Page 12 of Spring's Descent
“I can’t say I blame you on that one.” Lark’s brows drew together, a frown forming on her red lips as she reached for the silver chain on the edge of the dresser. She lifted the necklace over her head, the crescent moon settling over her dress. An amethyst stone dangled from the tip, her conducting stone.
Pushing all thoughts of my awakening, of Cyrus, and my mother from my mind, I allowed Lark to cast a linking spell over my fire opal.
Earth witches' powers were tied to crystals, each precious stone connecting to a different aspect of magic. Not only were they emblems of pride, but the stones allowed a witch greateraccess to her magic. Those predisposed to protection spells drifted toward turquoise, intellectually driven witches focused on strengthening the spells in our grimoires chose lapis lazuli. Rose quartz and carnelian were popular with witches thought to have been blessed by both Aphrodite and Hecate, and amethyst was thought to help soothe the mind, particularly regarding harmful dreams.
Then there was an emerald, thought to increase the witch’s affinity toward nature—a true earth witch. I’d read through every text in The Crystal City when I was younger. Fire opal had never been a conducting stone, but when Lark filled it with her magic and the shimmering stone warmed against my skin, I let myself believe it could be.
“Fuck buddies are limited to the immediate area,” Lark began, going through her regular warnings. “If you need anything, hold your stone and say?—”
“‘The moon is high in the sky’,” I finished as I stumbled forward, the wine choosing that moment to catch up with me.
“Gods, you’re already tipsy,” Lark teased, looping her arm through mine as we snagged our cloaks and started toward the door. “We better get going or we’ll miss the musician. I heard he was pining after a lost love. Maybe I’ll be the one to mend his broken heart.”
We started down the spiral stairs, careful to avoid the squeaky wooden floor boards beneath our steps and any stray witches roaming the halls. This was the hardest part of the evening. The one carrying the most risk. I’d almost died earlier today. I didn’t want to think about what Demeter would do if I so publicly humiliated her. On second thought…
“Maybe we should let them catch us tonight,” I whispered as we reached the ground floor and passed the first set of rooms. Lark lifted a brow, clearly waiting for me to elaborate. “If rumorsof my whorish ways were confirmed throughout the coven, maybe Cyrus wouldn’t want to marry me.”
Lark’s lips press thin, her eyes turning guarded as we passed more quiet rooms. “I don’t think it’s your virtue he’s after, Rae. All it would achieve is another lashing.”
Voices drifted through the night as we turned down the final corridor, light spilling into the dimly lit hallway a few paces up. It was coming from one of the studies, ones that were only ever used by green witches.
My pulse kicked up, every sense sharpening as the familiar tang of adrenaline flooded my veins. I should be worried someone would find us, but I felt more awake than ever. The potential of a fight—one that could quite possibly be my last—or the need to flee… it felt like a small flicker of life in my monotonous routine.
With nothing more than a glance, Lark and I hitched our dresses and cloaks up so that we were able to tiptoe forward.
“…that’s right,” Cyrus’s familiar voice rang, the sound pricking the fine hairs along my arms. “Demeter said I can bend her daughter over and take whatever I want, however I want. It can be as bloody and brutal as I please, and I can share Korae with whomever I like as long as I marry the slut afterward.”
7
PERSEPHONE
I haltedas Cyrus’s words registered, feeling as though I’d been struck. Taking shaky breaths, I willed my body to stop trembling as I came to terms with just how evil my mother was. My own mothersoldme to him, like I was nothing more than a trinket to barter. An annoyance to be rid of.
Shock gave way to disgust in the next second as I realized just how far Demeter would go to ensure her reputation and power remained intact.
Lark tugged on my arm, her eyes lifting to the ceiling in a silent question of if we should turn back.
“Why wait?” A feminine voice asked, before I could nod. There was a soft clatter, like a glass being set down before she spoke again. “Fuck her now and be done with it.”
“I would enjoy seeing Korea on her knees, servicing me with bruises on her face, her lips split and bleeding from how hard I’ve used them.”
My nostrils flared as the last remaining wisps of shock gave way to unbridled rage. That limp-dick-of-a-witch actually thought that I’d marry him? That I’d sacrifice every ounce of self-worth and yield to him because my mother said so?
Letting my anger guide me, I slipped my arm free of Lark’s grasp and stalked forward until I was just outside the door. A quaint study composed of bookshelves and high-backed chairs centered around a small, rounded table came into view, but my attention snagged on the familiar sneer stretched across Cyrus’s pompous face.
A roaring fire was blazing in the hearth behind him, the sharp planes of his face harsh in its light. The second chair was facing away, concealing everything of the other person, except a thin bracelet with a tear-drop diamond dangling from it. The gem rattled as she reached for her glass.
“It’ll be a lot easier to make her death look like an accident if you’re not married to the whore.”
What the fuck?
Lark sucked in a breath, the two of us sharing a wide-eyed glance. She stretched forward, peering over my shoulder inside the room, but shook her head a moment later. She didn’t know who the other person was either.
“I can’t kill her until after the wedding,” Cyrus chided. “She needs to be linked to me as well as the Earth Coven before her thread is cut, or else all that power will siphon back to them.”
I lifted a brow toward Lark, but she was staring past me, her lips pressed into a hard line as she scanned the rest of the room.
“You’re sure Demeter is okay with us killing her only daughter? I know she likes handling things herself.”