said. “Shouldn’t we prepare for the worst? Like, you can give us the book and we can start looking for the spell?”
Selene leaned away from Jessica. “If we don’t have to open this book, we’re not going to. According to Grandma, just reading these spells is enough to let the darkness in. This,” she held up the white bundle, “needs to be treated with extreme caution. It’s not leaving my sight until the crisis has been averted and I can find a better hiding place for it. And if the time comes, I’m the only one setting eyes on the contents.”
“Do you really think your grandmother is the most reliable source when it comes to this stuff?” Katrina raised an eyebrow. “I mean, this wouldn’t be the first time she misled you where magic was concerned. And let’s face it, there are a significant number of moments when she is bat-shit crazy.”
Selene shook her head. “Even if Gram is wrong, it doesn’t hurt to play this safe.” She sat on the arm of my chair and tapped her foot. “If Frost is back, then we should be able to do a pretty simple tracking spell on her. Did she leave anything of hers here?”
I scanned my memory trying to remember if I saw her with anything the day before. “She had a book. Did she take it with her when the two of you left?”
Selene smiled. “No. She didn’t take anything with her. I’ll go check the room.” She kissed my cheek and all but skipped out the door.
Everything in the room lightened and seemed less dire when she was happy. I glanced around. Was I the only one who thought that? Jessica and Katrina still had worried lines across their foreheads and Sebastian was still staring at his hands.
“How’s Selene going to get the Pole back to the underworld?” Katrina blurted out. “I understand why she needs to find it, but once she has it then what? She can’t go back there. It was a damn miracle she made it out the first time.”
“I’ll go,” Jessica said. “If Selene can do it, so can I. And I probably have less ammunition for them to use against me.”
“You can’t go,” Katrina snapped. “You’re alive.”
“So was Selene. We’ll use Frost again.”
“No—”
“Neither of you or Selene will be going again,” I told them, cutting Katrina off. “If he’s willing, we will entrust this task to the vampire. He can come and go from purgatory easier than any of us, and he owes Selene.”
“You’re going to trust a vampire?” Sebastian asked.
“I’m going to trust Selene’s friend,” I said. I didn’t like vampires any more than Sebastian, but Selene had gone through something profound with Corbin. If he was willing to help, this was where we needed it most. “The more important problem to consider, and it is something we have to do while Selene isn’t here, is how will we contain her if she does end up evil.”
“Why would you contain her?” Jessica asked. “She already arranged to have herself whacked.”
“We’re going to save the child.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Holy shit balls, what child?” Katrina was standing now. “I think maybe Selene left out an important detail. There’s no way in hell she is doing this now. One of us will do it or we’ll find another way.”
As much as I would have loved to agree to what she was saying and sacrifice one of the humans rather than Selene, I couldn’t betray her like that. I gave Katrina a small smile, but shook my head. “Selene is stronger than the rest of you. She has a better chance of casting a spell powerful enough and coming through this unharmed. We are just making precautions. I’m sure everything will be fine. I wouldn’t let her do it otherwise.”
Jessica snorted. “Excuse us if we don’t have a huge amount of faith in that. Just yesterday you let her literally kill herself to get this stupid Pole and now she is going to potentially turn herself evil to take it back. I don’t understand why we went through any of this in the first place.”
“She got
Selene leaned away from Jessica. “If we don’t have to open this book, we’re not going to. According to Grandma, just reading these spells is enough to let the darkness in. This,” she held up the white bundle, “needs to be treated with extreme caution. It’s not leaving my sight until the crisis has been averted and I can find a better hiding place for it. And if the time comes, I’m the only one setting eyes on the contents.”
“Do you really think your grandmother is the most reliable source when it comes to this stuff?” Katrina raised an eyebrow. “I mean, this wouldn’t be the first time she misled you where magic was concerned. And let’s face it, there are a significant number of moments when she is bat-shit crazy.”
Selene shook her head. “Even if Gram is wrong, it doesn’t hurt to play this safe.” She sat on the arm of my chair and tapped her foot. “If Frost is back, then we should be able to do a pretty simple tracking spell on her. Did she leave anything of hers here?”
I scanned my memory trying to remember if I saw her with anything the day before. “She had a book. Did she take it with her when the two of you left?”
Selene smiled. “No. She didn’t take anything with her. I’ll go check the room.” She kissed my cheek and all but skipped out the door.
Everything in the room lightened and seemed less dire when she was happy. I glanced around. Was I the only one who thought that? Jessica and Katrina still had worried lines across their foreheads and Sebastian was still staring at his hands.
“How’s Selene going to get the Pole back to the underworld?” Katrina blurted out. “I understand why she needs to find it, but once she has it then what? She can’t go back there. It was a damn miracle she made it out the first time.”
“I’ll go,” Jessica said. “If Selene can do it, so can I. And I probably have less ammunition for them to use against me.”
“You can’t go,” Katrina snapped. “You’re alive.”
“So was Selene. We’ll use Frost again.”
“No—”
“Neither of you or Selene will be going again,” I told them, cutting Katrina off. “If he’s willing, we will entrust this task to the vampire. He can come and go from purgatory easier than any of us, and he owes Selene.”
“You’re going to trust a vampire?” Sebastian asked.
“I’m going to trust Selene’s friend,” I said. I didn’t like vampires any more than Sebastian, but Selene had gone through something profound with Corbin. If he was willing to help, this was where we needed it most. “The more important problem to consider, and it is something we have to do while Selene isn’t here, is how will we contain her if she does end up evil.”
“Why would you contain her?” Jessica asked. “She already arranged to have herself whacked.”
“We’re going to save the child.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Holy shit balls, what child?” Katrina was standing now. “I think maybe Selene left out an important detail. There’s no way in hell she is doing this now. One of us will do it or we’ll find another way.”
As much as I would have loved to agree to what she was saying and sacrifice one of the humans rather than Selene, I couldn’t betray her like that. I gave Katrina a small smile, but shook my head. “Selene is stronger than the rest of you. She has a better chance of casting a spell powerful enough and coming through this unharmed. We are just making precautions. I’m sure everything will be fine. I wouldn’t let her do it otherwise.”
Jessica snorted. “Excuse us if we don’t have a huge amount of faith in that. Just yesterday you let her literally kill herself to get this stupid Pole and now she is going to potentially turn herself evil to take it back. I don’t understand why we went through any of this in the first place.”
“She got
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