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“We’re going to find her.” I could feel it in my bones.

My father nodded. “Prepare yourself.” Dad exhaled. “Is there anyone here against a blood donation? I suspect Moira will need more than normal.”

No one said a word.

My father nodded. “Good hunting.”

He disappeared in a shower of gold and emerald light. I reached over and dragged Rowan to me for a kiss. He smiled against my lips. “See you in an hour.”

I hugged Ash.

“Be careful.”

The dryad reached for Rowan and disappeared, my husband yelping in surprise. I laughed. Ash had a whole bag of tricks Rowan had yet to see.

Cliona and Tess were the last to leave. I hugged Tess. “She’s still alive?”

Pale, haunted eyes stared at me. She nodded. “For now,” she said in her familiar warble. “But death haunts this place.”

Fear shot through me. “Then there’s still time.”

Mom nodded to me and took Tess by the arm. They disappeared, leaving me standing alone wondering what I might find when this was all over.

Thirty minutes passed in what felt like an instant, and I was no closer to finding any hint of Moira than when I started. No footsteps other than small rodents or foxes and no living plants I could sense anywhere in the vicinity.

How much land had she cleared? As much as I mourned the loss of nature, Moira was my most pressing concern. After another fruitless search, I settled onto the icy ground, shivered, and stuck my fingers in the snow. I’d search until I found where the growth started and follow the path of destruction to map out exactly how far Minka had spread her influence.

Ten minutes later, I fell onto my side and hurled my guts up. Minka’s magic held a dark and oily flavor that made me want to scrub myself with a steel wool pad. She’d gone out five miles in every direction, destroying an insane amount of land. But I’d gone one step further and was able to figure out which plants were the first to die and which were the most recent.

I was a mile away from the oldest plant die-off. Once I felt like I could sit up again, I steadied my breath and slowly rose.

Closing my eyes, I imagined the dozens of foxes surrounding us when we arrived. Magic shimmered over me and my body hurtled to the ground. Arms and legs turned to paws, and I stepped out of my clothing.

Turning human again would not be fun in Siberia, but I’d do whatever I had to today. Moira’s time was running short, and we were wasting time trying to find her. I took off at a steady, quick pace.

Foxes were not distance runners, but they could haul ass for a little while before having to slow down. I ran as hard as I could, walked for a short time, then picked up the pace again until I was within a quarter mile of the plant die-off.

Lowering myself to the snow, I crept forward, keeping my snout close to the ground. As I went over a rise, I spotted a roof with dark smoke coming from the chimney.

I let out a little peep of relief. Creeping closer, I buried myself deeper in the snow, peering out at the sight that greeted me.

A small, decrepit cabin loomed above me. If I hadn’t seen the chimney smoke, I’d swear the thing was abandoned. Once a deep blue, the paint had chipped off in large swathes, exposing whitened, rotted wood. The roof was missing several gables, and large icicles hung like daggers from what was left.

A rusty axe leaned against the back side of the house right below a small window with…

Bars.

Rage burned through my veins. That bitch had Moira in a cage. I knew it in my bones. I backed away from the house, far enough away to send a signal to my mom and dad. Too close and Minka might sense it. Moving away broke my heart, but I had to make sure we held the element of surprise. Moira’s life depended on it.

I sent a thread of power through the ground, gritting my teeth with effort to get through the thick ice. Finding my father wouldn’t be an issue. The male burned with power and looked like a supernova in my mind’s eye.

A few minutes of searching…

There.

I disturbed the dirt by his feet. His answering pulse told me he’d received the message.

I crept back over the rise and settled down to wait for them to arrive, burying my tail in the snow so I could keep a pulse on the earth. As of now, I couldn’t sense anything, but where there was life, there was a way. And things had a way of happening when we were all together.