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  But I can’t be afraid of everything, I thought. I wasn’t even really afraid of the Mystic Wood, just wary. Rebecca was out there, for one thing, and while the little demon wouldn’t come near a group of us, I had to bank on there being bigger, badder versions of her around.

  Ari and Peggin came in, chattering away. For a moment, I felt a little excluded. Then I noticed that, while they seemed to be good friends, Ari held herself at a certain distance that she never did with me.

  Calm down, I told myself. She’s still your best friend. Quit thinking she’s going to dump you. She didn’t when she got engaged, she’s not going to now.

  Wondering where my sudden bout of insecurity came from, I forced a smile and led them into the kitchen, where I introduced Peggin to Killian. He was gracious to her, taking her hand when she offered it, and once again, something nibbled at the back of my mind as I scrutinized the look on his face.

  What the hell?

  “Ari, can I talk to you for a moment?” I asked, dragging her into the living room. When we were far enough from the kitchen that I knew neither Killian nor Peggin could hear us, I turned to her. “What’s the deal with Peggin?”

  “What do you mean—oh! I know what you’re talking about,” Ari said. “Don’t worry about her. She’s trustworthy. But she carries the energy of Aphrodite in all those bountiful curves. She’s not exactly pledged to the goddess, but she seems to tap into the energy on a natural basis.”

  I stared at her, then shook my head. “I can’t believe I didn’t pick up on that before. The minute Killian said hello to her, I was immediately—”

  “Worried he’d fall for her? Yeah, trust me, she’s not bi, but when she met Meagan, I had that same insecurity. But you—you’re a sex goddess now, remember?” She grinned.

  I snorted. “Just because I misplaced a wish doesn’t mean I’m a sex goddess. I just tapped into the energy a little more. And I seem to be getting a handle on it.”

  “Whatever the case, quit worrying. Besides, Peggin’s taken and she’s monogamous. She’s involved with some inventor or artist, I guess you’d call him. His name is Dr. Divine. I met him once when I was over there and…let me just say, Peggin’s far less vanilla than I am.” Ari laughed and wrapped her arm through mine. “Come on, before they think we’ve skipped out for milkshakes or mocha.”

  We headed back into the kitchen, with me wondering why I was so touchy lately. I’d been insecure before in my life, mostly with Ellison, but here I was, acting like a teenager afraid she was going to lose her boyfriend and her best friend to the same person.

  That’s what happens when you love people, Esmara said. You worry you’ll lose them.

  Well, I know that, but… I paused.

  Love people? Okay, I loved Ari. That I knew—she was my BFF and I wouldn’t ever willingly give up that position in her life. But…Killian? He called me “love,” but that was an endearment. And that was when I realized that, while we hadn’t said the words yet, it felt like they were hanging there in the air.

  I love you, I thought, looking at Killian. I really do love you.

  And as soon as the realization came crashing in, I wanted to find a place to hide. I wasn’t ready to face love again. I wasn’t ready to face the heartaches and trials that went with it…was I? As my gaze settled on him as he stood there, talking to Peggin, I knew that I couldn’t lie to myself. I loved Killian. And that shifted the game in so many ways.

  Forcing a smile, I headed for the kitchen door, now eager to go hiking in the dark through a magical wood. It meant that I wouldn’t have to sit with my thoughts, just yet. I wouldn’t have to figure out whether I should say anything, to wonder what to do if he didn’t return my feelings. And I wasn’t ready to face the possibility that he might want to keep things casual.

  As we headed across the yard, I heard myself talking, answering questions, but for the life of me, I couldn’t tell you what the conversation was about.

  Chapter Five

  The Mystic Wood had stood for hundreds, if not thousands of years. At one time, the glaciers rolled through the valleys, grumbled and groaned over the forests, bringing the long winter to the land. Seventeen thousand years ago, the Cordilleran Ice Sheet flowed through northwestern Washington, burying everything and everyone in a sheet of ice that was—in some places—estimated to be over three thousand feet deep.

  The ice was so heavy that it weighed down the land, and that’s how Puget Sound was formed. Eventually, as spring came to the earth again, the glaciers retreated, their fingers slowly withdrawing, leaving behind massive swaths of alluvial deposits—blankets of rocks covering hillsides—and channels where there had been no channels before.

  During the rejuvenation of the world, the Mystic Wood had formed and the native peoples had returned to the area, and once again both the physical and the spiritual entities of the world walked the paths of the forests, dodging the quakes and volcanoes. The Cascades took over, the mountains of fire shifting the land as the tectonic plates twisted and fractured below the surface of the earth and water. As the bays formed and the ley lines harmonized, the Mystic Wood had gained its power, attracting beings of both shadow and light.

  As we approached the tree line, the aura flared brighter. I wasn’t sure if the others could see it, but I definitely could.

  “Do you see it?” I asked.

  “You mean the aura of the wood? I do,” Ari said.

  “I can’t, but I can feel it,” Peggin spoke up. “The woods out on the peninsula are deadly, filled with dangerous beings. This one feels different—crafty and cunning, potentially dangerous, but not in the same way. Our woods are older and darker than these, but these feel…more magical in a way.”

  “How so?” Killian asked.

  “Whisper Hollow is a town of the dead, situated on the edge of the Veil. Moonshadow Bay’s underlying energy feels magical, like it sits on the edge of a different realm. Do you have a lot of wood spirits here? Fae?”

  I paused, cocking my head. “Fae? I know there are supposed to be Woodlings here, which I believe are part of the realm of Faerie.”

  “The Fae are glittering, clever creatures. But I think I’d rather have them than some of the creatures we have over there.”

  “January works for Conjure Ink,” Ari said. “They investigate urban legends and other matters. You guys should go visit Whisper Hollow. Peggin’s told me about some weird creepy critters over there that would be right up your alley.” She flashed me a smile. “Why don’t you talk to Tad about it?”

  I wasn’t sure how eager I was to spend time in a town that lived on the edge of the Veil. “I don’t know…dealing with the dead isn’t easy.” I shook my head. “Although I am supposed to be learning how, according to Esmara—” I stopped as Peggin glanced at me, curiosity in her eyes.

  “Who’s Esmara?”

  “She’s my great-aunt. I’m from one of the witchblood families. In my family, we have the Ladies—the women of our bloodline come back and guide those of us still living. My great-aunt Esmara was assigned to me. I’m not sure who makes the assignments, but they figure it out together. My mother is with the Ladies now, so she’ll eventually be someone’s guide.”

  “Fascinating,” Peggin said, and she sounded like she meant it.

  We were at the tree line by then, and I paused. “All right, here we are. I don’t recommend traveling off the path. Killian’s a wolf shifter, so he can protect us against some of the creatures, but I haven’t entered these woods in a long time and I’m not sure what we might find.”

  Ari turned to Peggin. “Not many people in town go into the woods here. Not without friends along with them. There are some beautiful campgrounds over east, near Mount Baker, and a campground down near the bay, but they aren’t part of the Mystic Wood.”

  Peggin nodded. “The entire area—Western Washington in general—is steeped in magical energy. There are so many ley lines running through the area. Since both Whisper Hollow and Moonshadow Bay are built over t
he lines—over conjunctions of them, I believe—it’s no wonder we have similar energies running through our homes.”

  She took a deep breath. “To be honest, I wanted to see your town after you told me about it, Ari. I have a friend back home who needs to move. Whisper Hollow is growing dangerous for her. But she’s a shifter and she needs to find a place where she’ll be comfortable. Her name is Mariana, and she’s a bear shifter. I thought seeing that you’re so close to the Mount Baker area, this might be a good home for her.”

  “Send her over,” I said. “If she needs a welcoming place to live, then we’re a good choice. Why is Whisper Hollow dangerous for her?”

  “She’s been marked by the Lady. Unlike your Ladies, ours is the Lady of the Lake. I was marked by her too, but my friends managed to remove the target from me. Don’t ask how—it was a dangerous ritual. Unfortunately, I don’t think Mariana would make it through the rites.” Peggin took a deep breath, then nodded. “Yes, I think she’d fit in here.”

  I led the way into the Mystic Wood, armed with a flashlight. Daylight saving time had begun the night before—I hated it, but there was no getting around it—and so sunset was now at a little past seven instead of a little past six. But in the thick of the woods, it was dark and twilight cast its own glow across the wood.

  The trees of the Mystic Wood were mixed—tall timber mixed with soft woods. Firs and cedar abounded, as they did everywhere on the coast of Western Washington, and interspersed among the conifers were maple and birch, alder and cottonwood. Huckleberry bushes were also beginning to leaf out, their leaves still tightly encased in tiny buds, and the new growth on ferns was showing—the coiled ends tightly wound. They would unfurl as spring took hold, reaching out like lacey tentacles. The skunk cabbage had bloomed early this year, the glossy long leaves shimmering in the dim light. Their yellow flowers hadn’t fully opened, but when they did, they would smell to high heaven—hence the name. But the presence of skunk cabbage showed that our ecosystem was still thriving, and it didn’t smell quite as bad as it sounded.

  As we walked along the trail—which had been well compacted over the years—to the sides I could hear whispers and sense movement. I didn’t say anything. It wasn’t wise to attract too much attention to oneself after dark.

  I paused as we came to a fork in the trail. The side trail—heading deeper within the wood—was narrow and closed in. I shook my head and we continued along the main route. To one side, I glimpsed a faerie ring—a circle of amanita muscaria—the mushrooms known as fly agaric. They were hallucinogenic, with their brilliant red tops buttoned with white, but they were also considered toxic when not prepared correctly. The Finns and Sami peoples used them for vision quests. I left them alone because they belonged to the Fae and I didn’t relish stepping on toes by disrupting a faerie ring.

  As we drew deeper into the wood, the energy shifted in a subtle but noticeable way. Every branch, bud, and stone felt like it was crackling, and every tree seemed to have eyes staring at us. The entire forest was alive, an entity unto itself. I had read about massive fungi, whose roots spread for miles belowground, the mushrooms and toadstools popping up simply part of a much larger organism. In fact, the biggest organism on the planet was one of the fungal colonies.

  And that’s what the Mystic Wood felt like—one massive entity that had thousands of avatars in the shapes of trees and bushes and stones.

  “I’ve never felt anything quite like this,” Peggin said in a hushed voice.

  “There aren’t many like it,” I answered. “Oh, all forests have a sentience, a consciousness, but few are as aware and alert as the Mystic Wood. Be wary of anything you do in here—never start a fire where it could get out of control, and if you do start a fire, I recommend bringing your own wood. Take a piece from the forest and you risk enraging the tree spirits.” I wasn’t sure how I knew this, but the words sprang forth as if I had studied the woodland in depth.

  Killian shivered. “There are all manners of creatures in here, but yes, I feel the nature spirits and the Fae are strong here. I’ve seldom had much to do with them—they are apart from even the Otherkin of this world—but I’ve encountered a few. In California, there are sacred spaces where they thrive, and they aren’t very welcoming to humans or to most Otherkin.”

  Peggin nodded, pulling closer to me. I suppressed a smile. If she thought that I could protect her because I was taller, she was sadly mistaken. I did think it odd that she gravitated toward me instead of Killian, who was the obvious choice for someone to hide behind.

  “What are you looking for?” I asked her. “Why did you want to come out here?”

  She looked startled in the glow of the flashlight, but shrugged. “I don’t know. It feels that if I find it, I’ll know. As I said, I came here to see Ari and check out the town for my friend. I think she’ll do well here. But I feel like there’s some sort of connection that I need to make. Maybe I’ve already made it,” she said, pausing. With a glance at me, she added, “I want you to meet my BFF. I think you two would have a lot in common, even though you’re vastly different in your abilities.”

  Be cautious. There’s a point ahead on the path that you should not cross, Esmara said, interrupting my thoughts. When you see the gold shimmer, turn around. Don’t ignore my warning.

  “Hey, Esmara just warned me that we should turn around soon,” I said. “When she’s this adamant, it means trouble if I don’t listen.” It was right then that I saw what she had been talking about. A golden sheen flickered across the path like a beam of light. It shimmered, mesmerizing in its look, but the longer I stared at it, the more nervous it made me. “Let’s go,” I said, urging the others to turn around. “I’m not comfortable here.”

  “It’s so pretty,” Peggin said, moving forward.

  I caught her by the arm as she neared the light. “No, don’t cross it. I don’t know what it is, but you need to stay away from it.”

  “Listen to January,” Ari said. “There’s something beyond the light that we don’t want to waken.”

  As Peggin reluctantly turned away, I gave her a little shove and fell in behind her, Ari by my side. Killian brought up the rear. As we headed back the way we had come, I glanced over my shoulder. There, in the glow of the golden light, I caught sight of something watching us. It reminded me of a living statue created of twigs and branches. The eyes were glowing, and the creature had a small mouth, but when it smiled, I saw narrow, razor-sharp teeth. Whatever it was, I was grateful that it was on the other side of the light. It caught my gaze and gave me a bone-chilling smile.

  I gasped and picked up the pace. “There’s something behind the light. It feels like a curtain, so it’s probably a vortex into a different realm, but I can guarantee that we do not want to meet whatever that thing is.”

  My voice must have contained the right amount of concern because Peggin and Ari picked up their pace as well, and we headed back along the path, which had suddenly taken on a darker tinge. Whatever that thing was, it made Rebecca the imp look like the Rebecca from Sunnybrook Farm. I said very little until we reached the edge of the woodland and once again, stepped into my yard.

  Turning around, I scanned the tree line, looking for any sign that we had been followed. The entire forest was lit up now, and the energy that flared off of its aura reminded me of the aurora borealis.

  Breathing deeply, I closed my eyes and felt for my wards. I had buried them deep, all along the boundaries of my property. Now, as I sought them out, the wall of protection shimmered up, standing strong at the borders of my land. The wards were throbbing, their energy gently pulsating through the night, and I let out a breath of relief.

  “We’re safe enough—as safe as we can be, in Moonshadow Bay.” I nodded toward the house. “Let’s go inside.”

  After we shed our jackets and shoes, Ari helped me make raspberry mochas for everyone, and I found a box of doughnuts in the cupboard. We settled down around the kitchen table.

  “So, did you find wha
t you were looking for?” Ari asked.

  Peggin shrugged. “I think I did…as I said, I wasn’t even sure what I was searching for, but I’m good. I know what to tell my friend when I get home.”

  “What was that creature?” Killian asked.

  I glanced over at him. “You saw it too?”

  “The golden one? Yes. It was like nothing I’ve ever seen before. Was that the Rebecca spirit that you were telling me about?”

  I shook my head. “Rebecca’s an imp—a minor demon of sorts. Whatever this creature was, it wasn’t anywhere near the same energy. I think it was Fae. I don’t know what most of them look like, and I’m not sure I want to ever find out. But whatever it was, it was holding sway over that patch of land there, and the trail running through it.”

  “Do you mind if I give Kerris your phone number?” Peggin asked.

  I shook my head. “No, I don’t mind at all. I’d like to meet her. I’m intrigued now about spirit shamans and what they do. They aren’t witchblood, are they?”

  She shook her head. “No, they’re not witchblood, not in the way you think of it. But they are born into a very few families. I’m surprised Moonshadow Bay doesn’t have one. You must have a number of the dead returning here.”

  I shrugged. “Yeah, we do, but I guess we’ve never run into a problem before that required anything too drastic. I mean, I can exorcise some hauntings just fine. Others are more tricky. And spirit shamans can’t do anything about the shadow people, can they? We have an overabundance of shadow people.”

  “Shadow people are frightening. We don’t have as many.” Peggin paused, then said, “So, if I tell my bear shifter friend to move here, will you show her around?”

  I nodded. “Of course. Just tell Ari when she’s coming and we’ll help her get settled in.”

  The rest of the evening, we spent chatting about our respective towns, talking about spirits and denizens of the forests, and then Ari and Peggin left by ten.