“Ambassador Nhicol was the Montrician spy! I thought I recognized him; I certainly recognized his voice!” says Shadow.
Cal is stunned.
“Wrongdoing aside, I, for one, am rather impressed by how far you got,” Mesha says, motioning her head toward her niece. “She has no formal training whatsoever.”
“Yes, well, we will sort this all out later,” Moriah says. “We need to stay focused on what’s ahead, not behind.”
Mesha walks up, holding a small box in her hand. “This is why you’re both here.” She opens the small case. Its pillowed interior is lined with dark red satin. On that sits a small shard of iridescent black glass.
Shadow’s eyes widen. “Where did you get that?” She looks from one of the women to the other.
“The Aphrasians have been mining it at Baer Abbey.”
“What is it?” asks Cal. “We found some in the woods at Duke Girt’s estate.”
“And we had a bit of trouble with it on the road, when we ran into a group of monks.”
“You’ve seen this before?” Aunt Moriah asks.
“Yes,” Shadow says. “We had a scuffle with some—well, we thought they were Deersia guards—but it turned out they were Aphrasians. They captured us when we were fleeing Deersia.”
Shadow’s mother stirs from her perch in the sitting room.
“And while we were trying to escape, I used some of the energy conjuring you taught me . . .” She is speaking so fast she nearly trips over her words.
The aunts look at each other and smile proudly.
“But it ricocheted back at me. Knocked me out. When I came to, I noticed the guard had some kind of shield sewn into his vest. But it wasn’t normal, not made of metal. It looked almost liquid, except it was definitely solid. It looked exactly like that.” She points to the box.
Now the aunts exchange a wide-eyed look of alarm.
“We were hunting with the duke when we found another piece,” Cal adds. He examines the shard in its case.
“It is obsidian,” says Aunt Moriah. “An ancient and very powerful substance. It can do many things—strengthen the magic of the one who wields it, and keep one safe from outside magical forces.”
“And the Aphrasians have it,” says Shadow, her face paling.
“So that’s what they were doing back at the abbey,” says Cal.
“Exactly, and this also explains why they’ve suddenly gained so much power after lying dormant for so long. We think the ore was discovered there, possibly when they were building a new vault or something of that nature. The Guild believes the hills at Baer are full of it. Only exactly how deep or where or even how to extract it, we don’t know. Yet.”
Shadow sips her tea. “When I was at Baer,” she says, taking time with her words, “something odd happened. It happened once there, and again when I touched the floor of the great hall at Deersia.”
“When were you at Baer?” Moriah asks, almost shouting. She stops herself, takes a breath. “You know what, never mind.” She waves her hand in the air.
“What happened, child?” asks Mesha.
Shadow looks at her aunts. “I had a vision—but it was more than a vision—it seemed like I was actually transported. The first incident was at the tree . . . I went back in time and witnessed the end of the Battle of Baer.”
Cal sits back and crosses his arms. Why didn’t she tell him this before? The aunts gasp. Shadow’s mother inhales loudly, as if bracing herself.
“The second, at Deersia, wasn’t nearly as disturbing, but I saw it when it was brand-new, a thousand years ago. Omin of Oylahn appeared to me.”
Aunt Moriah turns to the sitting room and nods to Shadow’s mother, a look passing between them.
“Did the mage say anything to you?”
“‘Follow your path,’” says Shadow.
They are all silent for a moment.
Cal breaks the silence. “So the Aphrasians not only possess the scrolls, but it appears they now have a powerful magical weapon as well.”
“Exactly. It is even more vital we uncover the Montrician conspirator and eliminate the threat,” Aunt Moriah says. “What have you found so far?”
“The duke and duchess are imposters,” says Cal. “We believe that they murdered the real duke and duchess more than twenty years ago. Or at least, the duke did; the duchess is quite young . . . or merely looks it.”
The aunts nod, and Shadow’s mother leans forward. So this is the great Guild spy Shadow told him about.
“We have no evidence that the duke is working against the Renovian crown. However, we do believe the duke is a mage,” he says. “But is he Aphrasian? That we do not yet know.”
Everyone gathered at the table ruminates on this information. Shadow looks nervously at her family; Cal can tell she’s worried that they won’t allow her to help him finish their work. But her aunts only sigh, and make no move to reprimand or order her to stay.
“There is a plot to assassinate Princess Lilac,” Shadow’s mother says finally. “The princess is in Montrice with the queen, and she is not safe. The two of you must discover the truth about the duke as soon as possible. The queen herself orders this.”
“Where are the princess and the queen now?” asks Cal.
“All I can tell you is that they are safe in Montrice,” says Shadow’s mother.
Shadow perks up. “I am given this assignment as well?”
Shadow’s mother studies her for a long time, then nods.
The princess has always been a target, Cal knows. His own father told him this. The Aphrasians will stop at nothing to render her death.
Aunt Mesha bustles at the table. “Would anyone like more to eat?” They all decline. Cal wishes he could fit more away, but he just can’t. He stands and clears the table for his hostesses.
Once the table is clear and the dishes are done, Aunt Mesha takes Cal by the arm and walks with him to the front door. “Darling, would you mind terribly if we have a moment alone with Shadow?”
“Of course.” She puts him off guard by giving him a quick hug before walking back inside. He decides to admire the gardens while Shadow speaks with her aunts and mother.
Though he’s some distance from the house, he hears everyone talking before it falls eerily silent again. A minute or two later he hears stomping and shouting, then Shadow bursts out the door. Cal sees she’s changed. Agitated. She heads straight to the road without looking at him. Her aunts follow after her. Moriah’s eyes are red and puffy. She holds on to Mesha for support. Shadow’s mother does not come out of the house.