But then I remembered we needed this woman to lend us the power of her coven, and to help us find Robert Smithers. I tried to ignore the surge of annoyance that flashed against my skull. “We came to speak with you about the fae. I understand your Soho coven helped Briarwood stave off a fae attack twenty-one years ago?”
“We lent a hand to a fellow sister. What of it?”
“Aline Moore was my mother.”
Isadora blinked. She reached up and pushed her glasses up her nose. “That’s not possible.”
“How do you mean? I’m right here.” I waved a hand in front of my face. “Not a hologram.”
“If you’re Aline’s child, you’re supposed to be dead.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
MAEVE
My heart thudded in my chest. “That’s news to me.”
Isadora shot Corbin a look. “I thought her name was for ceremonial use. The child died in the ritual twenty-one years ago. I saw it happen with my own eyes.”
“Nope, not dead.”This doesn’t make any sense. Why would she believe she saw me die in the ritual? I wasn’t in the ritual.“I was adopted out to a family in America. I only recently returned and learned about my powers.”
“It’s true. She is the daughter of Aline Moore,” Corbin said.
“And her power? Does she have Aline’s premonitions? What does she see of the future?”
“I’m right here.” I gritted my teeth. Why did she speak to Corbin as though I wasn’t in the room? “And premonitions aren’t real. They are caused by selection bias and unconscious perception of?—”
“Maeve is a dreamwalker,” Corbin said. “Probably the most powerful we’ve ever known. I’ve also seen her use compulsion with another witch on several fae at once.”
Isadora opened her mouth, but I spoke over her. “But that’s not important now. The fae are trying to raise the Slaugh again. We have tried to hold them off but have been unsuccessful. They are now residing in the underworld, waiting for the full moon to arrive. Our coven is not as strong as it was back then, therefore we are asking for your help again.”
She looked up at me and sighed. “The full moon is in thirteen days. You’ve left this late to inform me. Had you come to us sooner…”
“We didn’t realize how bad the situation was until they were already in the underworld. We believed we’d succeeded in halting their progress, but we were wrong.”
Her red lips formed a frown so formidable it made my heart sink into my toes. “You’re the guardians of the gateway. You needed to be on top of this.”
“Yes, well, I’ve had this job for less than a month, so?—”
Isadora steepled her fingers. “Very well, daughter of Aline. If you are asking me to place my coven in danger, I must first hear your plan.”
“I—” I glanced at Corbin, but he shook his head. I got it – he couldn’t speak for me, he wasn’t the coven leader. I was. My gut told me that telling this woman we didn’t have a plan wasn’t going to cut it. “Well, we’re going to do the same thing you did last time.”
She studied me again. “Is that so?”
I nodded.
“Then you will fail.” She raised her glass to her lips and took a sip. Not a speck of her lipstick rubbed off on the rim. “As your mother has failed, if you are standing before me.”
“Excuse me? My mother died to save the world from the Slaugh. She didn’t fail?—”
“Do you even know what ritual you are asking me to help you perform?”
“Er, we’re a little fuzzy on the details. No one in the original coven can tell us anything about it. But we’ve got the basics from Clara Raynard?—”
“A second-rate witch – she was not in the inner circle that night. She knows nothing. As for you…you do not have the stomach for what must be done.”
“If you mean to sacrifice myself, we’re trying to find a way to avoid that. If you could help us with the ritual?—”
