The Blood Spell (Ravenspire, #4)(98)

Dinah’s smile sent ice down Blue’s spine. “You had your blood and mine on your hand when you touched that leaf. And now that blood is bonded with the plant.” Her eyes widened as her smile grew. “You have magic, don’t you? So did your mother. It’s the only way she could have locked up the wraith. The only way she could have permanently bonded all those ingredients, because believe me, I’ve tried everything to break that lock. All the antidotes to the things she used to build it have failed.” She dipped her face closer to Blue’s, the dagger’s tip digging into the soft skin of Blue’s throat. “And now I know why. The rare ingredient wasn’t a stone or a leaf or some rare mineral from another kingdom. It was you.”

Blue couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t speak as the truth blazed through her mind like lightning.

That’s why Mama never told anyone the spell. Not even Grand-mère.

She wasn’t protecting the kingdom from the wraith’s return. She was protecting Blue from those who might want to free the wraith, foolishly thinking to harness the creature’s power for themselves.

Dinah started humming, and Blue’s throat closed at the look of vicious triumph on the woman’s face. Mama’s lullaby. The one she wrote just for Blue. The one with the scattered mention of plants and metals that Blue had always assumed meant nothing more than a way to connect a budding alchemist child with her mother.

“She did leave the spell behind, didn’t she?” Dinah asked softly. “It’s in that atrocious lullaby you sing to yourself every time you harvest in the garden. How does it go again? I’ll just skip to the important parts. A branch of myrrh and bolla root, silver, gold, and rose, a drop of mint and a sprig of yew.”

She leaned closer, pressing the dagger until blood flowed down its blade. “And three little drops of Blue.”

Standing, she wrenched open the root cellar door. Blue rolled to her knees and reached for Dinah, desperately trying to stop her from going after Lucian.

But Dinah wasn’t going after Lucian. She was going after Blue. Grabbing Blue’s outstretched hands, she dragged her across the floor and flung her face-first onto the ladder that led down into the root cellar.

Blue grabbed on to the sides of the ladder, desperately trying to keep from sliding all the way down to the ground. Below her, Lucian cried out as the door to the root cellar slammed shut and locked with a sharp snick, leaving them in utter darkness.





FORTY


“BLUE?”

Lucian’s voice floated out of the darkness at the far end of the root cellar, where he was carefully searching the shelves for the alluminae flax she’d harvested nearly a month ago from a riverbed north of the city.

“Yes?” She tried and failed to make her voice strong and steady. Panic raged within as she sat in the center of the root cellar, her back to one of the wooden chests Papa had left behind, her arms wrapped around her middle. If she held on tight, she could keep herself from falling apart at the seams. She wouldn’t think about being trapped in the cellar once more in the dark. Wouldn’t think about hours spent crying, screaming for help.

Wouldn’t think about Mama.

She wanted to put distance between herself and the chests lined up behind her, but her legs refused to hold her, and when she tried to crawl, she crumpled to the floor. It was worse—so much worse—to struggle and fail than it was to just sit and hope the fear would settle.

Lucian had found her moments after Dinah threw her down into the cellar and locked the door. He’d called to her, listened to her frantic gasps for air, and patted the floor in the darkness until he’d reached her side.

His hands were cold, the bravado in his voice thin as glass, but he’d immediately realized that Blue was in trouble. He’d stayed with her, his arms wrapped around her shoulders, his voice trying so hard to sound calm as she struggled to breathe past the noose of panic that was closing about her neck. When she’d finally been able to speak, she’d told him where to find the alluminae. Being locked in the cellar was bad enough. Being locked in utter darkness was terrifying.

“Did you find it?” she asked, her teeth chattering as images from her nightmares spun through her thoughts.

Blood on the dirt floor.

Mama lying broken and still.

Silence as her breath left her body.

Blue’s magic coiled in her hands, useless to bring Mama back.

“I think so,” Lucian said. There was a small crash, and he swore. “Broke something.”

“That’s all right.” Blue drew a deep breath and hugged herself tighter. “Just back away from it. I have all kinds of things down here. I don’t want you accidentally exposed to something dangerous.”

“Whatever I broke smells awful.” His footsteps shuffled along the edge of the wall.

“Once you reach the shelf with the ceramic jars, turn toward the sound of my voice,” Blue said.

She’d use the alluminae to give them some light. And then she’d figure a way out of the cellar. Surely she had something stored down here that could help. She tried racking her brain to find an answer, but her thoughts were hazy with panic, and it was all she could do not to relive her worst nightmare over and over again.

It didn’t matter if she couldn’t find a solution off the top of her head. Once she had light, she could see her inventory. Once she could see the inventory, she could see the possibilities. And once she could see possibilities, she could find a way out and warn Kellan and his family that Dinah was releasing the wraith and coming for them.