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“Oh ye of little faith. You know how I work, darling. It’s never that simple.”
I glanced at Lyric to see if she reacted to the endearment. Her face didn’t alter in the slightest.
“Something about Jerrin was a little too earnest and struck me as odd. So, instead of having Henderson scry, I did it myself.”
“Henderson?” I queried.
“One of our newer coven members. He came to us after he lost his mate and needed a fresh start. He’s a more subdued personality. Very professional. Very good at locating things.Verygood looking. He’s actually upstairs resting. I thought I might introduce him to Talia.”
“She left last night to attend to some diplomatic duties on my behalf,” Draven informed the witch. “I’m not sure if she’ll be back before you and Henderson depart.”
“Oh? The poor male hasn’t shown interest in a single female since his mate passed. It hurts my heart. Oh well. You all can meet him tomorrow. It might do Raven well to meet more of our kind.”
DoubtfulI wanted to say.
Vera took another sip of wine. “Where was I? Oh, yes. I took over the situation. When the vial was pulled from its magically-protected packing and handed to me, I knew something was off. There was witch blood in that vial. Dianic witch blood. Not pure, but definitely steeped with strong and varied magics.”
Her mouth tightened. “As you know, I don’t trust anyone’s motives for hunting a Dianic witch or their kin—our numbers are too few already. Mirror Lake is the only coven anywhere close to the Faelands, assuming that’s where he came from, so there was a high likelihood that I either knew the witch or I knew their family in some capacity. The fact this male was in possession of such a thing was highly suspicious. No witch would willingly give up their blood, not with all the ways it could be used against them.”
Vera zeroed in on me. “I assume it was your blood, my thistle-eyed beauty, taken and not given.”
I maintained a blank stare. She grinned.
“You remind me of Henderson. I bet no one ever wants to play card games with you.”
“Perhaps,” Draven offered, “it would help Raven to know that any information used against her would be considered as a strike against the Shadows.”
I turned my gaze to his.
“She’s bound, Raven.Neitherparty can do anything to harm the other, directly or indirectly. Every loophole has been accounted for. I don’t enter into such agreements lightly. We put a lot of time into thinking through every possible angle. I can say the same for Vera.”
Why did it feel like the Shadow Lord was giving me a warning?
Vera nodded. “Even without the oath I would be outcast if I contributed to the demise of one of our own without cause.”
Everyone stared at me expectantly. Both my fae and witch halves were quiet. Casimir squeezed my leg again and I found my voice. “There is a high probability the blood was mine.”
Her stare grew sharp. “Taken against your will?”
“Yes.”
“Were you held prisoner by the fae?”
“I was.”
“What did you do?”
“I had the great misfortune of catching the eye of the Queen’s Consort. I wasn’t interested and they took offense.”
“Bah!” she swiped at the air. “Stupid royals think they are entitled to whatever they want. What a mess they make whenever they want something they can’t have. Or shouldn’t have. I’m glad I didn’t locate anyone.”
I leaned forward. “You tried?”
“I used a fake spell and the crystal hung uselessly over the map. I told him it appeared as though there weren’t any who had the same blood in the Otherland.”
“Really?” Lyric asked. “He didn’t catch onto your lie?”
Vera chuckled. “Word games, my sweet. Itdidappear to be that way.”
