I felt the blood drain from my face.
Ankha snorted outright at however I looked. “A little late for second-thoughts.”
When I didn’t say anything, she inclined her head.
“You’re of age… back in Overworldandhere in Magique. Any contracts you sign are legally binding. In this case, magically binding, as well.” She picked up her gloves, scoffing in my general direction. “One must have a care around magical documents. They are extremely sensitive… particularly right after they’ve been delivered. Consider it your first lesson in Magique law. Or in knowing your own mind,” she added tartly.
I could only stare at her, my chest hurting.
The amusement left Ankha’s eyes.
“What on earth are you whining about?” she snapped. “Youwantedto go to school. Clearly you want to go tothisschool, even if you’re lying to yourself about it. You’re no longer obligated to be your brother’s keeper, which should be some cause for relief, as well. More to the point, you’re now enrolled in the best advanced magus academy in Magique. It is an extreme honor,especiallygiven the circumstances of your birth.”
At my continued silence, Ankha scoffed again.
“Whatever your faults, I never took you for a layabout,” she taunted. “Did you plan a life of indolence, now you’ve found yourself wealthy and titled? No plans to use your magic, I guess? Perhaps you’re hoping to marry rich? Because I wouldn’t hold your breath. Not many Magicals would touch a hybrid, much less have children with one.”
My jaw tightened at that, but Ankha wasn’t finished.
“As for your brother, you’d best put him out of your mind for now,” she advised. “Now that your citizenship is official, it would be illegal for me to even give you thelocationof a mirror that can provide you passage to Earth. Moreover, the penalty would be death this time, not only for you but for anyone who helped you.”
I felt a constriction in my chest.
Death. They would kill me, just like they did my parents.
Ankha’s voice twisted a touch crueler.
“If you don’t care about yourself, think of Arcturus,” she sneered. “What do you think they’d do tohim,if you did manage to find him?”
I barely heard her by the end.
I stared down at the unfurled scroll, at the black scrawl of my signature, which now shimmered with faint green and violet inside the dark ink.
The finality of it all brought an odd catch to my throat.
It wasn’t fear. It wasn’t even anger.
I’d definitely learned more about my aunt on that day than I’d prefer to have known, but I’d learned things about myself I’d rather not have known, either.
The stuff about me bothered me a lot more. Somehow, I didn’t think my aunt would factor largely in my life for much longer, anyway.
Ankha gave a dark, cold laugh, and I looked over sharply.
I couldn’t miss the smug, knowing look in those blue eyes.
“You’re a La Fey, all right,” she scoffed. “Exactly like your mother. Acturus will be lucky if you remember what he looks like by this time next year.”
My jaw hardened. I didn’t answer, mostly because I didn’t much care what Ankha thought, but something about her words felt like a curse, anyway.
I wouldn’t let them be, I promised myself.
I wouldn’t bloody let them be, whatever that old witch said.
10
Carriage
“It’s our family’s heart,” the achingly familiar voice whispered. “It’s our magic. It tells us if our hearts are sick, or if we walk in the light.” She stroked my hair and leaned back to wink at me. “Also, as long as you wear it, you’re a ghost, little rabbit…”
