by Sarra Cannon
I took several deep, nervous breaths and held the mirror straight with one hand. I closed my other hand around the cool silver case of my mother’s locket, drawing power from her memory and her love.
“In Quod Relego,” I said.
Algrath’s image wavered before us, and a thin line of smoke and flame formed from the mirror to his body, pulling him forward.
Gowan and Darius stepped toward me, placing their hands on the edges of the mirror.
“In Quod Relego,” they repeated.
The wind around us kicked up and rain began to fall again in sheets all around us. Lightning flashed and a moment later, thunder boomed in the distance. In my hands, the mirror vibrated and warmed.
“More,” Gowan shouted over the storm.
Britta and Asher ran toward us, placing their hands over ours as we huddled together.
As a group, we all repeated the incantation one more time, pooling our power together. Standing as one.
“In Quod Relego.”
With that, Algrath’s body was pulled into the mirror and the storm around us stopped instantly.
Drained and exhausted, I released the mirror and fell to my knees just outside the Demon’s Circle.
It was over.
Algrath had finally been defeated.
A Witch’s Door
As it turned out, trapping a powerful demon in a mirror, even when you had a lot of help, could take a lot out of a girl.
The last thing I remembered from the night we banished Algrath was passing out beside the Demon’s Circle. Well, that and the feel of Kai’s arms under me before I hit the ground.
I spent the rest of the weekend fading in and out of consciousness.
Every once in a while, I woke up in a panic from a dream about being chased through the woods, but every single time I awoke, someone was there at my side to comfort me and give me something to eat or drink before I fell asleep again.
Martin. Kai. Asher. They were the ones I saw most often, but it seemed everyone, even Gianna, had taken turns watching out for me.
I remembered waking up once and asking about the other girls and being assured they were all safe. Even Brandy and Olive had been allowed to go home after it was determined their actions were greatly influenced by the demon’s manipulations.
Everyone’s memories had been wiped clean of what happened to them and another, more believable story about a serial killer, was given in its place.
Satisfied that everyone was okay and I wasn’t needed, I allowed myself to sleep again, getting lost in dreams for longer than I realized.
Then, late one afternoon when the light coming in through the window was already beginning to fade into evening, I woke to the distinct feeling that it was really done. Whatever side effects I’d suffered from Algrath’s banishment had worked their way through my system, and I had somehow managed to find myself on the other side.
This time, it was Kai watching over me, except he was actually sitting on the roof outside my window, watching the beginning of the sunset.
I stood on shaky legs and joined him, placing a hand on his arm and leaning against him for support.
“My own personal guardian angel,” I whispered.
In some ways, it still stung to think he was only looking out for me because of the promise his father made to my parents, but no matter why he was here, I was grateful for him.
“Half-angel,” he whispered, turning his head slightly and pressing his lips to my forehead.
I closed my eyes and focused on the feeling of warmth and safety that radiated through me.
“Half is good enough for me,” I said softly. “How long have I been asleep?”
“A few days, off and on,” he said. “Martin said someone your age with only a single key has never taken part in such a powerful ritual before. He doesn’t expect you to really wake up for another day or two.”
He smiled and put his arm around me.
“Overachiever,” he whispered.
“Yeah, that’s me,” I said with a gentle laugh. “The only person to ever simultaneously be a constant disappointment and an overachiever.”
I was only partly joking about the first part, but Kai’s expression grew serious and he shook his head.
“You saved everyone,” he said. “If you hadn’t acted when you did, it would have been too late. Martin and the others got there as fast as they could, but Algrath had set up all kinds of traps in the woods. It took them too long to get through it all. If Algrath had started the ritual, they would have been too late to stop him, and we all probably would have died.”
I shivered, thinking of just how close we were to death.
“And your father?” I asked. “Any news on where he is? Was Algrath telling the truth about him being summoned back to heaven?”
Kai swallowed and looked back out to the sunset that colored the sky outside my window.
“I’m not sure,” he said. “But Algrath didn’t have my father’s powers. I could at least tell that much.”
I squeezed his arm.
“Then he’s still alive,” I said.
“I hope so,” Kai said. “I’ve been searching for him for so long. I just want answers.”
A wave of sadness washed over me, and I clung to him a little tighter.
“What will you do now, then?” I asked, unable to stop my voice from trembling. “I guess you’ll be heading out to look for him again.”
I held my breath as I waited for him to speak. I understood why he needed to keep looking for answers, but at the same time, I wasn’t ready to say goodbye.
“Do you really think I’d leave? Just like that?” he asked.
I turned, looking into his eyes, my heart pounding nervously.
“I don’t know,” I said. “I know how badly you want to find him. I wouldn’t blame you if you felt you needed to go.”
Kai’s dark eyes searched mine, and then he pulled his arm away and began to fidget.
My mouth suddenly went dry. We’d never really had a chance to say how we felt about each other, but I was so scared I’d imagined it to be more than it really was.
What if he only cared out of obligation?
I wasn’t sure my heart could take more disappointment after finding out the truth about my new friends. Two of them had been willing to murder me for beauty, and the other, well. The other had been a demon.
My track record for friendships in Newcastle wasn’t exactly looking good right now.
“I never got a chance to tell you about that time we first met in Romania,” he said. He kept his eyes toward the sunset, and his golden skin seemed to glow in the half-light. “My mother had just recently passed away, and even though I had my father, I’d never been as close to him as I had been to her. He was always busy, and even though you might think angels are always loving and caring, he was difficult to get close to when I was young. I always got the feeling he didn’t quite know what to do with me or how to care for me.”
I blinked back tears, imagining a young Kai feeling so alone. Losing his mother so young.
I wanted to pull him close, but he seemed to need his space.
“Back then, I remember feeling so alone,” he said, looking into the distance. “I honestly wasn’t sure if I would ever be able to open my heart up to anyone ever again. I just felt empty. Hopeless, in a lot of ways.”
I closed my eyes, my heart breaking for him.
He turned to me, then, his eyes full of tears.
“When we went to visit your parents, I had just gotten into an argument with my father. I went into an empty room in your house to cry, and you found me,” he said. “I thought for sure you were going to make fun of me or go tell my dad where I was, but you didn’t. Do you remember what you did?”
I shook my head. Locked somewhere inside, I had a small memory of a beautiful boy crying in a small room, all alone, but I hadn’t ever put it together until just now that it was him.
The corners of his mouth twitched into a smile,
and he brushed the back of his fingers across my cheek.
“You walked in and sat down next to me on the floor,” he said, taking my hand in his. “You slipped your hand in mine and told me it was okay to cry. That sometimes even the strongest people in the world needed to cry.”
A tear slipped down his cheek, but he didn’t move to brush it away. He simply pulled me closer.
“It was such a simple moment,” he said. “But it was an act of kindness that changed me forever. I had been spending all of my time with an angel, expecting him to teach me about unconditional love, but in the end, it was a human child that reminded me of my own strength. You may not remember it now, but you helped me hold onto my own humanity, and because of that, I have also held onto my mother and who she really was. I can’t ever repay you for that.”
I gripped his hand tightly.
“You don’t have to repay me,” I said. “And you don’t have to stay because of your father’s promise to my parents, either.”
He shook his head.
“I’m not going anywhere, Lenny. But I’m not staying because I feel obligated to. I’m staying because I think I’m falling in love with you,” he said, his voice hitching slightly on the words.
I always imagined my first real kiss would be awkward and strange, or that I would be full of doubt when the time came.
But when Kai spoke those words, I felt nothing but absolute certainty inside.
I slid my arms around his neck and pressed my lips against his. There was nothing awkward about it at all. Instead, I felt a rush of joy and love and warmth that buzzed through me from head to toe.
When I realized what I’d done, though, I pulled away, my face flushed.
“Still impulsive, I see,” Kai said, trying to hide his smile and failing miserably.
Nerves knotted my stomach.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I don’t know why—”
But before I could say another word, he pulled me into another kiss.
I sighed and leaned against him, definitely awake now and happier than I’d been in a very long time.
We sat together watching the last of the sun’s light disappear behind the nearby houses.
“Everyone is waiting to see you,” he said. “And I know Martin will want to talk to you.”
I nodded. “We should get downstairs, then.”
I was anxious to know how the girls were doing and what we were expected to do from here, but I was also sad to leave our little private perch outside the window.
When we got downstairs, though, I was so happy to see everyone gathered together in the kitchen, eating dinner. They were all so relieved to see me awake and feeling better.
“I told you she’d recover fast,” Darius said. “She’s a warrior just like her father.”
“You mean a fighter just like her mom,” Gianna said with a smile.
“She’s a natural, just like generations of Thornes before her,” Martin said, pulling me into a hug. “I am so proud of you, my dear girl. When I learned we’d been tricked, I was so scared I might lose you. But it turns out I shouldn’t have been scared at all. You were very brave and clever, Lenora, and I am proud of you.”
“Lenny?”
A woman walked into the room, her face showing signs of vulnerability like I’d never seen before.
“Ms. Greer?” I looked to Martin. “What’s she doing here?”
Had she come to tell us that the Council was bringing us in?
“Just hear her out,” Martin said, pulling a chair out for me.
I sat down, my heart racing. I had no idea what she could say that would make all of this okay.
“You were right to question the Council,” Ms. Greer said. “I couldn’t tell you at the time, but I’d been petitioning for them to look into the Algrath situation for a very long time. Being a Keeper is complicated, as Martin can confirm. I answer to the Council, so the decision of whether or not to intervene was not mine to make.”
I picked at the napkin on the table. I heard what she was saying, but I wasn’t sure if I could forgive her for not standing up to the Council. Plus, I still wasn’t sure if Algrath had been telling the truth about my parents’ death or not. Had the Council been involved? Had my parents been killed just to get me here?
“I know you have a lot of questions,” Ms. Greer said. “I have those same questions, but finding the answers is not going to be as easy as simply asking the Council for the truth. Martin and I have been working together on this in secret for months, but we thought it for the best if it appears I had no involvement. That way, we could still have someone on the inside with access to information.”
I looked to Martin, and he nodded. She was telling the truth.
“For now, the Council seems to be looking the other way when it comes to the actions of the Slayers in this room, but I have a feeling that’s more to protect themselves than all of you,” Ms. Greer said. “If we want real answers, we have to be smart about how we go looking for them. Do you understand?”
I shook my head.
“Not really. I just want to know what happened,” I said. “And if the Council really offered me up as a sacrifice to gain favor with demons, what are we going to do about it? Am I just supposed to pretend it didn’t happen and go about my life as a good little Slayer? Because I don’t know if I can do that.”
“There’s no doubt in my mind some of the Council was involved,” Blythe Greer said, her jaw tight. “Our job now is to figure out who is on our side and who betrayed us.”
“And once we find them?” I asked, looking at Martin.
“They will wish they’d never heard the name Thorne,” Martin said, sipping his coffee. “Of that, I can assure you.”
I sat back in my chair, relieved.
The Council wasn’t coming after us, at least for now. And if there really was a split in the coven and some of our members were working with demons, I had a feeling the people in this room were just as determined to find out the truth as I was.
“There is one thing the Council wanted me to bring to you, though,” Ms. Greer said, setting a small package down in front of me before she walked around to the other side of the table to take her seat. “Congratulations, Lenny.”
Eyes wide, I tore open the package and gasped.
I ran my fingertips across the smooth silver of the key inside.
This one was slightly more ornate than my first key, and it had a tiny emerald embedded in its center.
“But I haven’t even taken my test yet.”
“The Council has decided that considering your role in capturing a demon of Algrath’s power, you have already passed the first test,” she said. “That is, if you’re willing to accept your place as a Slayer in the coven.”
I took a deep breath. It was a big decision, but I knew now I could never turn my back on magic. It was a part of who I was, and even if there were problems with the coven and its leadership, the best place for me to fight back and protect the lives of the innocent was from the inside.
“I am,” I said.
“Then, it’s a celebration dinner,” Gowan said, giving me a wink.
Laughter and congratulations rang out as we all gathered together. A team, now bound together by an experience we would never forget and sworn to find out the truth about the Council.
A family.
When dinner was over and our guests had either left or retired for the night, Martin pulled me aside and studied the key with admiration. I was sure he’d seen many second keys in his day, but it just went to show how much he loved me that he was still proud of me for getting mine.
“Not many Slayers get a second key without taking their test,” he said. “You should be very proud of yourself, Lenny. I have no doubt your parents would have been very proud of you and the witch you have become.”
“I still have a long way to go,” I said. “But I’m willing to learn.”
“And that’s what matters,” Martin said, placing an arm around my shoulde
rs as he led me back toward his study. “And speaking of learning, you do have to go back to school tomorrow.”
I groaned.
“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” I said. “Why can’t I just stay home? If I’m going to be a Slayer, why do I even need high school?”
“I know how difficult it was to feel so betrayed,” Martin said. “But there is a lot normal human life can teach you about being a better witch and a better Slayer. Trust me.”
I nodded, not happy about it. But I knew from the tone of his voice that I wasn’t going to talk him out of it.
To my surprise, he stopped several feet shy of his study and turned toward the wall.
“After school, of course, your real education will begin,” he said, tapping on the wall to reveal a large mahogany door with more than a dozen keyholes. “This is a Witch’s Door, and tomorrow, I will show you how it works and what treasures lie inside. But for now, get some rest. Tomorrow is a big day.”
I stared, astonished, at the large door and then at Martin.
How many secrets were still locked away inside him? And inside this house?
I went up on my tiptoes and kissed his weathered cheek.
“I love you,” I said. “Thank you for everything.”
He smiled, and I could have sworn tears sparkled in his ancient eyes for just a moment before he pulled himself together again.
“I love you, too,” he said.
And I knew that he did.
Epilogue
The next day, I shook my head as I fumbled with the stupid lock on my locker. I could trap a demon in a mirror, but I couldn’t even open a simple lock.
It was too bad I couldn’t use my magic out here in the open. It would have really come in handy about now.
I turned to search for Kai, but he was taking the rest of the week off to tie up some loose ends and follow one final lead about his dad. He promised he’d be back at school with me on Monday, but for now, I was on my own.
I had never felt so lonely.
Frustrated, I pushed away from the locker to head toward homeroom, but as I did, I backed into someone and my books fell and scattered across the floor.