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“While blankberry leaf tea and skivern syrup are delicious, the syrup mixed with the slime that encases the skivern eggs has a very curious effect of paralysis and unconsciousness on anybody who ingests the two together. I learnedsomuch while in Hell. A little swish of the syrup and slime on the insides of your mugs was all it took.”

The mages-in-waiting were already passed out. Anysa fought with everything she had in her to stay awake, but it was a losing battle.

Howar glared at me with murder in his hooded eyes as he growled one more time before slumping over and falling asleep. The last to pass out was Raver, and the way Drak glowered at his best friend right before he passed out was truly gut-wrenching.

Maxar, Zandren, and Drak stood up from their seats and got to work, double-checking that everyone was unconscious. Then they pulled them out of their chairs and bound them all in fire rope.

Once we made sure they were all securely bound, Drak dropped his fangs and punctured Howar and Anysa’s wrists so we could collect their blood in a small, shallow bowl that we also borrowed from the B&B. Ryden took care of making a small incision on himself, and I asked Drak to help me.

The moment my blood dropped into the mix, the entire concoction began to bubble, steam, and swirl like a brew in a witch’s cauldron.

Carefully carrying the bowl over to where we decided to place the blood cage, I set it down and backed away. Ryden came up beside me and together we murmured the incantation spell Kenvin told me to conjure the blood cage.

It was in demon language, and it flowed off my tongue as if I’d spoken the language all my life. My heart opened up and heat rushed through me as Rydenand I repeated it four times. Once for every species.“Adonum summeria virtutas iungendumora est. Adonum summeria vastitas immolandumora est. Adonum summeria cupiditasous haverepes iamora est. Adonum summeria vitaletum caperes oportetum est.”

To end the power, we must join. To end the devastation, we must sacrifice. To end the greed, we must choose love. To end the life, we must contain.

The blood in the bowl lifted up in one congealed, steamy mass, growing as it floated in the air. We all stood there, transfixed. I’d certainly never seen anything like this before, but I was pretty sure none of the others had either. The blood-colored goo stretched and sizzled until it was bigger than Zandren, still floating about four feet in the air as the center hollowed out and small holes opened up, making it look like a ball of crimson Swiss cheese.

It was five minutes of barely blinking and utter fascination before the blood cage stopped moving and seemed to tell us all that it was done. The spell worked. I walked over to the cage, but a hand on my shoulder, pulling me back, made me pause. I glanced back to see Drak, fear in his eyes. “I just want to get a closer look.”

“I’ll go,” he said, shoving me backward and stalking toward the cage himself. “What do you want to know about it?”

“What’s it feel like?” I asked.

With the tip of his index finger, he tapped the cage. “It’s hard.”

“Does it smell like blood?”

He shook his head after leaning forward and taking a whiff.

I shrugged. “Okay, I guess that’s all I really wanted to know.”

With a curt nod, he stepped away from the cage.

“Got Howar’s phone,” Maxar said, standing over the tied-up and unconscious vampire. “And wouldn’t you know it, but there are some veryinterestingmessages on here.” His eyes widened. “Oh, and that’s my phone.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket. “Leno and Groy smell demons—and Phaceanesh.”

“Perfect timing,” I said, even though inside I was petrified. I talked a big game—particularly after yesterday when we found out about Melissima and Gemma—but deep down, I was still scared out of my skin by all of this. I wasthe queen of this entire realm. I was also at war with my uncle and a vampire king. None of this made any sense.

Zandren came up to me, cupping my face in his hands. “I feel you,” he said softly. “You’re not doing this alone. We areallhere for you. You don’t need to be scared, Little One. Okay?”

Swallowing, I blinked up at my handsome bear and nodded. “Okay.”

Maxar handed me Drak’s phone before he went to the bag of weapons we stashed and brought them all out. “So many new toys from Hell to try out. Anybody else here excited?”

Nobody replied, so he just shrugged.

I brought up the messages on Howar’s phone where, even though the identity of the person he was messaging with was concealed, it absolutelyhadto be Lerris. There was no other person it could be.

Drak came up beside me. “Would you like me to send the message to Lerris? I know how Howar would speak.” He glanced at his unconscious cousin.

“Would you?”

Nodding, he took the phone from me and typed out the message to lure my uncle into our trap.

It’s done. Come and get her.

There was no response from Lerris, but we could see that he saw the message.