Frustration flickered through Felix, the warm heat of buried anger. “What are you hiding?”
“There’s nothing. I’m not hiding anything.”
A familiar laugh pricked Felix’s ears.
Focus. Aine is missing.
He scanned the crowd and found Lady Sarah Farrows with a group of socialites, cooling herself with a lace fan.
“Fine, keep your secrets then,” he told August before storming away.
He swallowed back his irritation, settled his expression, then slid up beside her.
Sarah’s face brightened at the sight of him. She closed her fan with a flick of her wrist and put her hands on her hips.
“Felix Connolly. I haven’t heard from you in months.”
“Lady Farrows. I have missed you dearly.” He offered her a gentle smile, then spared the rest of the group a quick glance. “May I speak with you in private?”
“Of course. Just give me a moment.” Sarah turned to one of the girls and said something too quiet to hear.
With a grin, the other girl ran her hands over Sarah’s hair, and the blonde locks seemed to glow with a newfound vibrancy beneath her touch, like golden silk.
“Much better,” the other girl stated, prompting giggles from the rest.
Felix’s mouth fell open. There was no way he’d seen that right.
But as Sarah turned, he stared at the glaring proof. The girl had used magic. Not only that, butprohibitedmagic. In the middle of a crowd. And none of them batted an eye.
“Alright,” Sarah said cheerfully. She handed the girl her fan, then looped her arm through his. They broke away from the group, and Felix drew them to a stop once they were out of earshot.
“My house is empty,” she said. “You’re coming with me.”
As Sarah slid in close, the cloying, sweet scent of her perfume hit Felix in a wave, and he took a hasty step back, his stomach twisting.
Was she really going to ignore what had just happened?
She frowned. “What’s the matter?”
“Your friend,” he started, keeping his voice low as to not be overheard. “She just used magic, and you didn’t bat an eye. I thought you didn’t trust wielders.”
Sarah’s expression softened. “Ah, that.” She smoothed her hair. “Angela’s not a wielder, Felix.”
“Isawher.”
“Don’t worry, love.” She stepped back into Felix’s space and cupped his face in both hands. “It’s only temporary magic.”
He wrenched back. “Temporarymagic?”
“You’ve been around wielders plenty,” Sarah said impatiently. “Their eyes glow when they use their magic, right?”
He met her expectant look with a frown, and when she accepted he would not play along, she went on.
“Hers didn’t glow. She’s not a wielder.”
Nothing she was saying made any sense. “I don’t understand. What do you mean, temporary magic?”
She leaned in and lowered her voice. “There’s a new elixir. It’s very exclusive.” A sly smile lifted on her face, her expression conspiratorial. “It lets Baellasborn use magic.”
