“He needs to be ready,” Elaine returns sharply. “We don’t know what we’ll face on Samhain, or when the wraiths will make their next move.”

Nora had expanded her network to a couple other local towns, but shortly after they had confirmed the second man in Kara’s photo was from Wick, too, which meant Kaden was probably sticking around town. Some of the local witches had volunteered to search Hollowthorn Woods, since no one had seen Kaden in town, but the woods were too vast to check everywhere. The other theory was that they were staying at the home of the third wraith’s host body, who they hadn’t been able to identify yet, probably preparing to gather more wraiths.

Roy flips a tiny flame between his fingers like a coin. “He’s already taken a wraith on once. And you know what they say: what doesn’t kill you—”

“Usually tries again,” Elaine says grimly.

It sobers Roy right up, and he returns the Saint Knives to me from the target.

Loosening my wrists, I feel the weight of the knives and gauge the distance to the scarred kitchen table. It’s about ten feet away. Not a huge distance, but about as far as the Saint Knives can really be thrown. They’re too large and light to go much farther, made instead for close combat.

I hit the center with both knives.

I’ve been struggling with throwing the knives the last few days, so it feels good to finally get it right. The hand-to-hand fighting is definitely my strength, thanks to the few months I spent training with Liam. Plus, my enhanced strength and speed and improved senses make it all a lot easier.

Elaine retrieves the knives, but she doesn’t give them to me. “I want to work on a new skill today,” she says. “Knives can be great long-range weapons, but they’re one-time use for most people. Ravens, on the other hand, are capable of materialization.”

“Cause to appear?” I ask, thinking of the definition of materialize.

She nods. “It’s an important skill for Ravens, since carrying a journal around isn’t exactly convenient. You need to know how to summon things from afar.”

Excitement flutters through me at the idea. Every day I spend training opens up new possibilities for my powers, and I’ve been throwing myself into learning, spending hours in the library reading. Not just about Ravens, but about psychics and supernatural creatures and all types of magic. I’ve learned more words the last few days than ever.

“How do I do it?” I ask.

“It’s not much different than the way you pull items from the pages already.” Elaine holds the knives out in her palms. “Focus on the size and shape of the item, how it would feel to hold it, and imagine yourself pulling it from my hands.”