Page 41 of Alchemised

“My family’s been pure iron for nearly a century, had a guild member in every generation, but we never got very high.

It’s hard, competing with a family like the Ferrons.

My father always said that in Paladia, you have to be satisfied with scrap metal until you can make something of it. We were going to make something of it.”

Aurelia drew a quick breath. “People thought there was something wrong with Kaine when he was born. Thought maybe he was a Lapse, or he didn’t have iron resonance.

No one was sure, just knew the family was secretive about him.

My father saw an opportunity. My mother and father were cousins.

He thought they could easily have a girl with pure iron resonance, and the Ferrons would be desperate to marry Kaine to her. To stay in control of the guild.”

Aurelia gave a panting breath, her chest heaving.

“Mother said the first two were tiny. Little bits of things. ” Her blue eyes shone.

“My father paid a vivimancer to come in early to see if they were girls, but when they didn’t show any signs of iron resonance in the womb, he didn’t let her keep them.

If they’d come to term, he said, another iron family might beat us to the marriage contract.

I was the third girl. My mother always said the first two babies were hers, and I was—Kaine Ferron’s.

She burned them in the fireplace and buried the ashes in the garden.

Spent all her time out there with them.”

Helena studied Aurelia in stunned sympathy, but that only seemed to enrage her.

“I know you snoop. Have you seen this story?” Aurelia lifted the newspaper up so that Helena could see the front page.

It was a gruesome photo, even in black and white. Kneeling down, his face plain to see, Ferron was calmly disembowelling Lancaster in the lobby of the Central Hospital.

She could only stare a moment before Aurelia twitched her hand, folding the newspaper away, knuckles whitening as she gripped the short staff. The house groaned, trembling.

“I have to admit,” Aurelia said in a voice of unnatural calm, “when I first heard that Kaine had killed Erik, I was so happy. I thought, He’s finally noticed. ”

The chandelier earrings were trembling more visibly.

“I tried to be a perfect wife. I knew it wasn’t a love match, but I thought he’d realise I was made to be his wife. How many men can say that? I did everything, all the things, just the way I was supposed to.”

She tossed her hand, still clutching the paper, her alchemy rings gleaming dully.

“People don’t know, but he didn’t live here.

On our wedding day, he left me in the foyer.

Disappeared for a whole month before I heard he was back in the city.

I thought it was a test. I decorated and threw parties, but he never came to them.

Then I thought I’d get his attention if I made him jealous, but he didn’t care.

I figured he preferred men or preferred nothing, and I couldn’t do anything about that but accept it. ”

The bitterness in Aurelia’s expression grew ugly.

“I accepted it.” Her voice shook with resentment. “Until you came along, and suddenly he moved in, and he turned every inch of this estate upside down for you; took you out for walks and gave you a tour of the house.”

Helena opened her mouth, trying to explain that Ferron was ordered to do all those things.

“Shut up! I don’t want to hear from you!

” The newspaper crumpled in her fist. “Then Erik Lancaster started paying attention to me.” Aurelia looked on the verge of tears.

“He was so sympathetic, kept me company at all the events that Kaine never showed for. He wanted to know all about me. He noticed all the things I did to impress Kaine. He wanted to see the house, how I’d decorated it.

He was the one who said I should throw all the parties again so everyone could see how wonderful I was, even if Kaine didn’t.

The winter solstice was all his idea. That big guest list. And all the dinner parties. Even the equinox party.”

Aurelia’s voice trailed off and she stared towards the windows for several moments.

“When I heard Kaine had killed Erik, I thought, He’s finally noticed.

He was just busy before. He does care. But then—” A tremor ran through Aurelia.

“—then it crossed my mind that Erik approached me the week after that vile article was written about you being here. He was always wanting to come here, even in the winter when it’s ghastly.

Then I thought about how he’d disappear.

During the solstice party, and the dinner parties, and the equinox.

And he’d always be so worked up when he’d come back and find me. ”

It was a terrible silence.

“It was all because of you,” Aurelia said at last. “Erik came here because of you. Kaine killed him because of you. Erik was using me! He used me so he could get to you !”

She flung the paper onto the floor, the pages splayed out, revealing Ferron and his pale hair and skin. Hands stained black with blood, and Lancaster’s blank stare, face still contorted.

KAINE FERRON PUBLICLY KILLS INITIATE

“Why do they care so much about you?” Aurelia demanded, stepping towards Helena.

“What’s so special about you that Kaine would move here, into this house he clearly hates?

With all these servants he can’t stand to be around but won’t ever get rid of?

Why would Erik spend months using me to reach you? Why does anyone care about you?”

“I—”

Aurelia slapped her across the face, the iron rings cracking against her cheekbone. “I don’t want to hear from you!”

There was a loud bang outside the door, as if someone was trying to break it down. Aurelia jumped.

There was another boom.

Aurelia smiled. “I think he’s noticed I’m in here,” she said. “But they’re never going to get through that door in time. Not when I have this.”

Aurelia set the short staff directly onto one of the iron bars in the floor, and they twisted up like vines, wrapping around Helena’s wrists and jerking down. Her knees hit the floor with a sickening lurch that shuddered up her spine.

Aurelia stood over her. “I told you not to cause problems for me.”

The banging on the door had grown louder. Aurelia tilted her head to the side.

“You know, Kaine’s terribly hard to shop for. I can never find anything he wants, but there is one thing that he started collecting … Do you know what it is?”

Helena’s heart was racing. She shook her head.

Aurelia nodded towards the far corner of the room. “Eyes. There’s one right over there. I bet he’s watching us now. I don’t think he’s got any brown ones.”

“Please don’t.” Helena tried to wrench her hands free, but the iron around her wrists did not yield.

“Don’t worry,” Aurelia said. “This way Kaine will still have pieces of you once you’re sent back.”

Helena tried to jerk free, but Aurelia made the iron pull her lower until her shoulders threatened to dislocate.

Ferron will come. Ferron will come.

The words ran through her mind in a relentless loop. He would; he had to know what was happening. He wouldn’t let Aurelia—

He was in the city. She knew how long that journey was.

Aurelia grasped Helena by the chin. Her rings had lengthened into threatening points. “Open your eyes wide.”

Helena trembled. “Please—”

“Shut up,” Aurelia said, dropping the short staff and gripping Helena’s jaw tighter, the tips of her rings sinking into Helena’s cheek.

The banging outside the door grew louder.

Aurelia pressed the tip of one of her ring spikes against the outer corner of Helena’s left eye, digging the tip back into the socket. She smiled, eyes alight with malice. “I hope I’m there when Kaine sees you next. Even if he kills me, the satisfaction of this will be worth it.”

Helena jerked her head back as Aurelia’s ring sliced along her cheek.

“Aurelia!”

The scream shattered the air. Not one voice but several all at once. All in unison.

“Aurelia!”

The thralls were screaming through the door. Inhuman, tearing rage in their voices.

Aurelia started and gave a panicked laugh as she glanced towards the door. “I didn’t know they could do that. Guess you get all the special treatment.”

She turned back to Helena, her fingers digging into Helena’s hair to hold her in place as she dug the spike into the side of Helena’s eye again.

Pain and pressure grew; Helena could feel that her eyeball was on the verge of being pulled from its socket. The thralls were still screaming, but Helena barely heard them above her own heartbeat. She was struck by the surreal thought that Aurelia Ferron’s face would be the last thing she ever saw.

She was going to be left in the dark forever.

Her eye gave, and her vision became one-sided.

The whole house shook as the floor rippled, like a creature come to life.

Aurelia let go, turning in bewilderment. Before she could do anything, iron bars tore themselves out of the floor and walls, darting towards Aurelia like striking serpents, closing around her and dragging her away.

Aurelia screamed in terror as she was dragged off the floor, fighting to free herself with her own resonance, but the iron bars wrapped tighter and tighter until Helena heard bones breaking and Aurelia went limp, her iron-taloned fingers splayed and contorted where they’d been trying to push back against the bars.

Everything stopped.

As quickly as it had come alive, the house sank back into stillness.