The girls do an admirable job in taking my mind off Anarch and Archer, but nothing will make me forget what I just experienced. The shock of willingly traveling to the demonic realm is something I cannot easily shake. The muddy shocks are a clear omen that I am starting to bring the darkness back with me.

The most shocking thing is the Teresos. Not only what I saw in the woods, but the man in the room. I couldn't quite make out his face, though there was something familiar about him. I would be willing to talk to Archer about it if I hadn't just seen him and his coven sacrificing a goat in the woods.

Laura's coven referred to them being darker. Sacrificing goats is dark on the spectrum. Most covens who still dabble in ritual sacrifice have no problem diving headfirst into demon summoning.

Allegedly.

The question emerges as to whether they are the culprits behind the missing people. Their goat-slaughtering, robe-wearing antics fit the bill for agents of chaos.

The only thing that keeps me from unjustly branding them the villains of our little nightmare is the ritual. The energy from their slaughter of the goat did not give off malevolent vibes.

It felt protective.

My mind shifts to the puzzle pieces excessively as we bounce from shop to shop. My body is on autopilot until we reach the main attraction, as Mori proclaims.

We head down the block to Sanderson's Magic Emporium after briefly stopping for coffee at the Moonpetal. Mori gushes about the ambiance of the shop.

From the outside, there is little indication it is different from any other shop on the block, other than the name and a couple of poorly drawn runes in the window.

Mori drags us into the spacious shop. It looks bigger than it should from the outside. We are greeted by a circular table with various "potions" and baubles. A large sign informs us that a hodgepodge of magical paraphernalia is on sale.

Shelves are set up to make rows of aisles for the assorted magical items in the store. A few of the items look authentic while most are for the rubes who don't know the different between a scrying crystal and crystal meth.

Near the middle of the store is a large counter space where the cash register and a few displays are set up. At the other end of the room is a space separated by hanging bead curtains as well as a sign for the bathroom.

Mori raves about spending an exorbitant amount of time in the store when she was younger and the store was under different management. She worked with the current owner until she found herself spending her rent money on merchandise.

The topic quickly shifts to the new owner and her eyes glaze over as a moony expression settles on her face. Sierra is as amused as I am by the stark romanticism.

"I wonder where he is. I'm going to go and find him. You guys peruse. Maybe you'll find a way to conjure the perfect man. Which, of course, would be a woman." Mori jokes.

Sierra and I laugh as Mori disappears beyond the beads. I begin to examine a shelf full of wolfsbane in an attempt to ignore Sierra's watchful eye. A banner on the shelf reads "the only guaranteed way to keep werewolves at bay" and I snort at the irony.

Sierra disappears and I find her looking at a mandrake. She is holding a piece of mandrake in her hands. Mandrake is the final ingredient I used in the spell to wipe her mind of magic. I panic and take it from her hands.

"I thought these looked like shrieking babies."

"You want too many movies." Sierra says. "I feel the oddest...sensation. It's like my mind is trying to remember something and it just can't."

"Maybe your memory card is finally full."

Sierra laughs. I place the mandrake back on the shelf and we make our way to a shelf holding wormroot. It smells gnarly.

"So, are you going to tell me what that was about earlier? Why were your feet dirty and where were you?" She asks.

"I was in a dark realm with an angry demon."

Sierra sighs. "I was hoping you were frolicking in the mud with the hot doctor. No, seriously, are you okay?"

Sweat forms on my eyebrows. I promised myself I would push through and keep all my anxiety to myself. I must give her something or she'll never believe me.

"I must have sleep-walked or something. All the missing people around here has me freaked."

"Yeah, we picked a great place to move."

"Right? And now we have a curfew. I haven't had a curfew since I was sixteen."

"If you want, you can have my taser. I named her Peggy Sue."

I thank Sierra but inform her that won't be necessary. Mori appears from behind the curtain to inform us that she did not find the owner. Sierra voices concern about the store being unattended when the front door opens, and a man enters with a woman.

The two are generally mismatched. The woman has tinted olive skin with a long nose. Her curly hair falls to her shoulders. She wears a long black dress with a pair of designer sunglasses. She reminds me of the mayor's wife in her style.

The man is obviously a Tereso, though not like one I have ever met before. He is wearing an open shirt with dolphins printed all over it. A powder blue vest leisurely hangs open over his shirt. His choice in khaki linen pants and sandals puts me in the mind of a Hamptons party.

Despite his odd wardrobe, he is handsome. The messy blonde bun on top of his head confirms he does not try especially hard. He brings with him the strong smell of marijuana.

The two bicker about his brother as they pass. Mori, Sierra and I pretend to be browsing at a display with ceremonial daggers as the continue past us. The two stop briefly to stare at me as if they know me.

I move to a bookcase along the wall. My finger runs along the spines of a few books, making it seem as if I am searching for something specific. My finger stops at a book titled "Fae: A guide to the Faery".

A well-manicured finger stops mine on the book's spine. "It's an interesting read."

The woman in all black has joined me. She removes her sunglasses, revealing a pair of big brown eyes. I immediately sense the magic in her as soon as our fingers touch.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand she can sense the same in me.

I nod as I move my finger. "I might add it to my curriculum."

"You are the new professor! It's a very small town. Is that why you're here? To gather information for your course?"

"A friend spoke highly of the place, so I thought I'd give it a chance."

"Uh huh. I was under the impression it's because you're a witch." She says. My name is Avarie. Avarie Darthsoul, leader of the Coven of the Black Veil."

"It's ballsy to assume I know about witches."

"In this town, not so much."

"Well, Avarie, it's nice to meet you, I think. My name is Parker Royce."

Avarie tilts her head to the side. "The Parker. Nice. I've heard good things about you. Has anyone ever told you that you are positively brimming with raw power? We could use someone of your...caliber."

"To sacrifice goats?"

Avarie's smile disappears. "Did your boyfriend confess that to you while you were sharing a broomstick? If you want to spectate our rituals, you only need to ask."

"I'll pass. Slaughtering goats is a bit too 1800s for me. But I'm all for you getting your jollies off. Well, as long as you're not reaping innocent souls for demons."

"Reaping? My, you sound as if the White Thorns have been whispering in your ear."

"They might have mentioned you once or twice."

"Did they also mention that we sacrifice animals for protection against those who would do the coven harm? Or that the White Thorn's perfect little rose has a touch of the Ibi herself?" Avarie asks. "You shouldn't listen to everything you hear. People love to talk, but only about what benefits them. I'm sure our paths will cross again, Parker."

Avarie, with great pride, hands me a card with her number and address on it before she sashays out of the shop. Mori and Sierra join me a moment later, with Mori commenting on the strange company I keep.

She mentions that Avarie is just as elusive as Kaiden. She speaks of the two of them as if they are mythological creatures to her.

The obvious Tereso joins us and introduces himself as Icarus Tereso. Icarus and his red eyes are too attentive on me throughout our introduction, especially when he mentions Archer.

His reaction is much like many witches I have met so far. It is hard to gauge whether the witches of this town know about my history with Ambrose or they are working off what they can sense. What is clear is that they can sense my powers.

Mori relays that he is the owner of the shop. He makes it known that Archer has mentioned us many times. He makes a pointed comment about Archer seemingly being in better spirits these days before calling him a stick in the mud.

He doesn't seem like the rest of his coven. From what I saw of Shadowfield and my vision of them sacrificing the goat, they would lean more towards being warlocks. Warlocks are male witches that lean towards the darker end of the moral spectrum.

It makes me wonder about Archer.

Icarus is surprised to learn that Archer came to our party. He cannot fathom Archer doing anything "fun" and refers to him as "Doctor Killjoy".

After our introduction, Mori announces that she is starving and suggests one last stop on our tour of the town. She invites Icarus to join us, but he declines. He states that he is covering for an employee who is out sick but promises to link up with us later.

As we leave the shop, we argue about where we should go for lunch. We are arguing the merits of Chinese food so voraciously we almost miss Leon walk past us. He is intently reading a notebook as Mori mischievously snatches it from his hands.

"Hey I--oh, hello!" Leon says.

Mori scans the page of the notebook before smiling at him. "The three Sisters of Fate?"

Leon lunges at the notebook and grabs it from her before slamming it closed. "Yes, well, I am a professor of mythology. The Sisters of Fate is one of the oldest stories there is."

"I'm lost. Are we talking about the actual fates? If so, can we not. At least until after we figure out where we're eating. I am starving." Sierra says.

"Ah! I am heading to Madlen's. Would the three of you like to accompany me." Leon asks.

"What is Madlen's again?" Sierra asks.

"It's a bar and grill. They're pretty good. They have this cajun meatloaf that is to die for!" Mori explains.

"Oh, my lord, you had me at Cajun. We'd love to join you. Lead the way." Sierra says.

Leon and Mori lead the way. The two discuss various stories containing the mythological Sisters of Fate. Sierra and I follow, happy to stay out of the conversation. I receive a text from Archer that makes me smile.

"Hey" is all he says and somehow, it's enough.

I reply kindly, ignoring the look of satisfaction on Sierra's face.