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“How did she come to find out about you? And why would she blow her cover so dramatically? She burnt the house to the ground!”
“I did that,” Elix corrected her flatly. “When I was escaping.”
“Oh, Elix.” I reached for her hand, and she allowed me to take it.
“She’s been watching me for years,” Elix went on.
Saint hissed incoherently. “Do you see what I mean?” he thundered, stalking around the room furiously. “Everyone knows about your abilities. Your control of the elements is too widely spread now. Nowhere is safe for you anymore, Elix!”
“Don’t start with what’s safe for me!” she belted out, untangling my hand from hers and standing to confront her brother. “You hid my entire existence from me.”
“To keep you safe!” Saint insisted. “Look at where we are right now! You almost died because some batshit crazy fae wants control of your powers!”
“No, you fool!” Elix whiplashed. “That’s not why she wants me!”
The room fell silent, and we stared at her as she bit her lower lip, eyes widening as if she’d said too much.
“Elix…” Cirilla murmured slowly. “What are you trying to tell us?”
“Yes, it’s true that she’s been trying to rebuild the Order of Souls under the guise of doing the opposite.”
“Are the others in on it?” Cirilla demanded pointedly, and I wanted to tell her to stop interrupting.
“I’m not sure, not really,” Elix admitted. “It sounds like King Zen and Queen Mirielle had some success in deprogramming most of them, but I can’t be sure. Lysandra might be breaking them down.” Again, she clamped her lips closed, dropping her chin. “Lysandra has a special interest in the Order. I didn’t see anyone else, and I’m not sure she has any other help… yet.”
“Someone has to tell the king and queen,” Cirilla told me firmly. I exhaled, relenting on my earlier position. I nodded curtly.
“Go locate their enchantress,” I said to her. “Have Endora deal with it and come back immediately.”
“Endora,” Cirilla murmured, stalking toward the door, an aura of red formulating around her.
“Come right back,” I yelled out to Cirilla. “We aren’t staying, and I’m not waiting for you.”
“I can teleport, Jace.” A plume of red smoke materialized, and Cirilla was gone, leaving me, Saint, and Elix alone now.
Elix sank back to the chair, shaking her head, and I saw how her hands were trembling.
“Lysandra went through a lot of trouble to track you down and bring you here,” I urged. “There must have been a reason.”
“I just told you the reason,” Elix snapped irritably. “She’s trying to get the Order of Souls back into action again.”
“But why would she go through so much trouble over you if not for your powers, Elix?” Saint scoffed. “It’s obvious she knows you have dark magic in your blood.”
“How would she know that?” I retorted before Saint could finish. “She only found out herself!”
“She knows,” Elix said dully before our argument could escalate. “And that’s kind of why she came after me. But not because of my powers.”
“You’re not making any sense, Elix,” Saint told her. “Did you know her? From before?”
Elix shook her head miserably, tears of frustration pooling in her vivid green eyes. I tried to reach for her again, but this time, she didn’t let me touch her.
“She came because we share the same father,” Elix intoned. Her brother and I froze, Saint’s eyes glossing over.
“What?” her brother demanded.
“Who?” I insisted.
Slowly, Elix raised her head and met my eyes. “Agnan,” she squeaked. “Our father is Agnan, and Lysandra is my sister.”
