Giro smiled sadly at his lap. “I still don’t know what my grandpa saw of the future, but it seems he did everything he could to make sure we won in the end.”
Peter rubbed his back. “Do you regret not going to the burial?”
Giro shook his head. “I was still too mad at him then. It wouldn’t have been a good choice for me. Besides, I was needed here, and with things turning out okay, it seemed all the choices were the correct ones.”
Felix seemed hesitant to ask his next question, but his curiosity must have won out. “What about your parents?”
Giro looked to the curtained windows, before sighing deeply. “My mother is somewhere in the desert, finding witches for the coven. I believed her to be freed now, but since I’ve never known her without the brand on her skin, I don’t know where her true loyalties lie. I was never told which of the male witches my father was. Many of them didn’t want to be a parent to twenty plus children, and I get that, so I never bothered asking who it was. Today, I’m glad I made that choice.”
Chapter 37
Felix
A week later.
“No, not like that,” Dina hurried to fix my mistake. “You need to make more room between them. See, like this.” She moved some dirt around and planted the herbs with muchmore space freed up around them. “Then we can watch them grow over time.” I nodded and handed her the other plants we needed to plant today.
We’d all felt Joel’s betrayal hit us harder these last few days, with the castle slowly emptying out and leaving us with fewer people, we noticed his absence even more. Dina had been locked into her room all week, only Cole had been allowed in. I still had no idea what went on between them, but Cole seemed determined to be there for her, and she seemed to rely on his comfort, even if they’d only just met, what, two weeks ago or so?
Not that I was one to judge…
“Perfect!” she beamed, getting the hose ready to water them. This garden project had been my scheming way of getting her outside for a bit, allowing the sun to hit her skin and make her happy. Cole was sitting on a garden chair looking over at us as we worked, refusing to part ways with Dina, even now where she was happily tending to the new plants I’d ordered.
“Did you ever see the deer again?” she asked, pointing to the plant that seemed to be thriving again.
I shook my head. “No, do you think it got sick from it?”
“Hmm,” she said, eyeing the plant. Then she gasped, her hand flying over her mouth.
“What is it?” Cole demanded, having somehow sprinted over here in seconds.
Dina pointed to the plant. “That is a Vullis Mira.”
“Yea?” I replied, not understanding whatever epiphany she’d just gotten.
“Felix, that plant can be poisonous to witches, but only if we digest it.” Her words slowly sank in.
“No,” I breathed. “Joel?”
She nodded, tears welling in her eyes. “He was poisoning us.”
Cole muttered a curse under his breath before taking Dina back inside again. So much for my genius plan.
I couldn’t believe Joel had made us sick, not some far away magical trick like we’d believed. And here I’d thought it was an animal. But thinking back, I was weird how the deer had only targeted one plant. I sighed to myself, whether Joel had done these things because he planned to save his sister or not, they were still actions he’d made. Yes, he’d poisoned us and spied on us, but in the end, he saved Dina from death, even though he knew he would die himself.
His sister?
I quickly grabbed my phone to text Sev.
Me:Do we know which of the Silver Lock witches is Joel’s sister?
I placed my phone back in my pocket so I could finish with the garden. I had hoped for Dina to be here for longer, but I understood her need for some rest after figuring this out. She’d fallen for Joel hard and fast, that much was obvious. Even if he did love her back, he still betrayed her trust, knowing his coven would kill us all.
I shivered at the thought.
Dusting the freshly planted herbs with some crushed crystals, I felt a presence behind me. I smiled, continuing to work, happy to pretend I didn’t know Sev was there.
I felt the air move behind me, and then his hands came around my waist, his lips finding my neck. I hummed, needing him even closer.
