During the frenzy, I was torn between going to help, and knowing that Hunter could be pulled away at any moment.

He was anxiously contacting the other witches he worked with. I was too panicked to really focus on listening in on his calls, so I steeled myself to start packing. I wanted to leave—to go back to Ireland, get Dagda, and sleep for days, pretending this had all been just a dream.

As my senses were on overdrive, I could feel every single vibration coming from my luggage. It took half a second to recognize the sigils on my bags, sigils that had been so faint before but now glowed with an eerie presence. Katrina really had been watching me, this whole time. She wanted harm to come to me and Hunter, to drive us apart from each other.

I sat back on my heels, stunned.

"Morgan," I heard Hunter say impatiently, and I set down my bag and turned to look at him. His phone was clutched in his hand. "How quickly can you pack up?"

Confused, I gestured to my already packed bags. "I am," I said, standing up.

"I meant in Cobh."

It took me a second to understand him. "What?" I asked cautiously. "Hunter, I can't just leave—"

He reached out and took me by the wrist of my outstretched arm and made me look at him. He was still angry, trying to stay controlled. I hated seeing him like this when I was the recipient. It made me feel like an errant child who had disobeyed orders once again.

"Morgan, I can't keep you safe if you stay there. I have to go to London and sort this mess out." He sighed and released my wrist. He tossed his phone onto the bed and wrapped his arms around me, kissing my forehead. I rested my chin on his chest and let my eyes close. "Please come with me until we can rule Katrina out."

I took a step back, nodding, and he released his hold on me. I sat down on the bed to put on my shoes. Hunter checked the bedroom and bathroom to make sure neither of us had missed anything. As soon as I laced up my second boot, he was holding the door open for me. I grabbed my luggage and led the way out.

As soon as we were inside my apartment, Dagda greeted us with an irritated growl, as if offended I'd left for a couple of days. He hopped down from the arm of the couch and began to wind himself around my ankles. I bent down to pick him up, my eyes searching for his crate.

I ignored his mews of complaint and slid him into it, tracing runes of peace and comfort on the metal bars closing him in. I gently set the crate on the kitchen counter, sneaking a few treats into it to keep him occupied while we packed my things.

"Books are mine," I started to say, knowing I needed to hurry up. "I'll get my clothes and tools. All the furniture is borrowed."

He nodded once, going over to the bookshelf. He started to pile them on the kitchen table and I took a deep breath and went into my bedroom.

Fortunately, I hadn't really brought much with me when I had moved here, and my choices of clothing hadn't changed. If I had taken time to fold my clothes, I could've stuffed them into one suitcase, two including shoes and bathroom supplies.

But as I was in an urgent time crunch, I had three packed to the brim, just barely able to zip shut. I went to retrieve the tools from the top shelf in my closet, stretching on my tiptoes to locate the old metal box.

I couldn't feel it, couldn't feel the vibrations of it. My stomach clenched as I remembered where they were. I had been working with Katrina and Susan the day before I left for Wales. They were still in the workroom there.

I was such an idiot.

I wheeled my suitcases out to the living room and tried to organize my mess. Hunter had gotten all the books into a small carry on suitcase and I felt grateful. I knew he could sense my jittery nerves.

"I have to go to Katrina's and get my tools," I said carefully, watching his face for any reaction. "I left them there the other day."

Hunter agreed after a moment, starting to grab my luggage. "Act as normally as you can. Don't give any indication that something is wrong."

"Okay," I said, following him outside to the car with the rest. I had to go back inside to grab Dagda.

I took a last look around, making sure I hadn't left something I couldn't live without. Sighing, I ran my sleeve over my eyes that were tearing up. I was exhausted. I didn't want to leave, not when I felt so at home here. I belonged here with this coven.

But I felt deep down that I truly belonged with Hunter, and if he couldn't be here, neither could I. We'd already tried that and it had been horrible.

My throat felt tight, constricted, as I shut the door behind me and locked up.

I directed him down the road to the house. By unspoken agreement, he stayed in the car. I let myself in, sensing Katrina and Keady Dove in the kitchen. Their laughter floated down the hall.

"Morgan?" Katrina called, her voice light with friendly conversation.

"Yeah," I called back, clearing my throat. "Hi." I rounded the corner and saw the two of them sitting at the table with mugs of tea and open books. This was normal. The Katrina in her vision had been horrible, evil.

My head throbbed.

I tried my best to return Keady's smile of acknowledgment and shifted my weight. "Um, I left my tools here? The other day."

"Oh!" Katrina said, standing. "Yes, you did. I meant to have Colm return them while he fed Dagda. Sorry about that,"

My eyebrows knit in confusion. "Colm did?"

Katrina led me to their workroom. "I was in the middle of something and couldn't make it over." She said simply.

Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't have been that weirded out about it. Under these new circumstances, however, in which Katrina was in league to kill my boyfriend and her son was openly in love with me, I was beyond weirded out. I felt so exposed, vulnerable, and just wanted to hide. I wondered how many other times Colm had been in my apartment when I wasn't there, feeding Dagda while I was away.

I felt my shoulders tense as she rested a hand on my upper back.

"Are you alright then?"

"Mm-hmm," I murmured, my voice higher than intended. "Yeah, just beat is all."

She handed over the box, and I subtly sent my senses out to it, making sure all of my tools were inside. They were, and they were still protected and bound to me. I internalized a sigh of relief and went out into the hall.

"Stay for a bit, tell us about your trip."

I shook my head. "Another time, I really am quite tired."

Katrina shrugged easily. "Sure," she agreed, and I nodded a goodbye to Keady and left.

That had gone much easier than expected, and I clutched the box in my hands to me protectively. Hunter was in the car, on his phone, and didn't look up as I got to my door.

I heard the door to the house open and Colm call out to me, stopping me in my tracks. I turned quickly, hoping he would stay put. I couldn't deal with him on top of everything else.