With a quick touch from Cynthia’s index finger, the skirt was once again its offending red hue.
We were both so caught up in the doll that neither of us heard the door open. “I am so gonna tell Mom and Dad. You’re gonna be in so much trouble.” Caitlin stormed into the room and snatched the doll away from Cynthia. “You better just be glad you weren’t messing with stuff in my room.” With a sneer, she turned and stomped back out into the hall.
Tears now flowing freely, I rushed after Cynthia as she followed our older sister, who was already making her way down the stairs. “Cate! Wait, please! I was already changing her back to red. Give her to me and let me finish. I can put her back, and Christina doesn’t even have to know. The doll’s not hurt or anything.”
As soon as Caitlin whirled around, I knew we were lost. Realizing her mistake, Cynthia clamped her mouth closed with her hand.
“Why should you be the one to change her back?” Caitlin took two steps up the stairs, returning to glare at Cynthia, who was already as tall as she was.
Taking a step back, Cynthia looked down at the floor. “I didn’t mean it like that. You can change her. I only meant we don’t need to get Finn in trouble. We can fix it.”
Caitlin glanced back and forth between the two of us and the doll, an internal war raging between the desire to get me into trouble and to prove to her younger siblings she was just as good with her powers as they were.
After several seconds, a grin broke across her face. “Fine. I’ll fix the stupid doll, but I’m telling Mom and Dad. They left me in charge, and it’s my responsibility to make sure you guys follow the rules.”
Neither of us said anything, knowing nothing would be gained from arguing with Caitlin.
My sisters’ forms blurred as my tears increased.
Catlin’s cast was slurred, and her eyes were shut so tightly she didn’t see what her spell was doing until Cynthia let out a terrified cry.
Catlin looked at the doll, horror-struck. Her expression quickly shifted from fear to anger, and she rounded on Cynthia and me. “This is all your fault. I can’t even concentrate with you two whining and crying.” She threw the doll on the ground, whipped around, and rushed down the stairs. I was fairly certain she too was wiping tears from her face. “Wait till I tell Mom and Dad!”
Cynthia and I just stood over the doll, its melted legs already hardening into the carpet.
My heart plummeted into my stomach, and I stretched out my hand to slip into Cynthia’s. “Can you fix it?”
“No. I don’t know how.”
Cynthia tried to take the blame when Christina got home with our parents, which caused her to get into even more trouble for lying.
While she wasn’t thrilled I’d snuck into her room, Christina was so excited about the possibility of having her license soon that she didn’t care about the doll.
Mom, on the other hand, came unglued. Yelling, she promised a month’s grounding for all three of us—even though she’d both fixed the doll and the carpet in a matter of seconds.
It was Dad who noticed the lime green and how Cynthia stood protectively in front of me while Mom lectured about responsibility and honesty. Later, when all the commotion calmed down, he took me for a ride in the van to have a little man-to-man chat. In no uncertain terms, he informed me that, even though I was the youngest, it was my job to stand up and protect my sisters. That he expected more from me than standing by while Cynthia tried to take the blame for me. He also told me that if I wanted dolls of my own, all I needed to do was ask.
I pressedmy hand against the glass, just like I did every time I stood in front of the window. Like every time before, Cynthia turned and looked directly at me. Then her gaze slid away, once again confirming she knew someone was there, but not who. I wasn’t sure what she saw on her side of the glass. Maybe it was a one-way mirror. Maybe the window was charmed to look like the rest of the stone walls inside the room. I’d tried pounding on the glass, screaming, and every spell or incantation I could think of. The only thing that got a reaction at all was pressing my hand against the surface and focusing all my energy toward her. Only then did she respond, but never enough to let me know if she knew it was me or not.
The first few times she smiled when she turned toward me, and I was certain she knew it was me. That had been weeks ago. Now all she did was jerk in surprise like she’d been startled, look toward me, then return to whatever she was doing.
Her prison was dazzling, just like the rest of the Vampire Cathedral. If it were larger, I would have assumed it was Gwala’s chamber. As with everything else in the Cathedral, each aspect in the room seemed formed solely from the mountain itself. The only thing that wasn’t organically hewn from the stone was the mattress, pillows, sheets, and the gossamer that hung from the boughs of the canopy bed. However, even the bed seemed to rise out of the rock itself, swirling and twisting like the gnarled branches of a tree. At first, the bed had reminded me so much of the willow on the cliff that I felt a bit at home—as if Cynthia had the nymphs with her. As time passed, such fantasies left a bitter taste. Surely the nymphs had had some idea of our fate. The thought of Jordskote bringing forth the irises to honor the impact of my relationship with Brett had helped give me the strength to move on. Now I couldn’t help but feel anger at the memory. Had she known what was in store for us then? Had she felt it worth healing my heart but not protecting my sister and me from the Royals?
I had yet to see Cynthia in any other position than sitting on the bed or pacing around the room. One entire wall was a curving bookcase, filled with hundreds of gilded volumes.
Sofas and small tables were spread throughout the space, each rising seamlessly from the stone. The sconces that flickered on the walls were gold and silver, mixed with precious gems, as were most I’d seen throughout the Cathedral. For as much as vampires were supposedly terrified of fire, I would have thought they’d have sprung for electrical wiring a century or so before.
Beside the bed, on a three-foot twisting silver-and-bronze pedestal that rose from the ground, was a huge glass ball. I couldn’t tell from the distance, but it seemed filled with jellyfish whirling around endlessly. Toward the left, I could see another room through a doorway, which I assumed was a bathroom. Probably as lavish and golden as everything else.
Cynthia was surrounded by more riches and luxury than she’d ever known. Even the clothes they’d dressed her in reeked of expense. She looked healthy and well taken care of. In her golden prison, with her glistening gown and long mahogany hair, she looked every inch a fairy-tale princess. And every inch as trapped as Rapunzel in her tower.
I came and watched over her several times a day, as often as I could when I wasn’t with Omar or Gwala. I’d begged countless times for the king to let me speak to her. I didn’t even need to have a long conversation. I just needed to let her know I was here. That she wasn’t alone.
It was always the same thing: “Once you’ve earned Omar’s approval of your magical capabilities, we will discuss it.” It was the carrot he dangled. Not that he’d set her free or let her even roam about the Cathedral as I did, but that he’d let me speak to her. That was it. And I couldn’t even pull that off.
No way was Omar ever going to give his approval. The asshole hadn’t said two words to me that weren’t insults our entire time together. Schwint was the one who was helping me with my magic. We figured if I didn’t improve, Gwala would begin to threaten Cynthia’s life. I had to give it to the vampire king, no threat would have been as motivating as using my family against me. I was certain it was only a matter of time before Schwint became such a pawn as well.
I’d already strengthened my power more than I would have ever dreamed possible. I’d never seen any other witch do what I could do. I was literally creating things from thin air. Granted, I’d figured out how to gather particles that were in the air, so it wasn’t technically from nothing, but still.
