She wore no veil, a sparkling diadem wound into her pale hair instead. Lilyanna’s hand tightened around mine as she realized the same thing. This was not a Goddess sanctioned blessing we were about to witness.
The priestess moved down the aisle in front of us and halted, making up the fourth point. A rumbling began and the floor shuddered as a platform emerged slowly out of the darkness. It creaked to a halt, the circular stage smaller than the pit, floating like an island lost at sea.
Three people huddled back-to-back in the center. Their clothes were damp, stained with black and brown smears. No shackles bound their bare feet or shaking hands. They blinked in the candlelight, faces contorted by shadows and fear.
The prince cleared his throat. His face was carefully bland, posture alert but relaxed. Even so, his eyes gleamed. “You are here for the savage murder of a citizen.” I sucked in a breath. “He was found at an inn within the walls of my city.” He paused, casually hooking one hand into the waistband of his black trousers. “And why, might you ask, is the prince getting involved in one murder? Especially when I have a team of seasoned professionals to manage trivial incidents like this.”
Clement and Bryn remained unmoving, but an awareness brushed through me as if Clement was urging me to sit still, to stop my foot from tapping upon the floor.
“Because blood magic was used.” The prince’s tongue darted out, moistening his lips. “But of course, I am nothing if not fair. First, we must prove it.”
He lifted his head and nodded at the priestess. His gaze lingered on me and Lilyanna. I forced my knee to stop jiggling, and she dug her nails into my hand while keeping the rest of her body perfectly controlled.
The priestess withdrew two long silver rods from inside her robe. I’d never witnessed divining rods used for their true purpose. At the fayre, they were used to seek water, ale, or adulterers all for the enjoyment of the crowd. It would have been a death sentence to use them to seek blood magic, especially when so few of us harbored it.
My own magic slunk deep inside me, crawling into the furthest crevices it could find, lining every furrow. My blood chilled as it left, vessels constricting to conserve energy, a tingle squeezing through me.
Placing both rods in one hand, the priestess loosened her grip, allowing their weight to tip forward, the points wavering freely in the air. Magnetized, Lilyanna and I leaned forward simultaneously.
We both flinched as the divining rods caught the scent, jerking into action. The two rods wavered, crossing over one another with a dull twang.
I willed them not to settle.
Not to spin around and point at me.
The three people on the platform remained mute. Why weren’t they fighting? They weren’t even trying to defend themselves. They hadn’t been involved. They were probably just unfortunate enough to have stayed at the same place that night.
The divining rods twitched again, unable to find a focus.
I peered closer at the woman facing us. Her eyes were wide, opened in a silent scream, yet her body moved not a muscle. A small glob of spittle dribbled from the corner of her mouth, black as tar. Creases lined the clothes over her biceps and around her waist as if she were being forcibly held. The two men behind her sat in identical positions, their chins unnaturally tilted as if something had a grip on their hair.
Was the castle protecting them by forcibly keeping them silent?
Or condemning them?
I swallowed. They shouldn’t be blamed. I could tell them I was there that night, that I’d not seen anything, or perhaps that the Sheriff had made many enemies from other cities—which was true—and that his assailant would have immediately left. Something. I had to do something.
The rods swung again, crossing over each other, the pace now frantic.
I shifted, forcing myself to stand and Lilyanna dragged me down, the bones in my hand crushed under her grip. “No, Tam.”
From the side of the pit, Clement’s attention snapped to me. His mouth parted slightly, warnings gathering on the tip of his tongue.
“I need you,” she whispered.
My eyes fell to the bruises creeping over the neck of the sweater like poison vines. She would be dead within a day if I left, or if I were thrown into the pit with the others. The castle was trying to claim her and nobody else would protect her.
Bile edged into my throat as I forced myself to remain sitting, useless, guilty.
The priestess lowered the rods.
We both slumped in relief. Lilyanna loosened her grip on my hand. Blood pounded back into my fingertips, poking at my skin like fiery pins.
“Not enough blood magic has been found,” the prince said. Was he disappointed? His thumb remained hooked in his waistband and his weight tipped down one leg. “Although you have all been seen boasting about your powers, doing tricks and spells to profit from your cons. I should send you down South to the queens.” For the first time, the three people squirmed, fighting against their invisible bindings. “That is the law, as you know. Anyone caught doing magic needs to be thoroughly assessed.”
Lilyanna leaned forward, her gaze pleading. The prince glanced at her and smiled. The dimples reappeared in his cheeks, his face lightening under the glow from the candles suspended from the ceiling.
“But I have built a reputation for being fair and what would my beautiful future wife say if I turned you over without concrete proof of the deception?” He chuckled. “You are to be exiled instead. Go where you please. My guards will escort you to the gates tonight. I only ask that you do not renege on my kindness and ever return.”
