“Catherine?” The words so softly spoken like a spell, seeped into her cocoon of protection. “You’re safe now; there’s nothing to fear,” she said.
Mrs. Rosewood hovered at the edge of her bed with a compassionate smile. So many times locked in that tiny dark room, she’d wished for someone to come and rescue her. She cried for the small folk to take her to Faery, for Mama and Papa to forgive her for being born wrong. But no one came. They never came.
Mrs. Rosewood took a seat on the edge of the bed, giving her plenty of space. But close enough that a hint of her lilac perfume wafted toward Catherine. It felt warm and comforting, and it tugged at a memory she couldn’t quite place.
“Catherine, if you need someone to confide in, you can trust me. I’m sure coming to a new strange place can be scary.”
How desperate she was to unburden herself onto Mrs. Rosewood in that moment. But Dr. Armstrong had been the same at first. Kind smile, gentle words until he changed. As kind and as compassionate as Mrs. Rosewood might seem, Catherine couldn’t share this secret. She would do as she always had and pretend it hadn’t happened at all.
7
Someone had removed the body. No. More than that, they’d erased all traces of it. Ray ran his hand through his hair, scratching his scalp as he studied the stone wall that lined the roadway. She’d been lying just there. You didn’t see a body mutilated and easily forget. But not a drop of blood remained, nor a bent blade of grass or gore-soaked earth, which had been here prior. He’d walked between Thornwood Abbey to the Fairy Bride half a dozen times now and couldn’t catch even the faintest scent of tainted magic. Only the sour stench of vomit where Lady Thornton had retched. It should have been a relief that someone had done his work for him. But this was too tidy.
A shadow darted through the trees beyond the wall. The forest encircled the village. Caught in an endless battle with humanity to tame it, the forest continued to push back. Roots crumbled walls, clumps of grass grew along the roadways, and heavy limbs draped over roofs and scattered fallen leaves into their yards. There were plenty of places to hide. Mist swirled about the trunks, and the branches of oak and ash swayed gently in the breeze. Whoever had done this, they’d done well to cover their tracks. Ray was the only loose end left to tie up.
He squatted down and reached for the bone dagger strapped to his ankle. The weight of a weapon in his hand was a comforting reassurance. If only it weren’t just before the full moon, when he was at his weakest. He stood and turned slowly in a circle, eyes scanning. A twig snapped, and he pivoted toward it, readjusting the grip on the handle. Shadows greeted him. He crept closer to the woods. Blood magics were forbidden. Any caught practicing were severely punished, but few had the power to cover their kills. If he captured one that strong, it could be the bargaining chip he needed to leverage against the counsel.
The owl screeched as it burst from behind the mist. Ray swung his blade as it swooped overhead and landed on a nearby branch. He turned toward it, bone dagger poised.
“So it was you then,” Ray said.He should have known when he caught her following him earlier.
It tilted its head to the side as it examined him with liquid golden eyes.
“Did you think hunting here would go unnoticed?” Ray lunged for the owl, but before he could strike, it took to the air and landed on a higher branch on a tree behind him.
“Is your rude tongue the reason you were exiled?” the owl responded. Her voice was that of a young woman, though many of his kind used different voices to trick their prey.
It knew him. That was unexpected, but mattered not. Whatever true form she might be, he would bind her and deliver her to the counsel. At the very least, they might take a few centuries off his punishment for capturing a practitioner of forbidden magics. Both courts low and high, had tried to snuff out the practice.
“You’re quick to pass judgment when you are the one who has broken the accords.” Ray’s gaze shifted around him. She had the high ground. If only he could lure her down to him somehow.
She clicked her beak, and a sound akin to a laugh escaped her. “You should be thanking me for cleaning up this mess rather than making accusations. What would you have done when the humans found the body?”
He forced a laugh. “Do you really expect me to believe that you didn’t kill that girl? Who else could it have been? There are no other fae in the human realm. Believe me, I would know.”
The fae could disguise their true faces from humans and, to an extent, glamour themselves from one another. But there were always tells, subtle clues that gave them away. Not since the druids and ancient bone witches of centuries gone by had there been any use of the old magics in the human realm, which meant it had to be another fae.
“I don’t know who killed those girls, only that I was ordered to clean up the mess.” She stretched a wing and shifted from foot to foot. She tilted her head from side to side as she spoke in a parody of a stretch. “It’s hard to get out the taint of abhorrent magic. We’re fortunate it didn’t leave an indelible mark upon the earth.”
Either she was telling the truth, or she thought him an enormous fool. He wasn’t certain anymore. “Why would you do that then, if it’s so much trouble?”
She fixed him with her golden gaze. “Because the High Chancellor ordered me to do so. I believe his exact words were, ‘Follow him and make sure he doesn’t bring shame upon my name.’” She lowered her voice in a mockery of Father’s.
Father was having him watched? And worse, he thought he’d bring further shame to him? When Father had exiled him, he had made it clear he wanted nothing more to do with him. How long had he been spied upon unawares? Ray had grown too complacent. The owl might not be the only one watching, if he knew Father.
“What makes him think I did this?” Ray asked.
She ruffled her feathers. “That’s not the question you should be asking. You should be asking who did do it.”
He shook his head. “This is none of my business. Thanks for taking care of the mess.” He waved and turned to stride away. She swooped down onto the wall in front of him.
“It is true that I have seen you commit no crimes. But do you think your father’s enemies will believe that? When they can use you to tear him down?”
Ray clenched his jaw. It shouldn’t have mattered. Father had quickly covered up the mess. But he had a sinking feeling that this wasn’t over, merely the beginning. Blood magic was old, as ancient as the great tree. These rituals were not taken on lightly. A single rite created a craving in the caster. As the hunger grew, they would kill again and again, never sated until it consumed them. Twice. Two women. And the first woman had pointed her finger at him. He thought it a coincidence, but if Father had sent someone to cover up the second. It could be no mere coincidence. There was no choice then. He had to find the killer before they struck again.
“Your father would see you,” the owl said gravely.
Now wasn’t today full of surprises. The owl swooped toward the forest. Ray hesitated to follow. Father would never lower himself as to leave Faery and enter the human realm, but he had been exiled on pain of death if he were to return. The mist swirled where the owl had passed through.
