Three
Emmy
Willa was laying on a bed surrounded by the Abcurse brothers. She was unconscious, her cheeks ashen, her breathing shallow. The Abcurses were all awake, looking as though they hadn’t slept in a long time. She didn’t look ‘fine’—despite everyone telling me that she was. I edged toward her, but Pica slapped her hands down onto my shoulders, pulling me back.
“Oh, youmustlet the little Beta rest!” she exclaimed, shaking me just a little. “She’s been through so much to get here, and she has so much healing to do. I’m sure you understand, having gone through the transition yourself only recently.”
Pica released me enough to hold me out at arm’s length, her bright eyes sweeping down my front, lingering on the strange, shifting colours of my robe.
“But Willa already—” I started, turning back to look at my sister’s body, before Coen caught my attention.
He was shaking his head. I glanced at the others: they all wore the same expression.
Don’t bother arguing.
Apparently, Pica was a little unhinged.
“But I’m fine,” I said instead, holding out my arms, before pointing back at Willa. “Why isn’t she fine?”
“My little Willy is special.” Pica drew back suddenly, almost in a scurry.
I blinked as Cyrus stepped around her, releasing the back of her robes—after clearly having yanked her away from me.
“Sorry,” he exclaimed, sounding about as repentant as a person who had just gotten exactly what he wanted. “You were about to step on a bug.” He positioned himself in front of me as Pica tried to regain her balance.
“A bug?” She jumped back another step, looking horrified, her eyes riveted to the ground.
“A very precious, very pretty, verylovelybug,” Cyrus confirmed. “I think it had a tear in its little bug eye.”
“Oh no!” Pica dropped to the ground, her palms flattening, her eyes still searching. She looked absolutely distraught.
“Oh yes,” Cyrus returned gravely, before glancing over his shoulder at me. He lowered his voice to almost a whisper, so that I had to lean in closer to hear him. “Can we leave now?”
I frowned, shaking my head. Pica didn’t scare me.
“Willa will be okay,” a voice spoke from the bed, forcing us all to turn that way. Pica straightened again. Yael had been the one to speak, his words ringing with the persuasive tenor of his gift, making me want to believe him before I’d even managed to decide anything for myself.
“How do you know?” I asked, swallowing past the sudden lump in my throat.
“We can feel her,” Yael replied, glancing down at Willa—he was to her left, with Siret on her right. His hand was resting across her lap, fingers possessively gripping her waist. Her head was resting against Siret’s shoulder, her body half-propped against his chest.
“This is my fault,” I whispered, watching the shallow breaths catch in the rise and fall of her chest. “She turned me into ...” I held my arms out, displaying the robes ... “This. And look at what it did to her.”
“She’s special.” Pica almost sang the words, her tone holding so much joy. “Rau, my love, made her this way. He would have been so proud of her. Of our girl. She’s so special. She’s our little creation!”
I blinked several times, trying to comprehend what the crazy god-lady was saying. Coen was shaking his head again, and they were all wearing that same expression again.
Don’t fight it.
“Is she safe here?” I asked, directing the question toward the Abcurses.
They all nodded, but Aros was the one to answer, his expression solemn.
“This is the safest place for her right now. Staviti may have declared war on Willa, but he wouldn’t dare declare war on Pica.”
“He is in love with me,” Pica confirmed. “He always will be. To him, I am the meaning of love. His first dream and his dying wish. He cannot deny me this: my very own, special little Willy.”
I was going to gag. I think one of the Abcurse brothershadgagged. I shook my head, but managed to bite my lip to smother any sort of reply.
