I placed it down on the wooden table. Corrine picked it up and we headed back to her potion room.

“We’ve no time to lose now,” she said, tipping ingredients hurriedly into a black cauldron and bringing it to a boil.

“Oh, no,” I blurted out, realization dawning on me. “I forgot to bring Derek’s clothes!”

“We’ll just have to borrow some of Ibrahim’s. If they don’t fit, it won’t take long for me to tailor them.”

She was right. I didn’t want to risk going back to the apartment in case Derek was back by now and wanted to talk. I removed my clothes and once again wrapped a sheet around me.

“Where’s Mona?” I asked.

“She’s back home,” Corrine said, handing me the goblet. I swallowed it more confidently this time, downing it all in one gulp. Then I opened my mouth. Corrine placed the hair on my tongue, reminded me not to swallow—as if I needed to be reminded of that—held my head in her hands and muttered the same chant Mona had. The tingling sensation spread across my skin again. And then my body once again expanded, growing heavier and taller until Corrine’s hands could no longer reach my head.

I stared down at Corrine, waiting for her to inform me that the transformation was complete. Finally, she nodded.

Keeping the sheet firmly around my—Derek’s—body, I returned with Corrine to her and Ibrahim’s bedroom.

Corrine swore beneath her breath as soon as she stepped into the room. My eyes fell on Ibrahim.

His jaw dropped as he saw Derek wearing nothing but a thin white sheet, entering his bedroom with his wife.

“Ibrahim,” I blurted out, my voice rumbling through my chest, “It’s not what you think. I’m not Derek. I’m Sofia.” I walked forward and placed a muscular hand on his shoulder, gripping him perhaps a little too desperately. Ibrahim winced. “You can go and verify it for yourself if you don’t believe us—Derek is likely back at our apartment now. You can go and see him.”

Corrine reached up and kissed him. “You didn’t really think I’d cheat on you, did you, honey?”

Ibrahim’s fists loosened. He stared at the two of us, bewildered. “What the hell are you two girls up to?”

Corrine and I eyed each other and burst out laughing.

“Good question,” she said. “One that has no simple answer. I’ll tell you as soon as Sofia’s out of here. We don’t have time to waste. Oh, she needs to borrow some of your clothes, by the way.”

Ibrahim watched in bemusement as Corrine whipped around the room, rummaging in drawers and cupboards, finding suitable clothes for me to wear. In the meantime, I walked over to the full-length mirror in the corner of the room.

I couldn’t help but grin as I caught sight of Derek’s reflection in the mirror, that cute boyish grin I loved so much. I flexed Derek’s biceps. I stroked his jawline. I ran both hands through his thick hair. I frowned, glared and bared his fangs.

Hm. So this is what it’s like to be Derek Novak.

“Finished?”

I turned to face Corrine, who was looking at me in amusement.

I chuckled. “Yes.”

Ibrahim was shorter and less bulky than Derek, but it was nothing Corrine couldn’t handle quickly. She took Derek’s measurements, then lengthened the trousers and widened the shirt until the clothes fit Derek’s physique perfectly.

Corrine handed me the clothes. Still holding the sheet around Derek’s body, I took them with one hand.

“I don’t need help getting dressed this time. I can handle my husband…”

Chapter 7: Caleb

I’d been desperately trying to forget the princess. But Annora’s revelation had planted her right back in my mind again. And no matter what I did, I couldn’t get rid of her.

I have information that could save Rose from the pain of losing her parents, yet I’m choosing to sit here and do nothing.

I couldn’t stop thinking about what she’d think of me if she ever found out. Even though the thought was nonsensical—Rose would have no way of finding out—I couldn’t stop the guilt clawing at my chest. It scared me. It wasn’t even Rose’s life at risk here. It was her parents’. Can I really have fallen that hard for her?

I tried to shake myself to my senses. There was no way I could risk meeting her to warn her. I’d gone out of my way to be as cold with her as possible the last time I saw her. She might have even moved on from me by now. Saving her parents would only strengthen her attachment for me again. Something that would ultimately be fatal.

Unless there’s a way I could send a warning without her ever knowing that it was me…

I stalked onto the balcony, staring out at the ocean as I racked my brain.

Then it hit me.

Mona. A witch I desperately want to speak to anyway. What if there’s a way to contact her, make her swear confidentiality, get the information I want from her concerning Annora, while also warning her about Rose’s parents?

I began pacing my room furiously as a plan formulated in my mind. I had no idea how many days had passed since Annora had cast the spell on them. If I was going to go through with this, I had not a second to lose.

Even though my plan was reckless and downright insane, something told me that if I wanted to ever find a semblance of peace within myself again, I had no choice but to at least attempt it.

Since Annora had failed to gain entrance to The Shade and we were almost out of humans, we were due to leave late the next evening to collect more humans.