It had been a long night. 

Despite how his body yearned for more rest, Lucien woke at dawn and made his way down into his father's study once his folks had left for work. He locked the door behind him, admiring the hundreds of thick spines that circled their mini library. 

Lucien maneuvered around the alphabetically positioned novels before finding what he desired. With the flick of his wand, he used his magic to levee the verdant, thick-spined grimoire down into his hands.

Leaves shifted on the illustration of an orchard as Lucien ran his fingers across the embossed leather. They waved in the wind as if to greet their master, and golden stars danced around the borders of the title: Herbal Magic.To the naked eye, it appeared like an ordinary spellbook and unless opened by a Cromwell wizard, it only showed herbal remedies and blank pages. 

He made himself comfortable at his father's mahogany wooden desk, then waved his wand over the grimoire to flip it open to the first page. He skimmed the table of contents until he found the page he needed. The grimoire provided intriguing knowledge about vampires, wolf walkers, and a myriad of other supernatural creatures. But his primary focus was on the vampires.

Their family had some notorious vampire hunters. There were many spells on how to weaken the vampires undead bodies, manipulate them with their own blood, and even how to torture them to death. Just reading the paragraphs on how to let a vampire feed off you, then manipulate it to your will to do whatever you desired made him uncomfortable. 

It broke one of the many laws of magic. Forcing someone to do something against their will.

The book claimed that law had a loophole, as it specifically stated they couldn't harm anyone living. They considered vampires as undead monsters, so it was deemed legal. Was that still the case? Could wizards still do that to them?

If he'd let Sebastian drink his blood last night, would he have been able to control him like a puppet? To what extent could he have done so? Was it solely the body? Or could he reach into a vampire's mind and twist their thoughts and soul. The repercussions of abusing such a power gave him shivers as he moved on.

Reading more into supernatural creatures, Lucien found himself digging deeper into the abilities a skinwalker possessed. It could steal the host's body, controlling both mind and soul before it grew tired of the human shell and shed its skin off like a snake. Gruesome diagrams showed him how horrific they left their host when they were done. It peeled the skin from a person, leaving them as nothing but dead, bloody flesh.

Normally, they possessed wizards who had lost their way to the dark arts or were easily manipulated. Could their killer be one of them? Someone jumping from skin to skin? They could possess magical abilities if they hijacked the body and soul of another wizard.

What if it was a possessed wizard behind his sister's killing? Maybe someone completely innocent who'd allowed a skinwalker or some kind of demon inside? Lucien continued reading until the afternoon hours, finally taking a break when the words jumbled together on the pages. He removed his glasses and rubbed his temples before sliding them back on with a frustrated groan. 

Anything could've killed Charlotte.

Lucien pushed himself up from his father’s desk and made sure to position the chair just as it had been. Why had he thought reading up on their grimoire would help find Charlotte’s killer?  Was a clue supposed to just jump out into the palms of his hands if he wished for it hard enough?  

A migraine nailed into his skull, throbbing each time he blinked.  He really needed to rest.  Last night’s venture through Nevermourn had been fascinating, but it only left him with a few hours of rest after he sneaked back through his window.  Lucien wandered down the hall, passing ancient portraits of their ancestors hung on the walls, before locking himself in his bedroom.

A fresh earthy aroma greeted him as he basked in his cozy little plant paradise. Almost every surface was covered in an assortment of plants he’d grown and nurtured himself over the years. Sunlight spilled in from his arched window to nourish his collection of plants. Two spider plants hung from the ceiling and his newest tradescantia flourished with purple-tinted leaves. 

Potted plants surrounded his bedside, but he navigated around them with ease to lay down on his lush green comforter.  He closed his eyes, savoring the comforting fern and floral aroma.  It was common for those with Earth magic to form a stronger bond with nature, and Lucien was no exception.  

Although the Cromwell family was most notorious for wielding their Earth magic, Lucien was the only one who truly connected with nature itself.  Not even Charlotte bothered to tend to their family’s garden unless it was required for their magic training.  

As he rested, Lucien’s mind wandered to cherished memories of tending to their garden and playing in their treehouse as kids.  It was weird to think about those good times without remembering all the bad that shadowed over them.  He and Charlotte used to sneak out and sleep in that treehouse when their parents fought.  She’d always done her best to keep him safe.

Lucien just wasn’t able to protect her when she’d needed him the most. 

Warm tears streamed down his cheeks as he tucked his knees up to his chest. The soft blankets brushed against his skin as memories rushed through his mind of all those nights they’d spend in their treehouse, cozied up with their blankets and pillows while Charlotte told him fairytales about majestic lands where only kids could travel.