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“Phoebe was about seven months along when I told her the good news. Twins!”
I jumped out of my seat before I knew what I was doing. “What?” My veins felt filled with liquid caffeine.
Briallen pulled back, confusion and shock on her own face. “I—you mean, you did not know? How is that possible?”
I rounded on Adam. “What do you take me for? Who is this woman?”
He held up a placating hand. “Sabina,” he said, his voice mellow, like one would use to soothe a wild animal.
“Don’t ‘Sabina’ me! What are you playing at? How much did you pay her to tell these lies?”
Briallen rose and approached me slowly with her hands held out in a pleading gesture. “I am so sorry. I thought you knew.”
Adam stood slowly, ignoring the old woman in favor of watching me warily. I couldn’t blame him, I certainly felt capable of extreme violence at that moment. “She’s telling the truth,” he said simply.
My body hurtled toward Adam like a bullet, my speed giving me the advantage. I managed to slam him into the wall before he reacted. I wasn’t thinking. The need to inflict pain outweighed logic.
“Sabina, stop!” Briallen’s plea was lost in a volley of grunts as Adam and I grappled. A table fell over, sending a basket of herbs crashing to the floor. I punched and kicked and hissed my anger at the mage. Soon, I realized he wasn’t fighting back, just warding off blows.
“Fight me, dammit!” I slapped him across the face, the resulting crack sounded unnaturally loud in the small space.
“No.” Adam got a hand free and waved it, muttering something under his breath. I lunged again, but this time, a weird tingling sensation spread through my limbs. I was paralyzed from the neck down. I was too shocked by the sudden loss of movement to speak.
“Now,” Adam panted, “You’re going to listen.” He bent down and righted the table before speaking again.
“Sabina, I know—” He paused. “I know you must hate me right now. But I swear upon my life Briallen’s telling the truth.”
I shook my head and closed my eyes, trying to block him out. I wanted to run—to flee from him and the truth he was forcing on me. But I couldn’t move.
“Her name is Maisie.”
I opened my eyes and looked at him for the first time. He looked as bad as I felt. Dark circles of worry weighed down his eyes, and his cheeks were covered in tiny scratches. I noted these things only obliquely. What I focused on was the utter sincerity and regret in his eyes.
“How do you know this?” My voice sounded foreign to me, vulnerable.
He looked down at his hands. “She sent me to find you.”
“Why?”
He looked up, meeting my eyes. “She wants to meet you.”
“No, why didn’t I know about her?”
Briallen’s voice cut in. “After your poor mother died only a few minutes after you were born, Lavinia and Ameritat decided the only way to keep the peace was for you to be separated. It was agreed that you should never know about each other to prevent further upheaval within the races.”
“Then how did she,” I couldn’t bring myself to say my sister’s name, “find out about me?”
“Maisie was unaware of your existence for a time. However, at some point she started having vivid dreams that were coming true. Your father’s mother, Ameritat, realized then Maisie had the second sight. A few years ago, she had a dream about you. Ameritat had no choice but to tell Maisie about your existence with the blessings of the Hekate Council. Only she made Maisie promise never to seek you out while Ameritat was alive.”
“So what changed?”
“Ameritat died last year. Now that she’s gone, Maisie has risen to her grandmother’s position on the council.”
Holy crap, I thought. Not only did I have a sister, but also she was the leader of the freaking mancies.
“How can I believe you?” I asked.
He thought for a moment. “There’s one thing. Briallen, were there any distinguishing characteristics on the girls when they were born?”
Briallen looked at him strangely for a moment, then her eyes widened. Adam nodded encouragingly, as if already knowing what she was going to say. “Why, yes, now that you mention it. Both had identical birthmarks on their shoulder blades. Eight-pointed stars.”
My mouth fell open and my knees went weak. I looked at Adam. Now I knew why he asked Briallen to tell me. Adam would have had a chance to see my birthmark, but Briallen wouldn’t have.
“Please,” I said. “You could have told her that.”
He sighed and shook his head, obviously thinking me too stubborn for my own good. “Anything else?” he asked Briallen.
“They were both born behind the veil.”
“Huh?” I asked, turning to her.
She smiled. “It means you were both born with cauls—a thin membrane left over from the amniotic sac.”
“Gross.” I had no idea why she felt the need to share that little tidbit.
“Actually, they’re a sign of good luck,” Briallen said. “Usually the child will have psychic powers.”
“Usually?” Adam asked.
“Some believe cauls mean the child has been marked by a demon,” Briallen said. “But I’m sure that’s not the case with you or your sister.”
Since my psychic powers left a lot to be desired, I really hoped the faery was just sharing an old wives’ tale. Adam didn’t say anything, but his face had taken on a thoughtful expression as he looked at me.
“Where do you come into play in all this?” My voice shook as I spoke to him. I felt like my life had suddenly become an episode of Twilight Zone.
He shifted on his feet and cut his eyes in Briallen’s direction. “The Council trusts me to handle certain delicate matters.”
I could tell that was all I was going to get from him. Given my own profession and its resulting need for discretion, I could even respect it. However, I couldn’t respect his lies.
“So why not just tell me all this from the beginning?”
His eyes widened with incredulity. “Right. Like you wouldn’t have just beat me up and walked away.”
He had a point, but I still wasn’t happy. “What about the mages? And the training? Were those just cover-ups to get close to me?”
He shook his head quickly. “The missing mages were part of my assignment. I couldn’t believe it when I found out you were involved. It was too strange to be coincidence, but I still can’t figure out how it could have been anything else. As for the magical training, that was also part of my mission. Maisie felt you might feel more comfortable meeting with her if you understood more about the mage culture.”
