crawl under the table in search of shelter, when they both burst out laughing. Iris approached her younger brother and placed a kiss on the top of his head. She reached out and grasped his wounded hand. “What happened here?”
“Just a cut.”
“You show that to Ellen when she gets home.” She stepped back and took my uncle and myself in. “What’s so crucial that you two are plotting to storm the castle and drag me from my turret?”
“They found the rest of the body,” Oliver said. “Well, other than the head. That is still missing.”
“All right, we knew the parts were still out there, and they were bound to show up sooner or later.”
“Mercy’s worried, well, I’m kind of worried too.” Oliver bit his lip. “The woman was a redhead.”
“There’s the connection to Alice Riley. Pregnant,” I reminded my aunt. “Commonly believed to be a witch,” I said, and fearing I hadn’t made my case added, “and let’s don’t forget that half the magical world seems to have an ax to grind with me.”
Iris sat next to her brother. “I’m listening. Go on.”
“We’re afraid,” Oliver took over for me, “that whoever is behind this is, as you thought, attempting to work a spell of some kind using the body as a poppet. A poppet to represent Mercy.”
Iris’s lips pulled into a tight line. She looked drained this morning; the light that had been glowing in her since she slipped out from under Connor’s yoke seemed to have all but faded away. “I see.” She took a few seconds to study the map. “This doesn’t feel like the work of a real witch. It just doesn’t. An attack by proxy. That’s for amateurs.” She reached over and picked up the legal pad. “Ten pieces. Most magic workers get hung up on the numbers six, seven, and thirteen. What is the significance of that number of ten?” she asked, but then answered her own question. “Whoever is behind this knows more than about magic. Perhaps they know something about the ten united families. Something about the line and the families who remain loyal to it.”
There were indeed ten united families who maintained the line. There were originally thirteen, but three families came to regret their participation. They had been perfectly happy to throw off their own masters, but hadn’t taken into account they would lose control of the non-witches who had been subservient to them. My father, Erik, had been from one of these families. When Ellen, his wife, failed to give birth to the daughter the rebel families had hoped would come to destroy the line, Erik began an affair with my mother. Maisie and I were the products of this affair.
“If the person, or people, behind the dismembering of this unfortunate soul is indeed attempting to use the corpse as a magical substitute for Mercy, I suspect it may have absolutely nothing to do with her personally, and everything to do with her role as an anchor of the line.”
Well, that’s a comfort , I thought, drawing my arms around myself.
“You think an ordinary magic worker is out to destroy the line?” Oliver asked.
“This is no ordinary magic work. I’d say more an extraordinary magic worker. Someone on par with Jilo . . .” Her words died as we all shared the same realization.
“Jessamine?” I thought of the anger I sensed coming from her. I could understand her anger, her sense of betrayal, but would she, could she, use magic to attack me? To attempt to harm the line through harming me? Something about this theory didn’t sit right with me. “Jessamine knows Jilo and I were close. I don’t believe she would betray Jilo like that.”
“I haven’t laid eyes on her yet, but to me she sounds like the type who would bank on your thinking that way.”
“I suspect your uncle is right. I think Jessamine might see your affection for Jilo as a weak spot in your defense. Think, Mercy, what better way to extract revenge against your grandfather than by taking down the one thing he had
“Just a cut.”
“You show that to Ellen when she gets home.” She stepped back and took my uncle and myself in. “What’s so crucial that you two are plotting to storm the castle and drag me from my turret?”
“They found the rest of the body,” Oliver said. “Well, other than the head. That is still missing.”
“All right, we knew the parts were still out there, and they were bound to show up sooner or later.”
“Mercy’s worried, well, I’m kind of worried too.” Oliver bit his lip. “The woman was a redhead.”
“There’s the connection to Alice Riley. Pregnant,” I reminded my aunt. “Commonly believed to be a witch,” I said, and fearing I hadn’t made my case added, “and let’s don’t forget that half the magical world seems to have an ax to grind with me.”
Iris sat next to her brother. “I’m listening. Go on.”
“We’re afraid,” Oliver took over for me, “that whoever is behind this is, as you thought, attempting to work a spell of some kind using the body as a poppet. A poppet to represent Mercy.”
Iris’s lips pulled into a tight line. She looked drained this morning; the light that had been glowing in her since she slipped out from under Connor’s yoke seemed to have all but faded away. “I see.” She took a few seconds to study the map. “This doesn’t feel like the work of a real witch. It just doesn’t. An attack by proxy. That’s for amateurs.” She reached over and picked up the legal pad. “Ten pieces. Most magic workers get hung up on the numbers six, seven, and thirteen. What is the significance of that number of ten?” she asked, but then answered her own question. “Whoever is behind this knows more than about magic. Perhaps they know something about the ten united families. Something about the line and the families who remain loyal to it.”
There were indeed ten united families who maintained the line. There were originally thirteen, but three families came to regret their participation. They had been perfectly happy to throw off their own masters, but hadn’t taken into account they would lose control of the non-witches who had been subservient to them. My father, Erik, had been from one of these families. When Ellen, his wife, failed to give birth to the daughter the rebel families had hoped would come to destroy the line, Erik began an affair with my mother. Maisie and I were the products of this affair.
“If the person, or people, behind the dismembering of this unfortunate soul is indeed attempting to use the corpse as a magical substitute for Mercy, I suspect it may have absolutely nothing to do with her personally, and everything to do with her role as an anchor of the line.”
Well, that’s a comfort , I thought, drawing my arms around myself.
“You think an ordinary magic worker is out to destroy the line?” Oliver asked.
“This is no ordinary magic work. I’d say more an extraordinary magic worker. Someone on par with Jilo . . .” Her words died as we all shared the same realization.
“Jessamine?” I thought of the anger I sensed coming from her. I could understand her anger, her sense of betrayal, but would she, could she, use magic to attack me? To attempt to harm the line through harming me? Something about this theory didn’t sit right with me. “Jessamine knows Jilo and I were close. I don’t believe she would betray Jilo like that.”
“I haven’t laid eyes on her yet, but to me she sounds like the type who would bank on your thinking that way.”
“I suspect your uncle is right. I think Jessamine might see your affection for Jilo as a weak spot in your defense. Think, Mercy, what better way to extract revenge against your grandfather than by taking down the one thing he had
Similar Books
