The air in my lungs turned heavy, and I dangled the chain on my finger, watching the way the firelight illuminated the etchings. “Are you sure it’s mine?” While I had no memory of the stone, it did have a familiar weight.
“Absolutely. Some might mistake me for an old woman, but believe me when I say I’m in my prime. Hell, for a hag, I’m just getting started.”
“If you say so, Yaga.” I failed to keep the disbelief from my tone.
Yaga cast me a squinty-eyed glare. “Just shut up and pay attention. Here.” She shoved the ugly rock into my palm, demanding, “Hang on to it tight.”
I squeezed the stone in my fist, the wire poking my skin. “And?”
“Now hold it above that plant you’ve been fondling.”
“Fondling! I was not—”
“Yah. Yah. Just do it.”
I huffed a heated breath, thrusting my hand over the dying plant. The things I did to make the woman happy. “Now what?”
“Close your eyes and paint a picture of the plant in your mind, only healthy.”
“You’re kidding.” I cast her a sideways glance. This was it. The moment my elderly mentor lost what remained of her shriveled mind.
Her bony fingertip flicked the tip of my ear.
I uttered a yelp, rubbing my abused flesh.
“Enough of your sass, girly. Do as I say.”
“Yes, Yaga,” I huffed, closing my eyes and doing as I was ordered. In my mind, an image of the struggling plant took shape. Only instead of deep-fried and extra crispy, it looked as it did weeks ago, green leaves shining with vitality, fat blossoms glowing pink.
“Okay. Now what?”
“Open your eyes.”
I glanced at the plant and sucked a sharp breath. Before me was an ideal specimen of floral perfection. Bright pink flowers clung to stems that practically vibrated with health. Where once there was shriveled vegetation, now there were glistening emerald leaves. My skin erupted in a cold sweat.
“Th–th–that’s not possible.” My voice wavered. “It’s healed. It’s…”
Yaga’s musty breath grazed my cheek. “Magic,” shewhispered, the shape of the word turning jagged as it scraped past my eardrum.
No. No way did I just take part in some magical experiment. Anillegalmagical experiment. One that would see me burned to a crisp. Ice slid through my veins, locking my body in place.
Not daring to exhale, I pinged my eyeballs from the stone to the plant. The stone. The plant. Stone. Plant. Stone. Plant.
Stone.
“Flark!” I yelped, flinging the dangerous object onto the workbench and scrambling back.
Heart pounding hard enough to crack ribs, I scrubbed my hand on my ruined skirt. “It’s a trick. You switched the plants.”
“And why would I do that?” Yaga huffed.
“Who knows? Elderly people do weird things as they get older.”
The wrinkles around her pursed lips deepened. “Careful, girly.”
Fates. She was right. No reason to insult the woman, especially not someone of her advanced years. “I don’t understand.” Why put me in this position, endanger my life? Yaga knew how the Puritan community treated wielders.
“What’s there to understand? The stone is yours. Now that you’re old enough to be trusted with it, I’m returning it to you.”
