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“Sorry, I didn’t realize you all were—” I glanced at Jackson. “I was thinking about the shapeshifter. She could be anyone, and the house is warded against illusions, but I get the feeling it might not be enough.”
Shado cleared her throat. “My research was kind of sidetracked when I found the file on the Fates, but there are ways to beat shapeshifters in general. We made notes.”
“But what about a way to detect them?” Jackson asked, shifting in his seat. “Like a thermal scope or something.”
Shado pursed her lips and took a drink from the red glass in her hand. “Actually, I can think of a few enchanted objects that might be useful. Bex and I could definitely jury-rig something.”
I nodded and looked up at the moon shining bright in the sky. I wasn’t hungry anymore. Despite being outside, I still felt like I needed air. I pushed away from the table and took a deep breath. “Excuse me for a minute.”
“Where are you go—”
I walked away before Jackson could finish his question. I slipped back inside the house, and my footsteps echoed off the walls behind me as I climbed to the third floor. It wasn’t until the door on the roof opened behind me that I realized I’d been followed.
Myra folded her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes. “For a witch, you move fast.”
“You didn’t have to follow me. I’m okay.” I flashed her a weak smile and took a few steps back towards the edge of the roof. The air on top of the house was much cooler, and the wind whipped my hair around my face.
“Youarea bad liar.”
I shrugged and looked down at the light radiating from the patio. I could hear faint traces of conversation, but the words were lost in the wind. “I’ve got a lot on my mind. I just needed space, that’s all.”
“Ask the question,” Myra said.
I turned around and arched an eyebrow. “What question?”
“The one that you’re afraid to ask.” She shrugged. “The question anyone in their right mind would ask.”
“I don’t—”
“He might have better ears than most, but they’re not that good. Not while we’re up here,” she said. “Your secrets are safe with me.”
“I appreciate that. I do have a question for you.”
She nodded. “I thought as much.”
“What happened to Cecilia?”
27
Anything
Myra’s words rang in my ears. My great grandmother’s life had ended in the worst way possible. Madness and suicide. Cecilia had spent her life avoiding everyone and everything that could trigger her, but it still drove her over the edge. My sanity was fragile on a good day. If I’d inherited Cecilia’s curse, there was no telling how bad things could get. Imagining Jackson’s face when he found out made me sick.
I walked Myra back down to the second floor and slipped into the bathroom. I stripped off my clothes, cranked up the cold water and sat on the floor of the tub, bowing my head under the spray.
The water drowned out the world around me. It blurred my vision, filled my ears. It even made it hard to take a breath, but it felt right. The ice crept into my bones and a numbness spread from my head, down my back, and through my limbs. My teeth were chattering by the time the water stopped. Lifting my head, I looked up at Jackson looming over me.
“I think you’re clean,” he said.
“I…I…” My tongue felt like a block of ice. My shoulders were tense, and my eyes burned as the excess water dripped into them.
He snatched a towel from the rack along the wall and held it out. “Can you stand?”
I pressed my lips into a thin line and peeled my fingers from my knees, uncoiling my arms. I pushed myself up using the sides of the tub, stood for a second, and then my knees wobbled. Jackson swept the towel around me, pinning my arms to my sides, and then in a blink I was safely cradled against his chest. He kicked the bathroom door open with a grunt, and carried me across the hall, back into our room.
“Thank you,” I said as he set me down on the edge of the bed. “You didn’t have to. I would’ve—”
“You know that’s the first time you haven’t worried about me straining myself.” He chuckled, crouching to rub my arms with the towel. “I got worried when you didn’t come back down for dinner.”
