House of Salt and Sorrows(93)

Cassius drew up the dagger once again. “Let her go, Kosamaras.”

She looked him over and laughed as more tears fell down her face. “Maybe I’ll just finish this one off now. Especially as she knows so much.” She tightened her grip, and I groaned as the room blinked in and out of darkness.

“Please!” His voice quavered, contorting with anguish. “This girl means the world to me. Name the price and it’s yours.”

Just before my ribs cracked, she rolled off me, striding to the other end of the room as if nothing had upset her. I struggled to sit up, gasping for breath. Cassius rushed over, stroking my hair, finding my heartbeat, whispering reassurances. I sensed the pressure of his lips on my forehead but didn’t truly feel them. Everything inside me had gone numb.

“Spare me your offerings. You’re never going to save her. This will not have a happy ending for you. Especially you,” she said, winking at me.

“I’ll tell my sisters everything. They’ll know not to—”

“Not to what? Not to sleep? Not to dream? We’re past that point, Thaumas girl. Now that I’m in here”—she pirouetted back to me and tapped my forehead—“I don’t need you to sleep. I don’t need you to dream. I’m with you everywhere.”

I watched in horror as her skin peeled away, leaving bloody fingerprints on everything it touched. Including me.

Cassius swatted her hand away. “Who summoned you? Who started this?”

A roll of thunder shook the island, rattling the glass panes of the gallery with an angry ferocity. The beacon’s flame flickered, pulled into an eerie dance by a draft. It caused the shadows in the room to loom around us with menace before retreating back to the edges. Almost like…

“The dragon man,” I whispered. “I know who summoned you,” I said, raising my voice. “The man with the three-headed dragon.”

Cassius blanched, his eyes darting to Kosamaras. “Three-headed dragon? A Trickster? Is this true?”

I felt her black eyes roll over me, examining me with fresh interest. “Your sweetheart sees more than I thought. It was stupid of him to come dancing.”

“Who?” Cassius demanded. “Say it out loud.”

“Viscardi,” Kosamaras rasped, drawing out the s and r into a long roll. A boom of thunder rumbled over us, echoing her tones.

“That’s not possible. The Thaumases would never traffic with him.”

Her face broke into an unnaturally wide grin. “Shows how little you know, nephew. You think everyone in that house is such a stalwart human, a pillar of the community? Viscardi was needed. Viscardi was called.”

“Call it off, please, Kosamaras. I know you have sway with him. If anyone could do it, it’s you.”

She threw her head back, laughing. “This is the most exciting bargain I’ve ever been a part of, and you think I’ll end it just because you asked politely? No.” She paused, listening to something we could not hear. “I’ll leave the girl alone—”

“Thank you, Kosamaras,” Cassius started.

“—for this one night only,” she continued. “But come the dawn, all promises are off.” She turned to me, fresh tears falling from her eyes, painting her mouth black. “We’re going to have so much fun later, you and I. So. Much. Fun. Goodbye for now, dear Annaleigh. Dream of me, won’t you?” She tapped my nose once before releasing her hold on me. “Have fun playing with your little poppet while you can, nephew.”

“There must be something to persuade you to end all this, please, Kosamaras,” Cassius said, approaching his aunt, hands up in supplication. “Something you want.”

Her grin turned sharp and pointed. “You know, there is something I’d like right now. I fancy a dance with the littlest one, the little—what’s her name? Patience? Prudence? Charity?” Her sharpened teeth winked, a wolf going in for the kill. “Verity. I’ve been visiting her for a very long time. Her little mind is just so open to everything I throw at it—dancing, balls, ghosts….”

My heart thudded. “You’re behind all her visions.”

“Every last one.” She beamed. “If you only knew the things I’ve shown her…You wouldn’t believe how she screams.” Her eyes sparkled, imagining fresh new horrors. “Hurry back to Highmoor. You won’t want to miss it.”

“No!” I screamed, throwing myself toward her, but with a crack of thunder, Kosamaras was gone.





I was halfway across the watch room, ready to race down the spiral staircase and out into the storm, before I realized I was alone. “Cassius?”

I heard his footsteps on the stairs, heavy and regular. When he finally appeared, his face was stricken gray. “I can’t get us back there now.” As if to prove his point, a white flash of lightning skittered across the sky. “It’s too dangerous. Something could happen—”

“Something is happening! You heard what she said: she’s going after Verity. I can’t just stay here and let that happen!” A sob pushed up from my throat, begging to be released. I balled my hands into fists. I couldn’t give in to tears now. I had to do something, had to act. “There’s a boat! I’ll go myself.”

“In this storm? You’ll never make it. Annaleigh—” He grabbed my shoulder.