The Ravens (The Ravens #1) - Kass Morgan Page 0,79
news settle.
“And now Tiffany’s been kidnapped,” Scarlett said. “By someone who wants a powerful magical talisman.” She shot Vivi a pointed look. “The kind of item that could probably break an old binding spell . . .”
Vivi let out a low whistle. “Scarlett, I think you need to tell Dahlia the truth. All of it.”
Scarlett shook her head vigorously. She’d thought of that, of the sweet relief of unburdening herself finally. But she couldn’t yet. Not to protect herself, but to protect Tiffany. “She’d kick me out. Strip me of my powers—and I need them more than ever right now.” Scarlett’s breath came faster. “I have to find Tiffany. I have to. She’s my best friend; I can’t just walk away from witchcraft right when she needs me most. It’s my fault. Don’t you get it? Gwen did this to get revenge, and it’s my fault for letting it happen. You have to promise me you won’t tell, Vivi.”
“Hey.” Vivi put a hand on Scarlett’s forearm. “Deep breaths.” She waited for Scarlett to inhale a couple of slow breaths before she spoke again. “Nobody’s taking your magic away, okay? I promise I won’t tell a soul.” She pursed her lips. “What about the Henosis talisman? If we find it, we’ll get Tiffany back.”
Scarlett let out a faint, humorless laugh, struck by the irony that someone to whom she had been so cruel was being so kind to her now. If she was the bad witch of this story, surely Vivi was the good one.
“What is it, Scarlett?”
“The talisman is hopeless. Nobody’s seen it since it vanished from the house decades ago. If it ever existed in the first place.”
“There are all kinds of spells to find lost objects,” Vivi pointed out.
“Spells our foremothers tried, no doubt.” It was at times like this that she longed for Minnie. Minnie knew every bit of witch history, forgotten spells and things that weren’t forgotten but weren’t written down in hopes that they would be forgotten. She wanted Minnie here for another more selfish reason, though. She wanted to talk to her. She wanted her hugs, her cups of mystery tea, and her words—the words that weren’t spells yet did the trick of making her feel better all the same. But Minnie wasn’t here; Vivi was. And they somehow had to figure this out on their own.
Vivi shrugged. “Maybe there’s something they overlooked. We can check the archives, not to mention all the older tomes in the rare-books collection at the library. Didn’t you say the talisman initially belonged to the school?” Vivi caught Scarlett’s gaze and held it. “We’ll find her, Scarlett. Whatever it takes. We’ll find that talisman, and then we’ll use it to bring Tiffany home.”
Scarlett nodded. She appreciated Vivi’s fire, but a new idea was blooming in her mind. Maybe they didn’t need to find the talisman.
Maybe they just had to find the person who wanted it.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Vivi
“This is ridiculous,” Ariana said as she, Vivi, and Sonali completed their third circuit around the oddities and curiosities museum on the first floor of the Hewitt Library. “Of course the talisman isn’t here. Why would it be? Don’t you think someone would’ve noticed if one of the most powerful magical objects in the world was being displayed on campus?”
“I doubt many Ravens spend much time here,” Sonali said, wrinkling her nose at a shriveled, shrunken head in a glass case. “It’s kind of creepy, isn’t it?”
Vivi had to agree. While the collection had appeared mysterious and romantic when she saw it with Mason in the middle of a sunny afternoon, the macabre items seemed very different in the evening light as she, Sonali, and Ariana searched desperately for a clue that’d save their sorority sister’s life.
“Have you not seen the dried frog’s toes in the supply closet at Kappa House?” Ariana asked.
“That’s different. Those have a practical purpose. They’re not so-called curiosities.”
“Whatever,” Ariana said. “We’re wasting our time here. Why would it be on campus at all?”
“Scarlett said it was rumored to have some connection with Westerly,” Vivi said. “Let’s check the archives. You’re right, if the talisman were in plain sight, Tiffany’s kidnapper wouldn’t have gone to so much trouble.” She was about to mention what Mason had said about how only 10 percent of the collection was on display for the public, but she wasn’t sure she wanted to explain how she’d ended up on a non-date with Scarlett’s boyfriend.
It’d been about twelve hours since the scrying ritual and it