Betrothed

by Lola White

  Costel blinked up at him. “They vote against us at the Council meetings.”

  “They won’t if you contain the old man and I build up our network. Ileana will gain Levy support and I’ll have the Davenolds’. You could find a wife that could take us farther, brother.”

  Costel sighed, his eyes reflecting his serious consideration. “Alexandru was awful at the party.”

  “Yes,” Silviu agreed. Lightly, he laid his hand on Costel’s shoulder, opposite from Ileana. It sealed the spell. Silver exploded in a flash of light, subtle heat flowing around the three siblings, wrapping them and pulling tight. “People don’t like him, but they will like you.”

  Costel took a shuddering breath. “I have to think about it.”

  “Of course.” As one, both Ileana and Silviu stepped away, letting the echoes of their magic fade.

  Costel took a stumbling step toward the path back to the house, but Ileana stopped him with her words. “By the way, did I tell you about Eliasz and the Council?”

  Costel looked at her over his shoulder and shook his head.

  Smiling happily, Ileana put the icing on the cake. “Daniel is seriously considering appointing Eliasz to the Levy Seat.”

  Costel frowned at Silviu. “If I was the Lovasz Father, I wouldn’t have time to perform my duties to the Council, as I do now.”

  Silviu gave their brother a soft smile that sent shivers up Ileana’s spine, but didn’t affect Costel at all. “I would be happy to help. You would be in transition, needing to focus on the Family, adjusting to both the new role and the power. I would be willing to take the Seat on the Council for you.”

  Costel hated his Council duties and only kept them because Alexandru demanded it. It would be a tempting bargain for him. A moment passed in tense silence. “You and Eliasz do seem to get along.”

  “Yes, and he and Georgeanne are old friends. He would be a good ally.”

  Costel turned back to Ileana. “He watches you with lust in his eyes.”

  He hadn’t been present when Vasile had given her the command to seduce her betrothed. She bowed her head and hid her smile. “It’s something I could use then, if you wanted me to.”

  Costel’s eyes darkened. They careened between his siblings, but he kept his face still and unreadable. “It’s something to consider.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Silviu

  “He’s disgusting.”

  Ileana tore her gaze from Costel’s retreating back and arched an eyebrow. “It’s no less than you and Father asked of me.”

  A slow curl of shame licked Silviu’s belly. “That was different. Eliasz will be a good husband to you.”

  “I wonder how you knew that before we came here.”

  Silviu’s lips twitched. “I had faith you could bring him to heel, Iley.” If anyone could, it was his hardheaded, rebellious older sister. She played the dutiful role of a patriarchal female with a grace that couldn’t be denied and a deviousness that could only be envied.

  “Uh-huh.” She ran a shaking hand over her face and plopped back down on the fountain wall. Silviu gave her a moment to collect herself.

  Her cheek was healed, but still streaked with blood, a faint bruise darkening the paleness of her skin. Magic had little effect on bruising. Her eyes were over-bright, her lips turned down at the corners. All strength had flown from her shoulders, leaving them sagging.

  She wasn’t the only one suffering. Silviu had just managed to snatch Georgie from certain death, his heart a chunk of ice as the golden flicker of magic caught his eye. He’d had to choose between the women he loved—only able to save one, with little hope of reaching Ileana in time while Georgie stood almost directly under the chandelier.

  He’d had to trust Eliasz.

  The man had earned it, and a whole lot more.

  Silviu dipped a hand in the fountain, using the water to wipe the dried blood from his sister’s cheek. “You okay, Iley?”

  “I just…” She blew out a breath and he watched with pride as she gathered her strength. “I just don’t know who would want to hurt either me or Georgie. As for her, there’re too many reasons to count, too many people to narrow down a motive, and me… Well, it comes back to Eliasz, doesn’t it?”

  Silviu saw the same fiery emotions roiling behind her eyes that filled his own chest. He needed action, but he couldn’t trust himself to track down his betrothed and exorcise his demons with her. He wondered if Ileana had the same need to do something.

  He held out his hand. “If someone doesn’t want you to marry him, that would come down to the Gage-Levys or Grandfather. Grandfather doesn’t have a Match, so we circle back to Anne and Constance. Let’s go read the files Fredrik has on them.”

  “Now?”

  “Yeah. You’ll be my lookout. The staff is probably still cleaning up the mess in the hall, but everyone else should be at dinner.”

  “Unless Eliasz and Fredrik are in the office.”

  “We’ll tell them we were looking for them. Then we’ll make up a good excuse to join them.”

  The feminine lines of her face firmed, throwing off the last traces of fear. Her eyes narrowed and her lips stretched until they formed a straight line. She grabbed his hand with bruising strength, using him to haul herself to her feet. “Anne, huh?”

  Silviu waved his free hand, popping the bubble of silence he’d spread around them, and led her back toward the house. “She’s the one that had wanted a betrothal between Constance and Eliasz.”

  “And you think she’d go this far to get it, when her daughter is about to be betrothed to the leader of the secondary Ngozi branch?”

  “That’s what’s been bothering me,” he admitted. He’d been turning the whole thing over in his mind and there were too many points that didn’t add up. “Graves is in a higher position, for all that he’s a pariah from his Family. Eliasz’s child will be head of the third branch when Fredrik dies, which won’t be any time soon.”

  “Unless chandeliers start falling on him, too.”

  That had him stopping on the path. He pulled Ileana to face him and lowered his voice, casting a quick glance around, verifying that they were still alone. After the party, dinner had returned to an earlier scheduled time and there was still enough light to see by so early in the autumn season.

  “That could be a possibility,” he said, seeing no one nearby. “The only way it would be to Constance’s direct benefit is if Fredrik died. We’ll have to watch that.”

  “But even then, wouldn’t the tertiary power pass to a cousin? It wouldn’t go to Eliasz at all.”

  “He could challenge, and he’d probably win.” Frustration rode over Silviu’s scalp in prickling waves. “We need to look at those files.”

  “Just conjure them, then.”

  He shook his head, having rejected the idea already. “I don’t know what magic the people in this house are good at, or if anyone would sense the spell or be able to track it. I also don’t know how often they’re looked over and the last thing I want is to conjure them from Fredrik’s hand.”

  “Adam conjured Constance’s diary.”

  “That’s him not me, and a minor offense compared to filching meticulous notes on every member of the entire Levy Family. That’s pushing the boundaries of what Fredrik, not to mention Daniel, could forgive.”

  His sister’s face fell. “So no magic?”

  “Not this time.”

  He pushed her down the path again, one eye glued to the side of the house above his head, where yellow light washed against the gathering evening. Dinner was still in progress, no doubt delayed with the commotion in the entry hall.

  Slipping through the back door, Silviu had to admire the Levy servants. The mess had already been cleaned up, the twisted bronze gone and the crystal debris swept away. They met no one as they moved down the dark hall.

  As if she had every right to, Ileana threw open Fredrik’s office door and swept inside. Silviu was on her heels, realizing that the dim room was vac
ant the moment he crossed the threshold. He closed the door softly and turned on a lamp in the far corner with a flick of his fingers.

  “Where are the files?” Ileana turned toward a narrow shelving unit, wedged between a handsome liquor cabinet and a pedestal featuring some noble ancestor’s bust.

  Silviu waved his hand and a painting next to the lamp swung aside on silent hinges. Behind it, an impressively warded safe sat in a square nook in the wall. Ileana flinched, turning to watch even as her mouth fell open.

  “God, Silver! That thing is all magicked up.”

  He flashed her a grin, undaunted by the soft swirl of energy coasting over the metal. Scrolling words formed and reformed, setting the necessary wards to both hide the safe from notice and make it extremely hard to open.

  Another wave of his hand broke the spell and shared a secret he’d long held close. Ileana turned to him slowly, her eyes widening as she surveyed him, head to toe. “Does Georgie know how talented you are?”

  “She, of all people, has the closest understanding of what I can do.”

  “And why is that?” Betrayal sharpened her tone.

  “She’s my Match.”

  Some of Ileana’s anger faded. “I never did understand how a Bane had a Match.”

  He shrugged, moving toward the safe. “How does anyone have a Match? Two witches just share the same magical frequency, that’s all.”

  “She’s not supposed to have magic.”

  Silviu struggled to answer his sister with patience. “According to the legends Father made me read when I was young, she has more magic than anyone else, which is exactly why it’s blocked from her use.”

  “Then what good is it?”

  “It gets passed down to her children, mingling with mine in their blood, and adds into their own.”

  He opened the safe and began flicking through the stacks of folders inside. Three feet tall by two feet wide, it was crammed with vital information. Given the size of the Levy Family, Silviu wished Fredrik would leap into the modern age and keep the information stored electronically, where a handy search button would speed things up.

  “How does that help your children, though? If she’s got too much to use, won’t they be overpowered, and unable to use it, too?”

  Silviu grabbed the folders he was looking for and sat right down on the floor, spreading them out under the dim circle of light cast by the lamp. “Not all the magic is passed on. Think of witch genetics, Iley. A quarter of the mother’s magic, a quarter of the father’s. The other half is the baby’s own. With all the magic I have, and all that Georgeanne has, a quarter from each of us still amounts to a great deal more than any other witch could hope to pass on, even if they passed on half of all the power they wield.”

  “Father always claimed you were the strongest witch alive.”

  “I don’t believe that, but I do believe my future children might be able to make that claim. Our father would have understood that possibility from the first.”

  She considered that for a minute before dropping to the floor next to him. “The two of you are going to have monsters.”

  “Very powerful monsters, yes. They might end up ruling the world.”

  “God help us all.” She snagged a folder and opened it, eyes scanning quickly. “This is Eliasz’s.”

  “Mmm. I’ve got Anne’s.”

  They settled into silence as each of them read their respective files. Beyond the office, the grandfather clock ticked away the minutes loudly, a doomsday countdown Silviu kept his ear on. He hadn’t locked the door, figuring it would be harder to explain if someone came upon them in the office. He didn’t want to be caught, and yet didn’t dare cast a spell that could alert their presence to a watchful witch’s attention.

  He knew better than most how easy it was to hide a talent for detecting magic.

  Anne’s file wasn’t very detailed, but it contained enough information to give them a start. “Well, hell. Anne married her Magic Match.”

  Ileana looked up with a jolt. “She did?”

  “According to Fredrik, they can’t stand each other.” He waved the folder. “Anne is smarter and magically more powerful than her husband.”

  Ileana’s lips twitched. “I’d hate to be Matched to a witch I hated.”

  He’d always shared the same opinion. He was grateful for the crazed notion that had sent Vasile to Madeleine’s door with the most bizarre request in witching history because he and Georgie got along so well. Surprisingly well, all things considered.

  Ileana lowered her eyebrows. “How does that work, then? If the Match is unequal?”

  “The Match just means the magic can work together and enhance the power.” Silviu answered her absentmindedly, absorbed in Anne’s past. “When the witches can work together, the magic takes the heft of the stronger witch, but if they can’t get along, it gets trickier.”

  “You know a lot about it. Because of Georgie?”

  “No, because Belle Laurent married her Match, and then slept with his cousin. The couple has been at each other’s throats ever since. Their power destabilized the minute they started fighting.”

  “You and Georgie are unequal.”

  “Wrong. Bane doesn’t mean no magic, Iley, it means unable to use it. Georgie’s strong.”

  “Eliasz isn’t my Match.”

  The sadness in her tone had him looking up, recalled from Anne’s file. “Don’t worry about it too much. Being married to your Match puts unneeded pressure on you. Just look at Father”—his lips twisted—“and me.”

  Ileana bit her lip and nodded to the folder in his hand. “What does it say?”

  “According to Fredrik’s notes, there had been rumors of Anne marrying Daniel, but his grandfather sent her to Warner Gage-Levy, instead.”

  “What? Daniel’s at least ten years younger than her.”

  “Maybe it didn’t matter.” Silviu threw the folder on the pile with a frown. “She married her Match, but she only had one child.”

  “So?”

  “So, she should have had more. And she’s in Daniel’s entourage now, while her husband trots all over the globe.”

  “I thought he was in England, with Graves Ngozi.”

  “He is now, but he’s a frequent traveler.” Silviu moved back to the safe. Shuffling through the folders, he found the file he wanted and raised it in triumph. “Warner Gage-Levy.”

  Ileana’s eyebrows lifted. “What are you hoping to find?”

  “Any hint of his strengths.”

  She cocked her head. “Strengths, not weaknesses?”

  “His weaknesses matter less. Just look at Constance, she’s very weak, but she still holds a position of prominence in Daniel’s entourage.”

  “That’s what Adam said, too.”

  She’d caught his complete attention. “Explain.”

  “He’s sleeping with her. Said she wasn’t magically strong.” His sister shrugged. “I don’t know how he can say something like that, though, and didn’t want to ask him. Can he read magic?”

  Silviu thought hard on everything he knew about the twins, wishing he’d paid them more attention, both ten years ago and during their current stay at the Levy house. “I don’t know, either. He and Christiana are good at spells, I can tell you that. Best I’ve ever seen with them.”

  “Better together, their Matched Magic adding to their talent.” Ileana hummed. “Imagine growing up with your perfect magical equivalent. The strength they would wield.”

  A spark of pride took root in his chest and he couldn’t seem to extinguish it. “Georgie had to deal with that all her life. Stand up to it.”

  Ileana leaned forward. “So, if Constance isn’t strong, but Matches have children that are roughly as powerful as them…”

  “Usually more…” Silviu pulled his thoughts from his betrothed to decipher the look in his sister’s eyes. “You think Daniel is Constance’s father?”

  “One child, like you said.” Ileana grinned. “And I had a conversation
with Georgie about how Daniel isn’t magically strong—”

  “What are you two doing in here?”

  Eliasz’s words cut through the dimly lit office. Silviu’s muscles locked down, thankfully preventing a guilty flinch. He could’ve kicked himself, getting so caught up in their theories that he’d lost track of the noises beyond the door. He should have heard Eliasz’s approach, maybe even sensed his magic. He’d been unfocused, leaving himself no time to replace the files, and now they would have to pay the price for his mistakes.

  Silviu gained new appreciation for Ileana’s cleverness as she jumped to her feet without hesitation, her lips cracked in a beautiful smile. With joy illuminating her face, she raced toward Eliasz as if she were ecstatic that he’d finally found a moment to join them.

  As if they weren’t guilty of a gross violation of their host’s trust.

  Ileana saved them both by throwing herself into Eliasz’s arms and pressing a quick, hard kiss to his pinched lips. She grabbed his hand, towing him over to the light, waving a hand at the folders on the floor. She completely ignored the open safe.

  “We were looking for you!” she cried. “Where were you?”

  “In my office.” Eliasz’s voice was only a few degrees warmer than it had been, but the anger was fading from his eyes, leaving them foggy with confusion.

  “Well, you’re finally here,” Ileana chirped. “We were going over the files your father has.”

  “What files?” Eliasz looked down at Silviu, still calmly resting on the floor. “Where did you get these?”

  Confusion slowed Eliasz down. Silviu smiled in welcome and funneled the knowledge away to examine at a later date. “From the safe. We’re investigating Anne.”

  Eliasz sank to the floor, spreading the folders out, reading each name. He paused when he got to his, shooting Silviu a deeply suspicious glare.

  Ileana laughed. “You can’t blame a girl for being nosy about her betrothed.” She dropped to her knees and snuggled into Eliasz’s side, completely at ease. “I want to know all about you.”