“Sorry,” she whispered and pulled her hand from his, only to be met with the growing buzz of whispers. Her heart raced, expecting the sound to crescendo once again, but Kane’s hand went around hers once more. “Perhaps, wait until after we’re in the library.”
She nodded and hoped he couldn’t sense her discomfort.
“What…exactly are you doing?” Erinna tried to keep her voice low enough so that Afton couldn’t hear.
Kane raised an eyebrow and gave her a smirk. “Making sure things remain quiet, for you.”
“Do you…” The words died on her tongue as they approached the last step of their journey. It was just a door, an unassuming part of the fortress, but even Erinna could feel the vibrant hum of enchantment from the old, knotted wood.
Afton pressed his hand to the door and gave it a soothing pat. “You were right.”
He set his bag on the ground and rifled through spell books and documents. His green eyes barely contained the spark of excitement as he finally neared the end of the journey, or at least the end of the first part. Erinna hoped the walk back would not be as long or arduous.
Raye flickered beside the Minor Apprentice, peering at the tools he pulled from the pack with a nod of approval. Eventually, the spirit turned his attention once more to her.
“I’m afraid this is the end of my journey.” The flame was steady but much dimmer than before, the oil nearly dried. Erinna gave Raye a look, asking for more, but the spirit simply nodded.
“Even if you could make that flame burn forever, I cannot stay much longer.” He flickered in emphasis; his strength was waning, and there was nothing more Erinna could do.
She took in a breath, and Kane strengthened his hold slightly.
“We’ll be fine,” she murmured. “Thank you.”
Raye bowed his head with one last look at the ribbon around her wrist. “Thank you. Your kindness cannot be repaid, gravewitch. Remember, there is a book in the far back on the second floor that should be titledOn the Domains of Witches and Wickedry. Take it, read it, and use the information well.”
With that, Raye vanished, and Erinna let out a sigh. The light in her lantern flickered out, and her knees buckled with fatigue.If it weren’t for Kane’s reflexes, Erinna would have crumpled to the floor in exhaustion.
“Let us know when you’ve opened the door, Afton,” said Kane as he led Erinna to the closest piece of furniture that would not crumple beneath her.
Erinna wanted to find an excuse—some way to thwart his suspicions, but she feared everything was becoming much too obvious. She settled into a rickety chair that wobbled as she sat.
Erinna rubbed the bridge of her nose to ease the oncoming headache. She thought the flame was the tether, though perhaps it was something closer to a focus. If she had enough energy, she would have cursed herself for not learning about the Talent sooner. She had tried once. But it was far too dangerous to request information, and her father was not one to keep arcane instructions in the house.
“So, is it safe to say my secret is out?” Erinna sighed, dropping her head into her hands, crouched beneath fatigue. A warm hand patted her shoulder.
“My job is to find secrets that others bury. At least yours is interesting.”
She let silence fall, unsure how to respond.
“I don’t exactly know what that Talent of yours does. But I can make a few educated guesses. The first is that perhaps it is not Talent at all,” Kane continued.
“Grace,” she whispered.
The pirate nodded. “Something, perhaps, closer in nature to my own.”
Erinna shook her head furiously. “No, I…I’m not?—”
His laugh interrupted her stuttering. “No, I know you’re not a half-demon. I just mean, it might not be whatever Tarth categorizes as aTalent.”
A momentary silence settled between them as Kane absentmindedly brushed the pad of his thumb across the back of her hand.
Erinna swallowed. “How are you doing that?”
“Hmm?” Kane raised a brow.
“Keeping things quiet for me?”
He leaned in close and whispered, “Spirits don’t typically like to be in the company of the infernal. At least, not the weak spirits.”
