He frowned, clearly not following the same path as her thoughts. “That’s what Beatrice said.”
“Nicholas, the demon would have jumped between all the different forest creatures as it was haunting the woods. Just like it was in the bat to attack Lenora, but was in the spider when it joined Abigail.”
“Yes,” he said slowly, his confusion evident.
“The reports of hauntings wouldn’t be near the portal then. It wouldn’t risk jumping hosts if it was close enough to get pulled back, even if no one was there to seal the portal behind it.”
“Damn it. You’re absolutely right. But the only other water is a river on the far side of the forest. If my ancestor was talking about some feature that has completely disappeared over the years, we haven’t narrowed the search area at all.”
“Not the only other water.”
Nicholas stared at her for an instant, then his eyes widened. “The spring?”
“The spring.”
“Oh spirits, I think I’ve seen the portal. The day you were swimming, I was taken by surprise partially because I didn’t see your clothes at first. They were hidden in a shadow that was deeper than it should have been.”
“I put my clothes in a demon portal?” Somehow that was worse than the fact she had been swimming right next to one.
“Or very close to it.” Nicholas started walking, faster now, and Sadie struggled to keep up. He noticed and shortened his stride to something she could match.
They hadn’t been heading in the exact right direction for the spring earlier, but it didn’t take long to correct their course.
And there it was. Directly under a hydrangea, a deep shadow that didn’t match its surroundings. It was much larger than a dinner plate, but not quite at the size of a bathtub.
Nicholas studied it for a moment. “There. I’ve placed wards around the entire bush. Now we just need to find a way to lure the demon out here.”
“I think I know how to do that. But you won’t like it.”
Thirty-Five
???
In the end, Sadie found it easier to convince Nicholas to go along with her plan than she had expected. Yes, she would have to play bait, but at this point every moment she spent in the manor was a risk. Trapping the demon as quickly as possible was the safest option.
The only part of the plan that he wouldn’t budge on was his refusal to go to the spring ahead of her to wait. Nicholas would remain ahead of Sadie and the demon, but only by enough to stay out of sight without going out of range of Sadie’s telepathy. Which meant he was waiting in the billiards room when Sadie entered the lavender sitting room in search of Abigail.
All the guests but Helen had gathered there after the doctor left. Madeleine and Beatrice watched over everyone without letting on that they suspected a demon was in their midst.
“Sadie!” Jane greeted her a little too loudly. She blushed as everyone turned to look at her and dropped her voice to a near whisper. “Sit by me?”
Sadie touched her sapphire ring and concentrated on her power. She sensed the edges of the demon’s thoughts, but it wasn’t possessing Jane. She moved to join the other witch. She’d be able to lay her trap for the demon naturally from a conversation with Jane, she was sure.
Because she had already scanned the other woman’s thoughts, she wasn’t taken off guard by Jane’s first question. “Where did you find the potions you gave to Helen?”
Madeleine and Beatrice already knew she was a water-witch. Nicholas knew she was a telepath. The month was almost over. Sadie took a deep breath and admitted the truth. “I brewed them.”
“I knew it.” Jane’s voice rose again, but it was excitement rather than betrayal that had her struggling to control her reactions. “You always knew so much; I knew you couldn’t be finding all the information in those grimoires.”
Jane had never once suspected that Sadie was a witch, but she allowed her the satisfaction of claiming she had recognized the signs. “You were right. A lot of what I shared I already knew, though I found some things in the grimoires.”
“You’re a witch? What’s your power?” Abigail—or perhaps the demon—demanded from the other side of the room.
Well, at least she was paying attention to the conversation, even if that wasn’t the part of the conversation Sadie wanted her to listen in on. “I’m a water-witch.”
“But what is your power?”
Madeleine tsked. “A lady is entitled to a few secrets, don’t you think, Abigail?”
