Page 166 of The Blairville Legacies

There was no further to go.

Well, at least that’s what I thought until Margot put her hands on the globe and whispered,“Revelare”. The cities on the globe began to glow golden like little stars in the sky, and the globe slowly rotated until – how could it be otherwise? – a spiral staircase that wound around the globe to the next floor came into view.

In what extended version ofHarry Potterhad I landed here?

“Follow me, we’re the last ones. The others are waiting for you.”

The others?

Great. There was probably a whole armada ofGandalfs. And the fact that they were all waiting formedidn’t make anything better.

Margot went down without another word and the candlesticks on the brick walls went on by themselves.

I didn’t question it anymore, because I had realized by now that I was in a magical house where everything seemed to have a life of its own, even if a large part of me didn’t want to believe it.

Instead, I just hoped I could climb those stairs a second time, namely upwards.

“Put your hoods on.”

I obeyed Margot and pulled on my white hood, which fell deep into my vision.

Downstairs was a masonry of stone with two double doors of dark oak, framed by stone women. The statues wore noble robes, as at the fountain outside, this time, however, without water, but with real plants that they carried on their hands like something sacred. And their legs seemed to be normal.

Margot approached the door in front of us and made a quick gesture with her hand. The gate opened and Margot led us into a large, pillared underground hall, lit by torches alone.

My jaw dropped.

How could such a gigantic hall fit under this house? It reminded me of the interior of a massive temple, with its columns decorated by ornaments and frescoes, the upper side windows with glass art, and an altar in the center on which various tinctures, stone bowls, and other strange things were placed.

When I caught sight of at least twenty people in black hoods, nervousness spread through me again.

It actually seemed to me like a cult that was holding its ritual tonight to summon demons. All that was missing was the sacrifice.

My heart began to race.

What if...

“Step closer,” a woman’s voice commanded, hidden under one of the black hoods. She stepped up to the altar, and my mother closed her gap in the circle.

I obeyed again and stepped into the charcoal circle full of runes drawn on the floor, past two hooded figures. I tried tomake out their faces, but the shadows were too large, and I only saw the greenish glow of their...eyes?

Everyone here seemed to have some sort of issue with their eyes, because that was the only, and at the same time scariest, thing I could make out.

Cautiously, I continued to approach the woman at the altar until I reached her.

She took off her hood and revealed her identity.

Startled, I paused, because Amara’s eyes were glowing green like the other day, even greener than the eyes of the others down here. Not as intense as Julian’s and Emely’s yellow irises, but the fact that they were glowing should be enough to make me throw in the towel and get the hell out of this goddamn place. I probably wouldn’t even be able to find my way out of the first basement floor, as disoriented as I was.

“Welcome to the temple, sister.”

I was definitely not her sister, and if she thought we would become best buddies, she could forget it right away.

Amara placed her hands on my shoulders, smiling. Then she nodded at me and put her hood back on.

With a hand on my shoulder, she escorted me to the altar. Now, I could see more exactly what was lying there.

Red blossoms, a small crystal-clear shimmering stone pendant on a golden chain, and a... dagger?