CHAPTER ONE
ELIZABETH
Elizabeth Miranda Moonwhisper Thornwick knelt beside the copper cauldron she’d carried out into her moonlit garden, her pale blue gown catching on the dewy grass. Silver hair hung down her back in a thick plait that swung as she reached for sprigs of ludewright nestled between pink-petaled duskroses. The garden’s fragrance intensified in the night air, heavy with floral notes that only a true witch could decipher.
“You’d think the council would send their urgent messages at a more reasonable hour,” she grumbled, tossing the ludewright into her brew with a flick. “But no, it’s always midnight scrying and dawn deliberations to give them the help they need.”
From his perch on an embroidered silk divan she’d brought outside, Grimble yawned, his silver tabby fur gleaming under the full moon.
They wait until I’m comfortable, of course,he said.Maximum inconvenience is pretty much council policy.
“You’re right.” Elizabeth glanced at him over her shoulder. “I thought you were asleep.”
I’m trying, but the bugs are pesky tonight.
A wave of her hand sent a keep-away spell across the area, distracting the insects with a succulent smell in an adjacent garden. That would keep them busy until she was done for the night.
The flames beneath the cauldron danced as Elizabeth added crystallized mooncusp dew, her wrinkled fingers moving quickly. Cooking divination required exact proportions and perfect timing. Too much of one ingredient or added at the wrong moment could cloud future visions, making them too misty to interpret.
Cyrene’s vampire seems almost tolerable now,Grimble said, stretching out on the divan.Though I suspect that’s more her witchy influence than his natural charm.
Elizabeth smiled. “She’s brightened that gloomy castle considerably. The vampire council members actually smiled during their recent diplomatic visit.”
Once. Briefly. After drinking that strange ruby concoction.
“Progress is progress.” Elizabeth tapped her wooden spoon against the pot’s rim.
A faint buzzing echoed in the air, and a pinpoint of light spiraled down from the sky. The sprite messenger, more disheveled than during his previous visit, zipped close enough to hover in front of Elizabeth’s nose.
“Matriarch Thornwick,” the sprite wheezed, his tiny wings drooping with exhaustion. “Urgent tidings from the council.”
“You poor thing,” Elizabeth cooed, offering her palm as a landing spot, which the sprite took. “You look half-faded. Rest a moment before delivering your message.”
The sprite collapsed onto her hand, his glow dimming before he straightened his shoulders. “The coven acknowledges that your unorthodox solution has merit.” Thesprite’s voice resembled wind chimes in a gentle breeze. “The witch-vampire bond has slowed the magical deterioration along the border.”
“Told them so,” Elizabeth said softly.
Such a dreadful thing. If they couldn’t stop the deterioration, the veil between the human and magical worlds would collapse. Their magic would leach out and in no time…
Well, Elizabeth didn’t want to think about that. She was here in this garden tonight to do all she could to ensure it didn’t happen.
“The deterioration has not halted it, however. The eastern boundaries still weaken.” The sprite produced a tiny scroll from seemingly nowhere. “The coven formally authorizes the continuation of your matchmaking initiative, with all haste.”
The scroll expanded to normal size after the sprite placed it in Elizabeth’s free hand. The parchment showed wax seals in varying colors, one from each coven member.
“Deterioration pace?” Elizabeth asked, passing the sprite a thimble-sized cup of honeydew nectar she’d earlier placed on the nearby table.
“Slowed by approximately one quarter.” The sprite drained the cup. “The border shows marked improvement, but other regions continue to show fading. Healing spells in the northern mountains fail at increasing rates.”
“The dragon territories,” Elizabeth said, squinting in that direction, though the mountain range housing the dragon kingdom was much too far to make out with the naked eye.
Interesting,Grimble purred in her mind.
The sprite nodded. “The council requests,” he cougheddelicately, “suggestsyou proceed with additional matches with all possible speed.”
“I suspected as much. Tell them I’m already brewing the future as we speak.” Elizabeth gestured to her pot, where steam had begun to spiral upward in swirling patterns. “Safe travels, friend.”
With a nod, the sprite zipped back toward the stars, his light flaring brighter after the nectar.
