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Belinda waved her hand dismissively. “Oh, hush, Magnus. I recall a certain young warlock who once turned all the books in the east wing into butterflies because he couldn't pronounce a simple transformation reversal.”

The table erupted in laughter as Magnus's ears turned pink, and even Trent cracked a smile.

I felt a warmth spreading through me that had nothing to do with the excellent food.

These moments of everyday family life—the teasing, the shared history, the comfortable chaos of it all—had become precious to me in ways I couldn't quite explain.

The delicious dessert appeared in front of us and I reached for my spoon. A low beeping started and I glanced at Levi. He fished his phone from his pocket and stared at the screen.

“The motion detectors,” he said.

Shit. Mourning the loss of such amazing looking dessert, Levi and I got up from the table and started saying goodbye to everyone.

Abbie and Lacey stood too and said they would come with us.

I was ready to tell them it wasn’t necessary when I remembered that if Ezekiel was here, if it was him, then it meant he had the flowers … hopefully.

Abbie used one of the coins to open a portal and we all went back to Levi’s apartment.

From there, we crossed the magical door to the warehouse.

Sure enough, Ezekiel stood in the center of the cold, dark building.

“There you are,” I said, rushing toward him. Up close, I could see the exhaustion in his face, the circles under his eyes. “Are you okay?”

He nodded, though his movements were stiff. “I'm fine. Just it's been a long few days.”

Levi approached, his expression guarded. “Did you get them?”

In answer, Ezekiel reached into his jacket, pulling out a small cloth bundle. With gentle movements, he unwrapped it, revealing a handful of lilies so brilliantly golden they seemed to glow from within.

“I couldn't get many,” he said, his voice tinged with apology. “The garden is more heavily guarded than I expected. This was all I could take without raising suspicion.”

I stared at the flowers, hardly daring to hope. “Is it enough?”

“I don't know,” Ezekiel admitted. “I've never seen the elixir made. But it's all I have.”

“We’ll see what we can come up with,” Abbie said. Ezekiel offered her the lilies and she carefully took them. “Hopefully this will be enough to get at least a handful of us in.”

My mind raced with possibilities. If the witches could come up with an elixir and it worked, if we could actually cross into Elysium, we might have a chance to stop Rhodes before he could use the dagger.

We could warn Adona, rally those still loyal to her, maybe even end this before it became a war.

“How long will it take to make the elixir?” I asked, turning to Abbie.

“I'm not sure,” she admitted. “I'll need to analyze the flowers, figure out their properties. It could be days.”

Ezekiel shifted his weight, glancing anxiously toward the entrance. “I can't stay long. If someone notices I'm gone”

“Of course,” I said quickly. “Go back. Stay safe.”

He hesitated, his gaze flickering between me and the door. “There's something else you should know. Rhodes has scheduled some kind of ceremony for five days from now. Something big, with all his closest allies in attendance. I don't know what it is, but…”

My blood ran cold. “The dagger. He's going to use it on Adona.”

“That's my guess,” Ezekiel agreed grimly. “I've been trying to find out more, but they're keeping the details close.”

“Five days,” Levi murmured. “That's not much time.”

“We'll make it work,” I said, more confidently than I felt. I turned back to Ezekiel, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Before you go, I need you to do something for me.”

He nodded. “Name it.”

“My mother, my sister—they need to be away from the capital when this happens. If you can convince them to come with you, bring them here. If not, get them to the countryside, somewhere safe.”

“Adriel won't be easy to convince,” Ezekiel warned. “She's stubborn.”

I couldn't help the small smile that tugged at my lips. “It runs in the family. But try. Please. They need to be safe when the fighting starts.”

“I will do my best,” he promised.

“I know you will.” I squeezed his shoulder gently. “That's why I'm asking you.”

He nodded, his expression solemn. “I should go.” His gaze shifted to the lilies in Abbie’s hands. “Make good use of those. They're not easy to replace.”

“We will,” Abbie assured him. “Thank you, Ezekiel.”

With one last nod, he turned and walked out the door.

For a moment, we all stood in silence, the weight of what lay ahead settling over us like a shroud. Five days until Rhodes made his move. Five days to figure out how to make the elixir, how to get into Elysium, and how to stop a war before it began.

“Well,” Levi said, breaking the silence, “looks like our vacation's over.”

I shot him a look, but there was no real annoyance behind it. “It was a good run while it lasted.”

“So,” Abbie said, carefully counting the golden lilies, “who's going to Elysium?”

“Me, obviously,” I said without hesitation. “But I don’t need the elixir. I think Levi won’t need it either.”

He nodded.

“I’m going,” Lacey said, her tone leaving no room for argument.

“Me too,” Abbie said. “So with me, we need at least two doses,” Abbie said. “I might be able to work with that.”

Levi frowned. “I’m sure more of our friends will want to come if we ask.”

“Let’s see how much I can get done with this first,” Abbie said.

I nodded. “I hate to push it, but we don’t have much time.”

Abbie nodded. “Right. I’ll be going back to the Great Eternity Hall right now. I’m sure Maggie and Gwen will love to help with this.”

“And me too,” Lacey said.

Abbie smiled at her. “Of course.”

She opened another portal for her and Lacey. I almost went with them, but I knew I would just hover over their shoulder, make them more nervous, and wouldn’t help at all.

When the girls were gone, I let out a long sigh.

Levi stepped in front of me and wrapped his big arms around me, pulling me tight against him. “I can feel your tension, sweetheart.”

“I can’t help it,” I said, my cheek pressed against his chest.

“I know.” He kissed the top of my head. “Just remember, you’re not alone anymore. You have me and you have all of your friends.”

I squeezed him harder, thankful for his words, for his warmth, for his strong, stable presence.