Page 17 of Ivy & Bone

Darkness clouded Polina’s eyes for the briefest of seconds, and Prue knew their thoughts had turned to the same thing: Mona’s death. Mona and Prue had unleashed the Book of Eyes once before, summoning a deathly magic that filled the village with ghosts intent on possessing innocent people and then killing their hosts.

Mona’s sacrifice had stopped the carnage.

Prue refused to let it get that far. Not this time.

“You know this is different.” Polina’s voice was a low murmur.

Prue nodded. “I know.” When Mona had been alive, the spirits had resembled inky black shadows slinking along the ground, far different from this pearly white mist filling the sky.

But even so, Prue couldn’t doom her village to this. Not again.

Polina sighed heavily and wiped her hands along her skirt. “I’ll come with you.”

“What? Mama, no—”

“This isn’t just one ghost we’re trying to banish, Prudence. You saw how many spirits are out there. To banish all of them, we’ll need the full powers of the Triple Goddess.” Polina turned to Crone of the coven. “Beatrice? Will you join us?”

The older witch nodded firmly and strode toward them, not even balking at the notion of stepping outside where the ghosts surrounded them.

“Mama!” Prue shouted, grabbing Polina’s shoulder. “You can’t. The coven needs you here.”

“Have you ever cast a banishment before?” Polina challenged, her gaze turning cold. When Prue said nothing, Polina nodded once as if this settled things. “Don’t worry about the coven. The house is warded. My powers are needed elsewhere right now.”

Prue opened her mouth to object when a heavy groan sounded nearby. At first, she thought it was the howling souls. But then the walls started quivering, and several witches shrieked in alarm.

“Goddess,” Beatrice murmured in a low voice. “They’re attacking the house.”

Prue’s heart flew to her throat. If her home was smashed to pieces, Polina’s wards would no longer protect the coven. A lump lodged itself in her throat as she locked eyes with her mother, finally understanding that she couldn’t do this alone.

“All right,” Prue said slowly. “But we need Cyrus, too.”

“That foul demon—”

“He has the magic to control the ghosts,” Prue interrupted. “We need him.”

Polina threw her hands in the air once more. “Fine! Have it your way. Let’s go, Beatrice.”

When the three of them stepped outside, the fog was so dense Prue could hardly see. Only when she bumped into a solid figure on the porch did she realize where Cyrus was.

“Watch yourself, witch,” he growled.

“Silence,” Polina snapped, appearing beside Prue. “Bite your tongue before I cut it out for you.”

“Let’s go,” Prue urged, eager to get this over with before Cyrus and Polina ripped each other’s heads off.

“Accendo,” Polina muttered, and a burst of flame ignited along her fingers, piercing through the fog of ghosts. They seemed to hiss as the fire cut through, forging a path.

Prue felt Cyrus stiffen next to her, and when she cast a glance his way, she found his eyes aglow with an envious hunger. Every part of her body prickled with unease. This god yearned for power in ways that made her shiver. She instinctively clutched her pomegranate necklace, grateful for the thin tether she had over his power. But how long would it last? With her luck, she’d conducted some part of the spell wrong and Cyrus would find a way out.

Prue swallowed her unease and followed her mother down the path, sticking close to ensure the ghosts didn’t press in on them before they noticed.

When Polina reached the main road, a safe distance from the house, she raised both hands, two beacons of light amidst the swarm of spirits.

“Contego!” Polina shouted, her voice formidable and resonant as it split through the air.

Prue’s eyes widened as an invisible barrier sliced through the spirits, forming a transparent dome around the four of them. Even Cyrus’s eyebrows lifted as he looked at Polina, obviously impressed.

“Show me what you have,” Polina said, turning to Prue.

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