Emma
Since Ethan heard the rumor that Callista was involved with the Black Claw, we’d all been taking turns following her around the castle, on the off-chance she’d lead us to the cult.
We were all but certain Callista had caught on. She remained at the university at all times, hung out with her friends and went to class. She never left campus, and the Black Claw certainly wasn’t hiding within these walls. Maybe she had nothing to do with the cult after all, and just wanted to find the Black Claw to piss her mother off.
Regardless, following Callista around was a dead end. It didn’t get us anywhere. After days of tailing her with no progress, I was all but sure she didn’t have anything to do with the cult at all.
But I was more concerned about speaking to Lady Magdalina. Ethan told me she’d hinted about the stones, and I wanted to figure out exactly what she knew about them.
I knocked on Lady Magdalina’s door Thursday morning. “Enter,” I heard her say, and the rotating door that led to her office opened of its own accord.
I stepped inside. She didn’t seem particularly surprised to see me. “What is it, Emmaline?” she asked.
I swallowed. Lady Magdalina had been far kinder to me than she ever had been in the past few weeks. She was no longer my coach, only my headmistress. I was sad, to experience that kind of distance between us. I wanted her guidance, and if I couldn’t get it on the ice anymore, I would pressure her to deliver it in real life.
“Ethan mentioned you know about my quest,” I said slowly, not wanting to give anything away. “I’m asking how.”
Magdalina sighed and put her finger tips together. “Yes, Emmaline. I know about the Crystals of Harmony, about your destiny as the Worldweaver, and about your prophecy. I know you are currently seeking the griffin stone, and have three of the Crystals in your possession as we speak. I know you have been to Edinmyre, that you and Ethan both have Unseelie blood, and that your friend Odette is adrycaseer. I know it all. And so did Lord Lucien, before he died.”
My mouth had gone very dry. “How?” I squeaked out. “How could you know?”
“Sit down, Emmaline.” Magdalina gestured to the chair in front of her desk, and I took a seat. She rubbed her temples tiredly before she began speaking.
“Many years ago, when I was very young, I had a vision sent from the gods. It was a very vivid dream, if you will. I had images of the Worldweaver, of the Crystals of Harmony, of the return of thedrycaseers. Milonna herself came to me and delivered your prophecy, how you would save our world and damn it all in one blow. I was informed by the goddesses that I would be the one to guide the Worldweaver to her destiny. When I awoke, I wrote down everything I had in my journal, and kept it safe.”
Magdalina pointed to a leather-bound journal on her desk. “I spent many years of my life searching for the girl who could be the one. I traveled the world, seeking the chosen one, but each one led to disappointment. I was all but ready to give up. Then came you.”
I swallowed. Lady Magdalina coming to Detroit had been no accident. I’d thought so when she’d first showed up on my doorstep, and I had the same feeling now.
“When we met, you hinted there was a shifter you knew of that I’d be bonded to,” I said slowly. “Did you—”
“Of course I put you together,” Magdalina said. “Ethan’s birth helped my vision become all the clearer. I saw him in my dream. I didn’t understand much of it, at the time, but once he arrived on this earth, the pieces began to fall into place. I knew the Worldweaver, whoever she was, would be bonded to him. The first time I laid eyes on you, I was certain I’d found his mate, and therefore, the Marked I’d been looking for.”
“What about Lord Lucien? How did he know?” I asked.
“I knew I needed someone on my side, to help me with my task— someone at the university I could trust, because I could not do this alone. Lord Lucien was an expert in Unseelie lore. More than that, he wasn’t prejudiced. He was loyal, and didn’t have a mate to protect. His first priority was defending Malovia,” Magdalina said. “When the time was right, I told him what I’d seen. I gave him the task of mentoring Ethan, and then you, once you came to the university.”
My guts twisted inside of me. Lord Lucien had known all along what I truly was, and we’d never gotten to talk about it. He was one of the few people I could share all this with, and he was gone.
“Why didn’t you tell me the truth?” I demanded. “I had a right to know.”
“If I had told you this to begin with, would you have ever come to Malovia?” she asked. “The gods don’t bestow information upon us until we’re ready, Emmaline. If I had informed you that you’d be the one to save the fae, you would’ve never entered university, and therefore, all would’ve been lost. I’m sorry if you believed I deceived you, but withholding information until the right time was my only option.”
“What about the King’s Contest? Did you foresee the result?”
“Visions aren’t perfect,” Magdalina admitted. “I am not adryca. I was merely delivered a message from the gods. I admit that is one part that has me a bit… baffled. I didn’t expect that outcome.”
I chewed my lip. “Is there anything you’re still hiding from me? Anything that would be useful in my quest going forward, that I don’t know anything about?”
Lady Magdalina nodded slowly. “Everything I know, you already have knowledge of— except for one thing. The day of the ritual, where the Black Claw will take your blood to raise Droga back to his full power.”
My heart skipped a beat. “Lord Lucien said he didn’t know the day the cult would come for my blood.”
“Because he didn’t,” Magdalina replied. “I feared he’d grown far too protective, and dare I say, too close to you, to be informed of this specific date. He’d try to save you from it.”
“And could he? Could I save myself?” I asked.
Magdalina shook her head. “No, Emmaline. When the time comes, there is nothing that you will be able to do. The Black Claw will use your blood to raise Droga, and it will ignite a hell the fae have never seen.”
