The moment Ada was gone, I closed the shop and went upstairs. With all of the lights still burning, I shed my clothes and climbed into bed, careful to keep my bow and arrows close. Aelwyn had taught me to use them in our backyard as a kid. Since then, it had been a fun hobby that helped explain the long periods I spent in the woods with Ethan. But tonight, it was a comfort. Not that I anticipated a need for self-defense, but my impromptu appointments with Ada always left me on edge. Her special requests were awful and draining, but this one had been worse. Coming to me when I was already off-balance and requesting a tattoo that was obviously meant to harm twisted my stomach in knots.

The new tattoo itched. I lifted my sleeve to scratch it and frowned when I caught sight of the snake’s tongue where it blended with a vine of orchids that had already been there from another one I’d given out a few years back. My magical tattoos just sort of showed up on my skin. I didn’t get to place them. They appeared in the same spot I’d inked them on the client. As a result, I had a collage of two or sometimes four or five tattoos overlaid, thanks to the fact that most people chose the same spot on their bodies for new ink. They also itched as if I’d actually inked them on my own skin, which was completely unfair in my opinion. Regardless, my upper arms, shoulder blades, and calves were covered. Some of them were so blended with past images, they were unrecognizable. I really wished that had been the case with the snake. Sadly, it was easy to spot among the orchids.

On my other arm, Ethan was still mostly unhindered, but I suspected that was because he somehow shoved aside anything that encroached on his territory. He’d been the first enchanted image I’d given myself when my gifts had developed, and it still thrilled me to know I’d created at least one creature that wasn’t used for nefarious purposes. He was also the only enchantment on my body that was permanent. Mostly because I was too scared of getting caught to create more.

Aelwyn speculated that all of my own self-induced ink would always be that way: magical and permanent. The magic I gifted to others expired once they’d used it up. Thank goodness for that. People were so mean. It was the reason I stayed away from them. After witnessing the destruction my tattoos could cause, I hadn’t given myself or anyone else a magical tattoo in a long time. Except for Ada’s minions, of course. I hated her for those.

I lay in bed and thought of Rhys’s offer to help me figure out who had murdered Aelwyn. Not to mention the fact that his senses had picked up on a strange fae behind the house. I couldn’t believe the sheriff hadn’t sensed that, but considering me as a suspect was insane. Sure, the cops didn’t like me, but a murder suspect? It was beyond ridiculous.

With Aelwyn gone, Rhys was officially the only person in the entire world who was on my side.

He was also the one person in the world who could hurt me deeply. Who already had. And I wasn’t sure I had the strength to survive it again. Not now. So I’d wait. See what I could uncover on my own. And hope the killer didn’t strike again in the meantime. Or leave a trail that led back to me.

The problem was Aelwyn didn’t have a single enemy in the world. Who would have wanted to hurt her? That question stumped me and, in the end, left me in tears as I tried to imagine moving forward without her wisdom, or her worry constantly hanging over me.

Ethan scratched at me. I wasn’t sure if he was trying to comfort or distract me, but I ignored him.

I didn’t sleep that night, and when the sun rose, I gave in and got up, too. A quick shower. A bite of stale toast. A rough comb through my hair. I was out the door earlier than I’d been in a long time. But I had to move quickly if I wanted to bypass Rhys and do some investigating myself. He wasn’t going to be happy when he found out, but I wasn’t ready to face him yet. My promise to Aelwyn rang in my ears. She’d insisted he could help me, protect me even. Maybe he could, but I wasn’t ready.

Havenwood Falls in the morning was gorgeous. A three-hundred-sixty-degree view of mountain peaks with morning fog rolling off them and coating the air in tiny droplets. It was magical in a way that had nothing to do with the fact that this was a town full of supernaturals. In fact, with the sun reflecting off the mist, and the chilled air so clear you could taste it on your tongue, Havenwood Falls felt almost like any other normal ski town. And I felt like any other normal human. As long as said human had found her mother murdered and was the prime suspect in their joke of an investigation.

And just like that, reality crashed back down around me. I turned away from the view I’d been admiring from my second story balcony and made my way down the steps to the street. At the bottom, I jumped back to avoid a collision with a large cardboard cutout of a cartoon cupid drawing its arrow back. It was being carried by two men in handyman uniforms. The one in the back smiled at me and dipped his chin.

“Morning,” he said brightly.

I eyed the pink and red hearts painted into the background behind the cardboard cupid and my brows knitted at the familiar coloring and design. “Isn’t Valentine’s Day still over a week away?” I asked, doing the math in my head.

But he was already gone.

A flash of red hair caught my eye, and I saw Rose Howe smiling wide as she headed for the square with another armful of pink décor. Rose managed Howe’s Herbal Shoppe along with the help of her teenaged daughter, Scarlet. Ruby Howe still owned it, but the most she did for that place now was sweep the sidewalk out front while mumbling about talismans and enchantments. I didn’t wander too close, mostly because I was afraid Ruby’s sixth sense might detect my own ability to enchant.

Rose was harmless enough, aside from her excessive enjoyment for decorating. If a holiday was in sight, you could bet Rose was out here decorating for it. She’d cornered me in my shop two years back and tried to auction me off for a charity date event they’d included in the festivities that year. I’d narrowly avoided it by claiming I had a date of my own somewhere else that night. But then she’d just pried her way in, demanding to know who I was going out with.

I’d given the first name that had come to mind: Ethan. It had shut her up since she didn’t know an Ethan, but she was still suspicious of me to this day for it. I couldn’t blame her, since I didn’t know any Ethan either. At least, not an Ethan that wasn’t my magical hawk. But she left me alone after that. Still, I always made sure to steer clear of her this time of year in case she tried roping me in again. An event built around selling people to the highest bidder wasn’t my idea of a good time.

“Hi, Gwen,” Rose called out as she approached me. “How are you?” Her expression fell in worried concern.

“I’m okay,” I said.

Her eyes brimmed with tears, and her chin wobbled. “I heard about Aelwyn, and I’m so very sorry about what happened. We will all miss her very much.”

I nodded, suddenly distrustful of my voice at the sight of her watery eyes.

Rose grabbed my arm and squeezed affectionately. “If you need anything at all, please let us know,” she added.

“Thanks,” I said quietly and looked away. Losing Aelwyn was bad enough, but watching everyone else grieve for her too was too much for me right now.

I cleared my throat and nodded at the decorations Rose carried, forcing my voice lighter. “A little early for decorations, don’t you think?” I asked.

“Never too early for romance, Gwen,” Rose joked.

I grimaced.

Maybe not, but it was definitely too late.

* * *

Aelwyn’s final words rang in my ears. She’d told me not to come back to the house, but here I was anyway, completely disregarding her warning. I didn’t like going against her, but I was desperate for answers, and if there were any to be found here, I was going to find them. The house was dark, just like I’d left it two nights ago. Even from where I sat in my truck with the cheerful sunshine filtering through the bare branches overhead, it felt lonely. I told myself that was only because I knew she was gone, and then I climbed out of the truck.

The front door had been locked back up since the other night. Rhys, I assumed. I checked the planter by the porch and found the spare key still underneath it. Tucking it into my pocket, I let myself in with my own set. The hinges creaked, but it was a comfort, the familiarity of it.

My phone rang. I glanced down. It was Rhys. No way was I answering him now. If I somehow gave away my location, he’d probably just show up. Instead, I silenced it and ignored the text that followed.

Standing inside the foyer, I inhaled deeply, letting the familiar scent of the house wash over me. There was a bleach smell mixing with it, but I ignored that and concentrated on the scents from my childhood. Grapefruit, for cleaning, my mother would say. Mistletoe for health. And cedar wood. For home. It had always struck me as superstitious and strange—just like her rule about no fae on her property. She’d walk around on weekends sprinkling dried herbs in the corners and onto windowsills, muttering words like she was a witch. I’d rolled my eyes every time.

Now, the memory of it made my chest ache.

My eyes pricked with tears, but I blinked them back and strode through the house and up the stairs to the office. Very deliberately, I ignored the closed bedroom doors—hers and mine—and focused on what I’d come to do. If there was evidence of who could have done this, I would find it. I couldn’t afford to give in to grief. Not yet.

For the next two hours, I lost myself in the work of going through all the papers and files Aelwyn had stuffed away up here. Baby pictures, old report cards, and recipes made up most of the desk drawers. Rhys had his own album, and I shoved that aside, determined not to distract myself by reminiscing about happier days. The photos weren’t the real story. They didn’t tell how he’d broken my heart and my spirit when he’d rejected me. It had never been the same between us after that, and it made me wonder if any of his caring had been real. Maybe I’d just imagined it. Maybe the pictures would prove that if I looked too closely.

I shoved the pictures away, absolutely sure I didn’t want to know. Not today.

I poked through the rest of her desk quickly after that. The shelves behind the desk were another matter. Packed full of books, some of them with notes and photos stuffed between pages, the shelves boasted a thin layer of dust and took a lot longer to search through.

When the light coming in the window shifted as the sun climbed toward its high point, I considered breaking for lunch. But no part of me wanted to step foot in that kitchen yet. I went back to work, my stomach grumbling.

I’d nearly given in and decided to come back another day when a book caught my eye. Worn at the edges of the hardcover and blank on the spine, it wasn’t familiar to me. I pulled at it gingerly until it slipped from the shelf and fell into my hands. But when I turned the cover, I blinked in surprise. The inside was hollow. It wasn’t a book at all.

A hiding place, I realized.

Folded and ancient-looking, a small slip of paper lay inside.

I took it out and unfolded it, leaning on the book case as I opened it and read the scrawled words. The further I read, the colder I became. It was from a woman named Moonlaith. The language she used was formal, but the tone was so personal and emotional, I knew they must have been close.

Make sure she eats the mistletoe at least once a week. And the cedar wood. To protect the magic that lives inside her skin. I know you will protect our daughter with your life, Ael. We are eternally grateful for your sacrifice, dear friend. Should you need us, the Protector can send word. And if we do not meet again in this life, we will reunite in the next. She is special, Ael. Too gentle for them and too strong for the life we would give her here. When the time comes, she will not have to hide. They will hide from her. When the time is right, tell her what she is so she will understand all we have done.

With love,

Moonlaith

I read it over and over again, stunned. My entire life, I’d believed my parents had given me up, left me on Aelwyn’s doorstep as an infant and never looked back. They were unknowns. Even when I’d grown old enough to try to dig up any information on my own, the town records left no trace of them. But this woman spoke as if she knew Aelwyn well. As if Aelwyn knew her.

And who was I supposed to be hiding from? Aelwyn had said they’d never stopped hunting me. My stomach tightened at the idea that someone might have killed Aelwyn to get to me.

The letter shook in my hands.

It took a long moment before I realized it wasn’t the letter shaking. It was me.

I looked up, staring out the window, unseeing as the questions threatened to drown me. The woman had mentioned a protector. Whoever it was, they had access to my mother. I needed to find that person. To find the truth.

My arm itched as Ethan stirred, his claws scratching at my skin until I turned irritably toward him. “What?” I hissed.

There was no answer, but movement outside the window caught my eye, and I jerked my head to the glass just as a figure turned away. A blur of red cloth flashed boldly through the bare branches below. With a sharp breath, I shoved the letter into my cargo pocket and bolted down the stairs and out the door.

The moment we hit the open air, Ethan peeled away from my arm and swooped up and overhead. His sharp cry pierced the air, and I shushed him with my mind, listening for anything else that moved or spoke. Just like two nights ago, the house disappeared behind me and the woods closed in. This time, I had daylight to guide me.

I slowed and took better care to move quietly. Fae were good at stealth, but I’d been too panicked and too intent on catching up to whoever it was to take care. Now, I could only hope it hadn’t been a trap, because I’d played right into it, announcing my presence like a steamroller. Or a human.

But that face . . . For a split second, it had almost looked like—

But it couldn’t be. Aelwyn was gone.

A few minutes later, the woods were silent around me, and the only scent I caught came from the neighbor to the west. A human couple. Elderly. No children or pets. Even Ethan had come up empty. Whatever had been here earlier, it was gone now. And now I had to admit I’d lost the lead for a second time. I doubled back to the house, swearing to myself and to Aelwyn there wouldn’t be a third.