Witch's Pyre (Worldwalker #3)(62)

“What does that mean—invade a stone?” she asked him. She could feel the rest of the coven’s confusion and curiosity.

“It means you don’t have to touch a willstone to claim it,” Rowan replied, like there was no point in trying to avoid the inevitable anymore. “You can just take any willstone you want as long as another witch hasn’t already claimed it.” His brow furrowed in thought as something occurred to him. “And maybe you could even steal a willstone from another witch. You’d have to fight her, but I can’t imagine there are many witches who would have a shot at withstanding you.”

“I can think of one,” Lily murmured, remembering the sensation she’d felt when she’d tried to touch the Queen’s willstone.

“Grace?” Rowan guessed.

“She’s been claiming the Woven remotely through the speaking stones for decades,” Lily said. “So she can invade a willstone, too. And she’s strong. If Grace has physically touched a willstone to claim it, I don’t think I can take it over. But if she hasn’t touched it, and she’s only used the speaking stones to claim, I know I can muscle her out.”

“How do you know that?” Tristan asked.

“Because I’ve done it.” Lily felt their stares, and she knew she had to tell them all of it no matter how disturbed some of them might become. “I’ve claimed a Woven I call Pale One. She used to belong to Grace, but I touched her willstone and now she’s mine.”

“The coyote Woven who attacked you outside Baltimore?” Tristan said, knowing the answer. “So that’s why she followed us.”

Lily nodded, an uncertain look on her face. “The other Tristan told you?”

“He showed me that time you and he were sitting up against the tree, talking about how to study the Woven. You told him to leave her be. That she wasn’t going to harm us,” Tristan admitted. He looked down at the table and ran his hands over it as if he recognized it. “We showed each other pretty much everything during the crossing.”

Seeing the shape of his hands and the cast of his features in the familiar light of home, Lily could almost imagine that this Tristan was her Tristan, but stopped herself. If she started allowing herself to think that they were the same, and that her Tristan lived on in him, then his death would mean nothing.

“So, not only are you possessing us, you’re claiming Woven on top of it?” Caleb asked, the words sticking in his throat. “Are we expected to become stone kin with Pale One? Share our memories and mindspeak? Oh, sorry—what would you call it with a coyote? Mindbarking?” His mouth was pressed thin in disgust.

Lily looked at Rowan and saw him watching her with a guarded expression. She realized that he was trying to keep his distaste in check.

“See, this is why I didn’t tell you,” she said, throwing up her hands. “The Woven are intelligent—they have thoughts and feelings like we do. Did you know that Pale One saved us? She’s the one who jumped on Grace, giving Carrick enough time—”

“All she has to do is jump on someone and that makes her intelligent?” Caleb fired back, rising to his feet. “I suppose we have to accept Carrick now, too, because he struck the match?”

“No, that’s not . . . I didn’t say that,” Lily stammered, breathless. “The Woven . . . Carrick . . . they’re not the same.”

“Maybe not to you,” Caleb said with a deep scowl twisting his face. Tristan stood and placed a hand on his shoulder. Caleb shook him off. “Don’t tell me to be calm.” He looked at Rowan. “You know exactly why I’m so angry.”

Rowan nodded and looked down at his hands as a frustrated silence spread out between them.

“Lillian? Is everyone ready to go yet?” Samantha asked, interrupting the tension.

They turned to see Samantha, dressed in street clothes for the first time in ages and carrying a packed suitcase. A hand fluttered up nervously to her bushy hair.

“It’s just that some of the other versions of us have left already, so I figured this version of us would have to go soon, too,” Samantha said by way of explaining. She shifted from foot to foot like a child.

“What do you mean, Mom?” Juliet asked patiently.

“We’ve got to go back to that world, Juliet, because you and I are the only ones who can convince the other Lillian and that Alaric fellow to join forces with each other.” Samantha turned to Lily, squaring her shoulders and looking surprisingly sane. “You’ve got a lot of work to do, Lillian, so we’d better light you on fire and get to it.”

Stunned, the coven forgot they were fighting with one another and stared at Samantha.

“Can you, like, see the future?” Breakfast asked.

“No,” Samantha said, and gave a breathy laugh. “In another universe you didn’t have that argument you just had, which saved a lot of time. A few versions of us are already on to the next thing, which is Lily convincing Juliet and me to come back with you.” She thought about it. “I wouldn’t really call that the future. Just a slightly different time line.”

The stares only lasted a moment more, and then Rowan cleared his throat. “I think we should all eat and rest first. It’ll be dark soon. We’ll start building the pyre then,” he said.

Caleb swung out of the room, still angry. Rowan stood to go after him, but Tristan stopped him.