I pulled into the bar feeling a dual sense of elation and fear. I was eager and happy to work with Savi and so pleased that she had agreed in her message. On the other side, I was also torn—not only frightened of the demon inside her but also of how my own morals would play into this scheme. Yes, helping her would be good, like I had always wanted, but helping under false pretenses worried me. What, if anything, would the demon do? What could it do?

  Savi was sitting in a back booth, and the way she sat hunched over the table told me that her decision had not been made lightly. Thankfully, Cooper wasn’t working tonight either, so no fear of running into him, for now at least.

  “Hey Savi.” I approached her cautiously, unsure of what kind of state I would find her in. Her text was pretty choppy and stern. It wasn’t hard to see in her eyes as she glanced at me that I was right. The choice had been hard. Her eyes were bloodshot, nose bright red, and her hair was a tangled mess, half falling down her back out of her braid. “Oh Savi, it’s going to be okay. I’m here. You can talk to me; what happened?”

  I slid into the booth and waited. She sniffled, trying several times to speak, but each time stopped short of words forming. I reached across the table and took her hand. It was cold and clammy, but I squeezed it gently. “You can trust me. I'll help in any way I can. I see how hard this choice was for you, and I'm so sorry if you felt like I pressured you in any way. I just wanted to reach out and make sure you were okay after everything from the other day.”

  She pulled her hand away and dropped it into her lap. “No, it wasn't you. None of this was you. I understand you were looking out for me. It was everything else.” She wiped a tear that slid down her cheek. “Everything else was piling up. Rachel and Coop know something is off but don’t know for sure. I heard them talking the other night and I know it was bad. Has he said anything to you?”

  I froze.

  'Why would Coop say anything to me? He didn’t know anything about what happened the other day, and I would keep it at that.'

  I shook my head at her. “No, he hasn’t asked anything. Other than wanting to get together and hang out. That’s about it though. I’m sure it’s nothing. Maybe they’re worried about the papers coming, or hey, they’re planning a big party for you and don’t want you to know.” I had to do or say something to cheer her up. I hated seeing her like this. She was so broken, and it killed me.

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  She let out a tiny chuckle under her breath and nodded. "Yeah. That would be something they would do, especially Rachel. She’s probably trying to find some perfect guy to try to hook me up with too.”

  “Exactly. I mean I don’t know her all that well, but what I do know is that it sounds like she cares for you a lot. I know Cooper does. He talks about you all the time.”

  “I’m sorry for that.” She said low.

  “No worries. Having someone care for you is a blessing. I don’t mind. Really.” I smiled softly at her in hopes it would help. I didn’t mind how he felt about her. I knew they had a huge history together and I'm sure there’s way more to the full story than I'll ever know.

  I thumbed my keychain on the table, fidgeting till I could think of what to say next. I knew what I wanted to say: to tell her everything there was to know about witches and the practice right here, right now, but I knew it wasn’t the time or place. Little by little, I would show her, but I was unsure of how much she could handle right now. I would have to test the waters.

  “I’m happy you texted. I know it’s going to feel like a lot and be confusing, but we'll go at your pace, whatever you would like that to be.”

  She sat straighter in the booth and gripped my hand, interrupting me. "No, that’s it. If I’m going to do this, I want to go all in. Dive headfirst. I’m ready. I'm scared, yes, but I'm ready now. If there’s anyone who can help me at this point, it’s you. I trust you. I’m all in.”

  I hesitated to respond, trying to read her expression, but the only thing I could gather was sincerity. She wanted to dive in, and I didn’t blame her, but I'd still have to work cautiously around the demon. You never know what could trigger it to surface, and without telling her about it, it would be hard to test.

  She squeezed my hand tighter. “I mean it, Aster. I’m in. So what’s first?” She let go and sat back; her face immediately changed to one of determination and resilience.

  “Hmm. Well, if you want to dive headfirst into this world, I have a job on the schedule tonight.”

  “Like your other jobs you told me about? The ones that you’re not supposed to do?” She looked hesitant but still interested. Maybe she was ready. Ready to learn all there was to learn about our world.

  “No, no, this one is an actual job from the coven. But I need to warn you now, it’s a lot to take in on the first day. Do you think you’re ready for it?”

  “I’m ready for anything you can throw at me. I’ve had enough of playing it safe. It’s time for action. So what’s the job?”

  Her face was completely different now. The bloodshot eyes had disappeared, and a smile was shining on her face. Okay, this was going to be the beginning.

  “Well… It’s a lot and it's hard to explain, so I’ll have to take you with me and show you. But one promise.”

  “Anything. I promise anything.”

  “Okay, you have to promise you will keep an open mind and not freak out.”

  She stood up beside the table and held out her hand to shake mine. “Promise.”

  "Well, alright then. Let’s go! You’re in for quite a night!”

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