“Better?” Claudia said when it was all done.

“Much. I couldn’t think with all that.” I sat on the couch. “Let’s talk. What’s going on?”

“There’s something wrong with Luciana—” Claudia started.

I snorted. No shit. “Sorry. Go on.”

“Some of us think she needs to be replaced, but with you gone, it’s a little hard. We’re hoping that you can help us with a change of power,” Claudia said.

“I would’ve done that regardless of my relationship with the pack. You didn’t have to stop the ceremony.”

“But we couldn’t have accepted your help if you were fully bound to the pack,” Raphael said. His voice was very matter of fact. I could’ve chosen to take offense at that. They wouldn’t accept my help but they needed it. It made me want to thumb my nose at them and take off.

But for now, I was committed to being here, so I listened as Raphael continued. “The coven’s divided, and the anti-Luciana group isn’t the majority. Our side doesn’t want war, but I think she does no matter what. Over the years, she’s developed a thirst for power. It started out as restrictions on us, but now it’s grown. She wants more territory. She wants to move off the compound and practice out in the open. She wants the wolves gone.”

That wasn’t going to happen. “I don’t care how much land she has or where y’all live, but practicing in the open and taking out the pack? That’s too far.”

“We agree,” Raphael said. “Things are like this for a reason. Humans…they wouldn’t understand. We already had one season of witch burnings, and none of us want to go through that again.”

I could definitely understand that.

“But she’s our leader, and with you gone, it’s like she has no end in sight for her rule,” Claudia said. She leaned forward in her chair. “I’m not sure how she’s done it, but every year she’s gotten stronger. Other than you, she might be the most powerful living witch. I understand that you can’t take your old place now, but could you help us find someone who could? Or at least help us find a way to take Luciana down?”

“I’d be happy to help. I’m just not sure how.” Neither statement was a lie. I didn’t want some crazy person with power going around doing God knew what, but short of taking over the coven like I was supposed to, I had no idea what to do to stop her.

“You know how we find our new leaders?”

I wasn’t totally sure where she was going with this. “Yes. The previous leader goes to find someone, but it always skips a generation. So when Luciana took charge, my grandmother announced the following leader.”

“Exactly. It’s something that only you or Luciana could do for us. She’s not going to find anyone. She never wants to step down. And your grandmother passed away…You’re our only hope.”

She wanted me to find them a new leader? “Don’t you think someone from another coven would be better suited?”

“No,” Claudia said. If she thought I was the best person to find a new leader, then she must really be desperate. I didn’t have the first clue about anything that went on in la Aquelarre.

“We have a little bit of a rivalry between covens,” she said. “It’s not like a pack, where you’re like separate states in the same country. We’re separate countries. And not a lot of us are allies.”

This seemed like great news for the pack. Donovan had made it sound like the witches were way more united. But I’d never known Donovan to be wrong. “So, if war starts with the wolves?”

“Then, we join together,” Raphael said. “But that’s it. Only when we have a common enemy.”

So, not only would Luciana get rid of the wolves if she started the war, but she’d unify the covens and immediately take charge of all that power.

It was all starting to make sense.

I only had to stop a war, find a replacement coven leader, and then take down one of the most powerful, evil witches on the earth. And I had all of twenty-six days to work with.

Chapter Ten

With all the unpleasantness done, I went in search of food. It hadn’t been that long since I’d eaten, but I wasn’t giving the wolf any chances to take the upper hand. Claudia and I went to the kitchen, and Raphael left to go do something. I didn’t ask what.

The kitchen hadn’t been redone in forever. It wasn’t eighties old, it was like thirties old. White tile lined the countertops and thick iron handles were mounted on the white cabinets. None of the doors closed properly, all of them hung a little open and drooped just a smidge. A round table with four chairs took up one corner and a backdoor led outside. Even though it was small, the space was efficiently used, and it had a ton of cabinets. The pale yellow paint was trimmed around the top with flowered wallpaper. It was peeling back along the edges, but it still had some vibrant colors. I could almost picture Mom growing up here, but that didn’t mean it felt like home.

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