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Something warm squeezed my hand and I looked down to see a small hand in a light blue glove holding mine. I followed the arm up and a familiar face stared back at me, tugging me along with her through the tunnel. We couldn’t have been older than five or six.
“Keep up!” Poppet said, her small voice barely audible over the sound of the crowd pressing in around us.
“You’re going too fast,” I whimpered.
“We have to keep going, Becca. If he catches us, he’ll—” Poppet skidded to a halt, her little sneakers squeaking against the polished cobblestones. A dark shadow crossed in front of her, and fear chilled me to the bone as I looked up into the pinched angry face of our uncle.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he snarled. A third little girl stood at his side, clutching the edges of his black trench coat.Astrid. My heart ached at the sight of her. She looked terrified.
“I’m sorry,” I said, hanging my head.
“We want to stay together!” Poppet shouted, shoving me behind her. “You can’t send her away. You can’t send me away.”
Viktor crouched in front of us and grabbed Poppet roughly by the arm. “I am the only living relative you have left. You will do as I say.”
I sidestepped my sister and extended a hand towards Astrid. “We’re sorry, Uncle. Please don’t hurt, Poppy.”
“There’s no need to hurt her if she behaves,” he said. “Now, let’s go. We’re late.”
Viktor stood, put a hand around the back of Poppet’s neck and grabbed my hand, pulling Astrid and I along at his side. The crowd parted as we slipped through the tunnel, retracing our steps down the stairs and back towards the jewelry shop. At the door, he shoved Poppet forward. She opened the door and we stepped inside. Astrid’s steps slowed almost immediately.
“Preeetty,” she crooned, leaning in to look at the display cases.
“Don’t touch.” I jerked her hand and she jumped, double stepping to catch up with me.
Viktor hauled us around the shelves to the center of the shop, and two people stepped out from behind the checkout counter.
The man had white hair, swept back into a ponytail. His chin was covered in a matching goatee, but his clothes were pristine black. The woman had hair the color of fire, and her bright green eyes seemed to glow.
The man stepped forward. “Hello, Mr. Dev—"
“Don’t say that name. Not around the girls. It will degrade the spell work,” Viktor said. I watched as he reached inside his jacket and pulled out two thick brown envelopes. He handed one to the man, and the woman snatched the other.
“Which one is mine, I’m late for an appointment,” she snarled, opening the envelope. She peered inside and then tucked it under her arm. Her voice sounded like a smoker’s on steroids. The amount of gravel and wheeze made her almost impossible to understand.
“This one.” Viktor grunted and shoved Poppet forward. “She might give you some issues to start with. But once the spell kicks in fully, she’ll be yours. Shouldn’t take more than a few days.”
“No! I’m not going.” Poppet turned and made a dart for the door.
Viktor stepped in her path, swept his thumb over her forehead, drawing a symbol I didn’t recognize. The symbol and Poppet’s eyes both flashed with bright green light. Her legs snapped together, and she stood abruptly at attention.
“I can keep her in line.” The woman chuckled and grabbed Poppet’s wrist, dragging her towards the back of the shop.
“Wait! Where is the object I asked for?” Viktor demanded.
“The old man has it,” the woman said, gesturing at the man with the white hair.
He hadn’t moved an inch since Viktor thrust Poppet forward, but the mention of the object brought him back to life. “Oh, yes, it’s over here.”
He turned and picked a black satchel up off the display case from behind him. Viktor took it and slung the bag over his shoulder. “You verified the providence?”
“Of course, Sir. I wouldn’t have called you if I hadn’t,” the man said. “Everything she told you was true. It should work as expected.”
Viktor dipped his head in a curt nod, and turned to the woman. “Good. Thank you, Millicent.”
The woman rolled her eyes and continued to lead a docile Poppet from the room. My sister disappeared and I stepped towards her.
“Pe—”
