Page 102 of The Witch and The Blood Oath

Cady smirked. “No need for flattery, Coven Mother. We already made up, remember?”

Though I still didn’t understand her great idea, it was a relief to see my sister back to her usual spunky self.

“How?” Ryder gritted out. “How do we find her?”

“The dark witches,” Cady explained. “They were planning on storming the High Witch’s court, remember? Surely, to do so, they would’ve had an idea about where it is.”

I cursed under my breath. “Let me guess—they live in some creepy, underground lair.”

“Not underground,” Freya corrected, “but definitely creepy.”

“If they don’t talk,” Ryder said, “the vampires will.”

“Ryder,” Freya warned. “You can’t enter their territory.”

He bared his teeth. “There’s nocan’tanymore. Thanks to you.”

Freya flinched, and I stifled the urge to leap to her defense. It wasn’t my place.

“She made a mistake,” Cady murmured. “We can’t save Elle if we hold it against her forever.”

“I’m not supposed to make mistakes,” Freya whispered. “I’m supposed to be Coven Mother.”

I couldn’t bare the self-loathing that coated her words.

“You don’t think your mom ever screwed up?” I asked. “I promise you, she did.”

Freya laughed bitterly.

“She failed to find the chimera I suppose," Freya said and frowned, "but given Elle's age and the fact I can't imagine Mom embarking on such a dangerous journey without my knowledge, Elle would've been only a child or babe when Mom searched for her.”

“How did Sybil fail to catch her, then?” Cady said.

Freya swallowed. "I don't know."

As the wheels of Freya's mind turned, she paced and chewed on her lower lip. “I don’t see how Mom couldn’t find it—I mean,wefound it.”

Ryder growled, and Freya winced.

“Sorry,” she corrected, “her, not it.”

“What if she did find the chimera?” I asked.

"And chose not to capture her," Freya whispered.

Had Sybil Redfern defied the High Witch and survived?

“If Mom had wanted to capture her,” Freya said, “I’m certain she could’ve done so.”

“So, why didn’t she?” Cady asked. “And why does Cordelia want the chimera so badly she’s been trying to capture it for decades?”

“I don’t know,” Freya answered. “But I think it has something to do with what Walker and I learned in that cave. Think about it. Why would the High Witch wantusto hunt Elle? She wasn’t that hard to find.”

“Is there any way she could’ve known Ryder is Elle’s mate?” I suggested.

Ryder shook his head. “If she had known Elle was mine, she would’ve realized we wouldn’t just let her go. Cordelia would have known someone would come back for her.”

“If she’s been watching us as closely as she claims,” Cady added, “she would know Freya and Walker couldn’t let Elle go. Mate or not, they would’ve felt morally obligated to save an innocent person.”

---