“Only legends.”
The lines around Laurenz’s eyes deepened with a weariness that spoke of the weight of centuries-old secrets. “Did you know he had an apprentice?”
A stunned hush befell them, the silence broken by the orchestra.
Evander’s mouth went dry. “An apprentice?”
“Yes.” Laurenz laced his fingers together on his lap. “According to the man, when the First Archmage created the Codex, he had an apprentice at his side. He believed he was preserving wisdom for future generations.” His expression grew haunted. “But power corrupts, Duke Ravenwood. Even the greatest among us are not immune. The apprentice stole the Codex and attempted to use it to amplify his abilities beyondtheir natural limits. He sought to become something more than human. Something greater than his master.” Laurenz’s voice dropped. “He lost control and his magic erupted, causing a cataclysm that destroyed an entire valley. Thousands died in an instant—frozen solid where they stood.”
Ice spread through Evander’s veins. The parallel to Ophelia’s vision was impossible to ignore. London, frozen. Bodies in the streets, encased in ice. And he likely the cause of it all.
“Evander?” Viggo’s voice came from very far away.
Evander realised his hands were trembling. He clasped them together, willing himself to composure.
“What happened to the apprentice?” he managed.
“He survived, barely. The First Archmage saved him. But he was horrified by what his apprentice had done.” Laurenz ran a hand through his hair, disturbing his coiffure. “He understood then that the Codex was too dangerous to exist in complete form. So he divided it into seven fragments and scattered them across the known world, each piece entrusted to a different guardian. He spent the remainder of his life ensuring that no one would ever be able to reassemble it.”
“Until now,” Fairbridge said quietly.
Laurenz inclined his head. “Until now. Winchester demanded I surrenderDas Blutbuch. When I refused, he threatened my children.” His jaw tightened. “I and my family would die before we let that knowledge fall into the hands of such men.”
“Where is the fragment now?” Evander asked, blood thundering in his veins.
Below them, the opera had begun in earnest, soprano voices soaring through the auditorium.
“I no longer have it,” Laurenz admitted.
Evander recoiled, shock reverberating through him.
“What?” Viggo mumbled, equally stunned.
“Decades ago, when the threats first began—subtle then, mere whispers and break-ins—my father made a decision. He gaveDas Blutbuchto a religious order for safekeeping. Monks who have guarded arcane secrets for centuries and who live in isolation in the Alps.”
Evander’s chest tightened. “Which monastery?”
“St. Aegidius.” Laurenz’s voice was barely audible above the music. “It sits on a cliff face above a lake, in the Austrian Alps. It is accessible by a narrow mountain path. My father believed it would be safe there, far from the reach of those who sought it.”
Evander exchanged a stiff glance with Viggo and the others. They had a location. After weeks of chasing shadows across Europe, they finally had somewhere concrete to search.
“We’ll need to—” Evander began.
A disturbance in the auditorium halted his words. The singers and the music had stumbled to a stop. Murmurs broke out below them.
Laurenz frowned and rose. Evander and the others followed him to the curtains. He parted them just as a scream reached them. Laurenz flinched and froze.
Goosebumps exploded across Evander’s skin as a familiar coldness leeched all the warmth from their surroundings and a revolting stench filled his nostrils.
“Dark mages,” Viggo spat as more screams filled the opera house.
Richter cursed.
The assembled patrons were scattering below, many falling in their panicked rush toward the exits. The singers and actors were deserting the stage and the orchestra pit was fast emptying.
Evander spotted dark mages emerging from corrupt shadows on the ground floor and in several boxes. Their gazes landed on him as one, darkness flaring at their fingertips. Instinct had him moving.
He yanked Laurenz back and engaged his magic.
