“Then maybe we should name her Moon Child,” Rayne says. Nodding when she adds, “Yes, that’s it! Moon Child. It’s so much better than Luna.”

“No it isn’t.” Romy gazes down at the sleeping cat in her lap, stroking the narrow space between her ears. “Moon Child’s all wrong. Lumpy. Too much. A name should be only one word. And this kitty is clearly a Luna to me. Luna. That’s what we’re calling her then?”

She glances between us, counting three nodding heads, and one that refuses to budge just to spite me.

“Sorry, Rayne.” Damen clasps my hand, a sliver of energy the only thing that separates his palm from mine. “I’m afraid the majority rules in this case.” He nods, closing his eyes as he manifests an exquisite velvet collar of the deepest purple that instantly appears around Luna’s neck. Romy and Rayne gasping, eyes shining with delight when he manifests a matching velvet bed. “Perhaps you should place her there now,” he says.

“But we’re both so comfortable like this!” Romy whines, not wanting to part with her pet.

“Yes, but we also have lessons to get to, don’t we?”

The twins glance at each other, then rise simultaneously, carefully placing Luna in her new bed and hovering at its edge, making sure she’s sleeping comfortably, before turning back to Damen, ready to begin. Taking the seats just across from him, ankles crossed, hands folded in laps, more obedient than I’ve ever seen them. Ready for whatever Damen’s got planned.

What’s this about? I shift as we untangle our limbs.

“Magick.” He nods, glancing between them. “They need to practice daily if their powers are to return.”

“How do you practice?” I squint, wondering if it’s anything like the classes Jude’s planning to teach. “I mean, are there exercises and tests, like in school?”

Damen shrugs. “It’s really more a series of meditations and visualizations—though far more intense and of a much longer duration than the ones I put you through on our first journey to Summerland, but then, you didn’t require as much. Even though the twins hail from a long line of very gifted witches, I’m afraid that as it stands now, they’re back to stage one. Though I’m hoping that with regular practice, they’ll recapture their abilities in reasonable time.”

“How long is reasonable?” I ask. When what I really mean is: How soon do we get our life back?

Damen shrugs. “Few months. Maybe longer.”

“Would the Book of Shadows help?” Realizing just after it’s out, that I shouldn’t have said it. Damen’s expression is not at all happy, though the twins are now poised on the edge of their seats.

“You have the Book of Shadows?” Rayne says, as Romy just sits there and gapes.

I glance at Damen, seeing he’s none too pleased, but since the book could very well help them as much as I hope it can help me, I say, “Well, I don’t exactly have it, but I have access to it.”

“Like for real? Like a real Book of Shadows?” Rayne phrases her words like a question, though her gaze tells me she’s sure it’s a fake.

“I don’t know.” I shrug. “Is there more than one?”

She looks at Romy, shaking her head and rolling her eyes before Damen can say, “I haven’t seen it, but from Ever’s description, I’m sure that it’s real. And quite powerful too. Too powerful for you at the moment. But maybe later, after we’ve progressed through our meditations we can—”

But Romy and Rayne are no longer listening, their attention focused solely on me as they rise from their seats and say, “Take us there. Please. We need to see it.”

Chapter Twenty-Seven

“How will you get in?” Romy whispers, edging up alongside me and gazing at the door, a wary expression crossing her face.

“Duh!” Rayne shakes her head. “It’s easy for them. All they have to do is unlock the door with their minds.”

“True.” I smile. “But having a key is handy too.” Jangling it so they can see before inserting it into the lock. Careful to avoid Damen’s gaze, though it’s not like I need to see to know he disapproves.

“So this is where you work,” Romy says, stepping inside and gazing around. Moving lightly, gingerly, as though she’s afraid to mess anything up.

I nod, placing my finger against my lips in the international sign for shush as I lead them toward the back room.

“But if the store’s closed, and we’re the only ones here, then why do we have to shush?” Rayne asks, her high-pitched voice practically bouncing off the walls, wanting me to know that while she’s pleased that I’m about to show her the Book of Shadows it doesn’t extend much further than that.

I open the door to the back office and motion them inside, telling them to sit, while Damen and I consult in the hall.

“I don’t like this,” he says, eyes dark, focused on mine.

I nod, very well aware of that but determined to stand my ground.

“Ever, I’m serious. You have no idea what you’re getting into. This book is powerful—and in the wrong hands—dangerous as well.”

I shake my head, saying, “Listen, the twins are familiar with this brand of magick, much more so than you and me. And if they’re not worried, then how bad could it be?”

He looks at me, refusing to budge. “There are better ways.”