Page 5

When we reached the top, Nina eyed the door to the lighthouse room as if it might bite her.

As her mom, I moved close and offered support.

"Maybe we should have called for backup.

Or at least brought our dragon," she suggested, only half-joking.

Tsekani would be there in five minutes if I called him.

I was sidetracked by the faint glow seeping from beneath the door.

It matched the rhythm of the symbol pulsing on my stomach.

The light had an odd quality to it. It was like sunshine filtered through seawater.

Though, given my current predicament, it could have been glowing like a disco ball, and I wouldn't have been surprised.

"I vote we send Aidon in first," Stella suggested. "He's the most durable."

"I planned on going in first. Anything to keep Phoebe from facing whatever perils lie beyond," Aidon replied as he moved around Nina.

The door opened before he could reach for it.

It swung inward with a creak that wasn't part of the house's usual repertoire of spooky sound effects.

Inside, the circular room was exactly as I'd seen it last. Well, except for the glowing symbols now etched into every available surface.

They were all identical to the one marking my belly.

The books from downstairs had somehow beaten us up here and were arranging themselves in a perfect circle in the center of the room. One particularly ancient-looking volume floated up from the circle. Its pages were turning by themselves as if searching for something specific.

Nana squinted at the nearest book. "Well, isn't that interesting," she said.

"What is?" I asked. “What does it say?”

The floating book's pages suddenly stopped turning, and a single piece of parchment slipped free. It drifted down like an autumn leaf to land in my outstretched hands. It hummed with enough power to light up a small town.

"Well," Lilith said, peering over my shoulder at the parchment, "I believe the universe is trying to tell us something."

"It's definitely connected to the babies," Bridget said after studying both the parchment and the symbol on my stomach. "But this isn't any magic I've encountered before."

Lavina nodded, her earlier hostility forgotten in light of the afternoon's events. "The way it's affecting both magical and mundane objects reminds me of old stories. Very old stories." She shared a meaningful look with Lilith. "We'll need to consult some of our more... restricted texts."

"Restricted as in 'don't let the youngsters near them' restricted, or restricted as in 'might eat your face if you open them wrong' restricted?" I asked, earning a snort from Nana.

"Both," Lilith replied. Her usual formality was softened by amusement. "For now, document everything strange that happens. And perhaps..." She hesitated. "Perhaps it would be wise to have someone stay with you who's versed in containing magical outbursts."

"I'll do it," Selene volunteered immediately. "We’ve already got a full house, and I've got experience with magical chaos. I wasn’t sure if I should try to contain it before. You know how many magics refuse to be suppressed. I didn’t want to do anything to hurt the babies.”

“Good point,” Lilith said as she and Lavinia exchanged a glance.

The pair moved closer to me. They extended their hands and muttered a spell.

The warmth of their magic washed over my belly like warm water.

After several seconds, my symbol flared in response, sending a pulse of light that filled the room like a camera flash.

"It's old magic," Lavinia said, lowering her hands and gesturing to the stairs. "But not malevolent." That was our clue to leave, it seemed. We descended before her.

"You're certain?" Selene asked as we reached the ritual room. “It won’t fight me?”

Lilith nodded. "The energy is... playful, almost. You can try containing it with your usual methods, though I doubt they'll be completely effective. It's too strong and too ancient to be fully controlled. But containment spells should at least keep the chaos from spreading beyond the house."

"That's settled then," Nana said as she reached for her cookie tin. "Selene will contain what she can. Anyone else need a snack for the road? These meetings always leave me peckish."

Everyone grabbed a cookie and began filing out. Bridget caught my arm. "Phoebe," she said quietly, "whatever this is, it's powerful. But it doesn't feel like it intends to harm you. It’s more like..." She searched for the right words. "More like something old is waking up."

"That's comforting," I muttered, but squeezed her hand in thanks.

"We'll start researching right away," Lilith assured me. "And we'll contact you the moment we find anything significant."

"Thank you. I mean it. This feels far more personal than some of what Lyra has done. And that is terrifying. I know my babies are safe right now, but I worry they could be in danger,” I admitted. And that was going to keep me up until I was certain they were safe.