Shaking his head no, Silas breathed through the pain and tried to speak without moving his lips. “A few years ago, a group of vampires attempted to useThe Book of Flesh and Boneto make themselves daywalkers. Grateful defeated them and took possession of the book. As far as I know, she still has it.”
“That’s good news. If she has it, then Alex doesn’t,” Selene said.
“But Alex has a spell. We know that he’s working toward a major event,” Jason said.
“Ask Grateful,” Silas mumbled.
“Laina was going there anyway. I’ll text her,” Jason said.
“If she’ll let us see it, if we know what the spell is, it might not matter how Alex got a copy. We might be able to stop him,” Selene said.
Silas nodded, then pointed at the call button. “Nurse,” he said. He needed medication for the pain and anything that might help him heal faster. If Alex had a spell fromThe Book of Flesh and Bone, things had gone from bad to much, much worse.
“We have a problem.”
Silas woke to a worried-looking Grateful Knight standing over his bed. The drugs the fae nurse had given him were still raging in his system, and his vision wavered like he was viewing her in a funhouse mirror. “Whassup, homegirl?”
“By the goddess. Seriously, Silas? Sober up. We’ve got trouble. Big, fucking trouble.” Grateful rubbed her lower back with both hands, her belly looking even larger than the last time he’d seen her.
He tried to sit up, shaking his head to clear it. “You heard ’bout the book?”
“Yeah… I heard. Laina stopped by to ask me about the ritual. Jason texted her about the book while she was still at my place.”
“Do you think it could be the source of the ritual Alex is attempting?”
“The Book of Flesh and Boneis the same cursed text that opened up the Hellmouth in the cemetery behind my house. It has the power to raise the dead, to build a bridge between hell and our world. And the spells and rituals inside can be wielded by anyone, even humans.”
“And werewolves,” he babbled.
“Yes. Even werewolves. If Alex has a spell from this book, we’re in trouble. This isn’t about your pack anymore. This concerns all of us.”
“But you have the book. How could he have a spell if you have the book?”
“After I battled the Nekomata for that book, I knew there was no place I could hide it that would be safe. I was a new witch. My magic wasn’t strong enough to protect it at the time.”
“So, where is the book now?”
“Luckily, a very powerful supernatural being owed me a favor. See I’d saved this person and her friend from certain death at the hands of a mountain troll.” Grateful’s eyes widened.
“Mountain troll? Wait, you don’t mean…”
“I gave it to Soleil to protect for me. She sealed it inside the marble floor of her bedroom. Celestial fae have hiding places that are impenetrable. It was the vampires who wanted it and I knew it would be safe there because they can’t touch her.”
“But it’s not only the vampires who want it anymore.”
“No.”
“Is the book still sealed within Soleil’s floor?”
“I assume so, but given that she’s still unconscious and barely clinging to life in a room down the hall, this isn’t the right time to ask her.”
“Fuck. If she gave Alex that book… She told me someone tricked her.”
“She can’t give it to anyone. Soleil offered me a fae favor. A fae favor is not like a favor between humans or even you and me. It’s a binding magical contract. I asked her to seal the book within her protective walls for her lifetime. She did so. It can’t be undone. A fae favor is as good as gold, and it lasts their entire life.”
“Which means the book can only be accessed if and when Soleil dies,” Silas said, suddenly sobering.
“Yes.” Grateful’s face fell. “So you see the problem. Celestial fae usually live thousands of years, unless they’re shot with iron bullets. Seems too coincidental that Soleil gets shot exactly when Alex needs the book most.”
