Page 7 of The Fated and the Damned
I rolled my eyes.Pompous ass.
She cocked her head, her lips quirking shyly. “What makes you say that?”
“If I can put up with this one’s bad tempers, swearing, and general haughtiness, then you will be a breath of fresh air, I’m sure.”
My mouth fell open to argue, but I couldn’t even deny it. True. All true. András only smirked knowingly. I flipped him off with a chuckle and turned to find Eszter looking at me oddly.
“What?”
She laughed, shaking her head. “It’s just, I’ve never seen you like this. You seem different.”
I shifted in my seat, feeling slightly uncomfortable with that assessment. “How so?”
Eszter walked gracefully to the cooking fire and looked over her shoulder with a jerk of her head. I grinned, sparking a fire with a click of my fingers. She set about arranging cups, boiling some tea, and placing some palacsinta on the table. An excited squeak left me as I reached for the sweet, rolled pancakes. An even more undignified noise followed as I took a bite and the chocolatey fruits exploded in my mouth.
Gods, it was all so familiar it made my heart ache with longing. Homesickness—not for the creature comforts or familiarity of a place, but the warmth of the people in it. Okay, fine, a little bit for the creature comforts.
Amused, András raised a brow at me, then watched Eszter quietly, thoughtfully, an expression I couldn’t glean on his face.
My sister set the cups on the table and took a seat across from us. When she saw my inquiring glare, she laughed again. “Gods, stop looking at me like that. I meant it as a compliment, Kitarni. I’ve missed you like hell, but moving to Mistvellen has been good for you. This village holds bad memories—bad blood—but now?” She assessed me with a keen eye. “The way you hold yourself, the conviction in your eyes … you’re stronger. Happier. I always knew the potential you had. I think perhaps you’ve finally realised that too.”
My heart swelled. My sister, ever the observer, wise beyond her years. It had been difficult to compartmentalise everything that had happened since leaving this village. So much blood had been spilled since then. And tears … many tears. But for the first time since the incident in the cultists’ clearing, I realised how right Eszter was.
Sorrow still stalked my footsteps, and anger filled my cup, but I had come so far, had taken all the shit from my past and forged myself into something stronger. Even if I’d lost the potential for something else before I’d ever fully grasped it …
I didn’t have the words to respond, so I reached my hand out to clasp hers. A gesture she immediately understood. She knew me so damn well.
“How have you been?” I rasped. “The village—”
“Is in shambles,” she said with a wince.
My lips pursed. After spending the last few months picking off witch hunters and intercepting messengers, I hadn’t expected good news, but if what Eszter said was true, it was worse than I’d thought.
András sipped from his tea. “Is Caitlin Vargo still the High Witch of your coven?”
Eszter’s face darkened, her lips turning to a scowl. “Unfortunately. The coven is a mess. Witches are disappearing in droves and our resources are fast depleting. Caitlin’s leadership is crumbling by the day. Each of her decrees are more foolish than the last.”
“Are the laws in this town not governed as a democracy?” András asked.
She shook her head slowly. “Not exactly. The councillors have a say in signing off on small matters, and each councillor is responsible for certain assignments and units, but the High Witch’s word is law. It’s always been that way.”
“Well maybe it shouldn’t.” I coiled a curl around my finger, chewing on my lip. “Caitlin’s dictatorship has never been formally contested before, but now is the time for change. Under her leadership the witches are suffering, women are being dragged away right under her nose and she does nothing. I only have one question. Why?”
Eszter looked at me with sorrow in her eyes. And in a voice barely audible, she whispered, “I don’t know.”
A frustrated sound escaped my lips. “What is the point of fighting against Sylvie and those fanatics if we can’t protect our own? Who does that make us in the end if we can’t protect the ones we love?” I glanced at András, noting the concern in his eyes, the set of his jaw.
“There are always casualties in war, but the innocent should not suffer the wicked,” András said. He sighed, raking a hand through his shiny blond locks. “Lord Sándor has provided soldiers to defend the witches and guard these borders. These are highly trained men. They would not shirk their duties or abandon their posts.”
My frown deepened. “Erika would never allow our people to be taken without a fight. Something is wrong. It just doesn’t add up.”
Eszter said, “There’s a reason for that. Caitlin has been sending Erika on scouting missions—Lukasz too. With the cultists blocking all trade routes and water outlets, we’re running out of food. We can survive on what our earth magic can harness for now, but it’s not enough to last. Especially when the weather cools. Erika isn’t here half the time, and without her there’s no one to lead our forces, small as they are.”
I steepled my fingers together, propping my chin on their tips. “So you’re telling me she’s sending our best warriors out on meaningless quests while our village remains vulnerable against attack? No one to command the táltosok, no one to train the witches?”
Eszter nodded. “Exactly. Mama has been doing her best to ration our food and water and to keep the soldiers in line, but there’s only so many places she can be at once. If Sylvie sent an army to attack, we’d fall, Kitarni. All of us.”
András swore under his breath, all evidence of his cheery temperament gone. He glanced at me—asking for permission, I realised. It was still odd to me, to have anyone deferring to me, much less my betrothed’s best friend. I wondered if Dante begrudged me András’s company, then thought better of it. The asshat had probably asked András to watch over me in his stead. Shoving that thought aside, I nodded my acceptance and András left our house without a word, stopping only to nod politely to Eszter.
