Noah stood in the kitchen with Zoe, fingers drumming the laminate like he was trying to find a steady beat in the middle of chaos. The kettle clicked off somewhere behind them, steam curling from a forgotten mug, but the noise didn't reach him, his world had narrowed to the wide, tired eyes of the woman in front of him.

"Look," he said finally, voice raw. "Everything's been... too much. I mean, witches? Ashen Kin? Cults? Vampires? I keep thinking maybe you guys are all pranking me. Is Chloe a ...