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He presses his lips together like he’s trying not to laugh and raises his palms. “None taken.”
“A marriage is not the only way to form an alliance. This deal was outdated and barbaric anyway. Royals sending off their children like cattle.” A wry smile curls her lips. “But you already knew that. Is that why you killed my father?”
“It wasn’t Reid,” I say immediately.
Anya’s head swivels to me, her eyebrows raised, but her expression is simply curious. “No?”
I meet Reid’s eyes over her shoulder.
How much are we telling her? How much of a choice do we have?
“Auclair has called an emergency meeting in a few hours,” Anya adds, as if this piece of information is inconsequential.
An emergency meeting?Is this about Nathan or is he already planning another attack?
Spill any more of their blood, and I spill hers.
“Is this a bad time?”
My head whips up to find Kirby and Monroe lingering in the doorway. Thank God they didn’t get here a few minutes earlier. They didn’t come alone either. Daniel and Leif shift their weight behind them, along with Adrienne, who is currently avoiding eye contact—so that answers that about why they’re all here.
To my surprise, it’s Reid who says “No.” He sighs before gesturing for Anya to take a seat too. “It’s probably time we all talked.”
* * *
Adrienne still won’t meetmy eyes as she steps into the room, clutching her backpack to her chest for dear life. I don’t know how I know, but that damn book is in there.
“What did you tell them?” I demand.
Finally, she looks up, her shoulders hunching toward her ears in guilt. “Nothing—just—”
“She said the two of you found a way to stop Westcott,” cuts in Leif. “But we’re running out of time to be able to do it. Cam’s stuck in a meeting, but he knows we’re here, and he’s in too.”
“You said you were okay with this,” Adrienne all but whispers.
Yeah, but I didn’t know she’d have an army breaking down my door in the space between me sending that text and waking up.
“And don’t tell me I should have left them out of this. You and I both know we can’t do that spell alone.”
“What spell?” Kirby asks.
Adrienne stares at me for a moment, and when I don’t move to stop her, she digs in her bag and pulls the book out.
There’s a collective intake of breath as the book’s power tinges the air in the room, dark and heavy. Adrienne flips to the right page, then hands the book to Kirby.
“Ah!” Kirby flinches as soon as she touches the book, then frowns. “This page is blank.”
“Like the note your mom sent,” Monroe says softly.
“Only Adrienne and I can see it.” I sigh and rub the heels of my hands into my eye sockets.
“So what would the spell do, exactly?” asks Daniel. “How would it help?”
“It alone wouldn’t be enough,” says Adrienne.
“If we just get rid of Westcott, someone else will take his place, and his followers will turn him into a martyr,” I say. “We need to control who steps up after him—someone we can actually reason with—and we need to make his followers think it’s their idea to support this new person.”
Leif snorts. “Have you met Westcott’s higher-ups? They’re all just as bad. Who could you possibly have step in—”
