The driving wind battered the boat, and Kester ran a finger along the spines of the volumes, muttering to himself. “The Heptameron is too celestial. The Liber Juratus should have it.” He pulled it from the shelf and began flipping through the pages, skimming the text. “Ok, here it is. Honorius’s Armor—this will repel almost any magic.” He pointed to the looping lettering written on the page. “It’s Angelic. Do you think you can read it?”

She stepped over to his side, looking down at the yellowed pages. She couldn’t quite understand the words, but she knew how to sound them out—just as she had when she’d first summoned Emerazel. Obviously, F.U. had done something useful with her time. “Definitely.”

Kester began to read and Ursula joined in. As soon as they began to speak she felt the magic rushing over her skin, like she’d just stepped into a warm bath. As they intoned the spell, her skin grew warmer and the sensation grew more sensual. The words almost seemed to draw her closer to Kester, like a magnetic pull. Underneath his cedar smell was something darker she couldn’t identify, something that drew her in. The dull ache of loneliness that always seemed to gnaw at her heart began to soothe.

As they intoned the final stanza, she felt his arm brush against hers, sending a jolt of electricity through her body. But at the final utterance, the spell between them snapped away. Ursula gasped like she’d been dropped into the river outside. For a moment, her skin felt like it was encrusted with ice, then a dull fatigue took over again.

“What was that? I felt something…” She struggled to describe the sensation.

He closed the book, sliding it back onto the shelf. “That was a magical aura, a byproduct of casting a spell. It’s strengthened my aura, giving me a sort of magical armor from fae weaponry. On top of that, any spell I cast will be more powerful now.”

“Your aura? What about mine? You said the spell would protect us.”

“It protects me, and I will protect you. There’s a good chance we’ll need to fight our way out of there.”

She fumed. “My role is to be protected? I thought I was supposed to be a demon warrior now.”

“Swords are great, but you don’t know any magic.” He crossed to Zee, scooping her up from the table. “Look, I’m going to tuck Zee into bed and get myself ready. We’ll leave in five minutes.” He disappeared into one of the rooms in the bow of the boat.

Alone in the main cabin, Ursula had time to look around. The fire crackled invitingly in the stove, while the spray from the river lashed the portholes.