Page 57 of Shadowed Spirits

“Because of me,” a raspy voice answers to my left.

CHAPTER 30

IZZY

“Angerona?” Levi frowns at the old woman sitting at a weathered oak table. Her curly white hair is pulled back from her wrinkled face in a braided bun, with wisps escaping to frame her tanned face. Pale blue eyes crinkle as she assesses our group.

“Leviathan.” She nods at him before turning her keen gaze on me. “Isabel Gallagher. I have been waiting for you.”

I gulp. Well, that’s not ominous or anything. “How do you know my name? And how do you know Levi?”

Angerona’s eyes twinkle with mirth as she pushes up from the violet upholstered chair. She smooths her hand over her denim dress embroidered with red and yellow flowers. “I know many things I have yet to experience, young one.”

When she doesn’t answer my second question, Levi explains, “Angerona was one of mypraeceptores, what humans call teachers, when I was a child. She hasn’t been seen in many millennia.” He rubs his chin thoughtfully as he stares at her.

“Bycura,” she corrects, her voice crackling like she doesn’t speak often. “Earth has seen me plenty.” Her slipper-clad feet are soundless as she shuffles over to the small kitchen behindthe living room. She busies herself with putting on a kettle of water and placing tea leaves in faded teal mugs.

Mateo rushes over to her side. “Let me help you,abuela.” She gives him the kettle with a smile. My eyebrows shoot up as I look between the two of them, wondering if they’re related. They look nothing alike, so I’m guessing she’s an honorary grandma or something.

None of us speaks as they get the tea ready, the silence settling uneasily over the room. When Mateo and Angerona set the cups at the table, she motions for us to come over. Hesitantly, I walk over and lower myself into one of the purple chairs with my mates sitting around me. Angerona motions for me to drink the tea, so I do. Taking the first sip cautiously, I’m pleasantly surprised when I taste the minty and fruity notes of the drink. It’s actually pretty good, and I’m tempted to drink my entire cup in one swig.

“So, you said you’ve been waiting for me?”

She dips her chin in response, and I refrain from groaning when she doesn’t say anything more. I’m getting the sense that she doesn’t talk much.

Mateo confirms it. “AbuelaAngerona doesn’t speak often. Asking yes or no questions will make the conversation easier.” She reaches over to pat his hand and gives him a soft smile, which he returns.

“Why doesn’t she talk much?” I blurt, wincing at how rude that sounded.

“I was cursed by Lua many lifetimes ago. Along with stealing my youth, she also made it painful to talk.” Angerona’s voice is bland, like she’s talking about the weather, not about being cursed. She doesn’t even seem particularly upset about it. If it were me, I’d be pissed and plotting my revenge. Then again, I’m a particularly bloodthirsty and vengeful person.

“She can do that?” I squeak. Man, everything I learn about Lua just keeps getting worse and worse. For once, I’d like to learn something nonthreatening about her, like she turns into a hamster when enraged or secretly has a bunny tail, not that she can steal voices and make people old.

Levi shakes his head. “Not naturally. It’s likely part of her stolen powers.”

“Great,” I mutter as I tap my fingers on the table to “Everything I Didn’t Say” by Ella Henderson. “Anything else I should know about her? Can she shoot laser beams out of her ass or obliterate me with an interpretive dance?”

Archer snorts at my question, and Bishop pinches his nose in exasperation. I think it’s a perfectly reasonable question, so I don’t know why he’s so put out by it.

Angerona’s smile drops as she watches me somberly. “You will be able to stop her, Isabel Gallagher, but the price will be high. You will have to choose between your life and that of someone you love.”

“What?” I whisper. My stomach bottoms out at her prediction. While I know which I would choose without a doubt, I was starting to believe that I could have it all—happiness, love, a life filled with laughter, my mates, and a future. I was starting to believe that it wasn’t my destiny to die early. I was starting to believe I was meant for more than heartache, but I guess I was wrong. “How can you possibly know that?”

Levi’s knuckles are white where he grips his mug, and I’m worried he’s going to shatter it. He grinds out, “One of her abilities is foresight. It’s a gift from the fates themselves.”

“Are your predictions always accurate?” I don’t know if I even reallywantthe answer, but Ineedit.

She gives me a solemn nod.

I squeeze my eyes shut, but not before a tear drips down my cheek. I swipe it away. Bishop pulls me into his arms. “We’ll keep you safe, sweetheart,” he vows as he kisses the top of my hair.

I let out a watery laugh and pull away from him to stare into his baby blues that are darker than usual with the worry swimming in them. “If you think that’s what I’m worried about, you don’t know me as well as I thought you did, St. James.”

He clenches his jaw and bows his head. “It’s the only thing I can promise you right now, Isabel. You know any of us would happily die for you.”

“I know. That’s what I’m afraid of.” My voice is barely audible, and my lips are trembling as I try to pull myself together. Squeezing my eyes shut, I take a deep breath. While this isn’t the news I wanted to hear, it doesn’t change anything. “How do we find her?”

“No,” Luca growls as his eyes turn the pure amber color of his wolf. “No fucking way are you continuing to look for her. You could die, and that’s not a chance I’m willing to take.”

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