I extend a hand to Ash’s side of the bed. It’s empty but still warm, and the pillow still shows the imprint of his head. Ash has probably gone to meet Reg and tell his father what we did last night.
Nausea crashes over me. I flop onto my back and stare at the ceiling, breathing deeply through my nose and fighting the urge to vomit. Is the sick feeling regret about Thane? Never.
He deserved death for what he did to me as a child. Thane was also never going to leave me alone. He was going to make it his life’s mission to destroy me. I couldn’t live my life looking over my shoulder, wondering when he’d deliver the next potshot. But I do regret angering Edmund. Abusing his hospitality and trashing his office was never my intent. I hope it doesn’t cost me his support.
A joyful thought floats across my mind like a balloon on a summer breeze. Could the nausea be morning sickness? Could I be pregnant? My voice of reason quickly bursts that balloon. Don’t get your hopes up with this wishful thinking. It’s much more likely your period is about to start. Or it’s the stress of having a fox witch breathing down your neck while you’re trying to impress your fellow council members. If I had a pregnancy test here I’d take it, but I didn’t pack any. Maybe I could ask Sofie to jump one down to me. Or I could slip out and pick one up.
My phone vibrates on the nightstand, breaking my train of thought. It’s a text from my leader in Illinois.
Xavier Stone: Heads-up. A sorcerer-apprentice named Jessie Larkin made Wrigley Field disappear last night. It made the Earthside news. I’m sending him to the council.
Me: Thanks for letting me know. That would be an egregious show of magic.
Although humans love our paranormal charisma and beauty, they hate us flexing our muscles with excessive displays of magic. It reminds them of the enormous power imbalance. If someone uses their power and it draws media attention, they’ll be sent to the Council of Seven to justify their actions. Often, those sent to the council don’t return. As rulers, we don’t want the humans to be scared and upset—it’s bad for business and public relations. We may be more powerful, but humans have us in numbers. There are a lot more of them than there are of us.
Within five minutes, I receive an encrypted email invitation to an emergency meeting of the council. After I shower and dress in a black pantsuit and white silk blouse, I send Ash a text letting him know where I’m going. Then harnessing my energy, I jump to the island on the preternatural plane where all council business is conducted. The island is an independent state and neutral territory.
I land in the inner chamber, and the others, all dressed in black, are already taking their seats behind a raised judges’ bench. To ensure no one can use their power to sway or influence the council, the chamber is a power vacuum. The lack of power—no scent, sound or touch of magic—in the room creates an unnatural stillness, as if there should be background music playing or white noise, but there isn’t. The absence of magic gives the room a weighted quality.
I take the last empty seat behind the bench. This isn’t my first meeting with the council, but I still feel like a visitor. The seat is mine, but only for now.
The council member from western Russia is sitting in the center and bangs a gavel, getting the proceedings underway. A security guard escorts a thin teenager with dark scruffy hair into the chamber to stand before the council.
“Jessie Larkin, you caused a major media crisis in the Earthside city of Chicago when you cast a spell that made the beloved human baseball stadium, Wrigley Field, disappear. What do you have to say for yourself?” Reg asks the young man.
“I cast the spell on a dare, but I never thought for a second it would work. It was an ac-accident.” Jessie is shaking in his high-tops.
“So you admit you cast the spell?” Kyoko asks.
“Yes, b-but—” Jessie stammers.
“He admitted it. I vote we kill him,” Kyoko says as if she’s sending back an overcooked steak.
“Hold on a second. He said it was an accident.” I keep my tone even and controlled, when I really want to snap at her. She has a track record of shooting down anything I say in one of these meetings. She seems to enjoy trying to goad a reaction out of me.
“Are we ready to vote?” Kyoko ignores me as if I didn’t just say to wait.
I take a deep breath. Be the bigger person, Nina. Don’t let her undermine you in front of the other leaders. “The event took place in my territory. I would like to hear more details about what happened.”
Kyoko cuts her black eyes to me. “I know you have limited experience with being a ruler or member of the council, but even you must see what is happening here. This is a clear-cut case of magic abuse that has brought undue attention to us all. He must be punished.”
Reg looks down at Jessie. “Tell us what happened.”
“I was with some other apprentices from my cabal.” Jessie’s wide eyes move between Reg and me. “We’re all looking to get promoted, level up. I’ve been working on some illusion spells. I’ve managed to make a small house disappear. But never anything as large as Wrigley Field. My friends dared me to try it. I never thought it would work. The humans couldn’t see the stadium, but it was there the whole time. I’m sorry.”
A cabal is a sorcerer-run organization that relies on a strict hierarchy of ranking, similar to the military. At the top of the hierarchy is the general, the head of the sorcerer family. Next come colonels, majors, lieutenants and soldiers composed of the general’s family, descending in power from brothers and sons to nephews and cousins.
“You made a foolish choice.” Reg gives Jessie a penetrating stare.
I’ve been on the other end of that stare myself, and it’s not a comfortable place to be.
Kyoko drums her fingers on the bench. “Why are we wasting time? Let’s take a vote and be done with him.”
“As it happened in my territory, I believe it’s up to me to call the vote, and I’m not ready to do that yet.” I guess Kyoko doesn’t think I’ve read the council bylaws.
“Your youth and inexperience are showing.” Kyoko’s voice drips with patronizing disdain. “You’re wasting the council’s time. This is an obvious kill vote.”
I’m the only one in my twenties on the council and currently the only legacy. But if Kyoko thinks I’m going to be intimidated by her, she’s got another think coming. My mother prepared me well to face down bullies. “I know you think I don’t belong here, Kyoko, but I’m not going to sit by and watch you kill someone who was only doing what all of us have done at one time or another. Make a mistake. Or maybe you forget what it’s like to be a teenager?”
This earns me a death glare from Kyoko.
“What are you proposing, Nina?” Edmund asks, breaking his silence.
“I’ll have my leader in Chicago pay a visit to the head of Jessie’s Cabal. He’s not to promote Jessie for at least three years. Jessie is also going to have to apologize to the city of Chicago, and the cabal is going to have to make some very large donations to charity to win back the favor of the humans. I’d like to vote on that.”
We take a vote and my motion carries, barely. Reg, Edmund, the member from western Russia, Dmitri, and I against Kyoko and the members from India and Brazil.
Jessie slumps in relief.
I fold my hands in my lap and address Jessie. “You were lucky today. Think before you act next time. Don’t let me see you here again.”
After Jessie is led away by the guard, I jump back to Kilkenny Keep and land in the Scarlet Room. The council member from western Russia lands right behind me.
He puts his hand on my hip and I spin around to face him, instinctively stepping back. “Get your hand off me, Dmitri.”
“I voted in your favor. My votes don’t come for free. It’s a favor for a favor around here.” His stocky body lunges toward me, and he licks my cheek before I can move out of the way.
I slap him across the face and put some power behind it.
He slowly pulls his slug tongue back inside his mouth and grins at me. “Enchantresses are so rare. You want my alliance, my continued support, you’ll give me a taste of what’s between your legs. I’ve heard enchantresses are better at sex than other kinds of females. Is that true?”
Oh my gods, he’s shooting his shot—pathetic as it is. I’m not afraid of him, but I am angry and disgusted. “You’re a pig. Don’t come near me again. I’m not for sale.”
“I’ll be voting against you next time. You had a chance with me, and you fucked it up. Kyoko’s right about you. You don’t know how to play the game. You’re not going to last.” Dmitri’s jowls wobble as his cold eyes rake me. “If you change your mind, I may do you another favor and give you a second chance. But you’ll have to crawl.”
Dmitri’s audacity knows no bounds. Pulling my shoulders back, I meet his eyes and laugh. “I’m going to do you a favor and not tell my husband. This time. I don’t need you, Dmitri, and I never will. I’d rather lose my council seat than compromise my principles. I’m not a toy. I’m a queen.”
