by Karen Mead
“May 4, 1767, Venice. The hearing of Umberto D’Alessandro.”
“I didn’t ask for the name, but very well,” said Arrigio grumpily. “As an expert witness, do you agree with the court’s belief that this situation, regarding the Son of Sammael, is similar to that last encountered in 1767, and thus requires the same procedure used at that time?”
“No Chairman, I do not,” said O’Donnell. A surprised murmur ran through the audience. Arrigio, an irritated frown on his face, held his hand up for quiet.
“In that case, please explain the reason for your disagreement,” Arrigio said, his tone arch.
Cassie looked at Tad O’Donnell, curious.
Tad went off the script. He was obviously supposed to say yes to that question, and now Arrigio’s wondering what’s up.
“D’Alessandro was part fae,” the jovial vampire began. “I believe his maternal grandmother was some kind of…tree spirit? Water nymph? I apologize, it’s been a long time. In any case, his abilities were always strange and unpredictable.” He crossed his legs, looking perfectly at home up in front of the dais. “Worse, the fae in him didn’t like being bound by the rules of demon magic. At the time of the hearing, his Wordlock was failing.”
That set off a chain of murmurs throughout the audience. Wordlocking was what gave demons some modicum of control over their powers, so they didn’t just set people on fire at random. A demon who couldn’t be Wordlocked sounded like a ticking time bomb…on a very short timer.
“That, by the way, is the reason why that hearing was rather sparsely attended,” Tad continued with dry humor. He was clearly enjoying being in the spotlight. “Obviously, the hearing was held under duress; without any reliable means of control over his powers, the demon was literally too dangerous to live; it was not hyperbole to say so. The witnesses were even rushed through their testimony.
“But in this case,” and here Tad stood up, gesturing to Sam with his left hand. “There is no indication that his Wordlock is failing, or that anything of that nature will ever come to pass. He is only a half-demon of uncommon strength, which was not a crime in 1767, and is not a crime today either.”
“Sit down, Mr. O’Donnell,” said Arrigio. Cassie knew he wouldn’t tolerate anyone standing up without his permission. “An interesting position, but not one you chose to share with the court when I first consulted you about the possibility of holding this hearing several months ago,” he said, his red eyes glittering with a contained anger. “If you did not think a hearing was appropriate, why didn’t you say so earlier?”
Tad shrugged apologetically. “Unfortunately, sometimes it takes a while to realize which choice is the right one. Initially I did what I thought was best, but the more I thought about the case, the more I realized that the two circumstances were, in fact, quite different. I realize it would have been more convenient if I had come to that conclusion initially.”
Or, you wanted to find out what you could get from Sam, and you think you can get the Lupine Project. Why does a vampire want werewolves so badly anyway? Or is he after something else, and the werewolves are just the first step?
She also wondered if what he had said counted as lying; supposedly, no one could lie to the court without a witch detecting it, but no one objected after Tad had spoken. Perhaps he had simply mastered the art of lying by omission, because nothing he had said was technically false, as far as she could tell.
After all, the circumstances of this case were different: Tad had something to gain from it, this time.
Arrigio gave an exasperated sigh. “Well, I wish you wouldn’t have taken so long to change your mind, since now that the hearing is currently in progress, we can’t very well cancel it. Do you object to us continuing?”
“Not at all, I simply ask that you keep in mind what I’ve said when it comes time to render a verdict. It is tempting to defer to precedent; however, in this case, perhaps it should be considered a different animal to that which has come before. If you’ll forgive me for sounding like an old man for a moment, a slavish devotion to the wisdom of the past can blind us to new opportunities.”
“Thank you for your wise counsel,” said Arrigio. Cassie thought she could detect a trace of sarcasm from Arrigio, but it was subtle. “Now, a few points of order….”
The two began a discussion of finer details like the traditional order of witnesses at a blood status hearing, and Cassie started to tune them out. She knew that Tad had done his best to make it sound as though Sam wasn’t a danger to the court, but she wondered if it had been enough. All he’d really pointed out is that, unlike the demon of 1767, Sam was unlikely to hurt anyone by accident.
But I don’t think they’re all that worried about an accident. They’re afraid of what he might do deliberately….
Cassie returned her attention to the front of the room when Arrigio dismissed O’Donnell. The vampire walked back to his seat, a smug look on his face. Arrigio looked down at the paper before him, holding the frame of his glasses with one hand.
“For its second witness, the court calls Helen Andrews, mother of the Son of Sammael and Witch of the Outer Banks. Ms. Andrews, please take a seat before the dais.”
Cassie should have expected Helen to be called, but for some reason, it still surprised her when she saw Helen take the seat in front of the dais that Tad had vacated. Arrigio looked up from his paperwork at her, then paused for a moment.
“Madam. You said before this hearing that you claim no fae in your ancestry. Yet, are you certain that you have no fairy ancestors?”
From where she was sitting, Cassie couldn’t really see Helen’s expression. Still, she felt confident the woman was smirking.
“Fairies are agents of chaos, Chairman. Now tell me: do I look like an agent of chaos to you?”
Chapter Forty-Four
The questioning of Helen went on for quite a while. Arrigio asked her all about Sam’s childhood, particularly when he had manifested certain powers.
“And when did his ability to compel other people first develop?”
“When he was three,” said Helen.
Sam snapped his head towards his mother at that; clearly, he hadn’t known that.
“Can you explain what happened?”
“Certainly. He and some neighborhood children were playing in the park. He asked a boy, repeatedly, to give him some blocks to play with, only the other boy didn’t listen. So Sam got angry and told the boy that if he couldn’t have the blocks, the boy should eat them, and the poor boy began swallowing them.” Helen stifled a yawn. “The child started choking, and would have died had his mother not been nearby to perform the Heimlich Maneuver.”
“You never told me that,” said Sam, sounding pained.
Helen ignored her son. “After that, he seemed to have some kind of a mental block regarding compelling anyone to do anything. I thought it best to leave it that way, at least until the teen years were over,” she said with a dismissive wave. “Demons who learn compulsion too early become spoiled brats.”
“I…see. Thank you, Ms. Andrews. That will be all. You may take your seat.”
People in the audience started whispering when Helen didn’t move at his dismissal. “You really have no idea what to ask me, do you?” said Helen. Someone gasped. “You haven’t a clue.”
Arrigio snapped his head up. “Excuse me?”
Helen sat back in her chair, looking as comfortable as could be. “Cow hearts. Sheep lungs. Lamb brains. Bull testicles.”
“What is the meaning of this?” said a blond man next to Arrigio, who Cassie remembered as Graellen. “Why is this woman speaking nonsense?”
“You’ve asked me nothing about my pregnancy. If you had, you might have thought to inquire about my diet, at which point I would have told you that I ate as many animal organs as possible while my child was developing. Animal parts are always key ingredients in black magic preparations, so I theorized that by eating them while he was in utero, I might increase his magical capacity. Th
ough a sample size of one can hardly prove a theory,” she said, crossing her legs casually, “I achieved the results I desired.”
The audience exploded in whispers, and Arrigio had to bang his gavel for quiet. However, the Chairman looked confused; not an expression Cassie was used to seeing on the man’s face. “Wait. Are you…are you honestly proposing that you made your son’s magic stronger due to the food you ate while pregnant with him?”
“Why is it such a radical idea?” said Helen. “Women take prenatal vitamins to ensure healthy development of the fetus. I simply took things in a more ambitious direction.”
“Madam,” said Arrigio, sounding strained. “I find it difficult to believe that such a method would be…effective.”
“You would. Because you only see the woman as an incubator,” said Helen. All of the men at the dais were looking at her like she had three heads. “It would never occur to you that something like maternal choice could influence the power of a demon child, thus you never thought to try. You’ve gotten away with neglecting the importance of the mother for a long time, but it’s finally come back to bite you.”
“What are you saying?” Graellen erupted in a tone of pure outrage. “That the Son of Sammael is only as strong as he is because you made him that way, and not his father!?”
“What I am saying, gentlemen,” said Helen, uncrossing her legs and then recrossing them in the other direction, “is that you have the answer to the question of my son’s “blood status,” right in front of you. I, a human, used purely human means at my disposal to make my child strong. If his strength unnerves you, that is another story…but then you will need to find another pretext to get rid of him than whether his blood is half-human. You will never find anything inhuman in my background, and there can be no doubt that he is my son.”
At that, the cavernous lecture hall was quiet. Arrigio and the other board members seemed at a loss, and the audience was silent, riveted to what was being said down below. Sam was collapsed in his chair, as though he didn’t have the strength to sit up.
Helen herself broke the silence. “Of course, if you doubt me, I can produce another witness who will tell you the same thing,” she said, raising her hand. “See this funny-looking ring? All I have to do is turn it, and my husband will be here to answer any questions you desire.”
At that, a series of panicked whispers broke out. Cassie herself felt like she was about to lose what little breakfast she’d eaten.
Would she really do it? Summon a Lord of Hell right here, in the middle of court? Wait, who am I talking about? Of course she would.
“No!” yelled Arrigio, then he seemed to realize that he had exclaimed out loud and flushed slightly. “Rather, that won’t be necessary. We do not presume to summon demons of the Realm here.”
“Really? That’s a shame. It seems rather inconsiderate to put my son on trial, and not even allow his own father to speak on his behalf.”
“I think we’ve heard more than enough testimony from this particular witness. Ms. Andrews, you are dismissed.”
Helen shrugged mildly, as if it was all of very little importance, then hopped up with a vigor that belied her real age. As she made her walk back up the steps, she made eye contact with Cassie.
Well, I’ve done what I can. Your turn, future daughter-in-law.
Cassie’s eyes widened at Helen’s voice in her head; she had known the woman could touch her mind, but hadn’t expected it now.
‘Future daughter-in-law’? Does she know about the future, with Corianne? No, how would she know? She’s just teasing me.
It was clear that Arrigio was a bit shaken from having to deal with Helen, because he shuffled through his papers for several moments before calling the next witness. However, when he spoke again, he had regained his composure.
“The next witness on the list is Dr. Serenus Zeitbloom, our very own Examiner. Unfortunately, Dr. Zeitbloom had a preexisting commitment, and could not be here today. So we will move on to the next witness: Cassandra Tremblay, familiar of the Son of Sammael. Ms. Tremblay, please approach the dais.”
Khalil patted her shoulder from the seat behind her. Feeling numb, she got up and walked down to the front, where she took the witness seat. She looked over at Sam, but he was staring straight ahead; she wondered what he was thinking after Helen’s diatribe. She doubted he had known about Helen’s magical pregnancy diet.
“Ms. Tremblay, the last time you appeared before this court in the fall, you were a familiar. I assume that you are now addressing us as a witch?”
“Yes.”
Arrigio wasn’t looking at her, still shuffling through his papers. “And how has your magical training been progressing?”
“Um.” Time to drop the bomb, I guess. “I really haven’t been training. I just found out I was a witch the other day.”
Arrigio looked up at that.
“What do you mean, you just found out? Did you fail to notice while the act was in progress?” said Graellen, and the hall filled with nervous laughter.
Cassie took a deep breath. “See, I became a witch when Sam kissed me, a few months ago, but I didn’t know for a while. None of us knew until I accidentally triggered a spell that he had cast first, then undid it—and that was just this week. So there hasn’t been any time to train.”
Cassie didn’t know what kind of reaction she was expecting, but the hall was dead silent. It was a few moments before Arrigio reacted. He turned his head to look at something behind Cassie. “Miranda?”
“She’s not lying, although I don’t see how she could possibly be telling the truth,” said the dark-haired witch. “But she believes what she’s saying, at least.”
Arrigio knit his brow, then turned to his right. “Garcia?”
The dark-skinned man got up from his spot at the table and walked over to Cassie. He examined her neck and her wrists, sniffing and feeling her pulse multiple times. Cassie had to fight the urge to swat him, but she knew he was just checking her magic, however Examiners did it. Seemingly puzzled, he even kneeled down to check her knees and ankles.
“Well?” said Arrigio impatiently.
“It’s bizarre,” said Garcia finally. “She’s still undergoing the transition, but she’s definitely a witch. Only, there’s no residue on her. No trace of essence, even in minute quantities.”
At that, the audience erupted in murmurs again. While Cassie couldn’t make out most of what was said, she did hear the word “virgin” many times.
Well, nothing like having hundreds of people discuss my sex life, or lack of sex life. What was John saying about being jealous of me again? Idiot.
Arrigio seemed to be staring off into space, seemingly lost in his own thoughts. When he finally motioned for the hall to quiet, his expression was carefully blank.
“In response to this unexpected development, I motion that the court take a two-hour recess. Would someone please second—”
Just then, a flash of light blinded the room, and Cassie covered her eyes with her hands while members of the audience screamed and gasped. When Cassie finally felt safe uncovering her eyes, her vision was still compromised; all she could see in front of her was a vaguely person-shaped blur. She recognized the high-pitched voice before her eyes had a chance to recover.
“Mommy, Daddy’s being mean!”
Chapter Forty-Five
The little girl hopped into Cassie’s lap, as though totally oblivious to anything going on around her.
“I want a pony, but Daddy says I can’t have a pony. So I changed a squirrel into a pony, then Daddy said I had to change her back, and when I ask ‘why,’ he just goes ‘because.’ It’s not fair.”
“Ah…” began Cassie, as her brain worked furiously to try to make sense of this situation. Awkwardly, she put her hands on the child’s shoulders. “You should listen to your Daddy, Corianne. He’s just looking out for you.”
“No he’s not!” the little girl yelled. “Mommy, say it’s okay for me to have a pony, because
if you say it’s okay Daddy will stop being mean. He always does what you say.”
Cassie dared a glance at Sam, who had jumped out of his chair. He was looking at her and Corianne with an expression of open-mouthed disbelief. But somehow, Cassie thought he must have an inkling who Corianne was. How could he not?
“What is going on here?” said Arrigio, his voice cracked and pained. No one answered him.
“Cor, how did you get here?” said Cassie.
The little girl was playing with her long hair. “I pulled the knot.”
“What knot?” said Cassie. Sam hadn’t frozen time here, so how could Corianne have possibly traveled here?
She realized what was going to happen about a second before it did. A thunderclap sent her very bones vibrating, then an icy cold descended on all her exposed skin. She looked at Sam, who was breathing heavily, then dared a glance behind her; everyone in the room was frozen, except for the entourage. Even the panel was frozen, Arrigio’s face stuck in an expressionless mask.
Cassie stood up, holding Corianne in her arms; the little girl was surprisingly heavy. She turned to Sam. “You just did it. You just made the knot in time she used to get here.”
“What the hell is going on?” Sam said through gritted teeth, quickly closing the distance between them. “What’s happened? Who is this?”
“I want a pony!” Corianne yelled at Sam, seemingly unaware that he wasn’t exactly her father. “Mikaela has a pony.”
“Sam, she’s...” Cassie started, then took a deep breath. “She’s the future. She’s what happens when we get married and have a kid.”
Sam paled. “That’s impossible. That’s just not possible.”
“Nothing is impossible for her,” said Cassie, putting Corianne down. The little girl hugged her legs. “She can play with time.”
“She’s a super-witch!” Jay yelled, running down the stairs. He stopped next to Sam and kneeled down, looking at Corianne. “She looks exactly like you, Cassie!”