Page 101 of When Wishes Bleed

Leah smiled. “I’ll stay to help, but at the first sign of trouble, I’m out. I have family, too.”

“Not to mention that you’re actually into Knox,” Rose muttered snidely under her breath.

Leah nodded. “I am into Knox,” she confidently confirmed, “and Tauren knows that. As do his parents. And all of them approve, Rose.”

Rose’s mouth gaped open again, then snapped shut. I enjoyed watching Leah put her in her place more than I should have.

“Rose?” Tauren asked. “Have you decided?”

“I’ll stay, of course,” she confirmed with a nod.

Decisions made, we learned Tessa would leave us that afternoon, pretending that Tauren had dismissed her and giving the viewing public the impression that this competition was still light-hearted, and that we were oblivious to what was transpiring in Thirteen. Rose would throw a tea party, as it was already scheduled, and then we would travel to the coast. Tradition decreed that if the sea blessed our prince, it would offer up a nautilus shell, which would pave his path to the crown with luck and prosperity.

“That’s awfully close to Thirteen,” Brecan noted. “I’m not sure that’s safe.”

“Don’t film it live. You can film it and then air it later, once everyone is back here and safe, right?” Estelle suggested.

“You have a few hours to rest,” the King announced, ignoring the suggestion but staring at me intently. “I suggest you take advantage of it.”

Brecan used his magic to pop the bubble enclosing us and led our party outside, down the long corridor to the main staircase. Mira made me promise to wake her if anything happened. With the exertions of the morning, she needed a few hours of sleep. So did Brecan and I. We trudged to our hallway and Mira closed the door behind her, giving a weak wave.

I pulled out my key and unlocked my room, catching the barest trace of sage and black salt swirling in the air. After quickly scanning the room, I couldn’t see anything out of place.

“What’s the matter?” Brecan said, his chest suddenly against my back.

“Someone was in here – a witch.”

“There.” He pointed to a small table just inside the door. “Someone delivered a letter.”

The letter was sealed in midnight blue wax, a symbol of a moon and stars stamped into its glossy surface. I hesitated to even touch it.

Breaking the seal, pieces of wax sprinkled my boots and bounced onto the floor.

Dearest Sable,

With great discretion, there are urgent matters I’d like to discuss with you – and you alone. Meet me in my favorite garden when you can. I’ll be watching.

Best Regards,

Arron, Son of Night

Brecan fumed. “You are not going alone.”

I wished he hadn’t been watching out for me just this once, because I knew I needed to meet Arron alone. He wouldn’t speak to me otherwise. I remembered his silver, slitted eyes – reptilian, yet eerily beautiful. They somehow fit him, just as he belonged to the dark smoke that was a harbinger of his arrival.

Tossing the letter onto the table, I scrubbed my hands down my face. “Let’s rest. Then we’ll discuss.”

“We will discuss it,” he warned.

I walked to the bed and flung myself on it, barely registering his ‘sleep well,’ or the moment he locked the door and closed it behind him.

I try to blink, but something thick blankets me. Something heavy. It presses all around me. I can’t shift or move even a fraction of an inch.

The weight keeps me still, silent. My heart thunders.

There is dirt in my mouth. In my nostrils. In my ears. But I can’t move my hands to dig it out. Not even a finger will flinch. I can move my tongue, but not my lips. The pressure holds them shut.

I remember that the Circle, led by Grandmother Ela, captured and encapsulated me with magic. The four of them together are too powerful to fight against.

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