Page 9 of Mayhem and Ember

She handed me a damp rag. “Erase it with intention, and it should be fine.”

“I’d rather not take chances.” I dragged the cloth over the sigil, scrubbing off the chalk until the circle was clean. “This is why you should be doing this.”

“You’ll get it this time.” She offered a smile, and I returned the gesture. One good thing about my little sis… She never stayed mad at me long.

I laid the phone in the circle and tried again. Ash nodded at each swoop and angle, and I paused at the bottom loop before bringing it left and completing the design.

“Perfect.” She used my shoulder to push herself upright.

I stood, taking the phone and chalk with me and setting them on the table by the skull. The back door opened, and four sets of footfalls plodded toward us…my team, filing into the room. Chaos slid an arm around Ash’s waist, and she rested her hand on his chest.

I really did feel bad for wishing her man away. Maybe someday I’d learn how to express things like that in words, but today was not that day. Instead, I turned to Shade. “That was fast.”

“We’re getting good at battling imps.” He took off his knife holster and laid it on the table.

“It helps when you’ve got a demon they obey,” Patrice said. “We convinced Inga that Chaos used a spell to control them, but now she wants the recipe.”

“Luis and Madeline were there too.” Shade curled his lip at the skull. “A few others showed up before we left, and they all but demanded you call a meeting.”

“Maybe we should tell everyone what’s going on.” Miles peered at the sigil in the middle of the floor. “One demon we can hide, but two?”

“Absolutely not.” I paced around the circle, turning at the top and retracing my path. “I will call a meeting to enlist their help, but no one is to know about the demons or the curse. Understood?”

Shade gave a mock salute, and the others nodded.

My phone chimed, and I closed my eyes, letting out a long exhale and steeling myself for whatever beastie had busted through this time. I swiped open the screen to find a message from Chrys’s mom. “Crap. Ivy’s here with the funeral home. Ash, come with me. The rest of you, stay here and keep the doors closed.”

Ash followed me through the library and out the back door, where a pair of men in suits were pulling a stretcher out of a van. Ivy wore dark glasses, and her jet-black hair was piled on top of her head in a messy, curly bun.

She stepped onto the porch, and Ash hugged her. “I’m so sorry this happened.”

Ivy sniffled. “Thank you for keeping her here. I don’t… I don’t know what got into her.”

A demon got into her. She already knew that. I held the door open for the stretcher and slipped past them to lead the way toward the storage room. Ash and I stepped inside, standing against the wall to make room for the men, and Ivy hesitated in the doorway.

She removed her glasses, revealing red-rimmed eyes with puffy, dark circles, and she shuffled into the room. Gasping, she covered her mouth before a sob rolled up from somewhere deep in her soul.

Her legs wobbled as she stumbled toward her daughter’s body. We’d covered Chrys with a dark blue sheet, which Ivy gingerly grasped and pulled down. Another sob ripped from her chest, her pain palpable, making Ash tear up.

Pressure built in the back of my eyes as Ivy kissed her daughter’s forehead and covered her again. Her entire body trembled on a deep inhale, her hands curling into tight fists with her exhale. I couldn’t begin to imagine how she must’ve felt.

“How could you let this happen?” She whirled toward me, her expression livid and pained. “You’re in charge of this coven. Her blood is on your hands.”

My brows shot toward my hairline, and I straightened my spine. Guess I didn’t have to imagine. “We did everything we could to save her.”

She stepped toward me, pointing her finger accusingly. “You should have stopped her before any of this happened. She never should have had access to dark magic, let alone instructions for summoning a demon.”

“Whoa.” I raised my hands, palms toward her. “She didn’t learn it from us.”

“We should step outside so they can move her.” Ash placed a hand on Ivy’s shoulder.

She shrugged off her touch and moved toward me. “This is your fault, you incompetent, wannabe priestess. Your mother and Cinder never would have let this happen.”

I ground my teeth, Ash’s words echoing in my mind. This is happening because of Mom and Cinder. But I couldn’t say that out loud.

Ivy shook her finger at me. “I don’t know what killed them, but whatever it was, it should have happened to you.” She pointed at Ash. “To both of you.”

“That was uncalled for.” Ash moved between us and gestured to the door. “Let’s wait outside.”

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