When we reached castle grounds, I dismounted, pulling the saddle free with a twitch of magic, setting into motion the invisible spells that would care for the mare and see her settled for the night with another. Thank Tsy I had learned those Truths during the days Felix had failed to convince the node to allow me to leave. If the magical care wasn’t enough, I would borrow a different mount for the return journey, though Felix had told me that his gelding wasn’t as easy for a novice to ride.
I listened to the power suffusing the hillside, expecting to sense that Felix was in his rooms, asleep. But the magic informed me thathe was in the great hall, steps away from the node. And he wasn’t alone.
I pulled the enchanted mirror out of the satchel hanging from my shoulder and triggered the enchantment. I didn’t need the magic to hear the scream that came from the castle moments later. Dropping the enchantment, I eased the front door open and eased inside. Better to go unnoticed than rush into a potentially dangerous situation.
The doors to the great hall stood open wide, but the two people closest to the foyer didn’t notice my arrival.
I recognized Lady Cecily, standing with her profile toward me, her jaw slack as she stared at Marc. She looked to be on the verge of fainting, but it was the secretary who had hunched over in obvious pain.
The scream hadn’t been Felix, then. Thank the gods.
I spotted the duke, his familiar form outlined by the flickering glow of the node behind him.
I blinked. His head was level with the flames as he sat. He was no longer a house cat, but a panther. A fluffy panther.
Gold-green eyes met mine, and I held up the mirror, reengaging the enchantment. He understood, and I heard a whisper through the magic, though he spoke so softly not even a hint of a sound came from the great hall. “Can you summon Marc and Cecily into a different room and lock them in? I don’t want to leave them in with the node, just in case.”
I nodded at Felix and moved as quietly as I could down the hall to the nearest room. It was the blue salon, so I took a moment to lock the doors to the library before summoning Cecily, followed by Marc. They materialized in the room, and Marc fell to his knees. From this angle, I could see the blood on his shirt.
I summoned a roll of bandages and a jar of salve and shoved them at Cecily. “Tend to his wounds.”
Not waiting to see if she listened, I backed out of the room. Marc attempted to get to his feet, no doubt anticipating what was aboutto happen, but blood loss or the disorientation from being summoned made him fumble. I slammed the door shut and triggered the wisp of node power that would lock it so that not even a key would get them out.
When I turned around, Felix stood in the hall a few feet away. I didn’t think. I ran over, dropped to my knees, and threw my arms around him. “Are you all right? I saw the blood on Marc.”
Felix rubbed his cheek against mine, his fur soft as silk. “He decided to test my determination not to let anyone close to the node. Luckily, my new claws are more daunting than my old.”
“Not daunting enough, if he still came at you.”
“But it took him hours to summon the courage.” Felix pulled back, looking at me with concern. “What are you doing here? Did the node pull you back?”
“No.” I realized it was true and had a moment to wonder why I hadn’t felt the node tugging at me the instant I had realized that I could possibly break the curse. Then again, I hadn’t needed the node to urge me into action. “I came because I have an idea about how to break the curse. It occurred to me when you read the scroll this evening.”
“I knew you’d have more ideas than me. What is it?”
I hesitated. It was one thing to say the sentence aloud in the privacy of my room. Even admitting my feelings to Sofia hadn’t been so difficult. But could I say it to Felix, when I still didn’t know why he had been so intent on sending me back to Leort? “Let’s see if it works first.”
We walked back to the great hall, Felix a solid presence at my side. He kept so close that I had to rest my hand on his back or risk toppling over. Felix summoned a side table—complete with paper, pen, and ink—without comment. I wrote out four simple words, the same ones that had taken me so long to admit, to say, and signed my name. Then, holding my breath, I held the paper to the flames.
Bells rang out, their harmonious melody declaring the words to be completely true, but nothing else happened. I blinked back anunexpected rush of tears. It wasn’t enough. I couldn’t make Truths. I wiped at my eyes with the back of my hand. No. I refused to believe that I had to make a Truth to break the curse. It didn’t make sense. Cecily had already created the Truth; I was simply fulfilling the terms by admitting I had fallen in love with Felix.
But a declaration wasn’t enough. It still had to be tied to the node. I couldn’t make a Truth, but Felix could witness a contract I signed and use the node to make the words magically binding. I considered the consequences of letting him pass my note through the node. This wasn’t a normal contract; it was a statement of feelings. What would it mean to bind myself to the words?
I thought about that clarion of bells I had heard when I held it to the flames. It was already true. The node’s power wouldn’t change anything.
Felix was watching me, not saying anything. I shoved the paper at him, still folded. “Witness this and pass it through the node.”
He dipped his claw in ink and signed his name, not asking what it said or unfolding the paper first. Then he grabbed it with his teeth and planted his front paws on the edge of the copper bowl under the flames. He leaned forward. The paper dissolved, and I heard the magic of the node pour out, converging on Felix.
His eyes went wide, and he froze, his body unnaturally still as the power rushed into him.
His body convulsed, and he fell to the floor. I rushed forward, but I didn’t know if it was safe to touch him. The magic kept coming, an avalanche of power. I wanted to clasp my hands over my ears, but it wouldn’t block anything.
I waited, my heart in my throat, as black fur receded, bones stretched and shrank, and a cat transformed into a man.
A naked man.
I didn’t let myself dwell on this detail, though I couldn’t help but notice. It sent an unexpected surge of warmth through me. I had almost grown used to the way Felix made me feel, but this gave theemotions an edge I wasn’t prepared to dwell on. I knew what it was, but lust had no place in this moment.
