17

Adam didn't show up the next day, and Diana stayed with him at the hospital. She was the most logical choice, for it wasn't like we had any connection anymore. I couldn't be jealous in his time of need, even if it drew them closer together.

I wasn't really surprised that she put off Grant, who was so new in her life. Whereas Adam was all about the old, comfortable routine that they both fell back into. Melissa and I had the afternoon shift at the Boathouse, and then I'd promised Sally I'd stop by. Somehow I had to get from Point A to B without transportation, so my bike was on standby.

Melissa and I were so busy we barely had time to think, drink, or even eat. I took a burger and large water to go, and tucked them into my saddlebags. It was sunny for a change, and I enjoyed the long ride to Sally's place. By the time I got there, she was sitting on the porch with Regina, head bent over her homework. "Hey, Cassie. Glad you could make it," Sally said, catching me up in a hug as I got off my bike. I enjoyed the brief embrace, which felt real and permament in my increasingly sketchy life.

Regina also hugged me and her cat Fred settled in my lap when I sat down. "So Sally said you had something to tell me."

She cut right to the chase. "You and your Circle are in mortal danger."

I sort of knew that. "From Poppy Farnsworth?"

"Not just her. Her entire coven practices black magic and they've made your Circle a target."

"I understand her wanting revenge, but why the others?"

"Because you're easy targets, and because they can."

They sounded like great people to me. "And we can't?"

"Not really. This attack was their attempt to distract you, and with divided loyalties, you're sitting ducks."

"That's pretty much what my Dad said, which is why we're searching for our family crystals."

"Blackwell is the fox in the henhouse, and he'll steal all the china when your back is turned."

Regina was deadly serious and I could not take her warning lightly. While he might be family, I could not trust the man. Past history told me you didn't get past an addiction to dark magic. That, at least, held some semblance of truth. "Sally told you about Eben meeting up with Poppy?"

She nodded. "She is the one who's been supplying him with power."

"And she's the one who gave him the demons." I shuddered to think of that night, when my Dad had given his big speech and made a believer out of Adam. Why couldn't I share his zeal? Why did I doubt everyone and everything?

"The girl is only just getting started. When she finishes with you, she'll target every witch and human in Chance Harbor."

Sally asked, "Why didn't we know about her before, Gran?"

"Because she only just arrived from Eastern Europe. Her grandmother sent her off to boarding school and recently decided to let her come home."

"Is Tessa in on this?" I don't see how she could be ignorant to what was happening.

"She's not helping, if that's what you mean. But she knows what's going on, and is letting it happen."

Sally and I exchanged uneasy glances. "Gran, can Cassie stay here tonight? I don't think she should be alone."

"Of course, but we're not done here. Cassie, do you have photos of the symbols she drew on the wall at the Boathouse? I might be able to shed some light on the form of magic they're using."

I took out my phone and she scanned the photos I had snapped while the cops were elsewhere. "Interesting. These are Druidic symbols, and not necessarily evil. But they point a finger at Ethan for his crimes, and says the pain will not stop until the Blakes and Conants are slaughtered."

How could it say that in blood? "Why?" I asked, knowing the answer before she spelled it out for me.

"Amelia left town because of what happened that day. The deal she and Ethan made with the witch hunters was that the killing would stop if the Circle stopped practicing magic. So they lined up like lambs to the slaughter and the hunters killed them anyway, betraying any trust that your mother put in them. A few days later, she took you and left town. Nobody ever knew where she went, and Jane wasn't talking."

A sigh shuddered out of me. "God, no wonder she didn't want this for me."

Regina touched my hand. "There's no turning back, Cassie. You and your Circle have to find a way to stand up to them and win. Otherwise, we're all doomed."

Sally took me back home for my stuff and we settled in early with a Vampire Diaries rerun. I laughed at the Originals and earned frowns from Sally, who totally hearted Delena and didn't understand my attraction to Tyler. "He's kind of like Adam under a spell," she said, watching closely to see if I took offense.

I laughed wearily. "You know, I can see that. And I can also see myself in Surrey this summer."

"By the way, my Mom said I could go."

"Yeah? I only have to slay a few dragons, and maybe then they'll let me out of my contract."

"Does that include my uncle?"

I wasn't going to lie about this. "I can't see another way out of this."

We settled back into comfortable silence, punctuated only by Sally hugging me and telling me it would end OK. "Tomorrow is a new day, and without hope, there's no reason to go on."

I took those words to heart as I fell into uneasy slumber, haunted by the sight of a nearly dead Ethan and his skin flayed son. In the heart of darkness, I woke up crying, soothed only by the cat's arrival. I stroked his long, silky fur and let him settle behind my knees as I drifted back to sleep.