up into the tower, to the empty and dreary third floor.
I stepped into the round room and stared at the empty mattresses that belonged to Eden and Rosalie. Their bedding had been rolled up and stowed away what felt like ages ago. It was almost two years since Rosalie had left to marry Prince Xander, and they now had a wonderful daughter named Violet. Eden had found happiness with Dorian in Candor, and we had recently received a missive announcing the wedding of my sister, Meri.
All of them had gone on grand adventures, and the one time I attempted to, I messed up. Many months ago, I faltered when cornered by thugs in town. Unable to defend myself, I cried out for help and Meri had come to my rescue. She inadvertently killed a man, Armon, while protecting me. She ran away, and I attempted to follow.
Sighing, I flopped back onto my bed, fingering the pink needlework flowers on my bedding. It was a disaster. I dragged my pillow over my head as I tried to drown out the memories. I had begged my sisters to let me follow Meri. Knowing my limitations with travel and large crowds, Rhea had given me her three corded magical bracelet that took her six months to make. It would allow me to travel through a mirror exactly two times.
I used the bracelet and traveled through the mirror to Isla and arrived just in time to stop my sister’s curse from taking hold and killing her. By reading her mind, I could garner the knowledge to save her from the sea witch, but to do so, I would have to kill the one person she loved—the Prince of Isla.
I flung the pillow to the floor and held up my hand, studying the lines along my palm, envisioning the feel of the dagger. I had tried to do it, to stab him, but as an empath I couldn’t hurt someone. In the end, it was someone else who made the sacrifice. A guard of the Undersea named Vasili. He took his own life to save Meri’s. Another death that weighed heavy on my conscience.
My fingers trembled. I blinked, and my vision blurred with my tears. It was my fault that Meri had a bounty on her head and had to run away, which led to her getting cursed. If I were brave like Honor or Rosalie, I would have thought to sacrifice myself and save her.
I laid my head on the pillow and watched the moonlight stream through my open window. I just hoped that the stranger sleeping on our kitchen table wouldn’t suffer the bad luck that seemed to follow me.
I couldn’t sleep. Slipping out of bed, I grabbed a robe and tied it around my waist. Tiptoeing down the stairs, I hung back in the stairwell and listened to Lorn and Mother speaking in hushed voices.
“I don’t like it, Lorelai,” Lorn whispered. “There should be no reason for someone from Rya to be so close to your home. He could put you and your daughters in danger.”
“I don’t either. But we’re hardly in danger. My daughters and I can handle ourselves quite well.”
“Not Aura,” Lorn muttered. “Ever since the accidental murder of the village boy, she’s been unstable. I know she tries to hide it, but that incident did more damage to her than she will admit.”
“She’s fine,” Mother admonished.
“No, she’s not. She’s still unable to shield herself properly. If she doesn’t soon learn to control her powers, she will become a danger to herself and the girls.”
My teeth clenched, and I tried to control my anger and deny it. But Lorn was right.
“Well, I will just train her harder,” Mother said.
“The kind of training she needs can’t be done here. I should take her with me and train her the way I do Honor.”
“No,” she said vehemently. “Not Aura.”
I felt a moment of affirmation, that my mother stuck up for me, but the feelings quickly dissipated as she continued. “She’s not like her sisters. She won’t survive your training, Lorn. As much as I tried to train them to be ruthless and use their anger as armor to protect them from the hate of the world, Aura is as pure as the snow.”
“Her empathy is her weakness,” Lorn argued. “Remember, I’m the one that conducts their tests and chose their course of training. Maybe I made a mistake.”
“I disagree. Her empathy is her strength. But she is hiding under a cloud of