Yikes. Combined with his invisibility, he must be quite the stealthy assassin. Adding him to the Triune Executioner…
My new queen had several killers at her side.
I’m proud to be counted as one of them.
“When a queen lays down a blood circle, or adds to her circle, I can smell the various layers and even judge how old they are. Itztli can too, or any Blood with a more sensitive nose. It’s a subtle thing but I wanted you to understand how powerful a trick she pulled off in case you ever need to do it too. The Dauphine’s lingering blood scent wasbeneaththe oldest, original blood circle ever laid by a Delafosse queen. It was like she peeled back each layer, slipped her blood beneath it, and then allowed her blood to inherit all the layers above it. She didn’t even have to walk the circle. A drop or two of her blood was enough to encapsulate all the previous queens’ layers—and also control them. Anyone who knew what a Delafosse blood circle smelled like wouldn’t notice anything amiss, unless they, too,peeled back each layer to discover what lay beneath, or took the time to analyze every single scent layer.”
“That sort of goes along with what I meant about cleansing,” I said. “Her magic touched mine. It’s a subtle thing, but I can still feel the contamination, almost like a compulsion to bathe repeatedly to remove the residue.”
Winston returned with serving bowls and fresh plates. For a few minutes, the silence was filled with the clinking of spoons and shuffling of dishes as we passed bowls of pasta salad, slices of warm, tender roast beef, toasted baguettes, and fresh fruit around the table. Though I couldn’t help but notice Shara didn’t serve herself. Silent, she appeared deep in thought, staring out the window into the night. Her alpha gave a nod to the other Blood, and Xin deftly prepared a small plate for her, even cutting the sandwich in half as if that might entice their queen to eat.
She’d said she was hungry. Carefully, I used her bond to check her body as stealthily as her Blood had approached the table. Her stomach rumbled faintly, her nose picking up the tantalizing scents of food around her. But her mind was far away, and in a very dark place. As dark as the world outside her window.
Contamination. I’d described the Dauphine’s magic as something that I wished to cleanse off my nest and my magic. Never thinking about how Shara might hear those words.
Now that she carried the very same magic.
Hands trembling, I braced my fingers on the table, prepared to push my chair back so I could kneel beside her. Hoarsely, I whispered, “Your Majesty, please forgive me.”
Startled, she jerked her head around, saw me pushing away from the table, and quickly dropped her hand on one of mine, stilling me with a single touch. “There’s nothing to forgive, Leonie.”
“You are not contaminated. That was a poor word choice on my part.”
A sad smile twisted her lips and she shrugged. “In a way, I am contaminated. We all are contaminated by the choices we make, and we must live with the consequences. I was envisioning what it would feel like if Jeanne had managed to steal my blood circle like she’d done to yours. If her blood soaked into the earth where my grove grows. Her blood creeping up their roots, contaminating even my heart tree, where I lay pierced by its thorns until I died.
“That wasmysuffering. My blood. I gave it willingly to grow Morrigan’s grove once more. The hot spring in the grotto, contaminated by her blood. The Deep Blue beyond. It would have even reached the Triskeles Triune table. And all I could feel was a sick sort of relief that I’d never actually ingested her blood. Not directly, at least. I’ve fed on Sekh since he disposed of her body, so I suppose…”
“Her blood was obliterated inside the stone sphinx who stands guard for all time,” Sekh called from somewhere behind us in another room.
“Whew,” she laughed, squeezing my hand and then releasing me to pick up her fork. “All her blood is mine, now, but that doesn’t mean I want it mixing with mine. I’d like to resolve the situation in the swamp and free Basilia, but then I’d love to help you cleanse your nest. I’ll make sure to eliminate every last drop of her blood that might lie beneath your blood circle.”
“I would love that as well, my queen, but I also use non-blood magic to help remove the imprint of her energy in my personal space. For instance, I’ll sprinkle coffee grounds over the floors and methodically sweep every room on every floor of the house until I reach the front door and knock all that bad energy outside. Cut onions and bowls of salt can also help.”
Winston quietly placed small bowls of au jus beside each plate and then slipped away. I dipped my sandwich and took abite, fighting the urge to moan at how delicious it tasted. Real food. Well prepared. So good.
Though it made me yearn for Addie’s fried chicken something fierce.
“Oh, that’s so interesting. We used coffee grounds to shield a mirror gifted to me from the queen of Rome.”
I nearly choked on the next bite of my sandwich. I swallowed hard and then took a sip of tea to wash it down. “Coffee alone won’t lockherout.”
“So we learned. That’s also why we’re very careful not to say her name anywhere she might be able to listen.”
“There are some wards we can make that would help add an extra layer of protection. Queens like her tend to dismiss folk magic but it can be very effective simply because Aima queens won’t expect it and rarely understand it.”
“How about garlic?” Gina asked. “They always use that in movies.”
“Absolutely. We always kept a braided strand of drying garlic hanging near the back door.”
From the surprised look on her face, she might have meant the suggestion as a joke, but she nodded thoughtfully, not dismissively.
“There’s always a hint of truth behind such traditions, especially when an amulet or gris-gris is blessed by a powerful practitioner.”
“When I was on the run, I always kept salt handy to line the windows and doorways to keep the thralls out,” Shara said. “They also didn’t like iron, so I kept a board with rusted nails as a weapon in my cleaning cart.”
Rik rumbled a sound like the earth tearing apart. “It’s a miracle you managed to survive for five years until we could find you.”
“Lots of nasty creatures are repelled by salt and iron,” I agreed lightly. “Add a few more ingredients, and you’ve gotquite a volatile curse or protection spell, depending on your intention.”
