Bear Protector - Bella Love-Wins Page 0,55
grinned, and pushed the door open. “Nice work, by the way.”
“Thanks.” Kiera lit a candle next to the door and followed Coco across the room to the window. They pushed the armchair to the side. “The loose floorboard is right where you said it was.”
“Of course it is,” Coco answered, getting down to her knees. She lifted up the square of wood to reveal a long, rusty metal box. Picking up the box, she checked the lock. Coco needed no help replacing the floorboard, and pushed the armchair back to its original spot. “Let’s get this to your room.”
“Good idea,” she agreed, following Coco back to the door. “Tell me something. Why have we never done this before for other spells we were curious about?”
“Search his room?” Coco checked the empty hallways, then motioned for Kiera to leave the room. She blew out the candle and quietly pulled the door shut, not wanting to attract any unnecessary attention as she considered the question. “Nothing else was worth taking the risk.”
Kiera folded her arms and narrowed her eyes. “I’m not sure I believe that.”
“Have you ever stopped to wonder how I’ve lived this long, young thing?” Coco crooned. “I can think of eight…no, nine times I cheated certain death, and I can tell you it is always worth the fight.” She crinkled her nose, and then she relaxed her face and smiled. “All right. Maybe I was not brave enough to cross Minassus before this…but now, I can feel it in my bones, Kiera. We have a chance to cut the son of a bitch off at the knees and go back to how life was before. You are so strong, love. I can hardly believe the quantum leaps you have made these past few days. As your familiar, you know it’s my goal to help you hone your craft, to unlock the powerful parts within you and harness the world around us as you become stronger. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always been so proud of you…but these past few days, it’s like you are a woman on fire.”
“Awww, dear.”
She grasped Kiera’s hands. “That fearlessness is exactly what you were born to wield…and if I go on, I swear your fiery little ass will make me cry.”
Coco sniffed a bit and fanned her eyes, which had already filled with tears. Taking a breath, she picked up the box and passed it to Kiera. “Enough with this sentimental stuff. Let’s get the hell out here.”
“Agreed. His carriage is close to the fortress entrance.” Kiera hurried up to her room with Coco following behind. She placed the lockbox on the bed. “What exactly are we looking for?”
“An account that Thalia wrote.”
Kiera stared over at Coco. “Our first witch Chancellor?” Coco nodded. “From three hundred years ago?”
“Yes. Did you open the box?”
“Yes,” Kiera answered.
Coco flipped the lid to one side and quickly picked up the rolled-up scroll on top. A large ancient coin the size of an egg fell to the bed.
“What’s that?” Kiera asked.
“Thalia’s talisman,” Coco answered. She placed the coin in her hand and made a fist around it. “She was not a fan of familiars, so she used this to concentrate her magic instead.”
A small piece of paper floated down to the bed afterward. Coco studied the scrap of paper for a moment, then her lips formed a tense line. She passed the note to Kiera. “It appears that the Chancellor knows about your powers.”
“What? Why do you think—” Kiera froze and the blood drained from her face. Her name was scribbled on it in the Chancellor’s handwriting, and below it, there was one phrase. Must neutralize.
“Got any doubts that he knows?” Coco asked, opening the scroll.
“No. I don’t understand, though. If Minassus was aware of what we were planning to do, or conspiring, as he would put it, why did he not stop us before he left for his mother’s village?”
“My guess is arrogance. He probably believed he had time. Speaking of time…” Coco sat on the bed and pulled Kiera’s arm, motioning for her to sit. “See here?” she asked, pointing to the fifth paragraph of the old handwritten document.
Kiera looked at the flowery cursive section that seemed to have been written more slowly than anywhere else on the page.
“Read it aloud,” Coco instructed. “In case there’s anything you do not understand. People spoke a little differently back then, and Thalia was pretty feisty herself.”
“All right,” she agreed, lowering her eyes to the paragraph. “It says, Ameerah was