She stepped away to gather a few more items, and I was happy to see a knot of amethyst crystals join the other stones.
“Hold this.” She placed a small bundle of wood shavings tied together with twine in one of my hands. “Finger?” I held my empty hand out, and she pricked my index finger with a needle I hadn’t even seen, squeezing a drop of my blood into a tiny cauldron near the edge of the table. She tossed a glance at Tap as I sucked the sting away and tsked again. “I’m almost disappointed. You really are the most even-tempered of the bunch, even all wound up, aren’t you?” He just frowned at her and crossed his arms. Ophelia chuffed, a smile on her mouth as she lit the tiny, low candle under the cauldron. She sprinkled some salt, some paper shavings and a bit of the wood from my bundle into it, then handed me a bell.
“Ring that.” I shook the little instrument, but it just clanked hollowly. “Losing my touch,” she muttered, moving things around the table with haste as acrid gray smoke started to rise. “Try again?”
“Sorry,” I apologized when the same thing happened a second time.
“No, no. It’s not you. Something’s wrong.” She grew pensive. “Are you wearing any stones?”
I nodded, pulling my necklace out from under my shirt and flashing her the bracelet Rylan had made for me. “Just these.”
She shook her head and opened the stained glass window a little to let the smelly smoke out. “No, that’s not it, though I’d like a better look at that necklace. Anything else?”
I dug my vial of tincture out of my pocket. “Just this.”
Ophelia took the bottle from me and pulled up the cork, giving the contents a thorough sniff. Pensive, she ran her finger around the edge of the top where the cork sat and tasted it. Her face screwed up into a grimace. I could relate, the potent, bitter flavor had never been enjoyable, and it always burned as it went down. I stood there stunned as she upended the vial into the cauldron. The scant remaining drops of my daily treatment were gone, just like that.
“No!” I gasped.
After a moment’s consideration, she added the glass bottle too. Despite the fact that the tiny cauldron was only heated by a single candle, the vial shattered and crumbled, the vessel belching plumes of acrid gray smoke as the contents burned.
“Trust me, it’s for the best. Ring the bell?”
I couldn’t respond to her request over my panic. Ophelia reached over and shook my arm, and the bell rang clearly, the sound piercing. My heart immediately started to gallop, and my fingertips went numb. Horrified it was happening at such a time, I struggled to stay upright as the smoke in the cauldron shifted to a strange pale yellow shade and started to take a defined shape.
Tap was suddenly there, a steady presence behind me, his arm around my body for support as I sagged. My blinks were heavy as I fought my body’s attempts to shut down. This was too important to miss because of a silly freezing episode.
There, in the smoke, were the smiling faces of my parents.
Chapter 26
Phin
Icouldn’t speak, and my ears felt clogged, the tone of the bell resounding in my head even though it had been taken from me and placed back on the table.
The yellow smoke had formed a portrait of them, and they looked so detailed, so real it brought tears to my eyes. It had to be some kind of illusion, but they appeared to be actively looking at me, smiling at me. My mother even raised a hand and blew me a kiss, the same way she’d done since I was a child. If ever we locked eyes from across the room, or out the window of our house while I was playing in the yard, that’s what she did. I hiccupped a sob, and my father’s expression changed, sadness tugging at his eyes. His head tilted to the side, his cheek resting against my mother’s curls.
My strength returned enough that I was able to reach a hand toward the smoke just before it dissipated.
“Does that mean they’re alive? That they’re okay?” The tears had made my voice even rougher than it usually was.
“I can’t know for certain, but I’d like to think so.” Ophelia took the bundle from me. “Your father. May I ask his name?”
“Radueriel.”
“The poet?” she laughed. “Terra always did have a soft heart.”
The words felt like a compliment, and when she saw my smile, she patted my shoulder.
Tap’s grip loosened when it was clear my body my own once again. He hesitated but dropped his arms completely after a moment.
Ophelia looked over my head at Tap, her eyebrow raised. “Tell me again why you want to break your bond?”
He sighed. “It’s complicated, Ophelia.”
“It doesn’t have to be, demon. You’re just stuck in your head, like usual.” He sighed, and she tossed her hands up, leaving us standing there as she stalked into the kitchen. She returned in short order with a sliced loaf of bread and fresh pot of tea. She settled into her seat with a steaming cup and waited for us to serve ourselves. “Tell me, then. Your long stories. Let’s see if I can help you uncomplicate them.”
“Where would you like us to start?” Tap asked, picking at his bread.
