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CHAPTER 1
LUCAS
Summoning a demon was a recipe for disaster, but disaster had already struck—and it was time to raise some hell.
My pulse quickened as I snuck into Miriam College of Witchcraft. A dark hall loomed ahead, and a shiver traveled down my spine. I listened closely, but I didn’t hear anything.
Over a week had passed since the Burning. The priestesses had burned Amy alive on school grounds, along with two of our other classmates and one of our professors. Riots had broken out, and at least a dozen people had died. The school was supposed to be closed for winter break, but the magic surrounding it had been weak since the night of the fire. It wasn’t hard to get through the wards and sneak inside.
I created a light orb and shone it down the hall. “Clear,” I whispered, gesturing my friends forward.
The snow crunched under Nadine’s feet as she tiptoed through the darkness. Talia and Grant crept closely behind her. Our three cats—Isa, Oliver, and Gus—slunk along at our feet, moving so quietly that I couldn’t hear them.
“I’m not sure about this, Lucas,” Grant hissed. “This isn’t a good idea.”
“We don’t have any choice,” I replied.
Nadine stepped into the deserted hallway. “We need answers, Grant. The school’s library is the only place we’re getting them.”
“There has to be another way,” he insisted.
“There’s no time,” I said. “The priestesses summoned a demon a week ago. Doesn’t it bother you that nothing has happened since then?”
I shivered just thinking about it. I’d only witnessed the demon for a mere second, but the sight of his hollow eye sockets still shook me to my core.
“Isn’t that a good thing?” Grant asked. “I mean, we don’t want anything bad to happen.”
I shook my head. “It means the priestesses have bigger plans. They didn’t summon that demon on impulse; otherwise, chaos would’ve broken out by now. We know they’re using this demon to find the Oaken Wands, and once they have all five, they’re going to control the coven’s magic. But there’s gotta be more to it. Demons don’t do favors. The priestesses have already proven that they’ll kill innocent people for their cause. We need to find out what else they’re willing to sacrifice. Whatever deal they made with this demon can’t be good.”
“But summoning a demon for answers?” Grant sighed. “What if we’re not strong enough to talk to this guy? What are we going to do—persuade him to our side? Demons can’t be reasoned with.”
Nadine bit her lower lip. “It’s risky, but Lucas is right. Another demon will know what kind of deal the priestesses made. They could have answers about the priestesses’ plans. We need to figure out what we’re up against. Talia, what do you think?”
Talia took a deep breath, and her gaze roamed over Grant. “If we have any chance against the priestesses, we need to be a step ahead of them. I’m willing to go through with this ritual… if you are.”
Grant reached for Talia. Her hand had been broken by a rogue spell the night of the Burning, but Helena’s herbs had sped up the healing. “This could be really dangerous,” he said. “People keep getting hurt.”
“That’s why we have to do this,” Talia responded. “We need to know what the priestesses are up to so we can stop these witch hunts. My broken hand is nothing compared to what they did to Amy.”
The hallway went dead silent when Talia mentioned Amy. My stomach churned. The sight of our friend’s burning body was seared into my mind. Images from that night flashed behind my lids, and I thought I was going to hurl. We’d held a private memorial, but it wasn’t anywhere close to the closure we needed.
I couldn’t save her… but maybe I could stop future burnings. It was the only way to make up for my failure that night.
“Okay,” Grant said, looking defeated. “Let’s keep moving. For Amy.”
We crept down the hall. Floorboards creaked beneath our feet, and the cats sniffed the air, as if they might be able to detect incoming threats. I looked around corners, but I never saw another soul. We made it to the library undetected.
The library was filled with two levels of bookcases. Tall, arching windows filtered in light from the quarter moon, and wind whistled from outside.
“What are we looking for, exactly?” Grant asked.
“A ritual to summon demons,” Nadine said casually, like we did this every day.
“Our professors don’t teach demon summoning,” Grant pointed out. “It’s forbidden, because of how dangerous demon deals can be. Are you sure they’d keep those kinds of books here?”
“The college library is open to the public,” I reminded him. “There has to be something here. The coven summoned demons for centuries. There’s no way it’s been erased from our history.”
“If there’s anything, it’s a restricted-access book.” Talia stepped up to the nearest bookcase and ran her fingers across the spines. “They’re marked with black dots. I remember when I found a book on hauntings for one of my classes, and the librarian wouldn’t let me check it out. She said it was for professors and alumni only.”
