As I’m getting dressed, I make a mental list of ways to track down my journal. The biggest problem is a ton of creatures occupy the castle, most of them bodyguards. Still … they’re Rhyland’s bodyguards. He could have convinced one of them to do it. Then there are Dex and my mom. I hate to think my own mother would do something like that to me, but the entry in the journal stated she’s a huge part of this curse.

“Crap, it could be anywhere,” I mutter, tugging a brush through my tangled hair. “I need to come up with a way to …” The strangest feeling of being watched overcomes me.

I set the brush down and peer over my shoulder. Nothing appears out of the ordinary, other than Aeribella is wide awake now and alert with her head held high, her ears perked, and her nostrils flaring as she sniffs the air.

“You sense that, too?” I rise from the vanity chair, cross the room, and then stroke between her ears. “What is it?”

She sniffs the air again then springs to her feet and bares her teeth with her glowing gaze fixed on the bookshelf. I can’t spot anything in the vicinity, but that doesn’t mean anything. If I’ve learned anything from growing up in Mystic Willow Bay, surrounded by countless varied species of magical creatures, it’s that invisible things do exist. In fact, the creatures you can’t see are usually the most frightening.

My muscles constrict as I carefully inch toward the fireplace and collect the fire poker. Then I creep across the bedroom to the bookshelf, raise the fire poker above my head, and swing down—

Books tumble from the shelf, and I jolt, the fire poker slipping from my fingers. It hits the floor with a clank and Aeribella lets out a sharp howl.

“Shit.” I quickly scoop up the fire poker and reel around, searching for what knocked the books down.

As I turn in a circle, Aeribella loses her shit, roaring loudly and leaping off the bed. Then she races toward the now open window and growls.

“How the hell did that get open?” I rush over and peer outside.

The night sky is dusted with stars, and moonlight glistens across the fields and trees, casting shadows all over the land and guards. If something is out there, the guards would’ve spotted it, which means …

It must still be inside—

“Raven, what’re you doing?”

Startled, I spin on my heels and swing the fire poker, moving faster than I have before. Fortunately, Dex is quicker and ducks before getting clocked in the head.

“Oh, my vampires, I’m so sorry.” I drop the fire poker and cover my mouth. “You just scared the bats out of me. Seriously, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Dex straightens, brushing his hair out of his eyes. “You moved pretty fast. Your powers must be kicking in a bit.”

“I guess so.” I lower my hand from my mouth and glimpse around the room. The bedroom door is open and Aeribella has wandered back to the bed. Everything is calm now, but the books remain scattered across the floor, the pages flittering against the breeze blowing in through the open window, a reminder something was in here.

“Is something wrong?” Dex asks worriedly. “You seem nervous.”

“I’m not sure yet.” I close the window then give him a quick recap of what just happened.

“So, you think something invisible was in your chambers?” he asks after I’m finished.

“I don’t know … I mean, I don’t have any proof or anything, other than the books fell on the floor. But the way they fell wasn’t natural, like someone used magic to throw them all off.” I sink down on the edge of the bed and pet Aeribella, who has fallen asleep again. What a lazy, little lilywolf tiger. “She sure seemed to think something was in here.”

“I should send a message to Kingsley and the guards so they can check out the air.” He strides toward the corner desk, plucks up a feather pen, and dunks the tip in ink. Then he scribbles words directly on the desk.

“Why are you writing on the furniture?” I walk over to read what he wrote, but the ink is already vanishing into the wood. “Hey, how did you do that?”

He sets the pen down. “The desk is magic. If you ever need to send a message to anyone, just write it on that desk, along with the name of the creature. And if your message requires a response, it’ll briefly appear on the desk.”

“That’s pretty awesome. Can I do it with anyone? Even creatures back at Mystic Willow Bay?” If that’s the case, perhaps I can write Effie and Anders a message. Sure, I can text them, but texts forever reside in the digital world while magic eventually vanishes.

Well, almost always.

He nods, rolling up his sleeves. “I’d be careful who you contact. Now that you’re queen, you have to be more careful whom you trust.”

“I’m not queen yet.” And if I don’t break this curse, I’ll die before I ever get crowned.

“You will be soon,” Dex says with a reassuring smile.

But I hear it. The hint of doubt in his tone, as if he’s not so sure.

As if I won’t be able to break the curse this time around.