“You’re saying—” I forced my face into confused lines, “—it gave me the CliffsNotes version?”
“You’re not powerful enough.” She jerked her chin up a notch. “You couldn’t comprehend it if you tried.”
No one in my entire life had ever accused me of being the least powerful witch in the room. From when I was a child, I was treated as a future power. Then I had become one. Granted, I had changed my diet, but Colby’s magic was beyond me on my best day. Make that my worst day.
For her to be so clueless, Asa must be right.
I was losing that cultivated black witch stink the more I tapped into the familiar bond I shared with Colby. She was burning the darkness right out of me, and I couldn’t decide if it was a good thing or if her stripping away my best defense against my coworkers with every spell we cast together would leave me a sitting duck.
Bending over, bracing his hands on his thighs, Clay burst into deep guffaws that left him wheezing.
“It’s not that funny.” I nudged him with my foot. “Breathe, or you’re going to pass out.”
“Okay, okay.” He lifted his hands. “I’ve got it under control.”
Spurred on by his outburst, Melissa gave me a closer look. “Who are you?”
“Rue Hollis.”
“That’s an alias.” She dismissed the name out of hand. “What’s your birthname?”
No way in Hael was she getting that out of me. No one living, aside from the director, knew it. I aimed to keep it that way. The infamy attached to me was anchored in the name he had created for me to hide our relationship. I always assumed it was because he was ashamed of my white witch blood, but maybe, and it was a long shot, he was protecting me from the whispered rumors of daemon stigma.
More than likely, he kept me anonymous so no one would suspect the weapon he spent decades honing until it was aimed at them. Unleashed, I had no conscience, no shame, no morals. I had only the hunger.
“The name you’re looking for is Elspeth.” I allowed a cold smile to mold my lips. “Báthory.”
“That’s not possible.” She took an unconscious step back before she locked her knees. “She’s dead.”
“Retired, in the Black Hat business, usually does mean dead. I’ll give you that. But I’m alive and well.”
“Suppressing your power?” She reclaimed that step. “Or did you lose it during your…sabbatical?”
This right here was what frightened me, that others would pick up on the change in my scent and mistake it for weakness. That was before Colby. I had made myself a target by choosing the path of light, but she ensured I would survive it. Let them think me weak. They had no idea.
“Keep pushing me, and you’ll find out.”
“Give me the book.”
“Not happening.”
“Fine.” Her magic tickled me as she assessed my power. “Just as I thought.” She smirked, but the relief in her posture called out her bravado. “Vanessa, collect the book.”
As the weakest of the four, she made as good a sacrificial lamb as anyone, and she didn’t seem to mind.
I understood the cause of her glee a moment later, when she sashayed up to Asa, picked up a braid, and slid it through her hand until she reached the end. She twirled that around her finger then heaved a sigh when his eyes flashed burnt crimson in response.
It was the weirdest thing.
One second, Vanessa stood there playing with his hair while I looked on as rage churned in my gut.
The next, her severed hand hit the floor with a thud, spilling crimson stains across the tacky carpet.
Nothing happened, as far as I could see. Except, of course, for her hand popping off her arm.
And then the screaming began.