"Not long," Thalia replied. "But it has to be done while the babies' power is dormant. If they try to interfere, it could backfire spectacularly. And that would be devastating."
"What exactly do you mean by that?" Nina demanded, crossing her arms in a gesture that reminded me of myself at that age.
"The connections could multiply instead of weakening," Thalia admitted reluctantly. "Or they could become permanent immediately instead of gradually."
"Those are some shitty odds," Nana observed with her usual bluntness.
"Everything we're dealing with has shitty odds," I pointed out. "At least this gives us a chance to take the offensive."
Aidon moved closer, his hand finding mine. "Queenie, if something goes wrong?—"
"Then we deal with it," I interrupted. "We always do. Besides, I know Nina and Jean-Marc will be casting a protective barrier around them before we even know something went wrong."
Clio sighed, clearly unhappy but recognizing the futility of arguing with a determined pregnant woman. "If we're doing this, I am going to be monitoring them the entire time. The first sign of distress, we stop immediately."
"Agreed," I said before Aidon could voice another objection.
Thalia clapped her hands together with entirely too much enthusiasm for someone about to perform experimental magic on a pregnant woman. "Wonderful! Now, let's get you set up properly. You should get back in bed. It’ll make this easier."
Aidon was at my side immediately. “For the record, I’m going to worry myself into an ulcer,” he grumbled as he picked me up and helped me maneuver my increasingly unwieldy body back onto the bed.
“Somehow, I think you’ll live. I won’t let anything happen to the babies,” I promised.
He fussed with the pillows, adjusting them behind my back and under my knees until I was comfortable, his touch gentle. “That’s why I’m not stopping it.” He sat next to me, and we watched as Thalia bustled around my bed.
She was like a magical interior decorator who'd just discovered the perfect feng shui arrangement and couldn't contain her excitement. "I'll need the silver bowls from the kitchen cabinet. The ones with the engravings on them. And grab that bundle of herbs hanging by the window. The one that smells like someone set a garden on fire."
“Auntie Stella did set these on fire,” Jean-Marc shared as he grabbed the herbs on the windowsill.
At the same time, Nina scurried off to collect the bowls while Thalia continued her preparations. It looked as if she’d done this before, which was reassuring. At least she wasn’t fumbling right away.
"What about candles?" I asked as she arranged what looked suspiciously like ritual implements on my nightstand.
"Aren't there any in here?” she asked as her gaze skipped around the room.
I gestured to the jar on my nightstand. “Unless an Ocean Mist one will work, no.”
“Nina!" she called out. "We'll need four white candles from the dining room. And that bottle of spring water from the fridge!"
Nina appeared a few seconds later with an armload of supplies. The speed with which she had gathered all of that and climbed two flights of stairs made me jealous. It took me fifteen minutes to waddle ten feet to the bathroom.
"Perfect." Thalia began setting the silver bowls on the bed. "Now, when we start this, don't fight the cleansing energy. Let it flow through the connections naturally."
Clio scooted her chair right next to the mattress and placed her hand on my abdomen. Her healing warmth sank into me. Meanwhile, everyone else hovered like anxious relatives in a waiting room. That wasn't helping my nerves one bit.
"What will it feel like?" I asked, settling back against the pillows that Aidon had arranged to support me.
"Like liquid sunlight burning away poison," Thalia replied, lighting candles with a snap of her fingers. "It shouldn't hurt, but it will be intense. Which, now that I say it out loud, sounds like complete bullshit, doesn't it?"
"So reassuring," I muttered, watching the flames dance. "Really filling me with confidence here."
“There’s a hole burning through the lining of my stomach,” Aidon griped.
Ignoring his outburst, Thalia began chanting in what sounded like ancient Greek. Her voice carried power that reminded me of mine. The magic vibrated through my bones. Each syllable resonated like a tuning fork struck against my soul. The herbs in the silver bowls began to smoke, releasing a scent that was nauseating.
At first, nothing happened except for the growing weight of magic pressing against my skin like invisible hands. Then warmth began building in my chest. It was a gentle heat that spread outward like I'd swallowed a miniature sun. The sensation was pleasant, almost euphoric. It felt like sinking into a hot bath after a long day. I let myself relax into it.
The cleansing energy moved through me with purpose. It followed pathways I couldn't see but felt. White threads of light traced the parasitic connections with surgical precision. It tickled at first, then grew stronger, like warm honey flowing through my veins. I could actually sense the foreign magic being identified and catalogued.
