Page 32 of What Is Dark Within Me

“Go to the center of the circle. There are extra wards there.” His voice snapped back to its usual cadence, distant and uninterested.

She walked into the beam of light, squinting as her eyes adjusted. The circular window overhead was free of glass and she could see the sky; it was either sunset or dawn, tinged red, with fast-moving clouds that looked like shredded cotton swabs.

“You should sit,” Nicolas said. The toes of his shoes touched the edge of the pentagram, but he came no closer. “The top of the relic unscrews. Open it and put a single bone in your palm. No more than that, it’s important. What is left within them has instincts, even thoughts. If it speaks and you choose to answer, be careful what you say.”

“Can it hurt me?”

“If the Remnant escapes, yes, but I’ll be standing by if anything happens.”

“What a reassuring answer, thanks. Hope that big sword of yours isn’t purely ceremonial.”

The bone reacted as it touched her bare skin, like she had wandered into a haunted house and felt the whisper of a presence—some hint of curiosity that wasn’t exactly malicious but could become so if she displeased it.

“What now?”

“Let’s try it the Otherlander way first. Close your eyes and ask the Remnant to tell you where it's been.”

Aleja almost protested. Otherlanders had a different relationship with magic than humans. It was like being a fish, versus having to put on a heavy set of scuba gear to stay underwater—only the scuba gear was crystals and candles.

She closed her eyes. The bright light seared into her vision, making blue flashes spark beneath her lids.Um, hi,she thought, not exactly sure if this was something she was supposed to do out loud.I’m sorry to disturb you, but I’m trying to figure out where you’ve—

Who is asking?

Aleja nearly dropped the bone at the answer. The relic had spoken, and she had simply understood without knowing how.I’m Alejandra.I found your bones in my friend’s backpack. Her name is Violet Timmons.

The sensation that followed may not have been unpleasant, but it was certainly intrusive. She sensed the tickle of metaphorical fingers in her brain, a sensation that nearly made her throw the Unholy Relic across the room.

Cold and dark, she remembered. Violet was somewhere cold and dark.

She could have sworn something that wasn’t her laughed in her head.

Aleja, the voice said in a purr, rattling through her skull so much she felt it in her sinuses like a sneeze coming on.Half the Knowing One’s power is swirling in you, but I should have expected nothing less. I always thought you were too good for him. I hope you’re on your way to usurping his throne.

The way the voice said this was oddly fond. She wanted to respond but realized she had opened her eyes.

No. That wasn’t true. Her eyes weren’t open.

But she could see more than the amorphous blobs of red and blue that’d danced through her vision before. A bright, sterile light pointed directly at her face. Something tickled her nostrils. The smell had a sensation to it, like it was burning away the small hairs inside her nose. She recognized it from her time as a caretaker: the antiseptic wipes they used to clean surfaces.

Aleja tried to focus. Tried to blink her inner eye and adjust to the scene, but it felt like she’d stepped into an impressionist painting, where everything was depicted in loose brushstrokes and shadow. There was a whisper, but it was not the voice of the bones.

“Will you accept this as proof? Keep it with you when you go.” A man’s voice. Older. Deep and quick, as if he was speaking directly into Aleja’s ear.

“I couldn’t possibly—this is priceless—”

Violet.

“Exactly. It’s an act of faith on my part. I expect you to return them to my brother when you get there. I’m begging you, Violet. The chemotherapy isn’t working. We can move onto radiation, but the reality is that we may be too late.”

Violet gave a nervous laugh. “Do you give rare magical objects to all of your dying patients?”

“Not all of my dying patients are powerful witches. Go to the well, Violet. It healed my brother. It can do the same for you.”

Wait! Aleja thought as the scene changed.

I can’t control what you see, the bones said with a hint of accusation.It’s not as if I get to choose where people cart me around.

She was back in a place of red and orange, like the color of the sky when there was a distant wildfire. Someone stood in front of her, but she couldn’t blink the figure into focus.

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