The Blood Spell (Ravenspire, #4)(70)
“Watch me. The spell might wear off in a few hours, but I’ll certainly feel better about things.”
“But then she’ll turn back into a woman, and she’ll know that you use magic. She’ll bring the royal council down on your head, and even the queen’s friendship can’t save us if you break the law. Especially now that a witch is doing harmful spells in the city.” Blue gently pushed Grand-mère’s wand arm down. “Dinah just wants to go to the shop for the day, I’m sure. I’ll leave with her. Kellan is already looking into the guardianship document. Maybe he’ll find a way to get me out of it.”
Grand-mère grudgingly sheathed her wand as Dinah rapped smartly at the door. “Maybe I’ll pay a visit to the castle myself. Your mother saved Balavata once. It’s time they remembered the kind of favors they owe us.”
Blue wrapped her arms around Grand-mère, holding tight for as long as she dared while the knocking behind her grew more impatient. Finally, she said, “I love you. Don’t use your wand outside the cottage.”
Grand-mère snorted, but her voice was warm as she said, “I love you too. Now get that woman off my property before I decide to have snake stew for lunch.”
Dinah was silent on their carriage journey from the farmhouse to the shop. Her lips were pinched tight, her fingers restlessly tugging at the lace that hemmed the sleeves of her expensive yellow day dress. At first, Blue figured Dinah was still angry with her for running away from the root cellar and sleeping at Grand-mère’s at Kellan’s behest, but then she remembered the reason Kellan had arrived so late to the house in the first place.
Clearing her throat, Blue tried to sound compassionate. “I was sorry to hear about Marisol Evrard and Genevieve Gaillard. I’m sure you must be worried about your girls.”
Dinah sniffed. “Marisol was a silly girl, and Genevieve wasn’t anything remarkable. Their deaths narrow the field of competition.” Her fingers worried the lace, and her voice softened. “But yes, my girls are in danger. Jacinthe especially, since she’s spent more time with the prince. And I no longer have the resources to protect them.”
“Can’t you just bring your guards from your quarter and assign them to your daughters?” It seemed like the most obvious solution.
“If I could, don’t you think I’d have done it already?” Dinah snarled. “Guards must be paid.”
“But—”
“Prince Kellan left two guards on the property to watch them while I’m gone today, which means the queen will now know about my financial situation even before the royal magistrate’s report is finished.” There was rage in her voice.
“I’m sorry,” Blue said sincerely, though she had no idea what report Dinah was talking about.
“I’m not discussing any more of this with you.” Dinah’s tone was final, but she kept picking at the lace, shredding the edges into loose threads.
Blue took a deep breath, reaching for calm. Dinah was an awful woman. And if the guardianship document somehow proved false—a faint hope since Nell had already verified it—Dinah might have had a hand in Papa’s death. If that was true, Blue could give herself permission to hate Dinah. To work hard to make sure she was brought to justice as publicly as possible.
But until then, she was still a mother worried about her daughters. Blue was worried too. Not just for Jacinthe and Halette, but for all the other girls vying for Kellan’s hand. She might not be close to the members of the nine head families, but the idea of someone murdering girls her age because they wanted the throne made sickness crawl up the back of her throat.
She couldn’t hire guards to protect the girls, but she could still help. Yesterday, Maurice had finally delivered the pink sapphire she’d ordered. Blue had planned to use it in a complicated new potion meant to tremendously strengthen the lifespan of any potions created in the pot where the now-enchanted sapphire sat, but pink sapphire could also be used as a conduit to harness the qualities of certain herbs and minerals and transform them into a powerful protection charm that worked directly with the energy of the person it was meant to protect.
As they rode past the place where Papa had died, Blue sent a silent prayer that he could see her and was proud of her, and then said, “I’ll help your girls.”
She’d expected Dinah to laugh, to say something cruel and scornful. Instead, the older woman stopped tugging at the loose threads on her lace sleeves. “How?” There was caution in her voice, but there wasn’t disbelief.
“I’ll make a protection charm for each of them. I just got some pink sapphire. It will concentrate the potion, but I’ll need a strand of hair from each of them so I can personalize the potion.”
They turned into the business district in the Gaillard quarter, the road already full of wagons, carriages, and riders hurrying toward their destinations. The harsh clang of the smithy’s hammer striking molten metal filled the air, and the scent of freshly baked ginger pudding wafted out of the bakery. The slight wind that drifted in from the sea sent iron chimes hanging from balconies ringing merrily as Dinah and Blue rode past.
Finally, Dinah said, “Why are you offering to help me?”
“Because it’s the right thing to do. Papa taught me that I can’t help how people choose to treat me, but I can always control how I choose to respond.” Blue cut her gaze toward Dinah, but the woman’s expression looked carved from stone.