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“Her daughter, my mother, found her hanging from thechandelier in the front parlor. She was never a…happy woman after that. And it was all Bertram Ballard’s fault.”
“But it wasn’t Nicky’s fault. She’s an innocent girl, just as your mother was an innocent victim.”
A flicker of emotion passed across Adelaide’s face. The fine lines around her eyes creased, her lower lip trembled. Was she about to cry? I’d never seen my grandmother shed a tear. But if she had been close to tears she quickly gained control of herself.
“It’s not up to me to remove the curse. Only the youngest of the family can do that.”
“You mean I could remove the curse? I thought my power had been neutralized by the taint of fey blood,” I remarked mockingly.
Adelaide pursed her lips. “I may have been wrong about that—or perhaps your mother deliberately misled you. I sense you have the potential for more power than I ever suspected”—she leaned closer to me and narrowed her eyes—“and, perhaps, for qualities you never suspected in yourself. But of course your potential must be properly nurtured. If you accepted your rightful place here at the Grove…”
“You want me to join the Grove?”
Adelaide laughed, all trace of the sentiment she’d been on the verge of displaying a moment ago gone. “You needn’t make it sound like I’m asking you to join the mafia! The Grove is an honorable and venerable institution. Look around you…” She waved a diamond-bejeweled hand at the three stories of leatherbound books, the brass railings shining in the firelight. “Membership comes with many amenities: a lovely place to stay when you’re in the city, connections to well-placed women in business and academia—and men; we’ve just aligned with a very elite men’s club in London that has most impressive accommodations and membership—and, best of all, access to this library. You’d be amazed what knowledge you can find among these books.”
I looked up at the leatherbound tomes. The gilt on their spines seemed to wink at me with promises of secrets held within their covers. “I wouldn’t have to do anything harmful to join—like sacrifice anyone?”
Adelaide laughed. “We haven’t even sacrificed animals since the eighteenth century.”
“Good to know,” I said. “But what exactly would my membership obligations entail?”
“Dues are one thousand dollars a year,” she said briskly. “You have to attend quarterly Council meetings on Samhain, Winter Solstice, Beltane, and Summer Solstice—which will be held this year in Fairwick so it’ll be convenient for you. Oh…and you do have to perform some community service.”
“What kind of community service?” I asked suspiciously. I had a feeling it wasn’t going to be visiting nursing homes or reading to the blind.
“It differs with each member. As your nominating member I decide what’s appropriate. I’ve come up with the perfect job for you.”
I shuddered to think what that could be, but I braced myself and asked.
“I’d like you to be the Grove’s confidential intelligence provider at Fairwick College.”
“You mean a spy.”
“Call it what you like. You’ve seen how poorly supervised the campus is and what dangers can ensue with the college’s proximity to the door to Faerie. There’s long been a feeling here at the Grove that we need to take a more active hand in monitoring the traffic between worlds. Someone has to. That’s why the Council meeting is to be held there this year.”
“Don’t you already have spies there?”
“Yes, but we’re no longer sure how reliable that intelligence is. Agents tend to go…nativeat Fairwick. Of course it’s arguable that you already have, but my proposal to the board was that you’ve had firsthand experience with ‘hostile foreigners.’ Ithink you’ll provide an honest report of what occurs at Fairwick.”
“And the Council accepted your proposal?”
“The Council hasneverturned down a member I nominated.”
“How would the information I provided be used?” I asked. “I couldn’t allow anyone to come to harm because of my say-so.”
“No one would come to harm who hadn’t harmed a human. You’ll find we’re quite fair at the Grove. So what do you say?”
I considered. I hated the idea of spying on my friends and colleagues, but I hated more the prospect of Nicky Ballard falling victim to an ancient curse. Besides, Adelaide did have a point. Things were out of control at Fairwick. Maybe the college needed a guiding hand. If my decision was at all swayed by the fact that now I’d get to stay at Fairwick close to where Liam still lingered, well, I couldn’t help that, could I?
“Okay,” I said, “I’ll do it. As long as you promise to tell me how to lift the curse.”
“Certainly. I just need you to lay your hand on this book and repeat after me.”
She indicated a slim volume that lay on the table. I laid my hand on it. The worn leather was warm to the touch.
“I hereby avow that I, Cailleach McFay, will abide by the rules and regulations of the Grove. In exchange I will be given the secret of the Ballard curse.”
I repeated the words. The leather grew warmer as I spoke and the gilt on the cover began to glow. The branches of the gold tree appeared to sway and the leaves crinkled up and flew away—a shower of sparks—into the fire. One of those sparks landed on my wrist. I drew my hand away and batted at the burning cinder, but it had already sunk into my skin, leaving a mark in the shape of a tree.
