Page 74

I steadied my breathing, focusing on the one answer I needed so desperately. Magic rose in the air, herbal and bright.

Soren gasped in surprise, and I tuned him out, focusing only on my need.

Power flooded me, old and unused, lighting up my skin like sunshine on a warm day. Tears filled my eyes. How I had missed this.

I held that image in my mind’s eye, holding the question behind my teeth for another moment before I opened my eyes and reached for the cup.

I turned it over and moved the handle to face my body.

The air smelled of Earl Grey and the power I’d long neglected. My magic was never quite the same after Evie’s battle, and I could do some odd things, but I think I’d suppressed this part of my magic for so long it had remained untouched by Evie’s magic.

I bent and peered down into the teacup, relaxing my thoughts, and allowing images to form inside my mind.

Dots. Circles. Curves. A wheel.

A heart?

Weird.

A bird. A mountain. Several knots. Dashes. A spiral.

My mother was close.

A sideways squiggly line. Difficult challenges lay ahead.

Yeah. No shit.

I closed my eyes once more and tried to put the pieces together.

Soren sat still and quiet on the other side of the table, though I felt his attention locked on me.

I brushed thoughts of him away and concentrated.

Mountains. Birds.

We were in the PNW. Plenty of those here.

Dashes meant brief travel. So somewhere close.

A wheel usually meant an inevitable change.

The heart was weird. Those meant exactly what the symbol showed. Either love or home. I brushed that one aside.

When I couldn’t figure anything else out, I opened my eyes once more and peered into the cup for a second time.

Two x’s. Warning me to take caution.

A chain. A series of events was about to take place.

Nothing told me I would be successful, but nothing told me I would fail either, only that I must use caution.

When I was finished, I pushed the mug aside and looked up at Soren.

His eyes were glowing molten gold.

I tilted my head. “Are you alright?”

He blinked several times until the light was diminished. “Yes. Sorry. A reaction to your rising power.” Soren cleared his throat. “Did you see anything?”