“I understand.”
“But you still need to know…”
“Yes, I do,” I conceded, glancing at Hannes, who seemed troubled by the situation.
“Then you need to let me access your mind.”
“No, Georgette. We don’t give you permission.”
With a confused and slightly frustrated sigh, she turned to Countess Dariah, who looked at me like she was the one trying to access my mind.
“Why?” she asked.
“Because Natasha is going through something right now and I have to respect that.” My gaze briefly shifted to André. “I already violated her trust once; I’m not going to do that again.”
“So how do you propose we help you?” Georgette’s voice called my attention back to her.
“Did anyone else witness what happened?” They all looked at each other, which meant I basically had my pick of the litter. “Great. Will anyone be willing to share their memories with me?”
“I will show you,” Mother offered, instantly directing her attention to Isis, who quickly nodded at her silent request.
“Pleaseblinkto Anastasia’s office and bring her crystals to us. They are in her desk, the second drawer on the left.”
With Isis’s instructions, Bjørn instantlyblinkedout of the room, reappearing a few seconds later with an elegantly carved wooden box. He handed it to Isis, who quickly walked to our side and opened it for us.
Inside, on a bed of red velvet, lay a silver chain that held a crystal on each end.
Unable to help myself, I leaned in, noticing both crystals hummed with magic—the first one was blue while the second was a dark golden stone fashioned into a cone shape.
“Sodalite and Pyrite. Two of the most powerful crystals for accessing and retaining memories,” Dante explained when Georgette reached into the box.
Accepting the dual-sided crystal tool from Georgette, I noticed Countess Dariah bring the second armchair right in front of mine and sit, leaving us face to face.
“This is how your mother shares her visions with us,” André offered.
“Did you make it for her?” My gaze lifted to Dante, but he shook his head.
“It is imbued with ancient magic, but not my kind. The Amber Witch, Head of the world's Magistrate of Witches, created it for your mother many years ago.”
“Natasha’s mother…”I corrected in my mind.
“If Natasha, you, and I are supposed to be the same person, then Anastasia is also our mom. No?”
I didn’t answer her, it didn’t feel like she was.
“She’s a good friend of ours…” Mother added, and I nodded.
Reaching for my hand, André crouched next to me. “The process doesn’t hurt. You have nothing to fear.”
“Do I look scared to you?” I sincerely asked, because until now I had no fucking idea what he saw when he looked at me—other thannothis Natasha.
“Probably a bitch.”
I internally rolled my eyes at Star.
“No,” he conceded, removing his hand from mine while his troubled eyes remained.
“I’m not scared,” I assured softly. The truth was, I didn’t want him to see me as a bitch.
