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Yes, Rothbart was aware of the area. “She might.” Hope suffused through him. Finally, a lead that might yield something… anything.
His magic pricked inside him, causing goosebumps to rise on his flesh as it flowed under his skin.
“Rothbart.” Odette’s voice sounded in his ear, loud and clear. She was summoning him.
He looked at Zoya. With a wave of his hands and a few muttered words, she retook the form of a maid.
Reaching into his robes, he drew out a portal bean. “I must go. I promise we will figure this out soon.”
Zoya gave him an exasperated glare. He ignored it and pictured the gazebo near the pond. He threw the bean at the wall and it opened wide. Straightening his robes, he then grabbed his cloak and pulled it around him, curious what Odette could need. Anticipation rolled through him at the thought of doing battle with her tonight. With his discovery about Helga, he was in a much better mood. He stepped through the portal, willing it to close after he passed through.
Odette wasn’t there.
Rothbart had forgotten that when she summoned him, he could find Odette at her exact location. They’d met by the old gazebo so many times that when he’d heard her call, he assumed this was the spot where she wanted to meet.
Instead, a woman with red hair and freckles stood, shuffling from foot to foot. Tears glistened in her eyes and the bottom of her gown had a large section torn off up to her knees. When she saw Rothbart, she rushed toward him, clasping her hands together in a pleading motion. “Please, sir, you must save my sister.”
Rothbart scowled at the woman. Was this some trick to get him to release her from the curse? “Who is your sister? Where’s Odette?”
The woman let out a sob. “Please,” she begged. “Please follow me. We must hurry.”
She hurried for the path that led to the pond. Rothbart was suddenly alert, worried they may try to ambush him. Although he was pretty confident they wouldn’t kill him, he remained on his guard.
Cautiously, he followed the woman as she urged him to move faster. When the pond came into view, he noticed several women huddled near the shore. Relief spread through him when he saw Odette huddled with them. She looked up, her eyes wide and alarmed. He tensed. Standing, she came toward him, an earnestness in her movements.
“You are the only one who can save her,” she said. “You must help.”
“Must I?” He stepped around her and the other women parted to let him through.
The girl, the youngest among them, lay on the ground, her shoulder bandaged. He sucked in his breath at the dark green streaks running under her skin, up her neck and into her the white cloth like someone had placed dye in her veins.
Rancin poisoning.
“A hunter with this shot her.” Odette held up the arrow. “Tell me you know how to counteract it.”
She stared at him so expectantly. Like his desire to save this girl was a given. “Why should I help a killer?”
“Because you’re not like us.”
He grit his teeth. “Move,” he said, and the women shifted farther back. He knelt over the girl and touched her pale skin, examining how far the poison had spread. If the poison hadn’t reached her heart, he might save her. He gathered her into her arms, lifting her with ease.
“I need to take her back to my estate. There, I can search out what may heal her.”
The woman, who looked like the older version of the ailing girl he held, came forward. “I will come.”
“No,” he blurted. She was the one who had some knowledge of magic. There was no way Rothbart was letting her onto his estate.
Odette laid a hand on the other woman’s shoulder. “It'll be fine, Yessly.”
“No, it won’t!” Yessly cried, a fierce protectiveness in her eyes. “I’ll not leave her to be all alone with this man. Who knows, but he means to torture her instead of cure her.”
Rothbart let out a low growl. “Odette will come with me.”
She met his gaze and nodded. “I’ll make sure she’s taken care of,” she said to Yessly.
The other woman appeared a little mollified. She clasped Odette’s hands. “Make sure he heals her. I can’t lose her. I can’t.”
“You won’t.” Odette worked her way out of Yessly's grasp and stepped up to Rothbart.
