Page 23 of Adepts and Alchemists
There was a rustle as the phone changed hands. The voice that spoke next was cultured and slightly accented. It was a marked contrast to Lucretia’s brusque manner. I hadn’t heard it in years, and it immediately threw me back to a time when she’d been the scariest thing in my world. Oh, to be a schoolgirl again, afraid of the headmistress.
“Indigo Hallewell,” Aurea Grimsbane said, voice stiff with disapproval. “Honestly, I would have never expected this type of behavior from you. I always found you to be a promising student.”
I bared my teeth at the empty air. It was fortunate for the arrogant woman that she was half a continent away from me. I was just dying to lay into someone, and she was a worthy target.
“Oh spare me the moralizing, Aurea. You have no claim of superiority here. I imagine some people might say what you did wasworsethan what I was involved in. At least none of my compatriots were turned into vampires right under my nose.”
“Aurea,” Lucretia interjected, real heat in her voice. “I need my star witness out of harm’s way. If she dies a preventable death, I’m holding you responsible.”
That sobering warning apparently got through to the headmistress, because she sounded a hell of a lot more serious when she spoke next.
“Yes, of course,” she answered Lucretia before her voice became a little less accommodating when she directed it to me. “Do you have a mirror?”
“Not quite yet. ETA around twenty minutes.”
“How old is it?”
I shrugged, realized she couldn’t see me and then cleared my throat with a muttered, “maybe around fifty or so years, maybe? A member of the coven said they knew an antiques dealer who’d have something that would work for our needs.”
Though truthfully, it had been RJ’s idea to visit the antique shop. Apparently he’d been helping his friend, Henner, sell off Betanya’s possessions little by little over the years. It wasn’t as though I could blame Henner either. By all indications, it had looked like his grandmother was dead, slaughtered in the prime of her life by an insane vampire. But unlike my family, Betanya had managed to scrape by with her pulse intact. Once she’d learned that RJ was fairly sure the antique shop still had her mirror in stock (and she wasn’t surprised as she’d spelled it so it would only ever belong to her), she planned to reclaim it. And that was just as well because an artifact steeped in the ambient power of a witch’s home had already primed it to be enchanted. I just had to do the heavy lifting. As to why Betanya hadn’t already claimed the mirror? She’d thought the $2,000 price tag was too much. Apparently, even though the mirror could only belong to Betanya long-term, it was still subject to being overpriced.
I tapped the speakerphone button when Aurea began speaking again, voice calm and authoritative as she told me what to do. For just a second, I could almost picture the woman who’d taught me runecraft as a much younger witch.
“You’re going to need Mystic Veil.”
Poppy perked up from her position on the floor. She’d been uncharacteristically quiet, staring at her fingers as though she didn’t recognize the things attached to her palm. RJ and Finn were speaking to her in low voices, though I couldn’t pick out whatever well-meaning drivel they were trying to pour into her ear. I was sure the only responsible thing RJ could say was for allof them to abandon me to my fate and pray the disaster avoided their sweet, safe little suburban hell.
“I have some Mystic Veil,” Poppy said. “I always keep at least a small vial on hand, ever since we rescued Betanya. I figured it if came in handy once...”
“Now you’re thinking like a witch,” I said, trying for an encouraging smile. I wasn’t sure I managed it. I wasn’t well-versed in smiling. Or any other kind or compassionate action, for that matter.
Spots of color rose in Poppy’s cheeks and she gave me a sheepish smile. “Thanks.” Then she raised her voice to be heard by Aurea. “What next?”
If Aurea was bothered by the interjection, she didn’t let it show. She paused for only a beat before continuing as though she’d never stopped.
“Mystic Veil will make the surface of the mirror more pliable. I don’t generally need the help, but any push to get a novice through.”
I clamped my teeth down over a tart reply. It wouldn’t do me any good. And comparatively, Iwasa novice. I’d never had the same aptitude for this magic as Susan. And she was long gone, so she couldn’t teach me the craft. That meant a cranky convict would have to do as a teacher in a pinch.
“And after that?”
“Apply the Mystic Veil to the frame of the mirror. An etched surface or rune-carved frame would help as well, but beggars cannot be choosers. If it is just a pane of silvered glass, I recommend being very careful. Your blood mixing with that combination would make for some unfortunate results.”
I flinched. I could only imagine what the gypsy’s muddled magic would do when it met my unstable power. I’d already hurt one Morton this week. I wouldn’t make it two.
“Give me the incantation.”
She did, pausing so I could parrot the spell back to her until she was convinced I’d mastered every syllable. By the time she was satisfied, the rest of the coven was arriving back from their respective errands. Wanda looked exhausted, pale, and a little shaky. I was impressed she was on her feet at all. The mutant creature Murrain had sent was the combination of a komodo dragon and a demon. It was the bastard child of Dr. Moreau and the Fly. Add a little of any rendered magic to a creature, and you created an abomination. Murrain must have been stuffing that one full for some time for it to get that big. It took an even more impressive witch to hold it at bay long enough for me to kill it.
Betanya and Olga shuffled into sight after Wanda, holding the mirror in question lengthwise between them. I held my breath until they’d propped it against the opposite wall. Only then did I get a clear look at myself.
Lydia’s body seemed shrunken, my worry and weariness curling her slim shoulders forward. Dark circles had etched themselves beneath her vividly blue eyes, so they gleamed out from the sunken pits they’d become. I could suddenly understand why everyone but Angelo was putting a careful distance between themselves and this wraith. No, most wraiths looked better than I did right now. I looked like a feral cat, ready to go for the eyes of anyone near enough to take the hit.
Wanda approached me, casting a contemptuous glance down at my phone. Clearly, Wanda knew the headmistress. Knew her and didn’t like her. RJ flanked me on the other side, reaching out to lay a hand on my shoulder. The reassuring squeeze he gave my arm thawed something icy that had settled like a nauseating weight in my stomach. At least there was one person who had faith in me. Though it was largely due to his ignorance and puppyish nature. Still, in a pinch, I would take the comfort I could get.
“You can do this,” he said.
I tossed Lydia’s hair over one shoulder. It fell like an inky curtain, settling with a reassuring weight against my back. The gesture was distinctly me. It felt wrong on this body, but that was reassuring too. I wasn’t just a ghost in a meat puppet. I was me. And Indigo Hallewell was a dangerous bitch when motivated.