“Serafina? Serafina Batsford?” Sarah tried to keep the tremor of fear and panic out of her voice, or Serafina might not understand her.
“Yes?”
“This is Sarah. Reginald Wellesley’s wife. My husband just collapsed. He told me to call you.”
Stay calm. She’ll know what to do. She has to. Sarah repeated the words over and over in her head like a prayer to the universe. She couldn’t lose Reginald. She couldn’t lose the man who held her heart, the father of their son… her world.
“What happened?” Serafina asked.
“He’s sick, and it’s been getting worse. He just stood up and fell over.” Sarah checked her husband for a pulse. The beat was steady, but he seemed to have slipped into unconsciousness.
“Sarah,” the witch on the phone said, “I’m coming over. Answer the door when you hear the ring.” The line went dead. A heartbeat later, the doorbell rang.
Sarah ran to answer the door. A witch of middling years stepped inside. She wore a jade green gown with a velvet cloak of midnight blue swept over her shoulders.
“Take me to him.”
Sarah showed her to the living room, and the witch hurried to Reginald’s side.
“Given your reaction, I’m guessing he didn’t tell you about his blood vow?”
“His what?”
Serafina murmured a soft incantation in Latin, which caused Reginald to groan and open his eyes. “Reginald, you fool. You must tell your wife what you’ve done,” Serafina helped Reginald sit up. “You will only hurt her more if you don’t.”
Sarah slowly sank down to the ground beside him. “Tell me what?” A sense of dread closed in on her from all sides. She felt like she couldn’t breathe.
Reginald’s pained eyes sought hers. “Darling, I made a blood vow the day Malcolm was born, promising him in service to the Council.”
“Yes, I know about that. But?—”
Reginald shook his head. “No. You believed I made a promise. A blood promise is like a standard contract among witches. A vow is far more serious. The one placing the vow…pledges their very life force to the fulfillment of the vow. If Malcolm does not join the Council, my life will be forfeit.”
“What?” Sarah sucked in a breath. “Reginald, how could you be so stupid!” A pain knifed through her chest. Even if it had been a lie of omission, this still felt like a betrayal to her.
“I was a young, damn, arrogant fool,” he muttered. “I thought I was doing the right thing. I was certain Malcolm would be the one who would…” He reached for her hand, but Sarah pulled away. If he touched her, she’d want to forgive him. And she couldn’t, not yet. Maybe not ever.
“You knew about it all this time and you’ve kept it from me?”
Reginald’s eyes pleaded with her to understand him, but how could she when he hadn’t explained anything to her?
“And what about Malcolm? He has no interest in magic or the Council. Now he has to choose between a life he doesn’t want, and losing you?”
“I never thought he’d…” Reginald said. “He was born with such potential… I assumed…”
“Yes, you assumed,” said Sarah. But something else worried her now. Surely Malcolm hadn’t refused the Council knowing his father would… “Malcolm doesn’t know it’s an oath either, does he?”
Reginald slowly shook his head, and Sarah’s anger grew. Because of course he hadn’t. He hadn’t wanted to force that horrible choice on Malcolm.
“I tried to put a binding spell on him, but he’s so strong, it didn’t work. He should have felt compelled to come home and join the council. But he’s strong, and even though it might kill me, I’m proud of that strength in him.”
“You stubborn old…” Sarah growled.
“My dear, I know you’re upset,” Serafina said. “But you can quarrel with your husband later. Right now, we need to get your son back to Boston. He must take his oath to serve the Council.”
“Malcolm’s in Moonstone Falls,” Sarah said.
“I know,” Serafina replied. “The three of us must go. Tonight.”
