“And take care of this.” Diana draped something pink and scratchy around my neck. It was the scarf she had knitted to heal my spine, now a good six feet long and knitted in an intricate pattern that resembled the runes and spirals I’d seen on Skald’s phone. “I knitted extra protection spells into it. It should keep you safe … and remind you of your friends.”

I would need it, I thought. All my closest friends – human and fey – were leaving me. The one remaining chink of my wards grew heavier as I watched, with blurred vision now, the procession pass by me. Many squeezed my hand and told me they were sure I’d do my best to keep the door from closing forever, but as I watched my friends walk through the door I began to wonder if I really would be able to keep the Grove from closing the door. I had bound the door to my heart, but how reliable was that? And where was Frank? If he didn’t come with a means of destroying the nephilim, would I be able to stand against them?

The last person to approach the door was Soheila, accompanied by three women, all with Soheila’s dark hair and flawless olive skin. Her sisters, I surmised, come to depart this world with her. Her sisters wore expensive designer clothes, as if they were going out to lunch instead of Faerie, but Soheila was wearing a long ceremonial caftan embroidered with a pattern of feathers. Her long dark hair was loose around her shoulders and seemed to move in a breeze of her own making. She smiled and I felt a warm spicy breeze against my face that dried my tears and filled me with a sense of peace.

“Be well, Cailleach McFay,” she said, letting her sisters go on ahead of her. “Don’t forget us.”

I was going to tell her that I could never forget her or any of the remarkable creatures I’d met this year, but a loud shout stopped me.

“Wait!”

Soheila and I turned to see three men enter the glade – Duncan Laird, flanked by Frank Delmarco and Bill Carey. Frank and Bill each had a hold of one of Duncan’s arms.

As the three men approached, Adelaide stepped between them and the door.

“I’ve had enough of these histrionics, Dr. Delmarco. If you want to go to hell with your succubus girlfriend, go ahead. But do it now. The door will be closed soon.”

“You’re counting on this creature to close it, aren’t you?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said, her eyes passing over Duncan as if he wasn’t there and focusing instead on Bill. She frowned, looking puzzled. “What are you?” she asked.