The witches floated along in the boat, Winona letting Halle lead them. She could hear the shrieks of the ghost and shots from the pistol. They seemed to be miles away, the fog stifling all sound tremendously. Winona looked around, taking in the kaleidoscope of magical energies in the bayou. She realized the truth of what Halle had told them long ago, all manner of magic from across the nation had deposited here from the Mississippi River system. This was an especially dangerous place.

  “This spirit is a storm upon man.” Halle spoke low, her words resonating in the currents of magic. Though she was at the bow, steps away from them, it felt to Winona as if she was in her ear, “Our Gradymen are strong, but she will kill them as she did the others.”

  “How to we exorcise her?” Elizabeth spoke breathy words, trembling a bit at the aft of the boat.

  Winona had been wondering about Halle’s plan. Exorcising a Banshee of this caliber would normally take an entire coven of witches over five minutes. For the three of them, it may take an hour. Her gut sank, lips dropping into a somber scowl. A part of her knew what Halle was doing. They would exorcise this spirit, but not for Joe’s information. The Zola Coven needed Persephone gone, and they would be willing to sacrifice a few of Grady’s men to do it.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  That was what they were for, anyhow.

  “You can’t throw away my man like that.” Winona’s magic spiraled and coiled within her. “I hope you understand what I mean.”

  Halle glanced back at her. “We are here on Coven business.”

  “So you DID get the order to destroy Persephone, at any cost?”

  “An order did come through, yes.” Halle turned to face her.

  Winona grimaced, “And the cost?”

  The lights of the Feu Follet bounced and danced on the water, tossing an eerie blue glow across the boat, the black dresses of the Coven ladies, and Halle’s violet eyes. Doom was on the water, in the air, on Halle’s gaze.

  “This duty is beneath the high cost of Elroy’s life.” Halle’s words rang through the fog.

  The two witches looked one another in the eye, sharing a silent moment of understanding between them. Elizabeth didn’t get it yet, she couldn’t make out what the look was for. But Winona understood completely.

  “What is the plan?” Winona breathed out, having unwound herself a bit.

  The witch of the Zola coven stood up, looking out into the fog. “We will locate Persephone’s mound and set in motion not an exorcism, but a summoning.”

  “Excuse me?” The words threw Winona for a loop, “We are gonna summon what, exactly?”

  “Banshee is an Irish spirit, one of their Fae. We will summon another to cancel her out.”

  Elizabeth looked at her sideways. This strategy was a little advanced for her, she was struggling to make heads or tails of it.

  Looking back at them, Halle’s eyes went dark. “We will summon a Ganconer.”