Elizabeth gave her a look that suggested otherwise.
They collapsed into fits of giggles.
“But Idon’thave magic. I was given a … task to try. To lift a stone with a spell, but I can’t do it. It doesn’t work for me. So, while the angel didsomething, I don’t think the answer is magic.”
Charlotte frowned. “A stone?”
“Yes. When I spoke with the witch, she told me to try a simple spell, like lifting a stone in the air to see if I can harness magic or not. It didn’t work.”
“Hmm,” Charlotte mused, tapping her chin. “What does it look like when you try?”
Elizabeth told her, explaining the best she could.
Charlotte looked thoughtful, and Elizabeth watched the wheels turning in her friend’s mind. “I don’t know. It sounds like you are imagining it happening, but that’s the same as me closing my eyes here and pretending to do magic.” Charlotte closed her eyes and waved her hands about as if she were a madwoman.
Elizabeth snorted loudly, quickly covering her mouth.
Charlotte said, “You said you can talk to horses and demons with your mind, so maybe youdohave magic. I don’t know.” Charlotte stared at the wall, appearinglost in thought for a moment. Finally, she said, “You explained your magic as a feeling in your chest. Tell me about it? What does having magic look like?”
Elizabeth marvelled that her friend was taking this in stride and had not thrown her plate across the restaurant and run off. Elizabeth closed her eyes and looked within herself.
“It’s a well of fire. The fire is green. A pale green, not green like the forest. More like the green of a peridot,” she said to her own surprise.
“A well of peridot fire … hmmm.” Charlotte raised a brow. “Maybe … try …usingthe well of fire?” She paused. “I don’t know. Maybe the magic needs to come from there. Maybe it doesn’t work if you just wave your hands and say the words.”
Elizabeth thought about it for a heartbeat and declared, “You know, that’s not a half-bad idea.”
Charlotte grinned. “What can I say? My and Connall’s future children will be smart as well as beautiful.”
Elizabeth laughed loudly and quickly sobered, the easy grin wiping off her face. “I—what if I don’t have magic? And—what if I do?” She bit her lip. “I thought it was the answer to the angel’s gift, but I was filled with relief when it didn’t work.” She paused, frowning. “I don’t know if I would want to live my life being hunted as a witch. Asteria is not kind to magic users, and my life has already gotten dangerous enough.”
Charlotte was silent for a long moment. Her voice was sincere when she said, “If you have magic, then you do.” Charlotte smiled and shrugged. “Let us see if the angel gave us a clue to work with. If you have some sort of magical ability, we will work with it to help you survive. And if not, it changes nothing.”
“Charlotte, how can you be so calm? Even knowing me might be dangerous right now.”
Charlotte wiggled her eyebrows. “But where would you be without me?”
Charlotte glanced down in a meaningful way, and Elizabeth was surprised to feel a velvet sack brush against her fingers under the table.
“What’s this?”
“Open it.”
Elizabeth glanced at the contents of the sack and gasped. “Charlotte! I am not worth this.”
Charlotte grinned. “Add it to your collection to sell. We will see you out of this mess one way or another. I fully expect to be visiting you in a manor of your own one day.”
Overcome with emotion, Elizabeth said nothing. A fortune in jewellery was in that sack.
She tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Perhaps I’ll make some inquiries about some of Connall’s cousins. Discreetly, of course,” Charlotte said, wiggling the large ring on her finger. “In a few months, you must come visit me.
“I think if you are seen in town, looking well and healthy, perhaps we can make you seem like a person of interest with great strength of character. Perhaps it will allow us to find you another suitor. One that meets even your high standards.” Charlotte paused. “So, you can come home and rid yourself of all this nasty business.”
Elizabeth laughed outright. Charlotte’s optimism, even in the face of uncertainty, was contagious. “Oh, if only the queen could plot half as well as you.”
“Truly! I think with the right angle, we could paint you as a woman of passion and worldly travel after this adventure.”
“Men would not want to be with such an unfeminine woman.”
