The demon's scream faded into the boy's sobbing.
Lucian's palm stayed pressed against the small forehead. The yellow light behind the child's eyes had dimmed, but it wasn't gone. Just hiding. Waiting.
"Now," Lucian said. "The circle. Reinforce it."
Derek moved first. His chalk traced new lines over the old ones, thicker this time, laced with more iron. Dr. Blackwood hovered at his shoulder, whispering the names of saints and seals. Cora placed fresh candles at the cardinal points. Mason added heat to the wax, melting the bases to the floor so they wouldn't tip.
Sera kept her crossbow on the boy. Her hands were steady now. The demon's taunts had faded from her ears, replaced by the cold focus of a hunter who had work to do.
"He's weakening," she said.
"He's hiding," Lucian replied. "There's a difference."
