Page 23 of Ensnared
“What’s going on?” Juniper asks. “Is everything okay?”
“Sure,” I reply immediately. “Nothing’s wrong.”
Aunt Georgia fixes me with a stare. “Did I raise you to lie?”
Ah, fuck. This is the problem with being close to people. They know you too well, and you can’t even fib a little.
“No,” I say. “But we’ll figure it out.”
“Does Skye know?” Maya asks. “About us?”
I lean my elbows on the table and drop my head into my hands. “Yeah.”
“Did Jack tell her?”
“Yup.”
“Shit,” she says. “What was he thinking?”
I have no idea.
Cora sighs. “Is he in love with her?”
I swallow past a suddenly tight throat. “Right again.”
I look up just in time to see Juniper cringe.
“Did Skye panic?” she asks.
I think back on the conversation. “Not about that, she didn’t. But she realized we’d been lying to her for weeks. She didn’t take it well.”
“Mm,” says Aunt Georgia, her face thoughtful. “I can imagine. Witches were never very friendly toward dragons.”
I gape at her. “You know?”
She shakes her head from side to side. “I had a feeling.”
Maya half stands, her expression panicked. “A witch? Does Jack know? Is he safe?”
Cora pulls her back down to her chair. “Stop freaking out. Do you really think Aiden would let her stay here if she was a danger to any of us?”
Well…Technically, that’s exactly what he did, but both to his and Skye’s credit, neither of them knew she was actually dangerous to anyone. Apparently, she only blows fuses and light bulbs when she’s overexcited.
“How did you know?” I ask Aunt Georgia. “Did she tell you?”
She snorts. “No. She’s not stupid. You don’t go telling strangers you’re a witch. Do you know how many women died in the witch hunts?”
I open my mouth to reply, then close it again. Yeah, I know all about the Inquisition. One of the darkest periods in history. Hundreds of women, thousands, killed for being independent or thinking outside the norm. Neighbors and family turning on each other, accusing, stoning, burning.
It’s no wonder Skye kept her secret to herself. She had just as much reason to do so as we did.
“I noticed her bracelets,” Aunt Georgia continues.
Juniper cocks her head to the side. “The pretty silver ones?”
The old dragoness nods. “They’re witch shackles. Don’t ask me how I know. It’s not a story I’ll tell over breakfast.”
I remember what Aiden told us about them. “They suppress her magic, right? She had them custom-made.”
