why I was taller than my parents were. Why my nose, face, and eyes didn’t match anyone’s in my family.”
“I’m so sorry, Nick,” I said, shaking. “It just clicked now. I’m not even sure I’m right.”
He pulled out a photograph from his pocket. “I stole this from my mother’s dresser. It’s been in my wallet for years. I wanted to ask my parents about this, but I let them keep their secret. As long as they’re happy, I don’t care if I was adopted, but now the hint of it makes me wonder who I really am.”
“Okay, now I’m pissed.” I crossed my arms. “Why didn’t you come to me with that?”
“I assumed you got it. You’re always teasing me how I don’t look anything like my family, and I must be my ma’s yoga instructor’s son.”
I looked at the floor. I had been so mean to him. “I’m such a shit. You’re right. That had to be awful.”
He handed me the photo. A crease from where he’d folded it in half ran vertical across my mother’s face. Jacalyn and Nick’s mother sat on an old orange couch with my mother wedged between them. My mother held up a pink baby dress as she balanced the remains of a present on her lap. Jacalyn’s belly was a round basketball, and Nick’s mother was as slender as ever. My mother and Nick’s mother both wore wide smiles, while Jacalyn’s face was pinched and sad.
I turned the photograph over and read the neat script on the back. “Baby Gia’s homecoming—5 May.” My gaze met Nick’s. “I don’t get it.”
“Since you and I are only a few months apart, my mom should be pregnant in this photograph, but she isn’t, and this woman”—he placed his index finger on Jacalyn’s face—“is about seven months, wouldn’t you say? I want you to perform that globe thing on me. I need to know the truth.”
My heartbeat sped up again. I shook my head. “We don’t have to. You’re right. You have parents. They love you, and you love them. What does it matter?” I didn’t want him to face the fears that I had. Once he knew for sure, he could never go back to normal. His entire world would change.
Nick placed his hand on my cheek. “I’m not afraid, Gia. Besides, we have each other, and you worry enough for the both of us.”
“All right, you two,” Carrig said. “This be pointless. You won’t know if he be Conemar’s son unless you perform that globe. So get at it, already.”
“He’s right,” Arik added. “Let’s see the truth.”
Nick held out his hand. Arik poked Nick’s skin with the tip of his dagger and a ruby drop splashed into my cupped hand.
Within the shimmering skin of the globe, Jacalyn lay in a hospital bed, cuddling a baby swaddled so tightly I was surprised his face wasn’t as blue as the blanket.
“Not to worry, my beautiful boy,” Jacalyn said softly. “Katy has put a charm on you.” Her fingertips ran over a cross-like brand on the side of the baby’s head. “It’s different from baby Gia’s brand, for this one protects your soul. I pray you never learn about your father. Conemar will never know you exist.
“I wonder what they will name you, dear one. If it were up to me, I would name you Tiege. It means the rule of the people, and you are destined to rule, my son. Within your blood flows the energy of two powerful wizards—one good and one evil. May you take after your great-grandfather, Gian, and not your father.”
She paused when Mr. and Mrs. D’Marco came into the room holding hands and looking nervous. The D’Marcos looked a lot younger.
Jacalyn’s eyes didn’t leave her baby when they came in. Instead, she gazed lovingly at the bundle in her arms. I felt just as awkward as the D’Marcos seemed as they waited for Jacalyn to acknowledge their presence.
When Jacalyn finally tore her gaze away from the baby, her wet cheeks glistened in the fluorescent light. “Your mummy and daddy are here, little one. I have chosen a lovely family for you.” Jacalyn kissed the baby’s head. “Good-bye, little one.” She handed the baby to Nick’s mother. “What will you name him?”
“Nicklaus,” answered Mrs. D’Marco. “Nick for short.”
The image cut out and the globe hardened to an icy shell that exploded on my palm, cutting my skin. I screamed. “What happened?”
A pixie-like woman dressed in dark green was half-hidden behind a statue of