XXXIV

"T his isn't Bailey," Stella groused for the sixth time. "Listen to this: ‘Ronan made love to me against the kitchen wall. And then the table. And then the floor'."

Stella looked at her friends. River made tea in her kitchenette and Nova lounged on her loveseat. Both seemed unbothered by her evidence. She shook the letter as she caught Nova's eye.

"It does sound a little off," Nova conceded. "I can't imagine the words ‘made love' coming out of Bailey's mouth."

"Thank you! See River, Nova agrees."

River glanced over her shoulder with a slight frown, "What else did the letter say? Besides the sex and you complaining that it's ridiculously short."

Stella was glad River turned back to her task, so she didn't see the flush skirt up her cheeks. "Just that I shouldn't worry so much about stuff at court."

"Like what?" Nova inquired. Stella couldn't meet her eye.

She hadn't been sure until late the evening prior if her rhodiola-induced letter had ever made it to Bailey. One version of it had apparently. Only Stella still didn't know what she told her because of Bailey's vague response. It kept her mind awake all day as she tried to sleep, until she finally gave up and woke at an ungodly hour.

"The usual stuff." Stella folded up the letter and put it in her cardigan pocket. The lie rolled right off her tongue. "My general discomfort and inability to navigate court life—"

Nova snorted loudly. "I don't know when you sent your original letter, but that's not the case anymore. From what I've been hearing, you're navigating the court just fine."

"She's navigating it more than just fine," River announced, carrying over a steaming mug of tea to Stella. "I heard a rumor you used your immobilization powers on the Medici and sang their deaths. Plus, two demons."

"I heard that too." Nova sat up on her elbows. "Is that true?"

"Er… well, kind of. I came across Raphael and his sister—"

"Raphael has a sister?" Nova's eyes widened as she sat up fully. "Since when? Is she a demon too?"

Stella grimaced slightly and offered Nova a shrug. "Since they came here?" Stella answered, earning an eye roll. "She's a demoness of despair. The Medici vampyrés were hassling them and I stepped in."

"Why?" Nova persisted. "You got his blood. Mission complete. You don't need to hang out with him anymore, let alone step in and save the day."

"I couldn't just leave them," Stella argued.

"You're too nice," Nova argued right back. "You don't owe him or his sister anything."

"I know I don't owe him anything, but now he owes me ." Nova's mouth shut slowly as she regarded Stella in appreciation. "Anyway, I did manage to immobilize the Medici, which was incredibly exhausting, by the way, but my caoine was a lie." Stella winced at the twin incredulous expressions she received. "I couldn't hold them forever! Besides, it's not like the three of us would have been able to successfully take on the four of them. So, I faked my caoine to get them to leave, and they did."

"You faked it?" River voiced finally. She leaned against the small tower of boxes filled with Stella's belongings stacked near the fireplace. "What happens when they don't die, Stella?"

"They will die," she chirped with false confidence, avoiding eye contact with both women. "It's not like the deaths I announce always happen right away. Sometimes they take weeks."

"And you're what?" Nova drawled with an underlying heat to her voice. "Going to pick them off one by one? How the hell do you plan on doing that?"

Stella bit the inside of her cheek and forced herself to meet Nova's glare. Her hackles rose. "I suppose I'll lure them one by one to a secluded room in court, immobilize them, then behead them."

Nova gaped at her, then let out a low whistle. "Damn, you have changed."

The swift shift to approval in Nova's voice made Stella blush anew. "Thanks, I guess." She shifted her weight from foot to foot. "But what about Bailey's letter?"

"I wouldn't read too much into it. Her letters to me have been the same. Short and a bit flowery." River shrugged and crossed her arms. "Love changes people, maybe it's made her softer?"

Stella ran a quick hand through her hair. "I guess," she muttered. "I just expected more from her. You're really not worried?"

River paused then shook her head. "Bailey's followed me around for years, trying to help me break my curse. She's more than earned this time to get wrapped up in Ronan. Besides, if something seriously concerning happened, she would tell one of us."

Stella found herself half-heartedly nodding. She wasn't convinced something wasn't wrong, but with no way of knowing what she sent Bailey originally, she couldn't prove anything. A small sigh slipped past her lips, and her gaze dropped down to the mug in her hands.

"Should I drink this now?"

Stella had sent a note to River before dawn had broken, explaining her successful premonition test. She hadn't expected her to show up so soon after with Nova demanding a second supervised experiment. After a brief initial scolding for not telling her sooner, River went straight to work mixing a slew of ingredients for the tea now in Stella's hands. It smelled strongly of jasmine and honey.

"No," River warned sharply, raising a hand to halt her. Stella's eyes widened. "The tea acts fast," River explained. "You should be in bed when you drink it."

"Right." I wish I would have done the same the first time around. "Shall we then?"

River nodded, and Nova rose from her seat to follow Stella into her bedroom where she arranged herself to sit up against a stack of pillows. She raised the mug to her lips but paused as she glanced quizzically at River. "Is there a reason we're doing this now and not after Irina's big night?"

"Several," River replied primly.

"The biggest being that Valdora doesn't need River fussing around their work."

River shot a glare at Nova. "That's not true." Stella watched in delight as River's cheeks darkened. "She wanted me to save my strength and power for the actual spell since I'll be the one performing it tonight at midnight."

Nova smirked. "Same thing."

"It isn't," River protested, clearly flustered.

"And doing this isn't using your powers?" Stella asked.

River stuck out her chin and straightened her shoulders. "I merely mixed the ingredients for the tea. You're the one doing all the work."

Stella smiled weakly. "Right. So, why else is now a good time?"

"It's the last waning crescent moon tonight. Not only that, but Mars is in Aries and is going to be joining with Jupiter." River stopped as she caught sight of the confusion growing on Stella's face. "Basically, we're about to enter a new cycle of exploration and discovery with the new moon tomorrow night. That makes right now the perfect time to be bold and take charge.

"Everything's coming together. You're packing to move in with us. I'm finally getting a last-minute ingredient from the Hermetica clan. Plus, the planets are in our favor, and I need something to keep me busy until midnight." A grin lit up River's face. "Have you been practicing lucid dreaming since your first attempt?"

"Er, no, but I have been trying to journal my dreams," Stella said. "Is that okay?"

River shrugged, her mouth working a bit as she thought. "It worked for you before. I don't see why it wouldn't now. The tea is a concentrated dose, so you'll only be out for half an hour at the most. Do you remember what you need to do?"

Stella nodded. "Journal, which I've been doing. Know my reality markers, which I do, and prime my mind for what I hope to see."

Nova took a seat at the end of the bed. "What will you prime for?"

A lump formed in Stella's throat, but she swallowed it down before answering. "Exploring the same space I did last time. It was this hall that reminded me of the Grand Salon on the ground floor but half the size."

"That's pretty big," Nova commented with a cock of her head. "What did it look like?"

Stella consulted her notes. "Arched ceilings with beams. Lots of rooms and alcoves. Creepy statues with their hearts taken out."

Nova stared at her in astonishment. "Sounds... interesting."

A flutter of nerves erupted in Stella's stomach, and a moment later River's warm hand rested on her knee. With her touch came a soothing calm. "Remember, when you go in, it needs to be with intention. What do you hope to find or get out of your dream?"

Stella let out a long, controlled breath. "I want to know where this place is—is it hiding under the Dark Court or in another realm altogether? There's also a specific room I want to visit again. It felt… significant the last time I was there. Almost like it called out to me."

The bed frame squeaked as Nova adjusted herself, twisting to face Stella more.

"What was in the room?"

Her innocent question drew the blood from Stella's face. "I don't exactly remember the finer details of the room, just that there was a sacrifice taking place."

Nova balked. "A sacrifice?"

"I couldn't make out the victim, but I think it was a woman. There was another woman too, the sacrificer. A demoness with—"

"Wait, there were demons in this place?" River interrupted.

"There were only demons." River and Nova shared a worrisome look, and a surge of gratitude went through Stella as River's peaceful projection remained consistent upon her. "Have either of you seen a demoness with ram-like horns, dark skin, and runes all down her face?" Both women shook their heads. Stella's shoulders slumped. "Me neither. Maybe the place I'm going to is some kind of demon nest?"

Saying the words out loud caused Stella's stomach to flip upside-down. The danger of the situation suddenly pressed in on her, fighting against River's empathetic projection.

"It's probably not though, right?"

River's lips thinned. Nova grimaced.

Stella whimpered softly even as River squeezed her knee in gentle reassurance.

"Hey, you made it in and out without any trouble last time, right? You have nothing to worry about, Stella; if anything, this is good news." River's hand receded and Stella's fear spiked.

"How is it a good thing?"

"Because if it is a demon nest, and you happen to recognize any courtier demons, you can spy on them. See if they're planning something."

Stella's throat bobbed. "Like more sacrifices?"

"Sacrifices, plots for upheaval. Any information that might ensure our family's safety, and make no mistake, you are part of our family."

River's words buoyed her spirits some, but a lingering apprehension gnawed at her insides. You're past these feelings of self-doubt , Stella scolded herself mentally and took in a reassuring breath that didn't reassure her at all. The bed squeaked again, and Stella's gaze rose to meet Nova's.

"Listen, the reality of the situation is once the court knows you're officially a Vrana, a constant target will be on your back. If you can do your premonition-lucid dream thing and help us stay one step ahead of our enemies, then you need to," Nova declared passionately. "There's no telling if they'll succeed in reversing Irina's curse, or what will come after." Nova took a moment to clear her throat and Stella's own tightened. "You have the power to protect the family. Even if it scares you, you have to remember it's family first now. Always."

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught River staring quizzically at Nova. She ignored her, her eyes glued on Stella.

"Ready?" Nova asked.

"As I'll ever be."

Stella lifted the mug to her lips, carefully blowing away the tendrils of steam from the tea's surface. A distant pang of dread echoed through her, but she pushed it aside and drank down half the tea. It burned down her throat and left her instantly dizzy. Darkness rode into her peripheral vision as she reached to set the mostly empty mug on her bedside table.

The rattle of ceramic on wood was the last thing Stella registered before the darkness won.

"Shit," Stella breathed as she gathered her bearings with a wince. Her head was killing her. Twin hammers pounded against her temples as she registered the semi-familiar receiving hall. Stella's eyes widened. It wasn't semi -familiar; she was in the Lunar Court.

She turned in a slow circle. The last time she visited, outside the Heaven and Hell ball, was before its official name change and its sole purpose was auxiliary housing. The large concourse was filled with miscellaneous seating to divide it in half, while each side was quartered into halls the Stella knew held housing. It looked the same and yet, not . It was longer somehow. Larger too.

This isn't right.

The thought rattled something in her subconscious and her headache began to abate.

"How did I get here?" She murmured. "Where is everyone?"

As the words left her mouth another inkling of strangeness washed over her. Goosebumps raced across her arms as voices registered in her ears. She twirled around in search of their source, but they remained unseen.

A feeling of distant angst whiplashed through her. Stella sucked in a sharp breath and pressed a hand to her chest.

"You're fine," she reassured herself. "Nothing here can hurt you. You're—" realization stormed through her, and she straightened, breath quickening. "—dreaming."

At once the bodiless voices gained their anatomy. Stella glanced at her hands. They'd taken on an eerie transparency that didn't unsettle her as much as she anticipated.

"Now what?"

Stella moved to the side of the concourse observing the courtiers as they meandered. Her brow furrowed as she laid eyes over them. Something was still off, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

A tug at her center gently asked for her attention. Stella eagerly let it guide her to the middle of the concourse. Twisting her head from side to side, she scoured the scene for—

" Oomph ." Stella stumbled a step as a courtier walked through her. A ringing vibration rippled through her body, like a large stone thrown into a still pond. Stella gritted her teeth and glared at the courtier. The female looked back; eyes wide as they swept the room. A wariness lingered at the set of her mouth, but she walked on.

It was Jasmine. She strode down the concourse toward its end, a purposeful swing to her hips. Stella's gaze narrowed on her as the tugging sensation chased after her.

"Where are you going, my wayward friend?" Stella bit her bottom lip before quickly covering the space between them. She took up beside her, heartbeat steadily on the rise as they neared the last quarter of the concourse.

The bottom of Stella's nose tingled abruptly with her next step. She pinched it and pressed her tongue flat against the roof of her mouth to ward off a sneeze. Her eyes watered as the trick worked and slowed to a stop. Stella glanced back. No visible disturbance caught her eye, but she couldn't shake the sensation of having walked through a wall of static electricity.

She sniffed and rubbed at her nose. "Strange," she said, still eyeing the area suspiciously. Turning back forward, she caught sight of Jasmine angling to the right. The stunning vampyré slowed to straighten her posture and placed a hand on her abdomen as she took in an unnecessary breath. On her exhale, she regained her purposeful stride.

Stella started to follow, but a jolt of laughter snared her attention. She craned her neck to the left, body angling toward the sound of the disruption. More laughter. The tug returned to her center, urging her to follow it and abandon Jasmine. Stella did, and her obedience was swiftly rewarded.

A group of four demons strode out from the shadows of the final hall. The tugging sensation doubled.

"I know, I know," she muttered, feet quickening as the foursome aimed toward a nearby door in the shadowed hall. Urgency alighted through her as the demons reached the door and quickly filed in. "You're not getting away that easy."

Stella barely slipped through the opening behind the last demon before the door shut. Almost immediately after setting foot in the new room, a teeth-clenching vibration roiled through her. When, at last, the tremors abated, she surveyed the room.

Her stomach dropped to the marble floor.

Cherry-wood walls.

Ribbed ceiling.

Creepy statues.

She was in the demons' nest.

Stella moved deftly to the side as a pair of demons aimed for the door to exit. She took several moments to slow the whirl of questions careening through her mind, like how the nest could be hidden in the Lunar Court. Panic chilled her through.

"You don't have time to freak out," she scolded herself. Stella puffed up her chest and walked farther into the hall. "Find the scary sacrifice room and see what else you can find." She crossed her fingers. "Hopefully not another body."

Stella's gait fell somewhere between a jog and a walk. She kept to the walls and away from the handful of demons that were scattered about. No one noticed her. At least, she hoped so. Only one demon did a double-take in her direction. Their squinting glare eyeing the wall space she occupied before reluctantly moving on.

She recognized the demon. It was the same one from one of her first nightmares. The dark-skinned giant was covered in runes that made her want to wet herself in fright. Stella refused to make eye contact with him when his scrutiny prickled her neck. It felt like tempting fate, and as she traversed this strange dreamscape, she wasn't willing to risk her ambiguous phantom state.

The door called to her, just as it did last time. Stella approached it with shoulders thrust back and a confidence she didn't completely believe in. Regardless, she didn't hesitate to reach for the oversized golden doorknob.

She was transported inside in an instant. Again, strong vibrations clattered up and down her body leaving her dizzy. Stella's stomach protested. She felt akin to a bell rung too many times and was on the verge of cracking. Her hand rose to her temple and rubbed little circles. The hammer-pounding headache was back, as was the distant press of fear and apprehension. Her lungs tightened as she breathed through the pain and pushed away the fear.

"You can do this." Stella took another long, deep breath and winced. The pressure on her lungs wouldn't lessen. Taking stock of her body, she realized the pressure wasn't only on her airways. An invisible force pressed in at her from all sides.

Stella glanced at the menacing statue at the end of the room and winced anew as a sharp pain stung the inside of her head.

She cast her gaze away, breath coming in pants. "Okay, new rule. Don't look at the deity."

A grunt of discomfort left her as she stepped farther into the room. She glimpsed the curled top of paper peeking out from an onyx podium adjacent to the dais.

That's what I came for.

Stella didn't know where the thought came from, but she couldn't deny how its rightness resonated through her. The certainty grew as the power pressing down on her increased, slowing her movements to mere shuffling steps. Something did not want her reaching the contents on the podium—that much was clear.

Her eyes watered as she gritted her teeth against the increasing pain. More than once, she stopped to grip her head or wipe away her tears.

"Just a few more steps," Stella gasped. She couldn't tell if there was less air in the room or if the oppressive magic was suffocating her. "Both," she wheezed to herself. A slim grin eeked up her lips at the gallows humor.

It fell away as she reached her destination and stood behind the podium to study its contents. The curled paper she spied was a scroll held partway open by a pair of glossy gray stones. Stella gulped, eyes skirting back and forth between the bloody heart lying next to the scroll.

"Don't freak out. Don't freak out. Don't freak out."

Stella made herself take long measured breaths, tempering the flare of lightheadedness that threatened to take her out. Even so, she wobbled before the podium. She placed a hand on her chest, anchoring herself to the touch.

"Get a grip. You've seen worse."

The brash chiding worked. Stella widened her stance and focused her attention solely on the scroll. She couldn't read its contents, but Stella recognized the style of glyphs. They were hieroglyphics. One of Stella's fingers began to tap out a rhythm over her heart as she tried to memorize a short sequence of glyphs.

Wonky reversed, upside-down umbrella.

Half circle, above line with spike.

Triangle in triangle.

Half circle, above line with three dots, above scythe-thing.

The laughable descriptions passed over her tongue in silent repetition as she allowed her eyes to scan the rest of the scroll. It was old. Ancient. The cracked and slightly torn paper was a startling shade of orangish-brown that brought to mind the image of a shriveled, decaying orange. Yet where the paper was old, its handles of gold looked brand-new and glinted in the candlelight from what must have been a recent waxing.

Stella's memorization trailed into listlessness as she began to back away from the podium. Her eyes darted to the heart. A shiver of disgust rolled over her.

She'd gotten what she needed. It was time to go. Stella only hoped she would remember—

The room rattled with a sudden boom of thunder. Stella cried out, arms pinwheeling to catch her balance as she startled back several steps.

Another boom cracked through the room.

Stella dropped to a knee, hands flying to her ringing ears. Light emanated from her left. She glanced over and immediately regretted it. The statue was glowing. A bright, almost blinding, white light pulsed from the gilded effigy. Stella whimpered, unable to tear her gaze away as the light collected into a more concise form. A body. Ice-cold terror lanced through her.

" Oh, Gods ."