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"We prepare her for the bond that must not be broken. To say the words that must never be unmade."
Each member of the circle came forward and used the gold cup to pour water over Mimi's head, blessing her with their prayers.
When everyone had finished, Trinity placed her hands on Mimi's head. "This is the daughter of the Heavens. Today she is cleansed of her earthly sins." She led Mimi deeper into the water, and Mimi submerged herself fully into the pool.
Mimi felt the warm water tingle and soothe her skin, felt a light-headed cleansing of the mind as well as the body. She emerged from the waters peaceful and energized.
She felt cleansed of all her doubts, all her confusion. She had no more thoughts of Kingsley, or of what he had asked her to do. She was one with the spirit, she was one with life, with light, with her destiny. She was ready to be bound.
CHAPTER 56
Schuyler
It had been a fortnight since Schuyler had met Bliss at the sample sale. After their joyful reunion, Schuyler thought she would be seeing Bliss more often, but the exact opposite had happened. Bliss always had an excuse not to see her. Schuyler tried not to be too upset by her friend's reluctance to hang out. In any case, her mother had set an awesome task before her.
The Repository of History was the first place to look for family records, but since it wasn't safe for Schuyler to go there, Oliver had lugged all the books to her studio apartment. The separation had been good for their relationship. They no longer experienced the daily small irritations with each other brought on by living in the same space twenty-four/seven. Of course, they still saw each other way too often. It didn't even matter that Schuyler was no longer at Duchesne, she saw Oliver as much as if she were. He had a key to her studio.
"That's a lot of books," Schuyler said, opening the door to let him in.
"Conduits are transferring everything to a computer data base, but they're only up to the eighteenth century," Oliver said cheerfully.
He placed the dusty stack on the kitchen table. "How are you, by the way?" he asked, giving her a peck on the cheek. The two of them were back in an easy groove. After it had become clear that Schuyler had no intention of reviving her friendship with Jack, Oliver seemed to relax. The threat had passed.
"Okay."
She had told him everything that happened with Allegra, had told him how odd it had been to finally speak to her mother, only to have her leave so soon. She hadn't even been able to ask Allegra about her so called sister. Nope. It was just, Here's the Van Alen Legacy. Save the world while you're at it, and I'll see you on the other side of somewhere, sometime.
Well. Schuyler had to get to work, and she was glad she had Oliver with her. With his help, they'd already made a lot of progress, considering they were looking for a family tree that went back to antiquity. It helped that the Blue Bloods kept meticulous expression and expulsion records. Schuyler put the teakettle on to boil and took a seat across from where Oliver had laid all the books open in front of him.
"Here's what we know," Oliver said. "Tiberius Gemellus was supposed to be emperor, because he was Caesar Tiberius's real grandson and heir, while Caligula, who actually became emperor, was adopted. But Tiberius preferred Caligula over Gemellus, and so named Caligula to succeed him to the throne. You would think Gemellus would have been upset, but the records show he was very close to Caligula, and loved him as a brother. The Red Bloods' history books say there is nothing known about Gemellus, which is logical, since most of the real history is hidden from them, I mean us, you know what I mean."
Schuyler nodded.
"But there's really nothing about Gemellus or his family in any of the Blue Bloods records either. It's like he never existed. Or wasn't important enough to keep track of," Oliver said, getting up when the teakettle began to whistle. He poured hot water into two cups and threw in the tea bags.
"But he was important," Schuyler said, accepting her cup and blowing on the surface before taking a sip.
"He was a keeper. He was important enough that Michael and Gabrielle named him to the Order of the Seven. But where is he now? What happened to him? Who did he become?"
Schuyler asked. "How do we find a person who's not in the books?"
Oliver and Schuyler looked at each other. They were both thinking of a rather unusual diary they had found two years ago.
Oliver said excitedly, "Usually when something's not in the books, it means..."
"It's deliberately been hidden," Schuyler said.
"Exactly." Oliver put down his cup. "So wherever he is, we're not going to find him here," he said, pushing the books away.
"He was brother to Caligula. Beloved by the emperor. His closest advisor. Ollie, I've got an idea. Call me crazy, but do you think that maybe Gemellus... was a Silver Blood?"
CHAPTER 57
Bliss
When Mimi had first asked Bliss to be a bonds-maid at her wedding, Bliss had been taken aback. The two girls had not seen each other in over a year, and were hardly friends anymore. But Mimi had seemed a bit desperate, and Bliss took pity on her and said yes. So on the bright October morning that Jack and Mimi were to be bonded, Bliss arrived early at the salon to get her hair and makeup done, as Mimi had directed.
Trinity Force and several other daughters of high-ranking Conclave members were already swaddled in robes, reading magazines and drinking champagne. Mimi herself was seated in the middle of the action. The bond-to-be was wearing a fluffy white robe, but otherwise she looked picture-perfect. Her face was made up as exquisitely as a doll's, with ruby red lips and the barest hint of blush. Her lustrous platinum hair was pulled back into a chignon woven with white flowers. She looked gorgeous.
