We moved together as easily as a pit crew. Koa sprinkled black filings in precise geometric patterns while I dumped enough Himalayan salt into the crucible to bankrupt a pretzel factory. Casimir lurched back with an armload of alchemical accelerants.
“Anyone want to say a few words?” I asked as I dropped the last of the remains into the crucible.
“Burn in every hell there is,” Cas growled.
“Amen.” I folded my hands together and bowed.
The flames caught with a shriek that set my fangs vibrating. We watched in silence as feathers curled into glowing runes, bones cracking like gunshots in the inferno. That’s when the smoke started whispering.
W o r t h l e ss
The word slithered through the crackling, a serpent made of ash and old bruises. Koa stared at the empty air where the message had hung. Casimir went rigid.
“Well, that’s not creepy at all.” I threw another handful of salt into the fire. Just to make sure.
“The stepbitches called her that?” Ko guessed.
“We’ve got air witch signatures and the same rancid magic stench from the day we got here.” I kicked the crucible stand harder than necessary. “Does it matter?”
“Yes, confirmation matters!” Cas snapped. “If they used that phrase specifically—”
“No.” I scowled him. “We’re not herding her into that particular minefield right now.”
“Seri deserves to know her stepsisters are—”
“Not until she’s recovered from the siphoning.” At least Ko was on my side.
“Bullshit. She’s stronger than you think,” Cas argued.
“You want to drop this on hernow?” The room temperature dropped ten degrees as I faced him. “When she can’t even make it through a full day without two naps minimum? While she’s vulnerable without her magic—”
A shrill beep cut through the tension. Koa’s laptop screen flashed red. Security alert from the library. We all lunged for the monitor. Seri’s sleepy face filled the feed. Brumous lifted his head beside her, squinting at the camera hidden in the bookshelf.
“Motion trigger,” Ko breathed. “False alarm. She just knocked her teacup over when she shifted.”
We watched in silence as Seri patted the wolf’s flank, murmuring nonsense. The dark circles under her eyes looked heavier in the infrared glow.
“I’ll check on her.” Cas turned toward the door, and my hand closed over his wrist.
“Brum-Brum’s got it. You’ll just wake her.”
“That mutt’s a glorified space heater.” His jaw muscle twitched. “Nota guardian.”
“What’s next, big bro? Marking your territory on her favorite chair?” I grinned at his murderous expression. “You gonna pee in a circle around her tonight?”
“Not now, Z!” he barked. “We’re telling her tomorrow!”
“Fine, but if those bitches send so much as a cursed paper airplane before sunrise…” I trailed off.
“We kill it.” Ko shrugged as he reset the alarms.
“Wards.” Cas paced faster. “Perimeter sensors. Motion-capture on every damn tree.”
My eyes flickered to our security monitors. Six different angles of the Harrow house filled the screens.
“Pull up whatever your mechanical cockroaches recorded before the attack,” I said. “Timestamp minus ninety minutes.”
“You mean my elegant spy eyes?” Koa flopped into his desk chair, fingers flying across three keyboards at once. “The onessomeonecompared to a dysentery outbreak in clockwork form?”
