69. Sixty-Nine - A Sister’s Disapproval
Sixty-Nine - A Sister’s Disapproval
Viggo
Dorrian opens to Kirra’s home again. This time, he doesn’t object to my visit.
Since Ana said yes, he’s been in the best of moods.
I find Kirra in one of the two rooms she uses. The rest of the house might as well not exist.
There is a fire burning in the hearth and it casts ominous shadows behind her owls.
“I’ve come to tell you the good news,” I say when she acknowledges my presence.
She sets her glass down beside her and looks up at me with trepidation.
But she doesn’t ask.
“Ana has agreed to marry us.”
“Iggy,” She says it the way she scolded me when I was a child.
It evokes memories of her squatting down to my level, meeting my eyes and explaining something in soft terms that I didn’t know yet.
“You cannot marry her.” She sighs and a dark teardrop forms at the corner of her eye.
Unlike those times, I already know her reasoning and this time, I’ve already rejected them.
“It’s a little late to change my mind.”
Her scowl turns to outright fear. “You’ve already gone before the Goddess?”
“No, but we’ve asked, she’s agreed. The ring is on her finger.”
“You have to take the ring back,” she says.
“I’m not going to do that Kirra.” I take a deep breath, and this time, I’m the one, squatting down to look her in the eyes. “I came here to tell you our happy news. If you cannot be happy with us—”
She shakes her head, so violently, tendrils of hair escape her bun. “If you won’t take the ring back, you’re going to force my hand.”
“What does that mean?”
She doesn’t answer me. Instead, she looks at me with a sadness that only gives me more questions.
“Kirra. What does that mean?”
“I will make the Queen forbid it.”
Somehow, I manage not to laugh. Of all the favors she has asked of the Queen, I cannot imagine her doing this for my sister. I cannot believe she would be that cruel. Even if cruelty is what Kirra hopes to avoid in stopping us.
“I know you’re afraid, but we will figure it out when the time comes.”
Kirra doesn’t look at me again, her face turned to the fire, she takes a long and deep breath and she grips the arms of her chair. “There is a spell on her. I felt it when I was there and assumed it was Penny’s magic, but the longer I’ve been away from it... there was a familiar taste to it. Something older than Penny has any access to.”
I don’t tell her she’s imagining things. “You think I’m bewitched?”
“No. I don’t know what the spell is, but I think if she was bewitching all of you, it would have touched me as well…” She takes another breath. “Something is wrong with her.”
“Nothing is wrong with her. You are scared.”
Her eyes are bright with firelight and I stay with her only long enough to be sure she has nothing left to say to me.
I pause when I reach the door Dorrian has connected to and look back into the dark home that no longer feels lived in.
Maybe something is wrong, but not with Ana.
Penny is in the study when I find him.
“She was not happy.”
“I wish I could say I am surprised.” He seals the letter in front of him and looks up from the wax. “I imagine she reacted better than my father will when he receives this. At least my mother’s was easy to write.”
Of course it was. Moia will love Ana if they ever meet.
Penny hands his letter off to Blicks and I take his hand, holding it tight to my lips.
“She thinks Ana’s spelled by someone other than you.”
“I haven’t felt that.”
“No... but she is far older than either of us. And she’s seen decidedly more magic than we have, in her service to the Queen.”
Even before he speaks, I can tell he doesn’t believe it. “I suppose that is a possible problem we will deal with as we come to it.”
“And maybe she simply said it to keep us from going through with it.” I grimace and glance toward Dorrian, even though he has long since disconnected from her home. “It would not be the first time she’s lied to me, trying to keep me safe.”