by Holly Ice
Lyall? What do you think?
You wanted to find her family. Sooner or later, that means meeting witches who might be connected to her.
He hopped onto my pillow. You’re unlikely to win your trial legitimately. You knew that from the start. So meet them. Use them, if you can. Your trial will be over within the week. Something needs to change.
No pressure, huh?
‘Do it. Arrange the meeting.’
‘I’ll pass on your wishes.’
I smiled at Julian’s retreating back. He didn’t waste words on goodbyes or niceties. He learned what he needed and left to get on with it.
I just hoped I’d made the right decision, for both of us.
Chapter 6
Like I thought, the minor prosecution witnesses were taking a fraction of the time to question that Cameron, Kaylee, Justin’s partner, and Eugene took. An hour or two at most for background or small details to add to the prosecutor’s narrative.
Julian crossed them off his list, and each crossed-out name injected more dread into my bloodstream.
‘So it’s clear,’ the prosecutor said, pausing in her stride, ‘that Ms Nash hid her familiar’s true form. This takes magical know-how and power that she should not have access to as an untrained throwback witch. Power and knowledge that would make her more than capable of killing Justin Holt.’
Apparently in witch trials, lawyers were allowed to reinforce their version of events with their own words…
Julian stood.
Tibor swept his hand for him to go ahead.
‘That’s not clear at all. It’s more likely aether allowed her familiar to resist his true form. Wildes are well-known, and his human form was likely to reveal his past life. This could have caused Bianca harm. In fact, it probably did. No accusations were made against her until after her heritage became common knowledge.’
The public weren’t listening. Neither were the coven. They watched, they listened, but the glimpses of their faces I got showed amusement or anger. If they showed emotion at all. No acceptance, and no softening.
Tibor waved for Julian to return to his seat.
I nudged him and whispered, ‘How badly is this going?’ He’d ken better than me how things stood.
He grimaced. ‘We need new evidence or new witnesses to change minds.’
‘So we need the woman.’
I wasn’t going to say banshee in public. I didn’t want to give the big ears behind me any clue I knew about her.
‘She’d be ideal.’
‘Any word from the group you contacted? Did they agree to meet?’
He checked his phone. ‘Nothing yet. I’ll let you know as soon as I hear anything.’
I turned back to the prosecutor, who was playing to the public and the coven to nods and chuckles. They were so wrapped around her finger, I wasn’t sure anything would change their minds. But we had to try.
* * *
‘Talk to her,’ one woman said.
‘I don’t want to wake her. You do it,’ another woman whispered. She was closest.
Ah, they were arguing about who got to poke the bear. I hid my smile, the tension in my core easing. I hadn’t had visitors since the last set of magical press tried to set fire to my reputation. And if these two were who I thought, they were a hell of a lot more useful.
I rubbed my eyes, as if I’d just woken up.
The closer one, a redhead, jumped. ‘Sorry to wake you. This was the only time we could come without all the guards seeing us.’
So, they were polite and they hadn’t wanted to be paraded around the WMCF corridors. Aye, that made them more likely to be the people I wanted.
Dark-blue cloaks hid their clothes, but they were likely rich, high-class, and connected. They’d have to be to convince the night guard to let them down here. They also had to be desperate.
‘You’re the witches my lawyer mentioned, aren’t you?’ Neither had brought their familiars, but I couldn’t see who else they’d be.
The redhead offered her hand.
I moved closer to the bars but ignored it. I only got one shot at this, and I needed them on edge if I was to get what I needed. People like them were too used to getting what they wanted for free. I’d let them do their sales pitch and go from there.
She, though, hadn’t gotten the message. She thrust her hand through the bars.
I took a large step to the side, closer to the other witch. ‘Who are you?’
The redhead finally dropped her hand. She didn’t pout, which upped my estimation of her. ‘I’m Ivy,’ she said. ‘This is Shauna.’
Shauna had dark hair and a pale, almost Gothic look, as if she’d taken on board the traditional aesthetic of a dark witch in flowing robes and ran with it. Was this all theatrics to them or was that her style?
‘And your surnames?’ I wasn’t working with them on first names alone. I couldn’t research them on that little. And when they knew exactly who I was, that was hardly fair.
Ivy shifted her feet.
‘Silva and Martin,’ Shauna said.
Neither rang any bells. Maybe they were lying, here to glean information on our plans?
‘Who is it you’re searching for?’
‘Avery. She’s been missing for three years,’ Ivy said.
I nodded. That matched with what Julian said.
Ivy fished her phone from her pocket and showed me a picture.
My breath caught in my throat.
The woman was young, maybe mid-twenties. Her green eyes sparkled in the sun, a stunning contrast in her pale, dainty face. She shone with life and magic. So much so, I barely recognised the similarities to the woman who’d infiltrated my dreams.
Now I understood why Lyall asked if any spells masked her appearance. One glance at this photograph, and I knew this woman wasn’t human, or a witch. She had more fae blood with that otherworldly beauty. But grime, late-term pregnancy and her lack of energy had done as much as any spell to drain the spark from her and hide the vibrant fae beauty.
‘You know her,’ Shauna said, a flatness to her voice that told me that wasn’t a question.
Still, I gave denial a try. ‘I’ve never met her.’
‘But you’ve seen her.’
‘Have I?’
‘The way you reacted. You recognised her.’
I bit my tongue. If these really were her family, they needed to ken where their banshee was, how much she needed help. And they were far more able to help than I was from in here.
‘How do you know her?’ I asked.
Ivy opened her mouth, but Shauna put a hand out to stop her. ‘She’s Seen her. Tell her the truth.’
The other woman pursed her lips. ‘Avery is the banshee for the Delvaux family. Our family name, before we married.’
I looked between them. The redhead had dyed hair, so they could be sisters, though cousins was probably more likely.
And the Delvaux family was one Julian had mentioned in connection to banshees.
They were a small, mostly Animalis family with fairly common magic and used their banshee to gain influence in the community. And from the determination these two had to get into the prison and find me in the midst of all that was being said about me, the banshee was right. They wanted her back.
‘Do you ken anything about how she was taken?’
‘No,’ Ivy said, crossing her arms. ‘If we knew anything useful, we wouldn’t be coming to you.’
Too true. But I had to ask. I also had to be sure they’d back me. ‘If I tell you what I know, can you influence my trial?’
Dangling what I knew like a carrot felt manky, but the banshee wasn’t the only one of us imprisoned with an uncertain future.
Ivy threw her hands up. ‘I knew she’d ask for something ridiculous!’
Shauna eyed me more carefully. I got the feeling she was the strategist of the two.
‘What result are you looking for?’ she asked.
‘I’d love for things to go back to normal. But
I realise that’s unrealistic.’ I snorted, but neither laughed with me. ‘At a minimum, I want to avoid category one punishment. I can’t find Avery if they steal my magic – or murder me.’
‘I see.’ Shauna took her phone out her pocket and walked well out of my sight, but not far enough to be within hearing of the few other prisoners.
Ivy waited with me, her eyes flicking between me and her relative.
‘It wasn’t your idea to come, was it?’ I asked.
‘No. This was all Shauna.’
The hard tilt to her jaw told me she didn’t agree. She probably thought I was as bad as everyone said, and hadn’t thought for a moment that I might actually have information about Avery.
‘I’m sorry I didn’t shake your hand earlier.’ I stuck my hand through the bars. ‘Start over?’
She didn’t move.
‘If we’re working together, we should clear the air.’ I smiled, betting she wouldn’t want to be rude.
And it worked. She shook.
I held my grin inside, but a moment later, darkness came and went. I was baffled. And disgusted.
I was back in that cell. Avery was still in labour. I smelt the salt of her sweat and the waste of the room she’d been left in.
A jug of water sat beside her this time, and she’d had the grime washed from her, so someone had visited. But the way she looked at me between her contractions with utter revulsion, I wasn’t in a summoning. This was a vision. A vision from the eyes of the man holding her prisoner.
The body I inhabited walked to the corner of the room and replaced the full bucket of human waste with an empty bucket, then left the cell, closing the door behind him.
In the hall, he took out his phone. ‘Perseus, we need the midwife. For the banshee. Yes, last night. Send her now.’ He hung up.
For a moment, I couldn’t breathe. Perseus was the name of a coven member. That wasn’t coincidence, was it? Was this his baby? The vision darkened at the edges, but I couldn’t leave now. I needed more.
I willed the body I inhabited to look down the hall. He twitched that way, as if involuntarily. And yes, a window.
Concrete stretched to heavy woodland, a rough road leading through the trees into the distance. Two dull grey-black blurs on the very edge of the view might be car bumpers. Not a lot, but even that might limit the options.
And then I was back in my body, my hand slowly sinking back to my side as Ivy buried hers in her pocket.
I frowned. My visions so far were directly related to the person responsible.
Ivy scrunched her nose and turned towards Shauna, who was off the phone and walking back to us.
Lyall, I Saw Avery. Does that mean Ivy is involved in this?
He squeezed through the bars and waddled over to her. He lifted one wing, towards the hand I’d shook.
Her ring. Ask her where she got it.
Why?
Just ask.
‘Ivy, where did you get your ring?’ It was a pretty thing, silver with a pink jewel, but nothing that special.
She twisted it around her finger, smiling to herself. ‘It was Avery’s.’
Lyall slipped back into my cell. Okay, she’s probably not involved.
Then how did I get the vision?
Through Avery’s ring.
Oh. Why didn’t you tell me I could See through objects?
Wasn’t much use. They have to be personal items people value or wear frequently. And the visions are usually brief.
Still, there must be ways I could use that.
Shauna stopped in front of my cell. ‘We have a few favours we can call in and a witness who might help. If they can find enough to justify a laxer punishment, you’ll avoid a category one sentence. But,’ she raised a finger, ‘we will not uphold our end of the bargain without excellent information on Avery’s whereabouts.’
My heart swelled. It was the best deal I could hope for in my current situation.
I stuck my hand through the bars. ‘Shake on it?’
Ivy stepped in front of Shauna. ‘Don’t. She got all weird when she shook my hand.’
‘Because I got a vision. Of Avery.’
Ivy’s eyes glistened. She turned away, mumbling something.
‘What’s with her?’ I asked.
Shauna eyed me. ‘She and Avery were more than friends.’
‘Like sisters?’
‘No, they’d been married for a year when Avery disappeared.’
Ah. So Ivy wasn’t so touchy just because she didn’t like me.
‘What did you see?’ Shauna asked.
‘She’s in labour. When I touched Ivy, I Saw the man holding her captive. He removed her… waste bucket. And he asked for the midwife.’
Shauna narrowed her eyes. ‘I need a location.’
‘I’m doing my best. She’s not in a good state with the contractions. I’m hoping once the birth is over, it’ll be easier.’
I wasn’t giving her those snippets of what I Saw out the window. She’d need more than that.
Shauna inclined her head and offered her hand. But, despite keeping Avery and her location firmly in my thoughts, I didn’t get a second vision. But then, her hand was bare.
‘Sorry. No new vision.’
Shauna nodded and turned to leave.
‘One more thing,’ I said. ‘Avoid Perseus. His name was mentioned. I’m not sure it’s the Perseus on the coven, but it’s best to keep him out of your plans.’ The name was rare enough to avoid him for that alone.
‘Understood.’
The tightness in my chest loosened. I’d done my part. Whatever they did now was out of my hands.
Chapter 7
Shane’s eye bags were lighter, and his eyes didn’t have the manic sheen of a coffee overdose. Even Julian bounced his foot, humming to himself as he read through his notes.
They hadn’t been this upbeat in ages. And it put me on edge.
‘I take it Shauna came through?’ I bit my tongue, not quite hoping she really had.
Shane swung to his feet and grabbed my hands. Mira slunk in and out of our legs in a large figure of eight. She once again rippled with danger, just like Shane’s minty musk smell twisted around me, tugging me closer to him.
‘The Delvauxs found a witness,’ he said, his eyes full of dancing joy.
I found myself smiling with him. ‘Who?’
‘It’s one of the WMCF employees. She was the tech Justin asked to create the workaround for my uncle’s computer password.’
I blew out my breath. She could throw serious shade on Cameron’s denial of the academy operation. Justin asked her to help so she knew it existed. How had the Delvauxs found someone so good in two days?
‘Is she willing to talk about the investigation?’
Shane grinned. ‘She’s even going to research the murder and see if there’s anything else we can use.’
Then I didn’t care how they found her. I wanted to celebrate with him.
Julian turned his head, and I used the moment of privacy to kiss Shane, savouring the soft pressure of his lips, while the scratch of his stubble sent hot sparks through my nerves.
When we drew apart, my grin stretched into my cheeks, and so did his, the green and brown in his eyes almost glowing.
We’d spent so long fighting to keep our heads above water. Having someone else look into my case was a welcome break, for both of us.
‘Did you talk to this witness before?’
‘No.’ Shane frowned, and I hated how it brought the shadows back to his face. ‘Justin never mentioned her by name. She was so far in the background, I couldn’t find her.’ His shoulders slumped.
I squeezed his hands to let him know I didn’t blame him. Without the force’s cooperation, he’d done well to find as many potential witnesses as he had. And it’d probably taken the intervention of the Delvauxs to convince the new witness to help anyway.
My gut twisted, a none-too-subtle reminder. But I hadn’t forgotten my end of the deal.
I caught Julian’s attention.
‘I promised I’d locate the banshee. Her name’s Avery.’
I wouldn’t put it past Ivy to withdraw their witness if I didn’t find something useful.
Julian opened his notepad. ‘What did they tell you? Anything new?’
‘They showed me a picture, but the best information was from a vision I got when I touched Ivy. Avery’s captor found her in labour and called for a midwife. He looked out the window.’ Or I made him look.
‘Was Ivy involved in her capture?’ Shane asked, a slight growl back in his voice.
‘No.’ I stroked his arm until the angry flash in his eyes disappeared. ‘She was wearing Avery’s ring. I got the vision from that.’
‘I see.’ Julian pressed his pen to his chin. ‘Anything distinctive in the vision?’
‘Not much. We already ken she’s on a McKee property, right?’
Shane sank onto the table and rubbed his chest.
‘Shane?’
He waved his hand. ‘Tell Julian what you Saw.’
Something I said had hurt him. I bit my tongue. Was it because I’d said it was a McKee property?
He was so twisted inside, wondering if his dad was involved in this. That had to be it.
His slumped shoulders and ducked head were splinters in my heart.
Between Shane supporting me, and his dad adamant he should distance himself from me, I didn’t think they’d said more than a few words to each other in weeks.
I clenched my hands. I had to fix this.
If we found out which property the women were being held at, we could find out if his father had ever had involvement with it. With that solid proof, Shane could patch things with his dad.
I turned to Julian.
‘The compound was on a stretch of concrete with dense forest beyond. I ken Latvia is full of trees, but that has to strike off some of the urban properties, or those in villages or on large business parks?’
‘Yes,’ Julian nodded slowly, ‘but they’d have to be fairly isolated to do what they’re doing. Did you see any vehicles?’