Page 53 of Mardi Gras Murders & Midnight Masquerades
As Dre relaxed her hold, I showed Veronica the pendant without letting her touch it. "Who gave you this?"
Tears welled in her eyes. "Councilor Kenneth. He said it was a protection charm to help me advance in the council. I only wanted to make a good impression."
My stomach dropped. Kenneth had been instrumental in approving the parade route modifications and always seemed to sway council decisions in subtle ways. And he had been mysteriously missing for the last several meetings. No one thought much of it because he had never been all that involved. Necromancers were feared by most and tended to stick to themselves.
"Where is Kenneth now?" I demanded.
"His private chambers. It’s on the lower level in the east wing," Veronica answered, looking disoriented. "He's beenthere since yesterday preparing for something before the masquerade."
"Wait," she added as we turned to leave. "There's a young witch he brought in last night. He said she needed special training. I think she's in danger."
The pendant pulsed with malevolent energy as we descended to the lower level. The council headquarters had been built atop older structures. We hadn’t touched anything below while doing our renovations, but we had looked through it. There had been no body and nothing to suggest a madman was doing shady shit there.
This level incorporated elements from previous centuries. It had stone walls, ornate archways, and protection sigils. The latter had been changed since we had been down there. Delacroix’s work, no doubt.
We silently followed Dani's tracker. It led us to an unmarked door at the end of a secluded passage. Like the others, it was just a simple wooden door. "It’s covered in protection spells," Dre whispered as we stood there analyzing the invisible barriers. "Complex ones. That have been layered."
"We can’t dismantle them safely," I lamented.
"Not without alerting whoever's inside,” Dre agreed. “But I might be able to create a temporary opening."
“I can help,” Phi offered. The rest of us would help if they needed it. This was beyond my wheelhouse, so I was happy to leave them to it.
While Dre and Phi worked on that, I pressed my ear against the door. Faint voices drifted through it. A man was speaking in low tones. The other sound chilled me. There were occasional whimpers from what sounded like a frightened young woman.
"His essence is overwhelmingly strong," Daniwhispered. "If Kenneth is Delacroix's vessel, he's channeling significant power right now."
Dre and Phi completed their spell. "We have a thirty-second window. After that, it'll snap closed and trigger alarms."
I kicked the door open and lunged through. My sisters followed as we burst into a chamber that looked transplanted from another century. Candles provided the only illumination. They cast shadows across walls covered in ritual markings. In the center stood Councilor Kenneth. He was distinguished-looking with silver hair and aristocratic features. But his eyes burned with an unnatural light that spoke of insanity.
Before him lay a stone altar where a young woman was bound with enchanted ropes. Ritual markings covered her skin. There were also fresh cuts on her arms, dripping blood into collection bowls positioned around the altar.
"My fellow councilors," Kenneth said. His voice carried strange harmonics. "You're early for tomorrow's festivities."
"Release her," Dre demanded as she allowed her dragon nature to surge forward. My beast responded in kind, and I could feel my eyes glowing.
Kenneth smiled coldly. "I'm afraid I can't. Evelyn here is essential to tomorrow's preparations. You will want me to finish with this final test subject before it's your turn."
"Delacroix," Dani said quietly. "That's you in there, isn't it? Where’s Kenneth? Dead, right?"
The councilor's smile widened. "Kenneth has been my accommodating host for several years, though his body is beginning to show strain. Hence, tomorrow's ritual. You’ve arrived right on time."
"You won't be completing any ritual," Dre informed him as power crackled around her hands. "We know what you've been doing. Using the Society as your battery, manipulatingthe council, and killing innocents to extend your life. It all ends now."
"Not just to extend it," Delacroix corrected through Kenneth's mouth. "To transcend it. To achieve what no mage has ever accomplished. True power and immortality."
Delacroix raised a warning hand when I stepped forward. Energy cracked the floor between us. "Any aggressive move could disrupt the current ritual," he advised. "Poor Evelyn might not survive the backlash."
The girl whimpered, and my heart clenched. She couldn't be more than eighteen. She was another innocent caught in Delacroix's centuries-long web. "Let her go," I demanded. "Your quarrel is with us."
Delacroix laughed. It was chilling to hear the echo of multiple voices. "This isn't a quarrel, Dakota. It's destiny. You six were prophesied before your births. Fate provided me the magical bloodlines that would produce the perfect vessels for my ascension."
"We're nobody's vessels," Dre growled.
"You already are," he countered. "Every step after the Pleiades awakened your magic has prepared you for your true purpose. Forming your sisterly bond, establishing the council, beating the loa... all of it has made you the perfect vessels."
Movement in the shadows caught my attention. A slender woman with features so unnaturally preserved she looked like a living doll came into view. Her movements were fluid yet stilted at the same time. "Master," she murmured. "The preparations are nearly complete. The council members have consumed the enchanted wine, and the parade routes are fully activated."
