Chapter 24 Act of Treason #2
With a hiss of frustration, I pushed him out of the room. As his footsteps faded down the hallway, I headed for my bedroom, the demon token burning in my pocket, a reminder of what was at stake.
Eluned, you impulsive fool, I thought, closing my eyes briefly. What have you done?
#
Before I could strategize, I needed to know if my sister was still alive. The question gnawed at me, a distraction I couldn’t afford while trying to formulate a plan.
The moment Eluned stepped foot on that estate, her life was forfeit. The only question was, how long before it ended.
Good thing I’d thought to palm Mother’s silver mirror while we were in her office.
Mother had acquired it from a Russian witch who specialized in divination tools.
I hesitated before opening it, my reflection wavering in its polished exterior.
It was easily the most powerful scrying tool in Mother’s collection, which gave me a sliver of hope that it might pierce through Evermere’s defenses, but it had cracked when we used it to watch the hawk hex’s attack on Serafina.
It was dangerous to use a broken mirror for scrying.
“I don’t have a choice,” I told myself at last and opened it, only to find Mother had repaired it. “Hmm. What did she scry for?”
Mother liked her secrets. Always had, always would. She never fully revealed her plans to anyone, although I liked to believe she trusted me more than Eluned. With good reason, as proven by my sister’s current escapade.
As I’d hinted to Foster, this was far from the first time I’d had to clean up after one of my twin’s messes, but it was certainly the most dangerous.
Mother’s wrath was not to be taken lightly, and I had no illusions about who would bear the brunt of it when she returned to find one daughter missing.
After all, I was supposed to be the responsible one.
The planner. The one who kept Eluned’s mayhem in check.
I stared at my own face in the mirror. High cheekbones, sharp brown eyes, full lips. We looked so alike, my sister and I, but where I wore my hair smooth and controlled, she preferred hers wild and untamed. A fitting metaphor for our personalities, I’d always thought.
I closed my eyes, centering myself. Anger wouldn’t help me scry. I needed focus, precision. Drawing a deep breath, I passed my hand over the mirror’s surface and murmured the incantation Mother had taught us years ago.
The mirror’s surface rippled like disturbed water, then began to cloud with swirling gray mist. I leaned closer, holding my breath as I waited for the fog to clear and show me Eluned.
But the mist didn’t clear. It churned and roiled, occasionally thinning enough to give the impression of a form or shadow, but never solidifying into a true image. After several minutes of this frustrating almost-revelation, the mist began to dissipate, leaving only my own reflection once more.
Nothing.
I stared at the mirror in disbelief, then tried again, this time with more power, feeding my own energy into it.
Again, the mirror clouded. Again, the mist swirled without forming an image. Again, I was left staring at my own frustrated face.
I slammed my palm onto the desk, causing my shelf of potions to rattle precariously. Either the wards of her prison were too powerful to penetrate or…
Eluned really is dead.
A pang that went through me at the thought; we’d been so at odds lately in how we wanted to achieve our goals, but she was my twin.
We’d been made together, brought into this world together, and spent the last eighteen years being two halves of a whole, my sharp intellect and her tumultuous fire balancing each other.
And now, because of her stupid impulsivity, she might be dead, and there was nothing I could do about that, regardless of how I feared Mother’s fury.
No, I told myself. She’s not dead. Those damn dhampirs’ wards are simply too great for scrying. Dammit!
There was no choice now. Foster was right. I would need to go to Evermere myself.
I glanced at the clock.
Thirty-four hours left to figure out how.
If you’re not dead when I get there, El, I might be tempted to do the job myself and save the Cimmerians the trouble!
#
I arrived at Ondine Filcher’s shoreline cottage as dawn broke over Lake Erie, the water’s surface a mirror of pink and gold that made my stomach clench with revulsion.
Every ripple, every lap of wave against the rocky shore sent a chill down my spine that had nothing to do with the early morning air.
I hated water, its unpredictability, its smothering embrace, the way it seemed to whisper of drowning with each soft splash. But I needed Ondine, needed her connections and her magic if I had any hope of finding Eluned before Mother returned.
The old water witch opened her door before I could knock, her gnarled fingers wrapped around the frame like twisted roots.
Time had not been kind to Ondine; her skin hung in loose folds from her jaw, and her spine curved like a question mark beneath her black dress.
Her eyes, too-large and the color of lake foam, remained sharp and knowing, though.
“Back again so soon, Harrow girl?” she croaked, voice like pebbles shifting underwater. “Your mother won’t be pleased, although I daresay she might be impressed you survived to return.”
She thought I was Eluned.
“Mother doesn’t need to know.” I lifted my chin.
“Arabesque always knows.” Ondine’s laugh rattled in her chest. “That’s what makes her so dangerous.” She shuffled aside, gesturing me in with a bony hand. “Come. The water tells me you’re in a hurry.”
Her cottage smelled of algae and old books, a combination that made my nose wrinkle as I stepped over the threshold.
Sunlight streamed through cloudy windows, catching dust motes and highlighting the chaotic collection of bottles, jars, and oddities that covered every surface.
In the center of the main room stood a shallow stone basin filled with water so still, it might have been glass.
“I need two items to come along.” I refused to sit when Ondine gestured to a rickety chair. “A demon token and a scrying mirror.”
“Demanding, just like your mother.” Ondine’s lips pulled back in what might have been a smile, revealing teeth worn down to yellow nubs. “But at least Arabesque knows how to ask properly.”
I swallowed my pride, knowing I couldn’t afford to alienate the old witch.
“A favor, to be collected at your leisure and within my power to grant,” I managed, the word tasting bitter on my tongue.
Satisfaction gleamed in those uncanny eyes as Ondine nodded.
“Water remembers and water connects. You could travel anywhere there’s a water source, if you weren’t so afraid. Not much water witch in your bloodline, is there?”
“I’m an air witch,” I replied stiffly. “Like my mother.”
“Well, regardless, I advise you to scry before you leave. You may not have time once you arrive.”
I nodded as I pulled out Mother’s mirror. My first attempt to scry for Eluned yesterday had failed. Either she was shielded or… I pushed away the thought that she might already be dead. Instead, I focused on Serafina.
The surface rippled like disturbed water, making me step back involuntarily.
Then it cleared, revealing the driveway that curved in front of Evermere.
And there she was. Serafina, walking with a smile, her honey-gold hair catching the morning light.
Three men flanked her like devoted sentinels.
Her husbands, the Cimmerians. The blond walked slightly ahead, broad-shouldered with long hair pulled back; the dark one stayed close to her side, golden-skinned and alert; the redhead brought up the rear, his gaze constantly scanning their surroundings.
All three moved with the fluid grace characteristic of predators.
And padding alongside Serafina, pressing against her leg at every opportunity, was that pathetic, malformed dire wolf Mother had purchased for her experiments. The creature’s devotion to Serafina made my lip curl in disgust.
“Found what you’re looking for?” Ondine asked, suddenly at my shoulder.
“Yes,” I said, watching as Serafina and her entourage climbed into a giant SUV. “They’re leaving. This is perfect.”
“For what, exactly?”
I didn’t answer. Let the old witch wonder. All that mattered was that Serafina and her protectors were away from Evermere, which meant I could enter their home unhindered in my search for Eluned.
“You’re Amabel, ain’t you? Thought you was the other one at first.” Ondine chuckled. “Seems your sister made quite a mess, if you’re here to pull her out of it. Arabesque won’t forgive that kind of failure, little lamb. On Eluned’s side or yours.”
“Eluned was careless,” I snapped as anger flared in my chest. “I told her to wait, but she has no patience.”
“Twins often compete. One always seeking to outshine the other.”
I turned away, unwilling to discuss my relationship with Eluned. Yes, my sister had been reckless, but she was still my twin, still half of me in ways no one else could understand. I couldn’t leave her to the mercy of the Cimmerians.
Or allow her to blab to them.
“I need to go to Evermere,” I said, pocketing the scrying mirror. “Now, while they’re away.”
“Through the water, I assume?” Ondine’s eyes narrowed. “Easy enough.”
“Is there no other way?” My stomach lurched at the thought.
“Not if you want to arrive undetected. Don’t be such a scaredy cat. The water will carry you there in minutes.”
I closed my eyes briefly, gathering my resolve.
The thought of that suffocating journey made my skin crawl, but I had no choice.
Mother would return from her witches’ conference in Chicago tonight, and if she discovered both Eluned’s capture and my unauthorized rescue attempt, her punishment would be severe.
“Fine,” I said, opening my eyes. “But I won’t enjoy it.”
“No one asks us to enjoy anything, child. Only to endure.”