Page 138 of Cold Curses

“What happened after he found out?” I asked.

“Well, the Reeds’ house burned down the day after he found out who his mother was.”

“I knew it,” I said.

“I mean, I don’t have any hard evidence,” Petra said. “Like we talked about, the investigators didn’t make a conclusion about motive. But it happened the day after he found out who she was.”

“Rage,” Connor said. “He was enraged.”

“About what?” Lulu asked. “I’m pretty sure most adopted kids don’t go around torching houses.”

“No, but he’s a narcissist with broken magic,” I said.

“The only thing in the file after the arson is a history of counseling sessions,” Petra said.

“Would that be unusual?” I asked. “Sounds like something you’d expect when a kid is working through emotional stuff.”

“Dailycounseling sessions,” she clarified. “No notes of those discussions, but I did some searching, and the psych was a specialist in kids with violent tendencies.”

“Hmm,” I said, and pushed eggs around on my plate. “Do the records say anything about magic? His or hers?”

Petra blinked. “No. They actually don’t. I thought that was weird.”

“His magic wasn’t fully functional,” I said. “He learned he was special, the son of an infamous sorceress, but still couldn’t do magic. And since she was gone, he couldn’t ask her about it. He got angry—Sorcha and elf levels of angry—and burned down the house. And I bet he’s been trying to figure out how to fix himself with remnants of her magic or spells since then.”

“Cold,” Connor said. “They’re both cold.”

“And cursed by their self-centeredness.” I looked back at the screen. “What about the red-light symbol that we saw in the building? Anything interesting there?”

“It’s actually an old alchemical symbol,” Petra said. “But there’s no indication he picked it up from Sorcha. Could have, but no indication of it.”

“I think Rosantine coming to Chicago was a trigger for him. It, maybe, opened his eyes to the possibilities.”

Connor shook his head. “Go back further. Maybe to Ariel and her coven telling him about the end of the world.”

“Good point. And then Rosantine comes. He sees how powerful she is. He learns about the cornerstones, decides to open the door to demons in Chicago. Maybe he starts the process because he’s impressed by her power and wants some powerful minions,” I added, pushing back my plate.

“They can do magic for him,” Connor said.

“And they do. But he doesn’t like that. He’s not powerful enough to control them. So, he killed a few, turned them into copper ash. Did it at first to keep the demons quiet or to eliminate the enemy. And then he saw the potential.”

“The empty lot,” Petra said. “That was his first attempt at taking power en masse.”

“That’s what I’m thinking,” I said. “A first try that didn’t work. So he decided to use it to his advantage—frame Dante and then get rid of the evidence.”

“How does this help us get him?” Alexei asked quietly.

“I have no idea. I need to let my thoughts percolate like a good cup of coffee. Anything else from your end?” I asked Petra.

“No, but I’ll let you know.”

“Then we’ll do the same,” I said, and ended the call.

“I’m going to get back to work,” Lulu said, glancing at me. “I’m nearly ready with the magic.”

I nodded, wished I had more time. Was surprised and touched by monster’s gentle assurances, Lulu’s kind smile, and Connor’s hand on my knee.

“It’s going to be fine,” Lulu said. “I probably won’t even turn you into a toad.”