My stomach twisted, every instinct screaming at me to run. My fingers gripped the edge of the table, anchoring me. Beside me, Kael growled.
As the shadows and cold vanished, making the room warm and inviting again, Cordelia stared at me. “Your magic is an ancient thing. Weak and untested, but ancient. Practice will help it grow stronger.” She folded her hands in front of her. “I will help you find the stolen key, because you are the only one who has a true claim to it.”
I glanced at Kael, who seemed as clueless as myself, then back to Cordelia. “I don’t understand.”
“Not all things are for me to reveal. Some things you must figure out for yourself.”
For every mystery we solved, three more unfurled. “Okay, fine. What about the key? Where do we find it?”
“In order for you to find the cursed key you plucked from the earth, you must first find another relic.”
“Another relic?”
She reached over and put her hand on mine. “Another key.”
Oh God. Please don’t tell me this key is going to be cursed, too.
Chapter 15
Had I heard the witch correctly? Surely not. Cordelia’s stare was completely earnest. My narrowed gaze slid from her to pin onto Kael.
“What kind of PITO agent are you? Isn’t a second key something you should have known about?” I twisted in my chair. “It would have saved us a lot of time.”
Perhaps my sharp tone was misplaced, but I couldn’t help but be angry. Though Cordelia had been cordial enough, despite the sliver of danger she’d let shine through her façade, had it been necessary that we come here? What about the fae, Renathe? I had sold my father’s beloved car to him in exchange for the tip to visit her. Had the key been in the ruins with the first, and I had missed it? If Kael had known about a second key all along…
“I didn’t know about a second key.” His voice rumbled, an echo of the anger inside of me.
“Isn’t that your job?”
Kael’s dark hair trembled as he shook his head. “It must be outside of my jurisdiction.”
Outside of his jurisdiction? Did that mean it hadn’t been in the ruins with the first key ?
Still, I wasn’t about to let the shifter off the hook so easily. “Your knowledge is incredibly lacking considering you were in Brazil to protect the key. Why are you having to chase down people who know about it?”
“We are not always told what we are protecting, only of its importance. It protects the objects, in case we are captured and interrogated.”
I sighed sharply, my finger tracing a silver spoon patterned with flowers on the table beside my teacup. If Kael’s knowledge was so limited on this case, was he really the best to be working with?
His hand landed roughly on my shoulder, jerking me to face him again. “I am perfectly capable of moving forward. I have resources you will need. Without me, you will fail.”
His dark eyes held mine, and I swear I heard a slight growl rolling from his wide chest.
I ignored the tingle the feral sound sent across my skin, more delightful than I wanted to admit. Scowling, I brushed his hand from my shoulder. “Excuse me, but I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself. I obtained the key in the first place without aid, remember?”
Kael leaned forward on his elbows. The delicate table creaked beneath his weight. “Indeed you did, and look where it got us.”
“If I hadn’t found the key first, the mage may have.”
“Or maybe he wouldn’t have. And even if he did, that’s a moot point, seeing as he got his hands on it anyway, thanks to you.”
My new power buzzed for release, rising with my anger, but I pushed it down. “Well, at least we have clues to work with. If the mage had gone into the ruins, you wouldn’t have any idea where to start.”
“The dark mage is going to get even farther away if you two do not cease squabbling like children. ”
Cordelia sat with her back straight, a disapproving frown weighing on her lips.
Kael leaned back against his chair. I had the spoon in a tight fist. What was I going to do, stab the insufferable shifter with it? Ridiculous. I released the spoon and turned toward Cordelia.
“You’re right.” My neck had warmed a bit at the witch’s reprimand. What had gotten into me, arguing with someone like that? It was Kael’s fault. Apparently, he had the ability to bring out the worst in me. “Could you please tell us about the second key?”
After a long and weighing gaze, Cordelia said, “The relic has been known in my bloodline for centuries.”
“So, you know where it is?”
Cordelia reached for the teapot on the table. She poured more tea into my cup and hers. Kael’s own tea was probably cold by now; he hadn’t touched it. Was he suspicious about the contents? Maybe someone had slipped something into his drink once. The witch that had hexed him previously, perhaps? Tea with Crème de la Kitten?
I covered the threatening giggle with a smile and thanked Cordelia for the cup of fresh tea.
The witch wrapped her hands around her steaming cup but didn’t lift it to her lips as I did. “I do know the whereabouts of the second key. It’s in Scotland.”
I nearly spat the hot liquid from my mouth. My throat burned as I quickly swallowed the mouthful.
“Scotland?” Though it was only a plane ride away, it seemed so far. The mage could get even farther from our grasp as we chased after this other relic.
Kael’s chair creaked as he shifted. He looked ready to bolt to the airport that instant.
“The relic is protected by a coven,” Cordelia continued. Her spoon clanked as she stirred cream into her tea. The woman looked as if she had settled into a brunch instead of discussing evil mages and cursed keys. “It will be dangerous, no doubt more difficult than it was for you to obtain the first key.”
Her words struck me. More difficult than obtaining the first? My thoughts raced back through the sweltering jungle and to the crumbling ruins. It had been difficult to get through those ruins. I could have died quite easily in several places.
The strange runes floated back to me, then. They had guided me safely through the earth’s deep and forgotten clutches.
I tilted my chin up and smiled. “It’s nothing I can’t handle.”
Cordelia barked a laugh, cold and without mirth. “You had better hope you can handle it, child. If not, you will either lose the key or end up dead. There will be no in between if you choose to pursue this relic.”
Right. As if I had a choice.
“I will be there with her,” Kael reminded the witch.
She leveled him with a hard stare. “Yes, and I have already seen the evidence of what I am sure will be a stellar and successful partnership.” Her tone oozed with sarcasm.
I glanced at the shifter. I really did need to at least attempt to get along with him. If we didn’t get our act together, we would most certainly fail. He seemed to come to the same conclusion as I did. The tenseness in his shoulders lessened a bit.
“Where do we need to go?” I asked.
Cordelia excused herself and headed to the back. I sat silently sipping my tea as Kael took the opportunity to stuff another scone into his mouth. When the witch returned, she had a small, creased and wrinkled map in her hand. How often had she looked at it?