Page 203 of The Warlock's Trial

“We have the power to control your son in death, so you don’t have a choice,” Margaret continued. “All it took was a small modification to our potion, which he’s already taken. The potion’s spell will activate if you refuse to do this for us.”

A chill traveled down my spine. She was talking about the potion they’d forced Hector to make with the Alchemy Wand—the one that not only killed people, but controlled their spirits. I thought of the ghosts we’d encountered in Octavia Hall, and how they’d had no choice but to follow the priestesses’ will. I couldn’t subject Marcus to such a fate.

There had to be a way around this.

“Don’t try anything clever,” Lilian warned. “We’ve cast more than one spell upon your son, so that you cannot break the magic. The potion we gave him is to ensure your compliance. You will create the Master Wand, or your son will perish. The second is a curse to ensure our safety. If you cast another spell before completing the enchantment on the Master Wand, or if you try to harm us, your son will die. The only thing that will ensure he survives is if you complete this enchantment.”

“There’s no need for this,” I insisted. “If it is power you want, the coven has already given it to you! You have complete control.”

Lilian smirked. “Not entirely. But we will.”

“We must be able to negotiate,” I begged. “Your soldiers are gone. People are dead. What good is your power if there’s no one left to rule over? No one else has to die for this?—”

Lilian twisted her fingers, and an invisible force squeezed my windpipe. I gasped for breath. Her Mentalist powers curled around my neck like a noose.

Chloe must’ve made a motion behind me, because Lilian pointed an ugly finger at her. “If you dare try to siphon my powers with the Mentalist Wand, the child dies. The same goes for every one of you. Any use of the Oaken Wands will be treated as an act of aggression against us, and the curse we cast will kill him. I wouldn’t risk it if I were you.”

The priestesses had thought this through. They’d created two spells to work against one another, so that if we tried to break one, or we tried to use the Oaken Wands, the other spell would take my son’s life. They’d completely backed us into a corner.

Margaret strolled forward, staring down her nose at me. “You’re wrong, Nadine. People will continue to die, unless you do as you’re told.”

“How do you expect your plan to work?” I rasped. Lilian left my airways open just enough so I could talk. “He’s just a baby.”

“His full power won’t awaken until he’s older, but he still has traces of demigod magic inside of him,” Margaret explained. “We can’t put demigod power into us, so we must enchant an object with his power. You will draw his magic out and put it into this wand, so that we can utilize it for our own intentions. What will it be, Nadine? Will you do this to save your son’s life?”

We couldn’t lose another son. I was his mother, and it was my job to protect him. He incarnated at this time for a reason, and he had a destiny to fulfill. I wasn’t letting the priestesses take him.

Lucas and I exchanged a glance. If we did this, the priestesses would be more powerful than ever before. They could use the Master Wand to create spells we couldn’t even dream of.

And yet, the answer was obvious. We would do anything to save our son.

“You swear he’ll live?” I choked out.

Lilian wore a triumphant smile. “Yes.”

For how long, she didn’t say. The priestesses wanted to play games, but all I saw was a puzzle worth solving. If they wanted to play, we could play.

“And if we do this, the spells you cast on him will be broken?” I added.

“The second you complete the enchantment, the potion we gave him will lose all power,” Lilian confirmed.

She said nothing of the curse they’d cast. I couldn’t break the curse before enchanting the Master Wand, and we couldn’t harm the priestesses, either. We had to tread very carefully.

Lucas gave me a subtle nod.

“I will make your wand if you can promise my friends will walk out of here alive and unharmed,” I offered.

Lilian exchanged a glance with Margaret. I saw the twitch of her eye that said they’d agree to my terms, but it didn’t mean they wouldn’t kill us the second we stepped foot out of the building.

It didn’t matter, though. All we needed was those few moments of safety. We could get out of this. We just had to play the game.

Lilian released her hold on me, and I gasped a greedy breath of air. I took a step forward.

“Nadine, you can’t give them this power,” Chloe insisted.

Mira crossed her arms. “She’s already made up her mind.”

“Quiet, Mira,” Professor Hernandez hissed. I took it the two of them didn’t get along well.

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