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“He knows,” I said, tears running down my own face.

“And she’s thankful for what you did, for sending Charity away, when she hadn’t been strong enough to finish it herself.”

“It was a joint effort,” I said.

Clouds slid in front of the sun again, and I couldn’t see her anymore.

I turned back to Zinnia and nodded. I’d said what I wanted to. Zinny winked and then cut her hand and dripped her blood onto the grass. We all did the same and then followed her lead and started chanting.

It took almost two hours to remove every last drop of darkness that Charity had left behind in the soil. Our voices were hoarse, our feet were numb from the cold, and I was well and truly ready for a nap.

I finished dressing, pulled my shirt over my head, and shoved my feet into my boots. “Okay, let’s head back…” Something moved on the other side of the cemetery.

Zinnia turned and waved at the large red fox who had moved out of the shadows.

“Ren?” Willow’s voice was husky with emotion.

She made a move toward him, but Zinnia stopped her, sympathy in her gaze. “He’s here because I asked him to come.”

Willow stared at our cousin in shock. “What? Why? How?”

“I got his number from Else. I wasn’t sure he’d come.” Zinnia rubbed Jasmine’s back. “Jazzy has a message for him.” She gave her sister a nod, and Jasmine’s throat worked before she broke away from us and walked over to Ren.

We turned to watch, unable to look away as Jasmine crouched down and ran a trembling hand across his neck. Ren didn’t move, his amber eyes fixed on Jaz.

She smiled gently. “Hey, Ren.”

He blinked at her.

Her throat worked. “They want me to tell you, they don’t blame you.”

He jerked back, but Jasmine took his face in her hands, not letting him retreat. “Your guilt is keeping them here, Ren. They can’t move on, they can’t be at peace until you try to find it as well.”

Ren shifted suddenly into his human form and stumbled back several steps. He looked shocked, like he hadn’t meant to shift, and there were tears on his cheeks.

“Ren!” Willow called.

He backed up, then spun and ran into the woods.

Willow cursed, her pain visceral.

Jasmine walked back to us, eyes wide, haunted, and Zinnia strode to her and pulled her against her.

There was no missing what that message meant, and I hoped like hell it made a difference. I threw my arm around Will’s shoulders, and we started back to the house. “Do you think Jazzy’s message will help him?”

“I hope so. A year without him has been too damn long.”

CHAPTER 41

Draven

Two weeks later

The last week had been hell.

We’d finally received the summons for Iris’s combat trial. The final test, then she was done with the mother and her bullshit. She’d finally be safe.

We’d continued with her training all week, and Willow had been putting her through her magical paces.