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She closed her eyes. Though she listed, Braden was right there and kept her upright.
The potion was warm and soothing down her throat and even warmer in her stomach. The gentle heat continued to spread.
“What’s it like?”
“Heaven. Comforting.” She opened her eyes and turned to face Braden. He now had a golden aura and looked more beautiful than ever. She cupped his face and searched his eyes. She wanted to see inside him, all the way through, to his depths.
She slid her hand to his throat and gripped him, but not too tight. She just wanted to hold on while she explored.
The sensation felt familiar as though it had been done to her. Maybe it had. Maybe in some form Veyda had done this to her and searched out her potential.
The mint in the potion came to the fore and began to ease through her body and into her mind. Braden’s eyes were now gold-rimmed.
“Are you shifting a little?”
“Yes. I can’t seem to help myself. You’re having an effect.”
“Can you pull away if you needed to? Or do I have control of you. I think you should try.”
He slid away easily enough so she breathed a sigh of relief. “But you might have more control than you think. You might be able to apply pressure especially on those less powerful. Try again. Try to control me.”
“I don’t want to.”
He chuckled. He even smiled. “I know. I know who you are. But if we end up in a battle, you need to know what you’ve got.”
He drew close once more and again she slid her hand around the side of his neck. She created a firm grip and held his gaze.
The potion had warmed her all the way through, even to the tips of her fingers where she touched him. She added pressure just to the tips.
Braden’s voice entered her mind. That’s it. I’m feeling something from you.
Is it my killing power?
No. Not exactly. But it has a similar quality. This is about control. You were controlled like this by Veyda, weren’t you?
She thought back to that awful night, what she could remember of it. Then, just like that, another piece fell into place. I was. She was always behind me and she had her hand on my neck.
What did she want you to do?
To participate in the ritual.
What was the ritual? Can you see into the past? Look hard. This is important.
Someone’s screaming. There on the center platform. She’s screaming. She’s being tortured, but I can’t see her. The one covered in a dark mist. This was the first time she’d been able to remember the woman’s screams in her memories.
She suddenly recalled Veyda’s voice next to her ear. She’d put more pressure on Maeve’s throat. “You were made for this, Maeve. You were created for extraordinary feats, like nothing you can imagine. But I can imagine for you until you’re ready. Let me train you, instruct you, be your guide. You’ll lack for nothing here in Five Bridges. You’ll be safe under the shelter of my wing. You’ll help me build a society worth having here in Elegance, in all of Five Bridges. Join me, Maeve. Pick up the blade and cut out the woman’s heart.”
The memory was so stunning and so horrible, Maeve pulled away from Braden, her hands held up in horror. She glanced from one hand to the next. Had she done it? Had she killed the innocent woman that night?
“What have I done?”
“Maeve, what’s wrong?” Braden took hold of her arms. “Did you remember more about that night?”
“Yes. Veyda wanted me to kill the victim as part of my induction. The woman was on a platform in the center of the room. I don’t know who she was or what I did. The mist keeps her cloaked. Maybe Veyda wanted it that way. I don’t know. The witches, the ones I killed, were doing something to her. The smell. It’s the poisoned paste, the one Veyda’s been using on Kiara. The woman was screaming in agony. But Veyda was trying to seduce me into murdering her. She kept talking about my potential and wanting to train me.” She shook her head back and forth. “She said we’d create a whole new Five Bridges, one worth living in. Braden, this woman can’t actually believe she’s doing good.”
“I think a witch like Veyda would say whatever she felt she needed to say in order to get what she wanted. What interests me is that she must have needed to persuade you to do something against your will. She couldn’t force you. I think she used every weapon in her arsenal to get you to comply, but she failed. Your character won out over her dark spells and potions.”
Maeve wasn’t convinced. There was still something horrible about that night she couldn’t remember. She might not know the details, yet, but something else had happened and it made her tremble.
