The news was Maya’s only anchor to sanity. She’d pleaded with Steve to keep his discovery a secret, and given how decent Steve had turned out to be, he had reluctantly agreed. But he’d warned her again about hanging out with anyone connected to Clarissa Jackson and Maya’s "crazy-ass" mother. That much she couldn't deny.

The rest of the morning had been a struggle, her mind reeling as she navigated through an avalanche of curious glances and concerned teachers. Somehow, she managed to get through lunch without coming across as a complete mess, though the whispers around her didn’t help.

But now, as she absorbed the latest buzz, her focus sharpened. Howard Allen, it seemed, had angered his father so severely that he was being sent to oversee the Harvest Grove Fertilizer Plant. The scuttlebutt was that Howard wanted to familiarize himself with the business to make a smoother transition when he eventually took over. The town seemed to buy that story, but Maya recognized a punishment when she saw one. The plant was way out in the sticks, never really checked on, and likely only remembered during her dad’s quarterly meetings with Mr. Allen.

No doubt about it, this was a demotion.

Around her, snippets of gossip drifted by. Bradley Mitchell leaned in close to Wilmer Gieger, whispering, "They’re renovating the Allen Manor. Heard they’ll be hiring soon."

"I saw him pull up in his silver Jaguar," Tiffany Spain—who had a reputation for incessant chatter about her “amazing” Spain vacation—gushed to Calrissian Hemp. "And now he’s giving a tour of the school to his friend. Both of them are total hotties."

Calrissian's eyes lit up. "We should totally audition for maid positions or something!"

Tiffany rolled her eyes, clearly amused. "It’s not a play, you know. You don’t audition."

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The two girls burst into giggles, their excitement palpable.

Maya couldn’t help but add the Allen Manor renovation to her growing list of tasks. Once Howard Allen was introduced to the Chronicle, she was determined to convince him it needed a major overhaul post-attack. If she could snag an interview for the paper, it would be a rare win amidst the chaos of her life.

-----

In their Coven’s hidden sanctuary, the girls had awoken trapped behind an invisible, crackling barrier. Austen, a figure of unsettling calm, stood by the crystal skull on a table. Attempts to escape had been met with painful electric shocks, and the barrier had betrayed their wakefulness to their menacing father.

“Did you ever plan on killing Eben?” Casandra’s voice cut through the tense silence. “Or was he just a pawn to scare us into finding the crystals?”

“The Witch-Hunters have always been problematic for witches,” he admitted, his fingers resting on the table’s edge.

“You did it before,” Casandra said softly. “Sixteen years ago, you led our parents to their deaths to fight the Witch-Hunters.”

“Why make us orphans?” Eliane’s voice was tight with anger. “Why turn us into a coven of vulnerable witches desperate for a leader?”

Realization hit Casandra with a nauseating force. “So we’d be easy to control. My mother tried to stop it. She and Ethan even tried to kill you.”

“Ah, yes,” he sighed with a trace of nostalgia. “That was a letdown. But it gave me the chance to disappear and wait for you to be ready. And now you are.”

He turned back to the crystal skull, muttering in a language Casandra didn’t understand. Shadows began to creep within the crystal, corrupting its pristine white into a deep, unsettling black.

That couldn’t be good.

Beneath the table, the symbol of James blazed on the floor.

“What’s the skull for if not to kill Witch-Hunters?” Casandra’s voice was a desperate plea for answers.

He straightened, a malevolent smile spreading across his face. “To kill witches. Every single one who doesn’t carry James blood.” He held up his hand, displaying the burned symbol on his palm.

Eliane stepped forward, horrified. Casandra stood frozen, her mind reeling at the gravity of his words.

“It’s already begun,” he said, his smile widening as he looked at the now darkened crystal.