figure out where we are.” Kiara turned in place. The woods all looked the same— every tree was identical to the other. Had Emma even gotten close to Octavia Falls?
Theo snapped his fingers twice and grimaced. “My magic doesn’t work here.”
Stefan flung a hand out to cast a spell, and nothing happened. “Mine either. Bastard warlocks must’ve thrown up a ward to take away our powers, too. I can’t shift or anything.”
Emma rose to her feet, and experimented. A few blue sparks flickered from her fingertips. “My powers still work, but they’re weak.”
“It must be because you’re the Worldweaver,” Kiara suggested. “Our magic might get stronger the farther we get from Octavia Falls.”
“But we have to go into it,” Delmare argued. “So if we get caught, we can’t rely on our magic to save us.”
Kiara turned in place before she began walking to the north. “This way.”
The group followed. Stefan and Alexei dragged the demon behind them by the legs. The leshane snarled and attempted to break free of the binding spell. From my spiritual vantage point, I could see him wearing away at it, fraying the magical ropes that kept him contained.
They’d better hurry.
“This place reeks of warlocks.” Theo wrinkled his nose in distaste. “And cats. All I can smell is cats.”
“We won’t be here long.” Kiara increased her pace.
Eventually, the trees broke. The roofs of a small town came into view. The group went to hurry toward it, but all at once, they hit an invisible barrier. Everyone went flying backward several feet and collapsed to the earth. The leshane’s body rolled, hitting a tree.
Odette got up while the others were still groaning. She put her hand against the barrier. “The witches have put wards around the town against fae. We can’t get in.”
“Hattie lives in town. We have to get past that barrier if we’re going to save Ethan,” Kiara insisted.
“How? Our magic doesn’t work. It’s not like we can blast it down.” Emma ran a hand through her hair in frustration.
“So what do we do? Just set the demon loose on the Miriamic Coven?” Alexei asked.
“That wouldn’t be our worst idea,” Stefan said with a shrug.
“We have to find a witch or warlock to let us in. It’s the only way,” Kiara said with conviction.
“Uh, excuse me?” Stefan asked. “I thought you had a real plan.”
“I’m making it up as I go!” I’d never seen Kiara so panicked. She ran a hand through her frizzled hair and tugged, on the verge of a breakdown.
Alexei placed a hand on her arm. “We’ll save him,” he said calmly. “Don’t give up.”
Kiara relaxed at Alexei’s touch. Emma began stomping down the ward’s barrier. “Come on. There’s gotta be someone out here.”
The group walked for ten minutes. Emma paused when there was rustling in the bushes up ahead, and the entire group froze.
Two figures stepped out of the bushes, a boy and a girl. They looked to be around our age— probably students at the nearby college. Definitely a warlock and a witch.
The girl stared at us, but the boy jumped into action. Some sort of spell swelled at his command, and whatever it was, it didn’t look pleasant to be at the other end of.
“Get back, Nad,” the boy warned. “It’s a group of fucking fae!”
The girl’s brow furrowed in confusion, yet she didn’t make a move to attack. The shifters bristled, but seeing as there wasn’t much they could do, held back. Kiara put her hands up, and the other girls followed her lead.
“We’re not here to harm you,” Kiara pleaded. “We need help.”
“Yeah? Then what’d you do to that guy?” The boy gestured to my body, which was convulsing as the leshane struggled to break free.
“He’s been possessed,” Kiara went on. “We’ve been told there’s a witch who can save him.”
“Why should we believe you’re not invading?” the boy snarled. “There’s eight of you!”
Stefan sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah, we might’ve been able to do this without everyone coming along.”
Emma took the lead. She stepped in front of Kiara and asked, “What are your names?”
The boy went to object, but the girl replied, “Nadine and Lucas.”
Emma took a breath. “Nadine. Lucas. My name is Emma. This is my mate, Ethan.” She gestured to my body. “He’s been possessed by a forest demon.”
Lucas took in a breath, and Nadine’s eyebrows knitted together. As witches, they worked with demons, so they knew how dangerous they were.
“He’s in the final stages of possession,” Emma continued. “The demon’s