He’d gone back. Checked on the site. And found this.
The corruption was worse than it had been. Ramona could see the edges — where clean snow met stained ground. Could see how far it had spread since they’d left. A foot? More?
It was growing.
Ramona gasped,her hand jerking away from the fox’s head.
She was back in the living room. The TV was still playing — the contestant was crying, explaining her choice to the remaining suitors. Kashvi and Cammie were still watching. Felix was eating popcorn. Posey had paused her knitting.
But everything felt different. Tilted. Wrong.
“I knew it,” Zara said triumphantly, pointing at the screen. “I told you she’d bring back Trevor?—”
She stopped and turned to look at Ramona. Her hand was already moving to Ramona’s shoulder before she seemed to consciously register something was wrong. “Ramona? What happened?”
“The convergence point is corrupted,” Ramona said, dread pooling in her gut.
“How?” Zara’s grip tightened, and suddenly her attention was completely off the TV, completely focused on Ramona.
“Wait, what?” Felix had muted the TV. “What’s going on?”
“What does that mean?” Cammie asked.
“The fox…” Ramona’s voice came out shaky. “He showed me. The convergence point where we did the ritual. It’s…” She couldn’t finish.
The fox sat in front of Ramona, watching her with those amber eyes. Waiting for her to understand. Todo something.
“Whatdoesthis mean?” Ramona repeated in a whisper. Her hands were shaking. She pressed them flat against her thighs, trying to stop the tremor.
Zara was quiet for a long moment. On the couch, Felix and Kashvi had both turned to look at them now. Posey’s knitting needles clicked as she reached to set her project down on the table. Gerald cooed softly, concerned.
“It means,” Zara said quietly, and there was something in her voice that Ramona had never heard before — something close to fear. “That we need to fix this. And soon.”
“Or else what?”
Zara’s hand slid from Ramona’s shoulder to take her hand, interlacing their fingers. The tether pulsed between them — sharp, urgent.
“Or else the convergence point dies,” Zara said. “Permanently.”
“Explain?” Felix asked, setting down the popcorn bowl.
“Where we tried the severance ritual. It’s corrupted. Demonic corruption. From…” Ramona glanced toward Zara.
“From my magic,” Zara finished. “I stabilized Ramona’s casting during the ritual. Used my demonic energy to keep her magic from cascading. It worked — the ritual didn’t explode — but it left… something.”
The room went very quiet. Her roommates exchanged looks.
“How bad?” Cammie asked.
“Bad,” Ramona said. “It’s spreading. What the fox showed me — the ground is black. The trees are dying. And it’s growing outward from where we cast the ritual.”
“Oh no,” Posey breathed. Her hand had moved to her chest. “A convergence point is alive. It’s a living thing. A very old, very sacred living thing. If it’s corrupted?—”
“We have to find a way to undo it,” Zara said. “Before it spreads too far. Before the ancient oaks are affected.”
“How long do we have?” Felix asked.
Ramona looked at the fox, who was still watching her with that patient, knowing gaze. She didn’t know how she knew, but she could feel it — like the fox was pressing the answer into her mind through their connection. “The new moon?”
