one piece.

"I got you. Just hold on a little longer," I whispered to her, and I gripped Maddie's shoulder as she cursed under breath, then she pushed off the stone ground.

" Idcirco praecipio tibi ut avolare! " She cast the spell with complete authority, and I gasped as the broom shot forward.

The breath was knocked out of my lungs, and we both screamed when the broom dodged the corners of the university halls. Once we made it up the stairs, we shot through an arched doorway and into the night sky. The town was lit up by soft, twinkling lights between each building as they got ready for the festival tomorrow night, and we hovered over Main Street for a heartbeat before the broom shot forward with Maddie crouched over the wood handle. We passed in a blur over the town, and the only thing I could see were the beautiful fall colors of the trees and the twin moons just before we hit my aunties' street .

"I don't know how to land this thing, so hold on!" Maddie shouted over her shoulder and narrowly missed the peak of the manor as we started to descend towards the ground at a fast pace.

The greenhouse came into view, the midnight jasmine petals open for the moons, and in the middle of the yard were my aunties, running onto the grass barefoot with Cal on their heels as they directed their palms upwards, facing Maddie and me.

" Idcirco praecipio tibi ut terra! " They chanted a spell together, and the broom slowed its fast speed, slowly descending towards the ground, and then jerked to a stop.

Michael came running out of the house with wild eyes and my tracker panties in his grip, but he relaxed the moment he saw me as the guys slammed into his back with shouts of panic.

"Where did you go?" Freddy growled as he prowled towards me before stopping and dropping to his knees next to me. The moment we landed, I slipped off the broom and crumpled to the ground.

"Jessica is—she's not doing so well," Maddie explained through her tears, and she moved out of the way as the aunties came charging through with their arms full of plants and potion bottles.

"Oh, luv, what happened to her?" Damon asked, reaching down to stroke Jessica's fuzzy spine, his brows lowered over his yellow eyes. I could see the concern in those eyes, which momentarily flickered back to gray.

"Payton had her! That crazy ass clown did this! I've failed Jessica. I didn't know, but I should have!" I sobbed, watching the aunties grind up herbs in a bowl as they silently worked together. I choked as I added, "She was gone for three days, and I should have known something was wrong!"

"Oh dear… The clown girl will see consequences, I promise you that. We'll try everything we can to save Jessica," Auntie Fe muttered, exchanging a quick glance with her sister before applying a mushy substance to Jessica's wound.

I felt her pulse flutter under my palm, and I snuggled my face against hers as we waited with our breaths held. I already knew it was too late. Jessica's eyes blinked open, her gaze unfocused as she laid her head down into the palm of my hand, staring up at me.

"It'll be okay, Toby. It's still me, yo girl, Jessica... I love you." She said the words so softly, it was nearly a whisper.

Her squeaky voice was broken, and I could feel the numbness in every word. Her eyes slid shut just as her pulse stopped thudding on my palm.

"No, no, no, Jessica!" I cried out, sobbing so hard that my shoulders shook and my tears soaked into her fur as I cradled her close to my chest.

My tears just kept falling, and I could hear Maddie crying off to the side. Jessica's body was limp, her legs uncurling against my skin.

Norman's cold fingers caressed my neck as he pulled me close and let me cry into his collarbone. "I'm going to kill that clown and drain her dry," Norman hissed, his voice low and deadly. He stood as if to carry out that promise.

"I'm sorry, child," Fe said sadly. "We'll give her a proper burial." Auntie Pip tried to grab Jessica, but my heart was too raw and broken. I couldn't let go.

"No! She's my familiar, and she's coming back no matter what!" I shouted, pulling her closer to my chest. "No more pain, no more loss." I stared down at her lifeless body, feeling my throat close up, and tried to concentrate with everything I had inside me.

"Toby, she's gone. Let her rest." Maddie knelt down, grabbed my shoulders, and placed her forehead against mine as tears streamed down her cheeks.

"She's not completely gone yet." I said desperately. "I need to try first because it's all I have to give. I have to try."

She nodded and hovered her hand over mine as it rested on Jessica. The guys gathered around me, each of them touching me, surrounding our crouched position to offer support, while the aunties started swaying in place with their eyes closed and their heads tilted back to the moons. I closed my own eyes, praying I knew what the hell I was doing so I could bring my girl back.

"I love you too, Jessica," I whispered softly.

I thought about my parents, what I'd lost, and what more I could lose. I thought about the love I'd gained in return after I thought I'd lose the guys too. I could do this. I did it before without knowing what I was doing. It was in my blood.

"Please just come back!" I shouted, feeling something sharp and static pump through my veins, like a defibrillator had just shocked my nervous system.

"Something's happening, October; keep going," Michael said in excitement, his hands sliding through my hair, and I could feel him like his soul was somehow completely attached to mine.

A feeling built inside me, and it was like I could feel each of their individual energies as they laid their palms on my body. My four men, whom I brought back from the grave, funneled something into me—a power I'd never felt before, and it made me hopeful. In that moment, I could feel her.

" Idcirco praecipio tibi ut vivere! Pertinent es ad me, et ego dominus mortis! " The words flowed from my lips before I knew what I was saying, but somehow I knew they were the right words. I could feel it in my bones—my connection to the earth, my connection to life and death itself. It was working.

Thunder crashed, and lightning swirled. The black sky flashed green, and the moons disappeared behind the clouds. It felt as if the earth was shaking with every one of my tears that dripped into the soil next to my little spider.

Then suddenly, a shock rippled through me, and I felt the faint pulse of her heart beating into the palm of my hands, so I squeezed my eyes tighter. I pulled power from the guys, my soul absorbing it straight to the heart. I suddenly knew Jessica would come back because I demanded it.

Thump, thump, thump...

"October..." came a broken voice from below. "That you?" Jessica rasped, and I felt my whole body slump in relief as soon as I opened my eyes to see her staring up at me.

I couldn't begin to describe the pure joy that bloomed in my chest at the sight of all those beady little eyes. Tears streamed down my face as the lightning and thunder began to dissipate around us.

"That's my girl!" Jason smacked a pleased kiss on my temple as the guys shouted, whooped, and knocked knuckles.

" Our girl, dumbass," Freddy growled out as he shoved everyone aside. He picked me up, swinging Jessica and me around as she let out a peep of laughter. It was a balm to my heart to hear that laughter, and I couldn't help but join her.

"This calls for a celebration! I'll get the cider!" Auntie Pip declared, slapping Cal on the shoulder as she strode by.

He was standing there awkwardly, and when my eyes connected with his, he offered a smile while rubbing the back of his neck. He couldn't meet Maddie's gaze as she stood off to the side with her arms crossed, tapping her foot as she glared at him. The marionette appeared at his side, his trench coat blowing in the light breeze as he tipped his hat at me. I couldn't tell if he was smiling or not since his lips were painted on. I wasn't sure where I stood with him, as he'd been following me around in plain sight. It seemed Maddie had enough of the bullshit, though. She stopped tapping her foot and pointed her index finger at him.

"So how about you tell us, Cal, what's with—I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name." She glanced down at the dummy in confusion.

"Friends call me Roger, doll."

"Right," she deadpanned. "What's with Roger following us around for two weeks?" Maddie raised a suspicious brow and narrowed her eyes at a nervous-looking Calvin as he shifted his amber eyes over us all, his face turning slightly pale.

"He was just keeping an eye out for you guys. You're new to this world, and I wanted to make sure you were safe. I'm not supposed to talk about the Society because it's a sacred secret tradition." He held his hands up in a calming manner and took a step back as a dark blue bundle of static zipped between Maddie's fingers that she still had pointed at him.

"That's bullshit," she snorted. "Everyone knows about the Society, I just thought you wouldn't have joined something that lame. You seemed so much cooler than that, but I guess not. You're just like your weird old man, it would seem."

Maddie took a step forward, backing him into a tree, but she tripped over her own two feet and went crashing down, a shot of magic flying from her fingertips. I watched with my mouth hanging open as Cal made a dodging leap and the magic smacked into a wide-eyed Roger, absorbing into his porcelain skin. His skin cracked and shattered, becoming the soft flesh of a human. We stared at him with our mouths agape, wondering what the hell just happened.

His bright blue eyes went wide as he yelled, "I'm a real boy!" Patting down his body, he jumped in the air with his heels clicking together and that ridiculous duster coat flapping.

Auntie Fe gasped and started muttering under her breath as a white orb formed in her hands. " Reformandam! " she said. I knew that word. She was remaking him, undoing the accidental spell.

She shot the orb at a dancing Roger, the white light disappearing into his flesh, and we all watched in stunned silence as his skin hardened back into porcelain, as if it had never happened in the first place.

I looked at Fe in question, and she shrugged, saying, "It's unnatural, and sooner or later, it would have driven him mad. Trust me, I'm doing the puppet a favor."

"Ah, shucks." Roger tried snapping his fingers together, but the glossy material of his hands just slipped by like butter. "A dummy can dream, can't he?"

"What the hell am I watching?" Norman asked, shaking his head in bewilderment. He pulled me close, running his nose along my neck as he petted Jessica's head with his thumb. Billie was perched on his shoulder, and I watched the little bat hop down his arm until he was nuzzling Jessica.

Not a fucking clue, but I say we go hunting. The clown has to pay." Freddy cracked his knuckles and ignored how pale Jason went at the mention of clowns. Even after all this time here, he was still terrified of them.

The sound of clapping came from the front gate, and when I looked over, I saw the mayor leaning over the iron gates with a large smile on his long, handsome face. Once again, he was dressed like a circus ring leader. He looked like he took clothes out of a coffin from the eighteen hundreds and slipped them on all wrinkly and dusty.

Auntie Pip stood near her sister as they blocked his view of the rest of us, but that didn't stop him from leaning to the side to stare at me. I had to wonder how long he'd been quietly standing there.

"That was most impressive, Miss Hallowell. It would seem you take after David after all. So happy to know the Grimm family will live on for a while yet." His smile only grew, and his gaze shifted over to Cal for a second, but I swear his eyes hardened as he made eye contact with his son.

"So you've heard about the sacred law that was broken tonight, Ichabod? What will be done? One cannot get away with killing a familiar; it is forbidden to mess with such creatures," Auntie Fe said, crossing her arms as she glared up at him.

He quirked his finger at his son, and we watched as Cal blew out a shaky breath and walked to his father's side painfully slowly. I didn't like it one bit. I might be mad at him right now, but something just didn't sit right with me, and Ichabod just gave me bad vibes every time I'd run into him.

"Not to worry, ladies and gentlemen. Payton is being dealt with as we speak. She's been removed from the Society altogether and will be leaving shortly to live with some relatives a few towns over. Neither I nor the town's council will stand for this kind of behavior," Ichabod said. His voice was dark with a hint of anger, but I didn't think he was upset about Payton; he was more annoyed than anything else.

Fucker.

"If you'll excuse us, my son and I must be off. We have to prepare for the festival tomorrow. I do hope to see you there," he said with a dramatic, douchey bow, his maroon robes snapping behind him, but he was looking at only me the whole time.

He grabbed Cal's shoulder and waited for Roger, who also took his time making his way to their side of the gate. He tipped his hat at me just as Ichabod pulled out a vial. He smashed it on the ground, and they were gone by the time the smoke cleared.

"City hall is like two blocks away; he could've walked." Michael muttered.

"Let's head inside and sit by the fireplace for a spell." Auntie Pip ushered us inside, and it took a lot of energy to stand on my own two feet. Luckily, I had Michael to support me, as he let me lean on him the whole time.

Jessica was asleep in my hand, and I felt like a mother hen checking her pulse every few seconds, but she'd scared the crap out of me tonight. The living room fireplace was roaring by the time we walked in, making the room toasty and leaving me comfortable as I plopped onto the couch with a blanket thrown over my feet. Jessica peeked her eyes open with a yawn, her tusks snapping shut as she glazed up at me with adoration.

"I thought you were visiting family. I didn't know Jessica, but if I had, I would've rescued you in a heartbeat. I almost thought you were getting sick of me and needed a break from all my drama; that's why I never questioned it." I bit my lip, telling myself not to cry because she was here and safe.

"No worries, Tobs. I'm happy to be back, and I actually love the drama. It's been fun watching you try to act like you don't love your boyfriends. Most entertaining, if I do say so myself." She sounded smug, and I just shook my head.

"I find it funny they haven't figured out you can read their minds yet. Even I noticed right away. I can sometimes feel you right here, and we're connected even more since I came back. Being your familiar already gives us a bond, but it's stronger now." She pointed her little spider leg at her head. "They should have felt it the moment they woke up from the crash." Yawning again, she stood up and crawled up my neck to hide behind my hair.

It went so silent, you could hear a fart in a thunderstorm, and I was glancing around the whole room, staring at anything I could latch onto, anything but them.

"Boyfriends huh?" Jason teased me, playing with my hair. He tugged at me to look at him, but I just couldn't. I wanted to melt into the wood flooring and stay there.

"Read minds?" Freddy asked. "Well shit." He started pacing by the fireplace and chuckled under his breath a few times.

"I want to experiment with that later," Michael whispered in my ear, and I was really glad the aunties weren't paying us any attention because my breathing picked up as the possibilities ran through my mind.

Fe and Pip kept glancing up the staircase with worried expressions and whispering to each other as they gestured wildly with their hands at one another.

"How much is too much mind reading?" Norman asked with a small grin as he rubbed his chin, staring me down with darkening green eyes.

"I-It's only here and there... I can't control it," I stuttered, then jumped on my comfy cushion as a loud knock echoed through the house. I was almost glad for the distraction.

"Okay, somebody better tell me what the hell that is once and for all before I lose my mind. I'm sick of the knocking and not knowing!" Maddie demanded, stomping over to the aunties as they glanced at each other before nodding .

"It's time, I suppose. We've held off this long, but watching you grow into your powers and who you've become lets me know you'll make the right choice." Auntie Pip nodded her head in determination and started climbing the stairs.

"Follow us, dears." Auntie Fe lifted her skirts, flashing some ankles, and raced up after her sister, oddly spry for a lady of her age.

I didn't say anything for a minute, as I was bone tired, but I knew whatever was making that loud, annoying knocking sound was most likely an integral part of this future of mine that kept shifting all over the charts.

"Carry me?" I pleaded with a pout up at Freddy and was rewarded with a lopsided grin as he bent down and wrapped an arm under my legs and upper back before straightening up.

"Silly girl. I'll always carry you," he mumbled into my hair, sniffing me as he effortlessly carried me up the stairs, the guys and Maddie hot on our heels.

Once we reached the landing, Freddy was huffing teasingly, as if he were out of breath, and chuckled when I smacked his bicep. Then I couldn't help stroking the strong muscle because, hello, it was a bicep to be worshiped.

My aunties were standing at the end of the hall on the second floor, between the closet door and Freddy's room, wringing their hands nervously.

"Okay, good, this is good. Gather around, because it's time to make a decision," Auntie Fe said, waving her hands, so we kept stepping closer.

"Decide what?" Jason had his head tilted to the side and whipped his gaze behind the aunties when another loud knock sounded, shaking the house with a small tremble.

"If you want to stay or go," Auntie Pip reluctantly admitted and sighed as she turned around, muttering a spell under her breath. " Idcirco praecipio tibi ut aperta ."

At first, nothing happened. I looked at the aunties, about to ask, when the hallway looked like it was suddenly expanding on a deep inhale, and the walls shuddered back into place. I stared in shock as a red door appeared in front of Auntie Pip. The arched wooden doorway was moving as if someone were pushing in from the other side.

"Open it," Auntie Fe said, stepping back and waiting for one of us to gather the courage to open a door that was breathing.

"Fuck it." Norman shrugged as he stepped forward and grasped the knob, but once it blew open, he moved with inhuman speed back to my side.

Freddy tightened his grip on me as Maddie and I gasped at what was on the other side. I could only stare in shock and awe. Swirling colors in an endless loop formed a tunnel, kind of like a horizontal tornado. Beyond it was a galaxy of stars that never seemed to end. Honestly, it kind of reminded me of Michael's eyes when they changed while he used magic. Purple and gray clouds crashed together with lightning and thunder as a storm came from within, trying to suck what was on the other side in.

"What is it?" Michael asked, unable to look away. He stepped closer to it until Jason stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"It's a portal that can go anywhere, even the mortal realm. It's open all year long, not just Halloween." The aunties said the last part at the same time in an eerie, practiced way.

I wondered how that worked. I'd learned about the city bus that transported you to the mortal world on Halloween night each year. As far as I knew, the price of going back and forth was pretty steep. But this was some other kind of magic.

"Why does it make that knocking sound?" Maddie asked, peering at the portal curiously, her black hair whipping around her face.

"To let you know it's still here. It can feel anything living in this house because it too lives and breathes," Auntie Fe explained, shooting a worried look at her sister.

"It's time to make a decision," Auntie Pip said, gesturing to the portal.

It was quiet, as all we could do was stare at the swirling colors. I grew up on that other side, made friends, fell slowly in love, had my heart shattered when my parents died, and then lived a year alone as I isolated myself. I never found myself until I came here. The truth is, I didn't want to leave. I didn't feel like the mortal world was home anymore. This was where I felt most like myself, and my stomach curled with dread at the thought of returning.

"I'm staying," Jason said in a sure voice, staring at me already as I looked over Freddy's shoulder.

"I actually kind of like this place. It feels like home," Michael declared next, twirling a lock of my orange hair around his finger with a soft smile.

"Fuck, you guys know I'm in. I think the moons keeps my wolf somewhat sane. Plus, you need my crazy ass for a little comic relief. Y'all are so dour sometimes." Freddy squeezed me closer to his chest as tears welled in my eyes.

Norman snorted at his brother but then speared me with those jewel-green eyes that saw deep down to my soul. "Where you go, I go."

They stared down at me, gathering closer as they waited for my answer. The aunties let us have this private moment as they backed away, but I could see them leaning forward to eavesdrop. They didn't want us to go, and something told me that if I returned, they'd go with me.

"I'm finally home and where I belong," I said with confidence, smiling at my boyfriends. "I fucking love you guys."

Freddy whooped, squeezing the breath out of me as Norman kissed my hairline with a deep, relieved breath. Michael grinned widely, rubbing his hands together as he winked, mouthing, I love you too . I knew that kinky fucker was planning more ways to fuck me in public. I rolled my eyes at him but smiled.

"Are you sure about this?" Jason placed his hands on my cheeks, staring deeply into my eyes as he looked for a sign I didn't want to stay, but he wouldn't find any.

"Positive. Besides, I don't think the mortal realm would approve of me dating four guys at once," I said cheekily, feeling my face warm as his eyes sparkled with hot desire, the naughty demon showing through with a flicker of yellow eyes and a forked tongue slithering out and back in.

I felt like I was floating on cloud nine and was never going to come down. The aunties clapped and did a little Irish jig as they lifted their skirts to spin in circles. I glanced around for Maddie and saw her standing at the doorway to the portal with a sad look on her face. She must have felt my stare because she turned her head and took a deep breath as she slammed the door closed.

"Guess we're here to stay." Maddie dusted her hands and skipped over to us, wrapping her arms around the guys and gathering us close together as she giggled.

It felt like old times, with all of us together again, and I felt at peace with the decision to stay.

This was home.