“Shit is right.” Her eyes go to Devin. “That’s why the trail stopped on the crown, right? Because the demon has it.”
“Yeah. And I’m willing to bet the dagger isn’t locked up in evidence but had been in the possession of someone else, someone who the demon killed.”
“What’s the plan then?” Laney asks.
“The plan,” I echo. “Right. Guys, this is Devin. He’s a professor at the Academy and can help me reseal the door. And this is Ethan, Sam, Laney, Harrison, Nik, and Stephanie.”
“It’s nice to meet you all,” Devin says back and then makes a face, looking at Stephanie. “But not you.”
“Fix the door. You can do that?” Harrison asks me dubiously.
“Not on my own,” I admit. “Which is why I brought help. So, the plan,” I repeat and look at Devin. “Is to…to…I actually don’t know.”
“Creating a dimension is the hard part,” Devin starts. “So the good news is it’s already there. Now, to fix the door, someone needs to go to it, fix it from the inside, and then close the door and leave.”
“I’m picturing this like it’s an actual door,” Harrison says. “It’s not, is it?”
“No, not at all. The door is a passage between our world and the created. Each dimension looks different based on who made it. Once in, a circle needs to be recast, strengthening what has weakened.”
“How do you do that?” Ethan asks.
“Someone will have to go there on the astral plane,” Devin answers.
“And you’re going, right?”
Devin makes a face. “Someone needs to open the door and hold it just wide enough for the other to get in and then close it right away once they’re out. It’s a complicated, hard spell and not something one would get on their first try. I can hold the door while Anora goes in and recasts the protection circles.”
“You want to send her into a demonic prison?” Ethan’s jaw tenses.
“I am sending myself. Devin is simply helping me. I can do this,” I tell him. “I’ve gone into the spirit world before. I can get in and out of this one. We only have a day before he strikes again, and this time, one more kill could be all he needs to break out.”
Plowing his hand through his hair, Ethan turns and paces to the other side of the room. “If we go now, he might not see it coming,” Ethan says with a sigh. “The longer we wait, the more likely he’s going to be onto our plan. The necklace is here.”
“What do we need to do?” I ask Devin.
“Clear a space,” Devin tells us. “And draw a large circle of salt.” He opens the book he’s still holding and points to an ingredient list. “And we need all this.”
“On it,” Nik says, taking the book from him. Laney helps him gather supplies while Harrison and Ethan move furniture, clearing a big space in the library.
“You need an anchor,” Devin says to me.
“Okay, uh, but what do I use?”
“Not what, but who.” Devin turns his gaze to Ethan for a quick moment. “You need someone to hold your hand, quite literally, and keep you tethered to this world. They’ll be the one guiding you back, calling you home. Someone you trust completely.”
“Ethan,” I say with no hesitation. “It’ll be Ethan.”
“Good.” He gives me a nod and we take the book to the desk behind the couch. Sam is standing guard over Steph, who’s watching us like we’re all crazy people. I start to feel sorry for her, unable to help the way she was brought up, raised to hate those who are different. Then I remind myself that she came here to kill me, and I don’t feel so bad anymore.
“This is the incantation,” Devin says, handing me a piece of paper. “Traveling to the astral plane is different than astral projection and varies in difficulty depending on the witch. You’ve projected into the astral realm before?”
“The spirit realm. I’ve always been a medium, even when my powers were bound.”
He looks at me curiously for a moment and then continues . “Being in tune with any form of an astral realm will help you. I’ll open the door and send you, but then I’ll have to concentrate on keeping the door not only from closing, but from getting too wide.”
“How do I come back?”
“That’s what the anchor is for.”
Inhaling, I fold the piece of paper and slip it in my back pocket. “Okay. Let’s do this.”
Ethan and I sit on the ground, three blue candles burning at our side. Laney, Harrison, and Nik are on the couch, holding white candles anointed with a protection potion. We moved Steph to the corner of the living room, and Sam has the crossbow Steph intended to use on me pointed at her.
“Ready?” Ethan holds out his hands and I take them, feeling the rough surface of his palms slide over mine, bringing me instant comfort.