Page 27

I sign my name more times than I can ever remember doing before and eventually we get through the entire pile. Uncle Vittorio locks all the paperwork in a desk drawer before he pours another cup of tea and hands it to me, gesturing for us to move to the comfortable leather chairs in one corner.

“Now, Ayo, tell me what you know so far. What did the human solicitor say to you?”

I take a sip of my tea, then put it on the small coffee table. “Just that I had an inheritance and had to claim it by my twenty-first birthday. She said they’d sent me multiple letters since I turned eighteen, but I never received any until the most recent one. That’s literally all I know.”

My uncle taps his chin thoughtfully. “The recent letter came to your apartment at the manor?”

“Well… no. It would have, I suppose, but because I had to move out I redirected the post to the office I work at.”

Uncle Vittorio raises a well-groomed eyebrow.

My mouth falls open. “Wait… You’re not saying… Someone at the manor was intercepting my post?”

“Is that a possibility?”

I gape at him, because yes, of course it is. Nyoka and Lola live there, the task force work in the building, and other coven members are often in and out, especially the admin staff I worked with.

“I mean… yes? Loads of people could have taken the letters before I saw them. But why? And who? And why?”

Uncle Vittorio snorts. “That’s an easy one to answer, cuginetto , although the explanation is a little long-winded.”

“Go ahead. I’m not going anywhere until I understand what’s going on.” I sit forward in my chair.

“It starts with your great-great-great-grandfather.”

He wasn’t kidding about a long explanation.

“When your ancestor started the coven in this area, he was a wealthy man as well as being an extremely powerful sorcerer. He built the manor, rented out the cottages on the estate to the coven members in most need, and allowed coven business to be conducted in his home for the sake of privacy from humans. He devoted his life to his people.”

“Sounds like one hell of a guy.”

Uncle Vittorio smiles slightly. “Quite. In his will, he left everything to his son with the stipulation that if it wasn’t claimed by the son’s twenty-first birthday, it would all be left to the coven.

The reasoning at the time, I believe, was that the son was away from Britain, fighting in the army, with no guarantee of ever returning home.

It was intended as a failsafe of sorts, to protect the coven from being without homes or a safe place to practice their magic. ”

“So then…” I prompt.

“So then, it became a family tradition. Every coven leader’s will after that had the same stipulation about the age of twenty-one, or one year after death if the recipient was already over that age.

They also stipulated that the most powerful in the family would become coven leader, which is how your mother became the head of the coven even though your aunt was significantly older. ”

I pick up my tea again and sip it, thinking. “Is that how Nyoka inherited the manor even though the coven leadership went to my mum? Because I was a child, so he and Qadir were the only eligible family members to take over when Mum died?”

Uncle Vittorio studies me. “At this point, I haven’t been able to access the most recent three generations of wills. I can’t say who has inherited what, even though legally, wills that go through probate are public documents. Your family’s are missing.”

“How is that possible?”

Uncle Vittorio raises an eyebrow. “Bribery, most likely.”

Right, that makes sense. If I’m inheriting something dangerous that other people want to get their hands on to potentially misuse, of course my family would take precautions to keep the wills of previous generations a secret. Thank goodness Nyoka and Qadir thought of that.

Or perhaps Lola advised them. She was dating Qadir at the time.

Ugh, I hope I don’t have to thank her for actually doing something helpful.

I take another sip of my tea and cradle the cup in my hands. “Have you at least been able to find out what I’m due to get? I want to make preparations to protect whatever this artefact is, and that’s hard when I don’t have details.”

“You think it’s an artefact?” Uncle Vittorio sounds surprised. “I haven’t been able to get any details whatsoever.”

I finish my tea then set my cup on the saucer again.

“It’s the most likely outcome at this point.

There are a couple of family grimoires lost to time, or so I thought.

Crazy Grandma Jibola’s, for one. I wouldn’t want her grimoire falling into the wrong hands.

I can definitely think of a couple of people in the coven who’d love to get their hands on it. ”

I shudder at the thought. I’ve never seen it myself, of course, but my mum’s grimoire carries a warning that Jibola was known to be summoning demons.

Apparently this warning had been passed down through three generations of grimoires before hers.

It wouldn’t surprise me to learn that my mum hid it in a safe place and only revealed the location in her will.

My uncle steeples his fingers. “If that’s the case, there are places Lorenzo and I can offer secure storage if you need it.

Just say the word. As for why I don’t have details, it’s because of how the will was stored.

You see, your mother lodged her will with the coven lawyer at the time, just as generations did before her.

Only, in the years after your parents died, the coven lawyer had a falling out with Nyoka. ”

“Wait, I remember that. It was because Nyoka wanted Lola to take over as coven lawyer.”

Uncle Vittorio nods. “Yes, that’s my memory of it as well. Anyway, the coven lawyer was so incensed, she sold her business to humans. And with it…”

“All the coven wills. The humans won’t hand over my mum’s will to you?”

“Unfortunately not. I’m acting as your attorney in this case, and while I’ve managed to convince them of the need for complete secrecy, not even recording appointments in their calendar, they won’t hand over the actual will itself.”

“Shit.”

“Quite.”

“Does Uncle Lorenzo know about all this?”

Uncle Vittorio shakes his head. “No. He respects client confidentiality, and in this case you are my client. He will remain in the dark until such time as you tell him or the contents of the will become public knowledge after probate.”

I shoot to my feet. “Wait, what? No, we have to hide the will like the others.”

Uncle Vittorio urges me to sit back down before I can start pacing. “I agree. I will handle that, with your permission.”

I perch on the edge of the chair. “Yes. You have it. Absolutely. That won’t get you into trouble?”

Uncle Vittorio’s smile is wry. “Only if my actions are discovered. Consider it done, Ayo.”

I sag, so incredibly grateful for my uncle. “Thank you.”

Uncle Vittorio leans back in his chair. “We need to keep in mind that someone clearly already knows what’s in this will.

When I file this paperwork, which I will do tonight, there will be no turning back.

If they can’t get the inheritance by legal means there is a chance they will choose to make the will public in retaliation.

It’s unlikely, since then you’d potentially have more than just them after you, but I wouldn’t be doing my duty as your uncle if I didn’t warn you. ”

A chill runs over me and my chest gets tight. “Fuck, Uncle. This is a lot.”

Uncle Vittorio stands and pulls me up into a hug. “You’re not alone, cuginetto. ”

I take some solace in that fact. Perhaps I should tell Ethan what’s going on after all? He can’t help, but the moral support would be nice.

Before we can talk any further, there’s a knock on the door. I take down the ward I added before we head out of my uncle’s office to where Ethan and Uncle Lorenzo are waiting for us.

Ethan’s got his arms folded and his usual grumpy expression firmly in place, but he’s not especially tense, so I’m guessing it went well. Uncle Lorenzo certainly looks calm enough.

When I walk straight over to Ethan and bury my face in his chest, his arms immediately come around me.

“What’s wrong, sweet thing? What did you say to him?” He directs that last part over my head in a growl.

I pull back a little so I can look up at him, not wanting him to take out his worry on Uncle Vittorio. “We were talking about my family history. It’s a lot, sometimes.”

I am going to tell Ethan what’s going on. Somewhere private, like his apartment, where I’m sure we can’t be overheard. I just have to find the right time.

Ethan cups my cheek and presses a kiss to my forehead, his eyes full of concern and a hint of suspicion. “Would ice cream make you feel better?”

That startles a laugh out of me. “Yeah. It definitely would.”

“Then let’s go. I think I know a place.”