held out my arms anyway. My father had made his move, and soon, I would make mine.
Let the games begin.
NINETEEN
CÉCILE
Fleur’s hooves made little crunching sounds as they punched through the ice-coated puddles of the muddy streets. I’d sneaked silently out of the house at dawn, running all the way to the stables to meet Chris.
Now, I was glad that I’d let him convince me go by horse to see Catherine that morning. Pigalle was always dangerous, but it felt even more so now that I was caught between opposing forces, both of whom were watching me closely via their agents. The King’s messenger, I knew, would be keeping tabs on my progress; but now that I was nearly certain that Marie was in league with Anushka, I expected her to try to stymie me at every turn. Which begged the question: Why hadn’t she tried to kill me yet? Unfortunately, even a night of lying awake thinking had yielded no answers.
Sliding off Fleur’s back once we reached Catherine’s shop, I looked up at Chris. “You’ll be back in an hour?”
He nodded. “Don’t even think of leaving without me.” Wheeling the mare around, he started down the street at a brisk canter. I watched him ride out of sight, then I knocked once and entered.
“I was wondering when you’d show up.” Reaching past me, Catherine turned the bolt. “Let’s not have a repeat of last time.”
I followed after her, careful not to step on the little dog who insisted on sniffing the hem of my skirt. “You’re much quieter this time,” I said to him, patting his head.
“He only barks at strangers.” Catherine moved silently through her shop, collecting bits of herb, bark, and bone in a plain cooking pot. Holding a bit of kindling to the fire, she carried all the materials to the front of the shop. Sitting on the floor with the pot on her knees, Catherine closed her eyes, mouthing a series of words. Then she dropped the flaming bit of wood into the mixture. Green fire flared up into the air, and she repeated the words one last time.
“What was that spell?” I asked.
Her eyes flicked up to mine. “Something to repel. Anyone who comes near will believe he smells something unbearably repugnant – the bone was from a skunk. It won’t drive away anyone very determined, but neither will it raise the suspicion of magic.”
I wanted to ask her to teach it to me – to fill my head with all these little spells that I might one day find myself needing. But there were more important questions that needed answering.
She puttered around the shop, adjusting bottles and arranging papers. She was nervous, I thought, but who wouldn’t be in her situation? I was half-surprised she hadn’t fled the city, but then again, maybe she couldn’t afford to. Judging from the threadbare hem of her dress – the same she wore the last time we met – she had little money to spare. This shop and its contents might well be all she had, and giving that up, even if her life was at risk, was no small thing.
“Which side did you inherit from?”
I jumped, Catherine’s voice startling me. “Pardon?”
She raised one eyebrow, then picked up her dog. “Your affinity with the earth’s power – it’s an inherited condition.”
“I know…” I pressed fingers lightly against the long scar running down my ribs. “My grandmother. But she isn’t…” I searched for a word, “… practicing. She’s a healer of sorts, but she only uses plants, herbs, and the like. She taught me the basics.”
“Then she is practicing.”
“Really, it’s a shame my sister wasn’t the one who inherited the gift,” I babbled. “She’s much more interested in such things.”
“It tends to fall to only one a generation,” Catherine replied. Souris lifted his head, jumped to the ground, and hurried into the back. She watched him go, then asked, “What about your mother?”
“Oh, Gran is my father’s mother,” I corrected, following with a burst of nervous laughter. “My mother… No, my mother isn’t a witch. At least not in the sense of magic.” I laughed again, feeling unable to suppress it, the sound filling the room. “I didn’t mean that. She can be dreadful sometimes, but she isn’t…” I sucked in a deep breath and counted to five. “The magic comes from my grandmother.”
Catherine’s dark eyes seemed to bore into me. “You’ve a very loud voice.”
I winced, feeling the skin across my chest and cheeks burn. “Sorry. Hazard