I lifted my head and drank it down. It tasted like watery frosting. I sank back into the pillows and shut my eyes. After a while, I sat up. The three of them stared at me as if I had turned blue or something.
Finally, Sinead spoke. “How do you feel?”
“Much better. Good thing you found me.”
“I was seeking you. Do you remember what I told you earlier? About waiting outside Ms. Kearns’s house?” She pulled a slender dagger from a holster buckled around her hips, grabbed Nana, and held the blade to her neck.
“Stop!” I yelled, jumping off the bed. Without thinking about the consequences, I whirled and kicked at Sinead’s arm. The blade flew from her hand and clattered to the floor. “What are you doing?”
Faith readied herself to pounce. Lip curled back, fangs bared, she growled at Sinead.
The fey gave each of us a sharp glare as she scrambled for the dagger, but I was quicker and knocked it under the bed and out of her reach. “The man who came out of the house was not my Carrig. I stood right in front of him with my usual glamour on, and he didn’t recognize me.” She growled at Nana. “Tell me what you did to him!”
“I didn’t do anything. Wait. Let me think.” Nana paused as she tried to remember. “I finished tattooing Deidre and she left. I was out of black ink. The supply store is only around the corner. Carrig stayed with my stepdaughter, Eileen, while I went to get more ink.”
“You’re lying,” Sinead said. “Move away, Gia. This is not your grandmother.”
“Yes she is.” I held my ground in front of Nana. “I performed a truth globe on her. And besides, for all I know, you’re lying to us.”
“Good gracious.” At my nod, Sinead reached under the bed and then holstered her dagger. “Of all globes, yours is a truth globe? I wouldn’t wish that globe on my enemies.”
“What’s wrong with my globe?”
“It’s not useful for battles. Did you perform the globe on everyone?” Sinead asked.
“Well, I’ve done Professor Attwood, Nana, Arik, Lei, and Merl.”
Sinead inclined her head in Faith’s direction as Faith eased out of her attack position. “What about her?”
“It won’t work on Laniars. Merl scried her—she checked out.”
“Right,” Sinead said. “How much blood does it require?”
“It just takes a drop.”
“Okay, perform one on me if it will help you to believe me. Then we’ll come up with a plan.” Sinead retrieved her dagger again. She seemed preoccupied as she pricked her finger and let her blood fall onto my hand.
Sinead’s face resembled an insect’s with the globe contorting her face. Her nose looked flatter and her ears larger, the points at the top more exaggerated. “I am truthful,” the image said.
After I busted the globe, my eyes went to our new ally.
“I’ve had a bad feeling about Carrig all along. He’s been ruthless on the practice field. He seems more concerned about training me to be a great fighter than learning anything about me. And he’s never mentioned you to me.” I turned to Nana. “Something must have happened when you went to get more ink. Can you think of anything?”
“No. Nothing. We took separate routes to the library. He said it wouldn’t be good for me to be seen with him.”
“Gia, have you ever seen more than the person saying they’re true in the globes?” Sinead asked.
“Well…,” I paused, fearing they’d think I was crazy. “After I did Arik’s globe–um–well, before I washed his blood off my hand, I performed another globe.”
“Go on,” Sinead urged.
“I asked it about Arik’s relationship with Veronique. The globe showed me–-” I trailed off feeling wicked uncomfortable.
“It showed you more than what it usually does,” Sinead finished for me.
“Uh-huh.” The thought of Arik and Veronique together nauseated me.
Sinead put her hand on my cheek. Warmth surged through my body and my anxiety subsided. “With matters of the heart, we all fall weak. It’s natural to be curious about your attraction.”
“I’m not attracted to Arik.”
“You can’t hide your emotions from fey. I can feel every mood in this room. Now, try and extract the memory of that morning from Ms. Kearns.” She gave me a warm smile. “Can you do that?”
“I’ll try.”
Nana went into the bathroom. When she returned, she pricked her finger with a safety pin and dragged her bleeding finger across my palm. I chanted the charm and a globe shimmered in my hand.