Tia leans back in her chair, looking proud. “It’s yours.”
Nadya’s eyes shine. “What?”
Tia shrugs. “I’ve had it so long, the damn thing talks back to me. Might as well go to someone who can learn something from it. Plus, you’re family.”
I look between them, that old ache building in my chest. I want to be happy for Nadya. I am. But there’s a part of me that still curls inward at the possibility it could go terribly wrong.
“You sure about this?” I ask softly.
Nadya looks at me. “I don’t know. But I want to try.”
Tia snorts again, heading for the kettle to pour herself a second cup. “Good. About damn time someone in this family stopped making excuses.”
I set my cup down. “In a book Nadya was reading, there were sorceresses traveling the land before the dragons died out from the poisoned plants. Do you know anything about that?”
One of Tia’s eyes narrow. “Are you asking if witches started the poison?”
“Yes,” I say, unable to not speak the truth.
Tia shakes her head. “This happened a century before my time. There are many mixed opinions from the modern witch community, people taking sides, especially descendants of those witches. But the dispute continues. Many say they did, but others say they were lifting magic that had already been spelled.”
“So there’s no way to know?” I ask.
“Not unless someone can magically revive the torched grimoire from the ashes.”
Nadya’s face twists in confusion, and I’m sure I mirror her expression.
“What do you mean?” I don’t understand what the grimoire has to do with it.
“The grimoire contains a powerful spell that can reveal truths.” Tia waves a dismissive hand. “It’s the kind of magic that trickled down into reading palms and cards, even staring into crystals, trying to find answers. But the grimoire had the original spell, one that could not be replicated in any other book or retained in anyone’s memory because the magic wouldn’t allow it.”
“Like the ultimate divination spell,” Nadya says.
“Exactly.” Tia gives a half-shrug. “Probably for the best. Can you imagine being able to see into the past and future and know the fate of the world?”
That could lead to dire circumstances. In the hands of someone with ill intent, it could mean utter destruction.
Tia looks between us both, eyes darker now. Heavier.
“Now it’s my turn to be truthful,” she says, slowly sinking into her chair. “You’re right, dear.” She looks to me. “In the wrong hands, this magic can be dangerous.” She turns her gaze back to Nadya. “So use it wisely, child.”
ChApter
Thirty
Ezra only spent twenty minutes in my room before he gave up on fighting the heat. We were supposed to practice controlling small amounts of my magic, but neither of us could concentrate, so we called it quits for the day. I feel a little guilty that I didn’t mention using my magic the previous day to keep Dante safe during his snake walk.
I also didn’t mention the book Nadya’s great-aunt gifted her.
Sweat beads along my spine as I pace the length of the room, fanning myself with little relief. The air in my chamber is thick, sticking to my skin in damp waves. Even at night, the heat presses against me from all sides, suffocating.
Outside, the city is still alive. Music thrums through the warm air, blending with laughter, moans, the clatter of feasting. I move to the pane-less window and peer out to the courtyard and beyond.
The courtiers are indulging in their endless revelry. Bodies tangled on silk-draped lounges, mouths seeking, hands roaming. A woman arches beneath a man’s touch, gasping into the night, while another pair dances in a slow, sultry rhythm, their bodies moving as if they’ve long forgotten the presence of anyone else.
I wonder if every night is a party in Bastos.
I swallow hard, my throat dry despite the glasses upon glasses of water I’ve been drinking. Dante was taken away with the queens and their lovers an entire day ago, and I haven’t seen him since. I can’t exactly go around asking where he might be or what trial he was forced to face, so I have to live with this hollowness in my chest, at least for a little while.
