“But why did Colin have a vision of him?” Anna asks.

“That,” Kara says, “is above my pay grade. Now come on, I want s’mores.”

We follow her to a paved circle off the corner of the house. A dome-shaped fire pit sits on each of several stone platforms, surrounded by chairs filled with guests drinking Wish Cider and hot chocolate in the glow of the firelight. Roy is busy building a pyre in one, surrounded by the other Ballinkays.

Nora and Elaine clutch cups of hot spiced cider, and Rose is setting up ingredients for s’mores. Anna descends on a chair, and I collapse into one beside her as flames soar from Roy’s hands, setting the wood ablaze. My muscles are putty, and I happily allow the chair to support every ounce of my weight. Despite the cool night air and the still-building fire, my skin feels hot and sweaty, and all I can think about is Kara’s revelation. It feels like for every answer we get, a hundred more pop up.

Kaden is lying low gathering more wraiths, but what is he planning to do with them? The man in my vision was an ancient Irish god, but what does he have to do with me, and how am I even having a vision of him?

Anna pokes me with a stick, breaking my thoughts. She offers it to me with a marshmallow and a look that says, Marshmallows now, panic later.

“What am I supposed to do with these?” I ask.

Her eyes widen. It takes her a moment, but she finally realizes I’m kidding. A smile breaks across her face and she laughs.

“And here I thought you didn’t know what a joke was,” she says, sticking a marshmallow on the end of her stick.

I smirk, copying her, and set it to roast over the flames. “I’ve learned a thing or two since coming here.”

Roy pours the hot cider into mugs and hands them around. We make s’mores, talk, and drink, the cool night warmed by the flames. At some point, Max shows up and curls up in my lap, fast asleep, his paws resting on the journal that’s sticking out of my pocket.

“Can I borrow this?” Anna taps the journal. “For, uh, a surprise.”

My gut instinct is to say no. It’s one of the last things I have of my parents. But I trust Anna and know she’ll take good care of it.

“Sure. Just drop it by my room when you’re done with it.” I hand it to her, and she settles it in her lap.