Page 99 of Visions of You

Keegan felt nothing but sympathy for his mate. To have someone you trusted, someone who raised you, betray you like this…

He wanted to let Jaron hang on to his denial, but that wasn't going to do anyone any good. "I know you want to believe the best of her, but we have to consider the facts. My vision was clear. Malkira had Casca and Fei, and she seemed to be in control of the situation."

Jaron shook his head again. "We have to get her side of the story."

Keegan hesitated, unsure if confronting Malkira directly was the best course of action. But he could feel Jaron's determination through their bond, and he knew there would be no dissuading him.

"Alright," Keegan said finally. "We'll go see her. But we need to be prepared for the worst. If Malkira really is behind this, we can't let our guard down."

Jaron nodded, his jaw set. "I know. But I have to believe there's more to this. The Malkira I know would never hurt anyone. There has to be an explanation."

Keegan hoped, for Jaron's sake, that he was right.

Keegan followed Jaron into Malkira's home, a sense of unease settling in his gut. What would the witch tell them when they confronted her?

As it turned out, they weren't about to find out. The place was eerily quiet. No one was home.

"Malkira?" Jaron called out, going up the stairs.

No response.

Jaron glanced back at Keegan, an unspoken question on his face.Do you think she knew we were coming?

"Let's just see if we can find any clues as to what's going on," Keegan said. "Can we look at her room?"

Jaron didn't seem to like that idea, but he nodded. It was commendable that he didn't want to invade the witch's private space, but if it increased his chances of finding his siblings alive and well, he would open the door to Keegan.

"I still think this is insane," he muttered as he led Keegan inside.

Keegan didn't say anything, he only looked around.

The room was a mess. Papers were scattered everywhere, covering every surface. Books lay open on the floor, their pages marked with hastily scribbled notes. The air was heavy with the scent of incense and something else, something sharp that made Keegan's nose wrinkle.

"This isn't like her," Jaron said as if he needed to defend Malkira while he walked to the window and opened it to let some fresh air in.

Keegan picked up a nearby piece of paper, his eyes scanning the dense text. It was filled with complex magical formulas and diagrams, the kind of advanced magic that was way beyond his understanding.

"What was she working on?" Keegan muttered, more to himself than to Jaron.

Was this the kind of spell that could alter the fate of the universe?

"I don't know," Jaron said. "I didn't think she was working on anything other than her garden…"

"Well, this isn't nothing." Keegan gestured at all the papers.

Jaron picked some of them up. "I can't make sense of this."

Neither could Keegan. "Maybe something here will mention a location…"

"We should take all this to the office," Jaron said, clearly referring to his work-place. They probably had mages there.

"We will," Keegan said. "Let's just look for a moment longer. Help me with this."

Jaron nodded, though he still seemed uncomfortable rooting through Malkira's things.

After a few minutes, Jaron uncovered something that made him go still.

Keegan walked over to him and looked over his shoulder. Jaron was reading an old newspaper article called "Promising Researcher Dismissed from Institute."