When she arrived at the shop, Ivy did not expect to see the Pentacle already inside it. As she approached, she saw Ella pacing back and forth through the windows with Aura and Marina out of sight. Ella turned to cross the shop again when she caught Ivy's gaze through the dark sunglasses framing her eyes. Next thing Ivy knew, the front door was being thrust open and closed behind her.

"Nice of you to show up," Ella said with an exaggerated sigh while folding her arms across her chest. "It's 11:45."

"What are you the time police?" Ivy sent Ella a glare that would put her six-feet under. Ivy closed the blinds hurriedly then settling at her place behind the counter.

"Let's not even get into that bickering today." Aura got to her feet, standing between the two stubborn witches. Usually, Marina was the voice of reason, but she remained against the wall, her eyes running the length of Ivy's appearance.

Silence settled over them. No one dared to talk. Ivy knew what they wanted to hear, but she didn't want to volunteer the information. Instead, she focused her attention the plants that needed tending in front of her. She jutted her hands deep into the dirt, absorbing the energy the roots sent her way. Ivy returned the favor, sending some of her power into them. A tiny stalk sprouted straight up, growing greener by the second.

"Ivy, we're not here for you to get your work done," Ella barked unable to control her annoyance. She marched past Aura, slamming her hands on the table, leaving charred marks when she lifted them. "Not only do we have to deal with what happened last night with Griffin but also with the fact that we all had visions of Cassie."

The vines came out to play, inching their way across the table. Ella jumped back, flames dancing at her fingertips, and found her way to the wrought-iron chair across the room. Sucking in a deep breath, she groaned as she let out her exhale.

"Griffin's a werewolf."

The sentence slipped out of Ivy's mouth before she could control her thoughts. Marina's head snapped in her direction, her eyebrows jumping off her face. Aura, who had been playing with a leafy plant, froze, while Ella's eyes bulged out of her skull.

"There's no way he's a werewolf. We would have been able to tell." Aura tried to keep her voice even, squeezing her eyes shut and shaking her head. "Plus, Marina would have known. She would have sensed it."

Marina's mouth fell open before closing it in the same breath. Her hand moved to stroke her chin and neck, gaze falling past Ivy. She shifted to the arch that led to the back of the store, arms crossing over her chest.

"Marina, did you know?" Ella broke her shock-induced reaction.

"I..." Marina met each of their gazes, ending with Ivy. From the look they exchanged, her answer was evident. "No...I...I didn't know."

Leaning against the shelves behind her, Ivy welcomed the feel of the vines at her back. She drew in a deep breath through her nostrils, exhaling out quietly. Her eyes rested on Marina who resembled a deer caught in headlights but with a pensive look.

"How?" Aura tilted her head the side, biting her lip. "How did he get past all of us, let alone Marina?"

"When we ran into him after he helped Ivy in the bathroom, I had hugged him but got a muddled reading from him." Marina played with a lock of her hair, pulling her pursed lips to the side. "I didn't think anything of it then as I've been getting muddled readings from you, Ivy."

"Wait, what?" Ivy's head jerked backward, hitting the shelves. She rubbed the back of her skull, trying to dull the sting of banging her head against metal. "When did that happen?"

Marina tapped her chin. "It was one of those times you seemed to be overheating. I still haven't figured it out."

Ivy had a good feeling what it was from, but she kept her mouth shut.

"How is he concealing it from us – or really everyone?" Ella crossed the room in four easy strides, sitting on top of the table that she had slammed earlier. "Now that we know, it won't last much longer. Things don't stay secret in Malachi Peak for long."

"I nominate Ivy to figure that one out." Aura spun and pointed at her. When Ivy gave her a harsh look, Aura shrugged. "Clearly there's something between you and Griffin. He trusts you."

"Yeah, how did he even end up telling you?" Marina's eyes slid into slits, and the first hint of annoyance – or possibly jealousy – dripped into her voice at the end of the sentence.

Ivy suspected that it had to do with the fact that Marina and Griffin had grown up together yet he hadn't mentioned it. For whatever reason, this was a secret Griffin wanted to keep buried.

"Mammon decided to make a surprise visit last night." Ivy chewed the inside of her cheek, knowing she skipped over the awkward interaction with Griffin. She hoped Marina's jealousy was at the forefront of her mind so that she wouldn't focus on the nervousness Ivy exuded.

"Why can't the asshole go away?" Ella let out an exasperated sigh, throwing her hands up. Her overreaction pulled some of the attention on her, finding three sets of eyes analyzing her outburst. "What? He doesn't let up on Lucian either."

"So you know the intimate details of Lucian's life now?" Aura pulled her hand to her chest in surprise. "And you didn't even think to mention it."

"It's not like you were going to tell us about Leo," Ella muttered, finding her way to the blinds to peer out. Light filtered into the room. Ivy felt the plants turn toward it, soaking up the energy the sun gave. She found herself wanting to bask in the rays before Ella closed it up and turned back to face the room.

"Leo is a friend from the hospital who gives me leads." Aura's chin went up, her voice going high.

"Friends with benefits," Ella sang, focusing on her boots.

It was Aura's turn to let out a grunt. She rolled her shoulders back, taking in a deep breath. There was no getting out of this tiff. Ivy stifled a giggle at the banter between the two women.

Marina refocused the converstion on Ivy. "What did Mammon want?"

"He wanted to start shit," Ivy deadpanned. "I don't know what the fuck he wanted other than to stir up trouble. He found me in the women's restroom where I had ducked off to."

"Of course the women's restroom," Aura teased, earning chuckles from everyone in the room. "Everything happens to you in a restroom."

Ivy rolled her eyes, not bothering to suppress the smile that found its way onto her lips. Taking a few steps to the right, she grabbed a plant and began weaving her magic into it. The little fellow grew from the dirt, its roots taking hold. Leaves sprouted between the mini thorns that sprouted on the stem.

"Touché, but it's not like I ask for stuff to happen there," Ivy countered, willing more leaves to grow from her plant. She put it back down once she was satisfied. "Just before, I had been talking to Griffin so he likely got worried and came to check up on me. Instead, he found an incubus trying to finish the job he started."

"What did Griffin do?" Aura watched her with wide eyes, pressing her lips together.

"He didn't do anything." Ivy ran a hand through her hair. It got caught on a few tangles on its way out, causing Ivy to wince as she pulled at her scalp. "One of my vines had lashed out at Mammon, giving me time to get out of his grasp. Griffin came in trying to save me, and Mammon sneered and called him a mutt. The incubus didn't stay long, disappearing out the door."

"His eyes weren't their normal shade of hazel, and the more we talked, the more it became evident." Sensing Ivy's unease, the vines crawled toward their mother, hanging further from the ceiling. Ivy took a breath, continuing on. "From there he had me figure it out on my own, hence the bolting out of the bar. In hindsight, I really shouldn't have done that."

"Why?" Marina squeaked, the question barely audible.

"That's probably what he was fearing." Ivy shrugged her shoulders, rubbing the back of her neck. A few of her fingers got caught in her curls. "Rejection, I mean."

"We'll have to deal with Griffin later." The confidence returned to Ella's voice as she resumed her leadership role. She stood up from her spot on the table and put her hands on her hips. "Ivy, you're in charge of figuring out how he duped everyone. Now, onto Cassie. What did you all see?"

"Cassie said she had come to me first," Marina pushed away from the wall, moving closer to the group. Her voice dropped to a notch above a whisper. "She just reminded me that the visions I get now are a blessing. Also, that my empath skills have grown tremendously and that they would help us root out the cancer plaguing our town. She didn't stay long, saying she had to get to the next person."

"Which would have been me," Aura raised a hand, brushing her long hair back in the process. "She seemed rushed, as if she knew she was running out of time. She gave me a name. Pandora. I've only begun my search for this woman."

"Cassie didn't spend much time with me either," Ella said. Her shoulders slumped a tiny bit, a hand pressing into her abdomen. Her usually focused eyes seemed elsewhere. "She said that we must return to the forest but go deeper this time. We would find answers there."

"Did Cassie's appearance flash for any of you?" Ivy asked, running her tongue behind the back of her teeth. When no one answered, she filled in the final piece of the puzzle. "When Cassie visited me, she knew she was out of time. Her carefully constructed dream-self faltered for an instant. She looked awful."

The group sucked in a collective gasp, leaning forward to hear the rest of the story.

"I saw the bruises on her wrists along with the cuts on her arms." Ivy shuddered at the memory of Cassie's broken image. "She had an IV jammed into her forearm, and she looked so lifeless. Then it was gone just as quickly as it came. Someone cut her and the blood got on my hand, returning with me when I exited the dream."

"Holy shit." Aura covered her mouth with a hand. "What did she tell you?"

"Just to trust my gut. We didn't have much time together." Ivy rubbed her palms together as the scene replayed in her mind. If only she had acted faster, maybe she could have found a way to help Cassie...

"Should we tell Calliope?" Marina looked between everyone, ending with Aura. They exchanged a look, Aura chin bobbing in a nod.

"Let's go to the forest first before we give Calliope any false hope." Ella pulled her jacket closer to her body and grabbed the keys from her pocket. Twirling them on her finger, she headed for the door. "Anyone up for a drive?"

A/N

Oh look, an update that's relatively on time, butttttt another cliffhanger. teehee. We're nearing the end, and we're catching up to the drafts I have saved on my computer. I still have 70+ notebook pages to type so there's still a bit more to go.

thanks for taking this journey with me. If you had told me a year ago I would be on the way to finishing my first book, I would have laughed. Yet, here we are. August 2020. Whoaaaa

Pandemic time is weird and feels like a tunnel. just totally unreal.

thanks again for all the support :)