Chapter One

I'd rather be in hell right now than stare at this damn whiteboard any longer.

My eyes roamed over the information I'd been compiling for three months. All kinds of clues had been tacked up and connected by strings. The longer I looked at it, the less it made any sense.

I eyed the drawings of the Oaken Wands, along with other clues we'd replicated from memory. Journal entries from Helena's diaries had been ripped out and tacked alongside the photos. We thought we'd find clues that her late husband had left behind, but Nicholas hadn't told her where he'd hidden the Wands. His journal was long gone, so we had nothing to go off of.

My vision blurred the longer I stared. I couldn't remember the last time I slept.

"It was the butler," Nadine muttered. "It's always the butler."

"Huh?" I whirled toward her. She'd been quiet for so long, I'd forgotten she was there.

Nadine sat at a table in the sunroom we'd commandeered for our research purposes. A thick layer of clouds blanketed the September sky, and raindrops trickled down the windows around us. She set aside the thick binder she'd been flipping through, then hit pause on the phone in front of her.

"I said the butler did it," she repeated. "Are you listening to the podcast?"

I'd totally forgotten it'd been playing. Nadine had started listening to true crime podcasts a week after our friends left to investigate the Oaken Wands. I'd portaled them to different supernatural societies in order to help us gather clues. They reported back twice a month, but so far, no one had learned anything useful. Even though Helena and our cats stayed at the safe house with us, it could get boring and lonely sometimes. There was only so much Oaken Wand research we could do when we were stuck here. Nadine thought true crime podcasts would help us pass the time, and we'd both gotten really into it. We tried to solve the mysteries together, and it was a lot of fun.

Today, though, I couldn't focus on any mystery that wasn't our own.

"Sorry, I wasn't listening," I said. "I'm trying to find answers before everyone else shows up. I'm portaling them for check-in today. We've got to give them something."

Nadine sighed. "I know this is hard, Lucas, but we can tell them the truth."

"The truth is that we're no closer to finding the Oaken Wands than we were three months ago."

"We're getting closer," she insisted. "Grant and Talia have made allies in Malovia. They're meeting with their contact as we speak. This contact might know a way inside the Abyss. We're so close to finding an entrance, so that we can find the Mentalist Wand that we lost through the demon's portal."

Hence my point—I'd rather be in hell right now. At least then we'd be closer to the Mentalist Wand. We'd decided three months ago that we'd walk through hell for that Wand. Without it, the other four were useless to us. We needed all five Oaken Wands to end the Waning and win our fight against the priestesses' tyrannical rule.

"I'm not any closer to making Abyss portals, though," I pointed out. "If I could make portals to the Abyss like I should, we wouldn't have to send Grant and Talia to a warring fae nation who places every witch they come across at the end of a noose. Malovia is in the middle of a civil war. They've got two monarchs competing for the throne. It's dangerous enough as it is for their own people, let alone witches and warlocks. Don't forget what they did to Kenna and her family a few months ago."

Kenna and her parents hadn't even been in Malovia when they were captured and hanged. They'd been visiting Paris, and the fae took it as a threat because they were too close to the country's border. I didn't want to think about what would happen to Grant and Talia if the fae found them inside their borders. Their sentence would be far worse than hanging, for sure.

"Grant and Talia know the risks," Nadine reminded me, though she sounded worried.

I raked my fingers through my hair. It felt pretty grimy, and I realized I couldn't remember the last time I showered, either. This research had practically consumed me. "I just thought we'd have answers by now."

"You should sit down," Nadine suggested. "The last time you were standing this long, your leg started giving you trouble."

My broken leg had healed, but it still twinged painfully if I was on my feet forever. Still, I couldn't sit down right now, even if I wanted to. I was too on edge.

I began pacing instead. "I don't want to sit down, Nad. I want answers."

"Have you ever considered that maybe that's not your job?" she asked calmly. "Our friends are out there getting answers. Our job is to be a safe place for them to come back to."

I gritted my teeth and pointed to the stacks of textbooks on the table in front of her. "Our job is to do our research and draw connections. And I feel like a fucking idiot because I can't see how it all connects!"

"It may be simpler than we think," Nadine pointed out. "Perhaps it isn't this big puzzle that needs solving but just breadcrumbs to follow."

I turned back to the whiteboard and tapped my chin as I surveyed the information we had. "All right… breadcrumbs. Where do we go from here?"

The room went silent, and I was starting to get really freaking pissed. What did I expect? For the whiteboard to answer back?

"Maybe a new perspective will help…" I mused. The whiteboard hung off a frame on wheels, so I spun it ninety degrees. It probably looked like I was crazy, but it was the only thing I hadn't tried yet.

My gaze darted from one string to the next. My eyes began to cross, and it felt like I was looking at the board from under water. Even the sound of raindrops on the window became distant. My hands curled into fists, and my whole body shook in frustration. I shoved my hands into my hair and yanked on the strands. This was fucking pointless. I'd been studying this board for months, and none of it made a damn bit of sense. Three months caught up to me in a single moment, and I snapped.

"These breadcrumbs are useless!" I screamed as I grabbed the strings and yanked them off the board. Papers went flying across the room, and one of the strings tangled around my finger. I grabbed the corners of the whiteboard and threw it at the wall, which was a feat in itself, because the thing was huge. Pain sliced across my hand. The whiteboard hit the wall, then bounced back toward me. It landed on my head pretty dang hard, and I collapsed onto the ground, pinned beneath the massive whiteboard. A piece of paper landed in my mouth, and I sputtered, but it went nowhere.

Nadine rushed to my side and helped lift the whiteboard back onto its wheels. "Lucas, are you okay?"

Truth was, I'd hurt my pride more than anything. I huffed as I got to my feet and spat the paper out of my mouth. "I'm fine," I grumbled.

Nadine placed her hands on her hips. "That was a bit dramatic."

I crossed my arms but didn't meet her gaze as I mumbled, "These breadcrumbs are dry and stale anyway. They taste awful."

Nadine stared at me for a few seconds, before a smile crept across her face. She burst into laughter. I froze, until I looked down at the papers at my feet and began laughing along with her.

It wasn't funny. Not in the slightest. But it was better than the alternative—and that involved wallowing in my own self-pity because I'd somehow tied my worth to solving this mystery. I'd get an earful from Nadine and Helena both, because neither of them were going to stand for my bullshit anymore. They heard enough of it last June. I tried my best to find the joy where I could, and that was pretty damn difficult today. So when Nadine laughed, I allowed myself to laugh along with her.

"Come sit down," she said between laughs. She led me over to a chair, then leaned down to inspect the cut on my hand. It throbbed, but I didn't really give a fuck. Nadine gasped.

"What?" I asked, sitting up straighter.

"You broke a nail!" she said dramatically. She was trying to lighten the mood.

I scowled. "What a tragedy—oh, wow. That's not good."

Nadine stretched my skin a little, and I saw that the cut was deeper than I thought. The corner of the whiteboard had sliced across my whole palm. Blood began pooling in my hand.

Her voice turned serious. "Stay here. I'll get a first-aid kit."

She left me in silence, and I glanced around the room. Papers were scattered everywhere, and the string lay in a tangled mess on the floor. This was going to be a bitch to put back in order.

I got up and knelt beside the closest pile of papers, trying hard not to drip blood everywhere. I started gathering our clues and stacking them together with my good hand.

"Lucas." Nadine stopped me when she returned. "Your clues aren't going anywhere."

She was clearly annoyed by how consumed I'd become with this. I sighed and sat down again. She took my hand and gently wiped the blood away, inspecting it closely. "You're not going to need stitches, but I need to get it cleaned up. Hold still."

Nadine positioned a towel on the table, then placed my hand palm-up on top of it. She poured hydrogen peroxide over the cut, and damn, that stung like a son of a bitch.

She cleaned out the wound, then gently wrapped gauze around my hand. I couldn't help but let my eyes roam over her as her fingers moved over mine softly.

She caught me staring and turned a deep shade of pink. "What is it?"

"You," I said simply. "You're so nice to me."

"That could be because I'm madly in love with you," she teased. She taped the gauze, then placed a gentle kiss on my hand. "All better."

"Thanks," I told her, before drawing her in for a kiss.

After she cleaned up, Nadine plopped herself in front of her thick binder again. "Do you prefer pumpkin spice or apple cider?"

That was an odd question, but I thought she was trying to distract me. "Um… apple cider, I guess."

She scrunched up her nose. "You guess? Are you sure?"

I shrugged. "If I was given the choice, I'd choose apple cider. Pumpkin spice isn't a real thing."

Nadine gasped dramatically, like I'd thoroughly offended her. "It is! How can you not love the impeccable blend of cinnamon and nutmeg and ginger and cloves!?"

"Is that all?" I teased flatly.

"And sometimes allspice," she added proudly.

"It's fine, but have you ever had fresh apple cider straight from the orchard?" I asked.

"Yes. You took me last fall."

"Right, and it was fantastic, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, it was good, but…"

"But you want me to say pumpkin spice," I finished for her.

"No," she answered quickly. "I want your honest opinion."

"My honest opinion is apple cider. What's this about?"

Nadine propped up the binder for me to see. She'd pasted all kinds of photos of various cakes and recipes inside. She wore a goofy grin and exclaimed, "It's for our wedding cake!"

I furrowed my brow. "How'd we get from apple cider and pumpkin spice to cake?"

"I'm trying to decide our flavor."

"Apple cider isn't a flavor," I said. "It's its own thing. It's a drink."

"No, but like… you make an apple cake with cream cheese and cinnamon frosting. It's a whole thing. But then there's the pumpkin one, and I was leaning toward that."

"Then go with pumpkin," I offered.

Her shoulders sagged. "But it's your wedding, too. I want to make these decisions together."

I reached across the table and took her hand in mind. My fingers trailed over her engagement ring. "As long as I'm married to you by the end of it, I don't care about the details."

I tugged on her arm, and she came around the table to sit on my lap. I curled my arms around her middle and pulled her close to me. I inhaled the rose scent of her hair, which always made my head spin. My fingers trailed down her body.

Nadine wiggled her hips. "Mm… right here?"

I kissed the back of her neck. "I get excited when I think about marrying you. In just a few short weeks, you'll be my wife."

Nadine turned around, until she was straddling me. "October thirty-first can't come soon enough," she whispered, before pressing her lips to mine.

I leaned back in my chair and ran my hands over her backside as she began kissing me. The stress of the whiteboard completely fell from my mind as desire for my fiancé consumed me. Nadine reached down for the button on my jeans…

"Eh hem." Someone cleared their throat in the doorway, and Nadine jumped.

My shoulders slumped. Not again.

I loved Helena as if she was my own grandmother, but god damn it. This woman was always right there whenever Nadine and I were about to get it on. Hell, Nadine and I were about to fool around in the master bath the other night. As soon as we filled the jet tub, Helena knocked and wanted to clean. Nadine had gotten rid of her, thank the goddess, but it'd really put a damper on the mood.

"I made tea!" Helena said brightly as she came into the room carrying a tray. Isa, Oliver, and Cornelius followed along at her feet, meowing like they were waiting for treats. Helena stopped in her tracks and eyed the mess. "Oh, my."

She set down her tray, then went to start cleaning up the papers.

"That's not necessary," I told her quickly. "I'll get it."

Helena hesitated, like it physically pained her to witness a mess without cleaning it up. I swear, all she'd done in the last three months was clean and cook. She wasn't faring well with the cabin fever any better than we were.

Helena cleared her throat. "You should have some applesauce. It turned out perfect."

Nadine and I had gotten really bored here at the safe house, so we gardened over the summer, then canned fruits and vegetables with Helena whenever we needed a break. Helena had found stacks of empty jars in the basement our first week here and suggested we use them, and we just… never stopped. She'd planted all kinds of vegetables around the property, and we'd found a handful of apple and pear trees near the house we'd been harvesting. I didn't know how many batches of applesauce we'd made, but we'd started storing food in the basement because the pantry was too full. We certainly weren't going hungry anytime soon.

Nadine climbed off of me and returned to her seat. "Thanks, Grammy."

I tried the applesauce, and all kinds of flavors burst in my mouth. "This is our best batch yet. What'd we do differently?"

Nadine snickered. "I snuck in a pumpkin spice blend."

I frowned. "You're trying to convert me."

"I am not!" she insisted with a giggle.

At Helena's feet, the cats continued to yowl.

"All right, all right," she said impatiently. "But only one for each of you."

Helena reached into the pocket of her apron and tossed three cat treats on the ground. Isa gobbled hers gone, then shoved Oliver out of the way and ate his, too. Oliver just licked her ears, like he didn't care. What a doormat.

Helena turned back to us. "I brought something for you two as well. Picked it up on my last supply run."

She reached into her apron and set several large boxes on the table. All I saw was the big bold letters reading Value Pack! Then I realized in horror what it was.

"Condoms!" Nadine gasped. "Grammy, what makes you think we need that many? Wait… how much sex were you having when you were our age?"

Helena scowled. All it took was one sharp look to know she wasn't about to answer that question. For someone who walked in on us every freaking time we tried to get it on, she seemed pretty encouraging of our physical relationship. I must've turned the brightest shade of red.

"They're not just for you," Helena said. "Your friends are coming back today. We all know Chloe and Miles will need a whole pack to themselves. I want everyone to be safe."

I laughed. "You're not wrong."

"Now finish up," Helena pressed. "You're scheduled to portal everyone in soon."

Helena left the room, and Nadine and I quickly finished our tea before heading out into the living room. The room was large, with a ceiling that reached two stories and a balcony from the second level. A sectional sofa faced the fireplace, along with a large TV mounted above the mantle. Helena was already sitting on the couch, and the cats surrounded her, purring in her lap.

"Are we ready?" Helena asked.

I checked the clock on the wall, then nodded. "Ready."

I lifted my hands, and magic surged down my arms as a portal bloomed in front of me. It was like a hole had been punched straight through reality. The fireplace was replaced with the image of a forest lit by the rising sun. A warm breeze rustled my hair, and it smelled like pine trees. A couple holding hands stepped through the portal. Their cats followed, and they hopped onto the couch beside the others, looking excited to see them. I closed the portal behind them.

"Chloe. Miles," I said, nodding to them. "How's life in Hok'evale?"

"It's a lovely town," Miles said. "Last week, we rode a dragon!"

My face fell. His enthusiasm really rubbed me the wrong way. "This isn't a theme park, Miles. You're supposed to be out there hunting down clues for the Oaken Wands, or did you forget about that while you were on vacation?"

Chloe's jaw dropped. "Whoa! Someone's in a mood. It's better to be on vacation than to hang out here, where you're either moping around or hounding us for answers."

"That's not all I do," I shot back. "We canned a batch of pears yesterday."

Chloe scoffed. "Forgive me if I'd rather be sipping mimosas on the beach."

"Mimosas on the beach—" I nearly choked on the words. "Dear Goddess, we're never going to find answers."

"Actually, the mimosas paid off," Chloe said proudly.

"Yeah, I'm sure the afterparty was a blast," I replied flatly. "Hopefully someone else found something."

I turned, then lifted my hands again, forming another portal. The air was cold, and I smelled a fresh sea breeze. A girl with purple hair stepped through the portal, along with her cat.

"Welcome back, Onyx," I said. "Learn anything from the merfolk?"

"Let's bring everyone back before we start sharing our discoveries," Miles pressed, sounding annoyed. Clearly, I was a bit too harsh.

A light dusting of snow had covered the ground when I portaled Verla through from the Midnighter's society. The vampires were spread all over the world, but Verla had been trying to get information from a group in Canada. The headmistress shivered when she stepped through the portal.

"Come," Helena said quickly. "I made tea."

"That's so kind of you," Verla said as Helena ushered her to the kitchen.

I couldn't see what Celestial City looked like when I portaled Professor Warren back to the safe house. He was holed up in a nice hotel room, with white sheets and a golden bed frame. He seemed the coziest out of everyone. The angels weren't the nicest supernatural race on the planet, but they'd pretty much do anything for you as long as they thought they could convert you to their religion, and Professor Warren was good at placating people.

"Good to see you, Lucas," he said kindly.

I nodded back, then turned to Nadine. "Nad, I'll need your help with this one."

She stood at my side, and we combined our powers together to create a portal. It wasn't easy, because we were fighting against wards to get inside the fae's borders, but we managed. A forest appeared in front of us, but it was different from the last. The coniferous trees were smaller here, and it smelled of damp mountain air. The sky was overcast, and the ground was wet, as if it had just rained. Wind whistled through the portal, but everything else was silent. I didn't see Grant or Talia anywhere.

I hesitated. "They're supposed to be at the meeting point."

"Give it a minute." Nadine's voice trembled. "They should be on their way."

I held my breath, waiting to hear the sound of their footsteps through the mud. But there was nothing.

"Something's wrong!" I insisted. "Grant and Talia have never missed a portal."

"Are we sure about the coordinates?" Chloe asked. "This doesn't look like where we've picked them up before."

"I'm certain," I stated. "Grant and Talia were meeting with a contact inside Malovia's borders earlier today. We moved the meeting point so they didn't have as far to travel."

"Maybe they got lost?" Onyx suggested.

Miles crossed his arms. "Or they were betrayed. We shouldn't have trusted the fae!"

The portal faltered around the edges, and my hands shook as I tried to steady it. "I can't hold it much longer."

"We have to go after them!" Nadine decided immediately. She ran toward the front door and grabbed our shoes and coats. She tossed mine at my feet, then slid hers on.

"You can't go alone," Professor Warren protested.

"The fewer witches we bring to Malovia, the better," Nadine said. "We don't want to draw attention, and Lucas and I can get in and out using portals. We'll be back soon. I promise."

Helena and Verla heard the commotion, and they raced into the living room. "What do you think you're—?" Helena started, but I didn't hear the end of it. I grabbed Nadine's hand, and we leapt through the portal together.

My stomach dropped from my abdomen, and my body seemed to stretch and distort as we tumbled through the portal. We landed firmly on our feet on the other side, still holding hands. The air was chill and damp, and a shiver traveled down my spine as I glanced around. We stood on the side of a mountain, but we couldn't see much through the pine forest except the darkened clouds covering the afternoon sky.

"We've got to find a vantage point," Nadine said, tugging on my arm.

We traipsed through the forest, our feet squishing through the mud. The trees broke ahead, and when we stepped out of them, my stomach turned to a rock in my belly. Nadine drew a sharp gasp.

We stood on the highest point of a hill, looking out over a large battlefield. The battle had already been lost, judging by the bodies strewn across the muddy landscape. There had to be at least a hundred fae shifters and sorceresses lying down there. Fresh blood seeped into the ground as wolf, dragon, alicorn, and griffin shifters lay still beside their mates, who'd perished trying to save them.

Below us, a makeshift camp had been set up with large tents. Someone cried out in agony, their voice carrying up the hillside. On the other side of the battlefield, far out in the distance, we could make out the shadows of a small town.

Nadine covered her mouth. "What happened here? You don't think Grant and Talia got caught up in it? The fae are known for taking hostages!"

I shook my head. I refused to believe that unless I saw it with my own eyes. "No. They wouldn't involve themselves in fae affairs. Though this could certainly be why they were held up."

Nadine's eyes glistened. "So how do we find them?"

"We're here!" a ragged voice came from behind us.

We turned to see two figures climbing the hill. They wore large backpacks and were covered in mud from head to toe.

"Talia! Grant!" Nadine cried. She rushed over to them and threw her arms around them, not caring about the mud. "Thank the Goddess you're okay."

Grant blew a breath. "No kidding. We were nearly ambushed, but we managed to slip into the trees until the battle was over. The fae king attempted to take the city of Pruska, which you can see over there, because the rival queen captured it for herself. He ended up losing, though, and it's pretty clear his forces were demolished."

He sounded really winded, and Talia hadn't said a thing. They were both in pretty rough shape. They must've been on their feet for days.

"Are you alone?" I asked. "Where's your contact? Don't tell me he led you into this battle on purpose!"

"No," Talia promised. "Oakley never showed up. He was a member of the king's army, and…"

Grant dropped his gaze. "He fought in the battle. He didn't make it."

My stomach clenched. "He was supposed to show us the way into the Abyss! We don't have time to scour Malovia for entrances. We'll never find an opening on our own."

Grant scowled. "I'm sorry our friend was too preoccupied with dying to show us the way to hell!"

My shoulders fell. "I'm sorry, Grant. I didn't mean it like that."

"We've been gone for three months," Grant reminded me. "Forgive us for making friends while we were away. You might not trust the fae, but Oakley was one of the good ones. He was fighting with the king's army to end persecution of dark magic wielders in Malovia. He sympathized with us and really wanted to help. I just… can't believe he's gone."

The hill went quiet for a few beats, before Nadine broke the silence. "If the king's army is sympathetic to dark magic users, then maybe we can go straight to the king himself."

Talia scoffed. "There's the kicker. You'll never believe who's on the throne. Remember those fae you helped last year, the one who needed Hattie to help them out with a demon problem? You said their names were Ethan and Emma."

I nodded. "Yeah, that's them."

"Ethan's the king now," Talia said. "Emma's his queen."

Excitement rushed through me. "This is great!" I cried. "They owe us a debt for helping them. We can go to them and?—"

Grant held up a hand. "Not so fast. We've tried to get in contact with the king and queen, but we can't touch them. Even Oakley couldn't get a message. They're guarded more than ever, with the state of the Malovian Revolution. And I don't blame them."

Grant gestured out over the remnants of the battlefield.

Movement caught my eye in the camp below. A man and a woman stepped out of a tent, surrounded by uniformed men. Whoever they were, they looked important. The woman turned, and her red hair flowed around her. It hit me then that I recognized her.

"That's Ethan and Emma!" I realized. "We can talk to them!"

I was already on the move, but Grant grabbed my arm. "Lucas, we can't. Look at their security detail."

"Emma will recognize us," I insisted. "We helped save her mate."

"Emma and Ethan will want to help us, but the rest of those soldiers will kill us on sight for being witches," Grant pointed out. "You can't just waltz up to royalty and expect a meeting. We'll never get close enough before their guards kill us first. They just lost a battle. They're not going to ask questions."

Fuck, he was right. We were so close, but they were untouchable.

"All right," I said reluctantly. "Let's get moving."

My friends and I hurried into the trees, where we couldn't be seen, and Nadine helped me form a portal strong enough to hold against Malovia's wards. Shouts came through the portal, and we hurried through as quickly as we could.

The shouting stopped abruptly as the portal slammed shut behind us. "Thank the goddess!" Helena cried.

"We're fine," Nadine assured her. "Grant and Talia… are alive."

Talia shivered a little. "We're just glad to be back."

"What happened to you?" Verla demanded, eyeing their dirty clothes.

"We, um, got a front row seat to the Malovian Revolution," Grant admitted.

"You're not going back," Verla insisted. "This is too dangerous!"

Grant sighed. "Well, our luck has run out anyway. Our fae contact is dead. We're not finding a portal to the Abyss anytime soon."

"Good," Helena said firmly. She'd never been a big fan of us walking through hell to retrieve an Oaken Wand, but it wasn't like we had any choice. We couldn't exactly send someone else after it. All eyes turned to her, and she quickly added, "I mean, it's good that you're alive. You're safe now. Let's get you a warm bath and a hot meal."

Helena took their backpacks and helped them to their rooms.

"What are we going to do now?" Onyx asked. "Malovia is the only place we know of with portals to the Abyss. It's our only way to get to the Mentalist Wand."

"Technically, not the only way," Nadine pointed out.

I scowled. "You're not talking about making a demon deal. That's worse than going in alone."

There were all kinds of reasons that was true. Demons could turn on you or trick you into faulty contracts. For a task this big, they'd want something major in return, something none of us were willing to give up. The last demon we'd dealt with had killed dozens of people before we were able to kill him, and it hadn't been easy. I wasn't putting my friends in danger by entering into a demon deal.

"If we can't find another way in, we may have to consider it as a last resort," Nadine said.

"You have no idea the cost you'd have to pay!" Verla protested. "You can't, Nadine."

"I don't want to," Nadine replied. "I'm only saying it's an option, even if it's a bad one."

"It's off the table," I stated. "If I have to kill myself making Abyss portals, that's better than working with a demon."

"There has to be a way to get the Wands without people dying," Professor Warren demanded. "No one's making deals with demons."

"Perhaps we should focus more on the other two Wands," Verla suggested. "Let's take some time to think about pursuing the Mentalist Wand. We can't afford any mistakes."

"We may be closer than you think," Chloe stated.

Everyone turned to look at her. She stood with her arms crossed and lips pursed.

"What do you mean?" Nadine asked.

Chloe drew herself upright. "As I was trying to say before, our mimosas paid off. Miles and I had a drink with someone we deem to be a credible source… and we learned something big."

My heart leapt. "How big?"

Miles hesitated, like he wasn't sure where to start. Finally, he sighed and said, "You need to come with us. This could change everything."