“You will not remember the name Julia’s Bureau—not when you leave here today, not ever. You will not remember where this place is.” She snaps once more in front of his face, then pushes him, hard, between his eyes. He stumbles, but rights himself quickly.
He says nothing of this treatment. They leave. The bell overhead tinkles far too gently for this abrupt departure.
We did it.
“We’re in,” I whisper.
Spirit offers me an image of a skull and crossbones, the distinct markings on a bottle of poison.
THE SIX OF CUPS
A MINOR ARCANA CARD, 6TH IN THE SUIT OF CUPS
This card features a community: an older person sharing a cup, filled with flowers, with a younger person. They are in a village, and five additional cups of flowers surround them.
Upright: nostalgia, innocence, comfort, emotional connections from the past
Reversed: clinging to the past, emotional immaturity, repressed memories
I shouldn’t have done it, but I saw Stella struggling, I felt how desperately she desires revenge. I tasted that tang of power alongside her, when she thought of destroying families, and I allowed it.
Stella wants this so badly. And not just for herself. Not just to avenge me. She has a community now. She’s made a promise to this group of friends. She’ll do everything in her power to keep that promise.
I want her to have that, friends who are family. The protection she needs and deserves.
And so, I dipped into the darkness. The Dark, the Light: Asin life, we all coexist on the Other Side. I asked the Dark Trio, the leader known as Asomoday, to give my sister the sign she needed. The Dark Legion gave her the image of Blanck’s beloved childhood pet, Romeo. And in so doing, I moved excruciatingly, agonizingly, further further further from the light.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Clarice drops a used cotton handkerchief on the table with a deep scowl. “I know, it’s disgusting. Sorry. It’s all I could get, and I knew we neededsomethingafter he refused that cup of tea.”
We all stare at the crumpled kerchief as if it could explode. Wow. Clarice isclever. I was dazed, dizzy with the sensation of spiders crawling across every inch of my skin, so I didn’t see her lift his handkerchief.
We don’t celebrate. There is too much anger and bile and disgust in the air to celebrate, too much wrath in our hearts.
Clarice insists she must leave,now, and that Pax absolutely must accompany her home:“Why, a woman cannot travel across the city unaccompanied!”Did Pax’s gaze flitter to me when she said that? I agree through gritted teeth that there is much for them to discuss, in terms of Blanck’s party.
Pax’s gaze lands on Nirav. “Please don’t do anything with it until I return? I want to be here to… help. Should help be needed.” He averts his eyes. “I’m afraid I wasn’t much help when Blanck was here.”
Together, Pax and Clarice depart, Clarice’s hand tucked in the crook of Pax’s arm, laughing too loudly.
“This is going to work,” Kiyoko says after a few silent moments of us staring at Blanck’s handkerchief, the ticks fromthe clocks next door sneaking their way into our consciousness.
“It is,” I agree, though my words feel hollow. Spirit is silent.
We host a few clients in Pax’s absence: Legal troubles. A lost pet. Gambling addiction. A woman whose husband is cheating on her. A man whose wife is cheating on him. Greed and lust and hatred; why are there so many ways we fail as humans?
Pax rejoins us, and I try to ignore the clench in my lower belly when I see those silvery green eyes, that dimple, the cut of that jaw. I cannot trust my feelings; my loneliness is a liar, telling me I want someone like Pax in my life.
We shuffle the last customer out the door and lock it behind her.
“Clarice won’t be joining us for the planning,” Pax announces. He wriggles out of his tight suspenders, allowing them to droop at his sides. It’s a small, casual move that somehow makes my heart speed.
“That’s good because we didn’t invite her,” Kiyoko mutters.
Nirav snorts a laugh.
Pax cuts a glare at her. “Clarice is playing a vital role here.” He sounds weary, though, like he’s convincing himself of this fact as well. “We’d be smart to be grateful.”
