“If the feeling doesn’t pass, we’ll go see Luna together, the seer in this region. She may help ease your mind.”
“I’d like that.”
She reaches out, taking my hands in hers. “All will be well. You’ve just come out of stasis. Things always feel off afterward. You don’t have to come to the ball tonight if you need to decompress.”
I nod. Staying in my room might be safer—for others and for myself. However, solitude means sitting with these thoughts. “I’ll consider it.” I offer her a forced smile, then shift my focus. “Were they able to get the lord’s body to you?”
“There wasn’t much of a body left once you were done,” she replies dryly, “but, yes, Kalix did report the same markings inside him.”
“Whatever it was, it created a domain,” I murmur. “It warped reality, changed everything. It all felt so real.” My fingers unconsciously begin spinning the ring on my thumb, a new habit for a familiar dread. Arcadia on that altar still burns behind my eyes.
“It’s clear the curse amplifies its host,” Iris says thoughtfully. “You’ve only ever mentioned one sister, Arcadia. She’s the curse expert, right?”
A sudden wave of clarity slams into me. “Yes, she is.” I can’t believe I hadn’t thought of this sooner. My original plan to take a prisoner is shattered, but this? This is better. I can keep Arcadia close. I can keep her safe.
“Excellent. Have Ollie summon her. I’m sure Felix will send support if needed,” Iris assures me.
I reach for my bond with Oliver and send the command. He doesn’t answer, but his presence is steady, alive, and uninjured.
“I’ve instructed him.” A smile breaks across my face at the thought of Arcadia here, with me. For the first time since waking, a flicker of warmth stirs in my chest.
“Wonderful!” Iris grins. “Another witch will be fun! Maybe Cage will burst a blood vessel!”
I laugh under my breath, her warmth finally leaking through my tension. She senses it and takes her chance, stepping backward and holding both my hands in hers to gently lead me forward.
“You know what always cheers me up?” She asks mischievously.
“Creating abominations?”
She throws her head back in a laugh that spills into the sky. “True, but I’m not allowed anymore. The deer frightened Kalix.”
“Kalix? The mountain man? Frightened by the deer?”
“More like frightened ofmeusing my magic.”
“Why?”
She sobers slightly. “Think of my magic as a seductress. It changes me. Every time I use it, I become who I used to be. I think…Kalix fears the dark will take me.”
“Has it ever taken you over?” I ask quietly, matching her slower pace.
“For years, it was all I knew,” she says. “I haven’t always been this person before you.” Her voice grows distant. I recognize the look in her eyes—lost in memory. I resist the urge to dig through her thoughts, giving her the dignity of silence.
“What brought you out of it?”
“Eden.”
“Your sister,” I confirm.
“The better half of me.” Sorrow weighs down her voice. I can’t imagine a better version of her, with her kindness and measured wisdom. She sees the world for what it is, both the rot and the bloom.
She pauses. “I had a feeling something awful was coming for Eden. I was right. You should heed that feeling with Arcadia.”
I nod, understanding more than I want to admit.
Then, with a slow exhale, she shakes off the weight. “Now come have hot cocoa by the fire with me.”
I smile despite myself. “Pastries, too,” I add, following her through a tall archway and back into the castle.
