Page 60 of The Spell Caster

“I don’t know what to do,” I admitted. “I’m not sure I can be of any help.”

“I believe you can,” Rhodes said. “There is something special about you, Layla.”

I blinked at her. That was wishful thinking at best.

“I’d like to formally invite you to join the Arcaenum as a delegate.”

“What?”

Rhodes’s grim demeanor cracked for a moment as she cackled gleefully at my reaction. “That’s right, young witch. I’m here to rope you into politics.”

In our councils, delegates represented a variety of special interests. “What would I even—”

“Don’t worry about all that,” she said. “Just attend and see what comes of it.”

I chewed the edge of my lip as I gazed into the woods. It didn’t sound like a terrible idea. I wanted to know what was going on. “If you’re sure—”

“I am,” Rhodes insisted.

I rubbed my fingers over the wooden texture of the bench absently. “Something’s happening, isn’t it?”

She regarded me soberly, her back straight. “Yes,” she agreed. “It’s been coming for a long time. We underestimated the Angeloi severely… what they’ve been doing, what their plans are.”

My heart pounded. “What… what are they planning?”

“They are always planning Inperium.”

“You’re saying we have no idea what they’re up to,” I whispered. “We’ve been sitting here, just dealing with small infestations, while they—”

“You have the gist of it, yes. We became complacent. We forgot that a hierarchy means someone is above them. Controlling them.”

I was racked with shudders, trembling uncontrollably. “You knew about this?”

Rhodes shook her head. “I’ve done what I could. My hands are tied, in certain ways. And there were other, more immediate problems.”

Councilor Grey and the witches who supported him.

“I’m too old to fight, Layla,” she said. “I’ve tried to gather allies, but there are few. So very few.”

I took a deep breath. “I’ll go to the next meeting,” I said, not wanting to overpromise. Despite her apparent faith in me, I doubted I would have anything to contribute, or that the Arcaenum would suddenly spill their secrets.

A cardinal called loudly from the trees. The familiar sound brought me a measure of calm.

Rhodes gestured toward the Circle. I lent her my arm to help her stand and then walked with her slowly toward the main walkway.

“You were a guardian?” I asked as we walked, thinking of the way she carried herself.

Her eyes sparkled. “You can tell, can you? I’m the only Troubled witch ever to be elected to the Arcaenum. It’s why they don’t like me much.”

I gave her a polite smile. Silence stretched between us as I thought of a hundred questions and stopped myself from asking them. Rhodes was kind, but she had an agenda. I was learning not to trust someone right away just because they seemed like they were on my side. I would wait, see how this played out.

“Fate keep you, Layla,” the councilor said solemnly as we reached the main path. She turned and walked slowly away, her stick thumping on the stones with the rhythm of her steps.

***

The next week passed quietly, at odds with my inner turmoil. Every noise made me jump. I wanted to shake every person who smiled at me and tell them Hell was real and the Angeloi were coming for us. I needed to be doing research—something to figure out my magic—but I was on edge and couldn’t concentrate.

Costi had been busy doing physical therapy on top of his normal intense training. I’d told him briefly about the Arcaenum meeting, but I’d been trying not to bother him. We both needed to get our heads in this game.

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