I want to believe her, but there’s something in her voice. She sounds worried, and she keeps glancing at me in the rearview mirror. Max, who sits on my shoulder, gives my cheek a reassuring pat.

By the time we return to the house, it’s nearing dinnertime and the rain has mostly subsided. The small parking lot down the driveway is fuller than when we left, and when we pull up into the roundabout, there’s a young couple standing outside the front door. Their luggage is on the ground, their attention trained on something at their feet.

Rose parks beside the Charger on the side of the house. I exchange glances with Anna as we climb out of the car. Max leaps out after us, trailing us up the stairs.

“Do you need help getting checked in?” Anna asks. “I can—” She cuts off as we reach the couple’s side.

Sitting in front of the door is a very damp, very dead raven.

Something between a snarl and a wail rises out of Max’s throat, deep and guttural. His fur prickles up along his body. I feel both the urge to calm him and step away from him at the same time as the edges of his fur begin to flicker.

The rain starts again, abrupt and heavy. The couple beside us doesn’t move, as if transfixed by the sight of the bird. Anna wraps an arm around her stomach, her fingers worrying at her lips.

Thunder erupts in the sky, shaking the couple out of their stupor.

“Just a practical joke.” The man laughs, sliding his arm over his wife’s shoulders. “It’s probably rubber.” He reaches out to nudge it with his toe, and Max roars, his body rippling.

The man recoils. His wife’s face goes white as the lightning.

Over the patter of the rain and the snarl of the thunder, I can hear the man and his wife talking hurriedly to themselves. They gather their luggage, racing off the porch back the way they came.

Rose carefully picks up Max, cradling him to her chest. She rocks him softly with the wind while he howls as if in pain, the rain pouring harder than it has in days.

“It’s a Jabberwocky,” Anna says quietly. Her brows are drawn to a point as she chews her lower lip.

“They’re nearly impossible to kill.” She points at the raven. “Whatever did this is really powerful. It’s…it’s got to be him. Kaden’s boss. He’s back.”

Chapter 18: Anna

The front door flies open and Aunt Elaine barrels onto the porch. “I sensed—” She stops when she sees the dead raven and Rose cradling Max. Then her gaze lands on my wounded arm. “Get inside. Now.”