Page 28 of Vow Of A Fox

“I don’t know how this would’ve gone without you,” she said. “Thanks.”

“I’m glad I could help,” I replied, loading the cage into the back of my truck. “But we should get going. The sedative should last about an hour, but that’s an estimate. I’m not sure if his shifter metabolism will burn through it faster than a normal raven’s would.”

“Good point,” Sienna said.

Dean nodded. “Let’s go.”

As we pulled back onto the road, the convoy moved in a steady line toward Maribel’s. I kept glancing in the rearview mirror, my eyes on the cage in the bed, making sure the raven was still out cold.

Sienna sat in the passenger seat, her hands tucked beneath her thighs, staring straight ahead. Tension radiated off her.

“You okay?” I asked.

“Yeah,” she said, though her tone didn’t sound convincing. “Just thinking.”

“About the ritual? Or Xander?”

“Both,” she admitted, letting out a soft sigh. “We’ve been chasing this for so long. Now that we’re here, I’m just…” She trailed off.

“You’re wondering what happens next.” I glanced at her briefly, noticing the faint smile she gave didn’t quite reach her eyes.

“Something like that,” she said.

“Well, no matter what happens, I think I’ve officially maxed out my weird meter tonight.” I chuckled. “A cage with a raven shifter? Check. Helping a team of animal shifters wrangle him?Double-check. Seeing a woman lift a raven into the air and then slam him to the ground with her mind? Triple-check.”

That earned me a small laugh, and I felt a flicker of relief at the sound.

“Welcome to my world,” she said dryly.

“It’s not boring, I’ll give you that,” I said, glancing her way again. “You’re not boring.”

Her eyes softened. “Thanks.”

The silence that followed wasn’t heavy like before. It was comfortable, but my thoughts still raced. The woods grew denser, and I hoped we were close to Maribel’s place. This road seemed to be narrowing.

“What’s Maribel like?” I asked, breaking the quiet, my nerves about what was to come getting the best of me.

“She’s kind of a legend. Ellis says she’s this mysterious force of nature—wise and powerful, but with an eccentric-ness about her. People whisper around town about her. They say she talks to the wind. I’ve never met her, but honestly, I kind of hope all the stories I’ve heard are true.”

I raised an eyebrow, a grin tugging at the corner of my mouth. “A wise and powerful woman who talks to the wind? Sounds like she could either solve all our problems or send us on a quest for magic mushrooms. I’m game either way.”

“Something tells me you’d take it in stride if she did.”

I laughed. “Well, I guess I spoke too soon about maxing out my weird meter for the night.”

“Definitely.” She chuckled.

The sound of my tires crunching on gravel filled the space between us. While I didn’t know what the rest of the night would hold, I was certain about one thing—I was here for it.

11

SIENNA

My fox grew restless as Maribel’s cottage came into view, adding to my nervousness. We both hoped Maribel could perform the ritual and rip Lucius’s spirit out of Xander, ending this nightmare.

Would that end things, though?

There was no telling what Xander would do in retaliation to us afterward. The guy practically worshipped Lucius, treating him like some kind of twisted deity. Removing his spirit from him wasn’t going to sit well. If anything, it would probably light a fire under him—one that would burn brightly with a need for revenge.

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