Luis stepped out of the room to greet the visitor, leaving me alone with my sister and Polly, who was now licking the spine of a book. It was odd watching such a fearful creature act so insane, and I wasn't sure if it made me more frightened or less.

I hovered near the door, not to flee but to catch a close look at Malphas. Surely, Charlie remained inside of his body. The demon hadn't been able to get rid of him before, but each possession would leave a human soul weaker than before. Eventually, Charlie's essence would die, leaving Malphas as the sole owner of the body.

Behind me, Harmony shrieked, and I turned to find Willow and Ash in the middle of the room. Polly hissed and dropped to all fours, but strangely enough, she didn't go after my friends. My eyes connected with Willow's, and after she looked me over from head to toe, she launched herself into my arms.

"Do you know how mad I am at you?"

"Not too mad if you're staging a rescue."

"Come on, we've got to hurry. This Portal Rune won't last long," Ash said, his words clipped. He wouldn't look at me.

I nodded and untangled myself from Willow. Holding hands, we walked toward Ash. Harmony grabbed my arm.

"If you go, he'll take it out on Mama."

Luis' voice echoed outside the door, and a shiver buzzed down my spine when Malphas answered. I knew it was him, not just because he spoke with Charlie's voice, but because I could feel the dark power in every syllable. It wormed its way through my ears like liquid silk, all at once seductive and terrifying.

"Rose, please," Ash begged, all pretense at being angry gone. "This is our only chance."

"Don't let them hurt her, Harmony," I insisted.

I pulled free from my sister and reached for Ash. An inch separated our fingers when the door banged open. Luis caught sight of his son and bellowed with rage, and Malphas' eyes burned like silver fire, brightening until I had to look away for fear of damaging my sight.

"Stop," Luis shouted, raising his hand to cast a spell.

Pitching forward, I gripped Ash's fingers. It was as if a light switched off. The room went black and when the light returned, we were standing inside a new space. One nearly as dark as the teleportation tunnel. The room smelled of must and rain, and in the flashes of lightning, I could see peeling wallpaper and broken floorboards.

The scratch of a match came from the right, and light flared at its tip, casting a glow upon a shaking hand. When it met the tip of a candle, the flame grew bright and steady, revealing Flannery's familiar features.

"You're okay," she said, tears clogging her throat.

"I'm okay," I replied. "Where are we?"

"The Widow's shack on the edge of town. We circled back to your house to see if we could get help, and we found a note telling us to come here. When we got here, we found the Portal Stone," Willow answered.

"It's useless now," Ash muttered, tossing the token on a broken table.

"But it let you bypass the wards on your house?"

"Yeah," he said.

"What did Harmony mean about your mother?" Willow asked as she moved about the room securing the windows and doors with mumbled spells and puffs of magic from her fingertips.

"Luis is framing us. He told me if I helped him, he would make sure Mama got away without being hurt. He'd pin the accident on Polly, but if I didn't, one of us would take the fall."

"And Charlie? Did you hear anything about Charlie?" Flannery charged forward and shook me while Ash slid to the floor, dropping his head in his hands.

"He was there." She looked at me expectantly. "He's not himself right now."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"He's possessed by a demon."

Willow threw her hands on her hips. "Really, cuz?"

Ash didn't raise his head. "What's the point in hiding it? She's seen us perform magic half a dozen times now, and if it was my fam- if it was someone I loved, I'd want to know."

"Rose, is that true?" Flannery put her arms around her waist and looked at me with eyes begging me to tell her it wasn't.

"It is, but we're going to get him back. I promise."

"Don't make promises you can't keep."

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I shouted, stepping around Flannery and stopping in front of Ash. I felt an urge to kick him, not to hurt him but to shake him out of whatever funk he was burying himself in.

He surged to his feet. "What's wrong with me? Do you want it in chronological order or in order of importance?"

"You're not the only one in the middle of all of this," I fumed, unwilling to back down.

"You're right, and neither are you. But that didn't stop you from playing the martyr card. Do you know how I would have felt if something had happened to you? Especially after what I'd just told you in the garden?"

I recoiled, eyes widening in shock. "You think I decided to do that to prove I was brave? I did it because it made sense."

He tugged at his hair before kicking at an overturned trash can on the floor. It clanked hollowly over the floor before skidding to a stop on the other side of the room. Flannery flinched, but she didn't make a sound. Her expression was vacant, as if she had turned inside herself to deal with the shock of today's events.

Willow caught me looking at the girl, and she put her arms around Flannery. She whispered soothing words as she led her to a couch with a sagging center, and from the way Flannery relaxed, I knew Willow was infusing magic into every syllable.

"Ash, look at me. You are not responsible for my actions."

"But it's my family who is causing all of this. I had my suspicions, but when the note at your house led us to my home." He shuddered. "I'm going to stop him. Even if it means killing him."

"Let's hope it doesn't come down to that. Look. I know how you feel. I do," I insisted when he arched a dark brow. "When my father was first hurt, I wanted to lash out, but acting like that won't save him. From what your dad said, he's been planning this a long time."

I sat on the floor. Reaching up, I took his hand in mine and drew him down next to me. He took my other hand and dropped his forehead against mine, dragging in a deep breath as if to steady himself.

"Tell me everything."

So, I did. I knew we'd have to repeat it for Willow and Flannery later, but he needed to hear it first and alone. This thing driving his father was terrible and evil, but it was also rooted in a legacy of hurt and pain. It didn't excuse his behavior, but Ash needed to see where it came from. I hoped it might lessen the sting and help him think more clearly.

"What about your mom?"

"We're going to have to rescue her. And Caly and Clemmy too. I'm sure they're in his cross hairs, though I don't know how obvious it would be if he went after them. Not to mention, I don't know if anyone is brave enough to face Clemmy, even with a legion of demons at their disposal."

"We have to consider the possibility that he has other people in his pocket. You said he was working with a friend before. There could be others."

"About that. I have a theory about who his friend is."

"Yeah, who?"

I bit my lip, and Ash squeezed my hand. "I think my father was involved. They used to own a shop together, and it's a well-known fact that my parents split up because my father had a tendency to cross lines when studying magic."

"I'm sorry, Rose, but that makes sense."

"I know it does," I replied, earning a half smile from him. We both knew it wasn't funny, but it was nice to banter. To explore the rapport we had between us that day in the coffee shop before everything exploded.

"So, where do we start?"

"Well, we know why they were drugging humans, and we know he's made a deal with Malphas in order to take out some sort of revenge on the impotens. He acted like Charlie wasn't a planned target, but I think we need to figure out how he found him. It might give us some insight into what he's looking for, and why he needs me."

"I don't like that. There's nothing a demon could need from you other than a host body, and he has one."

"Does he need a witch or warlock? Maybe Charlie's body won't hold up long enough, and your dad might see me as a perfect option since I don't have magic. I'm no better than an impoten to him."

"No, that doesn't make sense. A host is a host, though summoners prefer humans because of the convenience. No extra steps. Demons can't use a witch or warlock's power unless it's removed and put in a trinket."

"Like a locket?" I asked, my hand going to the one around my neck.

"Exactly..." he trailed off. "Rose, is that what I think it is?"

"Clemmy gave it to me. Do you think whoever put their magic here is still alive? Maybe that's why Luis wants me. If he can trace the owner, he would have a new host. One that would give Malphas access to witch power."

"Crap," Ash breathed.

"I guess we know where we need to start. Willow and Flannery need to retrace Charlie's steps. And us? We have to find Clemmy."