Page 92 of A Fate In Moonstone

Drip. The noise echoed in my ear so loudly I flinched.

“Fucking water dripping.” Cursing, I stomped over to the closest faucet and paused. It wasn’t the bath, nor the sinks, or the shower leaking.

Excitement hummed inside me. The room lit up in orange and I stood confused. Had I set off an alarm?

Nope. The tips of my fingers were on fire.

Shit. Shit.

“Hurry the hell up, Sapphira.”

Shaking out my emotional fire, I focused on that drip. It was the key. It had to be. It took a few minutes, but the drips led me to his black wood closet. Come on secret door.

I pressed behind his shoes, his dress shirts, and—click.

“Gotcha, bitch.”

I opened the door cautiously at first, but once it was clear no one was inside, I darted inside. Dripping black liquid flowed through various tubes and glass beakers. This was Verin’s lab. Mother said his body was like a lab, but it made sense he’d have a physical one as well.

It was artificially so bright which made my headache worse. Bookshelves lined the opposing wall of this small room. If I had more time, I’d search through his books, these hidden treasures. Perhaps another day if I remembered.

“What’s the plan, Sapphira?” I asked, standing over the final glass vial at the end of the tube.

Drip.

Poisons, potions, and science like this all had to be exact like Verin said. It’s the reason I’d been warned away from trying to heal myself with Verin’s power. One small deviation could cause a major reaction. I needed to change the mixture and hope it would be enough to change this little dark cocktail of suffering for the realm.

“What if you make it worse?” My finger ran along the glass, feeling its fragility. One little flick and it would crack.

There was a risk of that.

“What if you smash this lab?”

Time, Sapphira, you don’t have it, I reminded myself.

I sniffed the liquid, noticing it smelled like cinnamon, as long as it stayed the same color and scent. Verin hopefully wouldn’t know the difference.

“Time to make a choice and hope you make the right one. Just change the ingredients, Sapphira.”

So, I did the first thing that came to mind without overthinking it.

Lifted a thumb to the sharp canines in my mouth and pressed up. Blood pooled on my skin from the small puncture hole as I held it over the vile.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

Chapter Fifty-One

A knock came from the door.

“Sapphira,” Nyx called and I couldn’t remember if I locked the door or not. Pretty sure I did. I gripped the moonstone dagger tighter and pressed down.

“I’m coming in.”

No, she wasn’t.