I paraphrased what he said.
“That makes sense.” Ember gave me the look again, reminding me not to reveal the voice in my head.
Shade narrowed his eyes. “Why do you know so much about demons?”
“Because I read.” I crossed my arms. “You should try cracking a book sometime.”
With the last of the fae on the correct side of the veil, I popped the top on the brew and took Ember’s hand. “Fabric torn will be reborn. Seal these treads so we don’t end up dead.”
Shade scoffed behind me, no doubt expecting my incantation to fail, but I ignored him like the adult I was supposed to be.
I poured the mixture over the rip, and the treads shone gold as they stitched themselves back together. “Thanks for that,” I whispered before giving Ember’s hand a squeeze and letting go.
“Anytime.” She turned toward the others. “Great work today. Thanks for getting here on such short notice.”
“Are you going to call a meeting to talk about why this keeps happening?” Ginger asked.
Ember shook her head. “Not yet. I have some more research to do.”
“A group brainstorming session would be beneficial,” Shade said. “The more ideas we have, the faster we’ll find the problem and fix it.”
“I bet it’s something on the other side,” Miles said. “Maybe the fae are organizing. They aren’t all mindless bloodsuckers like these.”
Ember cut her gaze to me before speaking. “We’re working on it. Give us some time.”
“But…” Shade started to argue, but Ember lifted her hand.
“Go home before the humans get unstuck,” she said. “Bottle some spells for freezing monsters and sealing the veil. If you can, bottle some of your shadow work for us to carry when you aren’t around. I know it won’t be as powerful, but it’ll help in cases like this.”
He nodded. “Okay. Keep us informed.”
“Will do,” Ember said, and we headed for the van.
When we got home, I carried in my travel spell kit to restock it. No way was I using someone else’s spell again. Especially one from Shade. I needed to soak in a tub of hand sanitizer and hyssop in a bathroom full of sage and drink a gallon of basil and patchouli tea to clear his ick from my body and soul. I shuddered and set the bag on the kitchen counter.
Ember gripped my shoulder. “Are you okay? Is the demon…?”
“I’m fine. Chaos has been quiet since we left the Common. I just…” I lined the empty bottles next to the bag and opened the pantry. “Why did you tell Shade to make the freezing and sealing spells? You know I can make them. It’s literally my job to supply you with whatever you need to hunt monsters.”
She slid onto a stool across the counter. “I’m sorry. I was trying to get him off our backs so we could figure things out.”
I dumped an armful of herbs next to the bottles. “Shadow magic, okay. He’s the only one in the coven with that kind of power, so sure. Ask him to bottle that, but don’t take away one of the few ways I can contribute to solving the problem.”
A growl rumbled in my head. “You shouldn’t let such an insignificant little man affect your emotions like this. You are a Holland witch. He is nothing.”
“I know.” I sighed heavily and refilled the peppermint oil. “I’m working on it.”
“When you find my skull and free me, I’ll see to it that he never bothers you again.”
I laughed. “Thanks. Wait… What do you mean by that?”
“What would you like? I can drive him mad with a touch, or if you prefer, I can tear him limb from limb before dragging him to Hell. I haven’t decided which would be a better punishment for the way he treats you.”
“Absolutely not!” It was tempting, but no. I grabbed a big copper bowl and my mortar and pestle from the cabinet.
“What’s he saying?” Ember asked.
“He’s telling me all the things he could do to Shade once he’s free.”
Her brows crept toward her hairline.
“He won’t. Will you, Chaos?”
“I make no promises.”
I fisted my hands on my hips. “Well, you better start. You will not harm a coven member. Understood?”
“Understood. I won’t…unless you ask me to.”
I fought a grin and looked at Ember. “He’s a demon. He’s got to learn the way we do things around here.”
She rolled her eyes. “You mean passive-aggressive jabs and pissing contests as often as possible?”
“Exactly.” I set the rest of my supplies on the counter.
“Where’s the journal?”
“In my desk drawer downstairs.”
