Page 50 of Freed Wolfsbane

I am including blueprints for Dido’s burial site, which is underneath the place she took her life on the funeral pyre so many years ago. The location is steeped in very old, powerful, and vengeful magic. If anything could power the curse, it would be that residual energy. I have heard reports for several years about increased Knight activity there, which supports our theory that the source of the curse is there.

Dido’s final resting place is said to be three levels deep in the ground, with her body entombed in the lowest floor. Despite the site being littered with traps, the Knights must’ve found their way inside. Be cautious when entering because the location of these defensive measures is unknown, and the Knights have most likely added additional fortifications.

Along with the blueprints, I have also included the key to Dido’s tomb room. The pyramidal quartz will unlock the most secure part of the site. No one in memory has been able to find the exact location, so I do not know how it will unlock the room.

Lastly, I have included a recipe for a potion that has the ability to remove the magic from an object or person. My reports indicate that the curse is tied to an object. Once you track down the source of it, you will need to use this potion to undo the damage the Knights have caused.

The sacrifice will be great, but no one else is capable of the task. Be brave, child of magic and earth, for us children of the moon depend on you.

Take care and be well,

Aurelia Aspera

Well, that’s not great.

We know where to go and what to do, but I’m not loving the whole “sacrificing myself for the cause” thing. Because the letter definitely wants me to use the potion, not trick Ryker into using it or use it as an ingredient to make something else.

My eyes flick up to Malachi, who is watching me grimly. When he sees that I’m done, he hands me another piece of paper. I glance down at it.

I finally found Dido’s tomb. I don’t know who to trust, so I hid the map in the Temple of Janus. I placed the key here in the family crypt and a spelled letter in our library. If you’ve found this, your next step is in Rome. Good luck – Livy Asper

I squint at the letter because I’m pretty sure Livy is the name of one of my great-grandmothers. She was long dead by the time I was born, but I remember my mom talking about Grandma Livy. I’m guessing this is the same person.

I wish my mom was still here so I could ask her. There are so many things I wish my parents could be here for, but they’re not. Swallowing past the lump in my throat, I ask, “Where is the Temple of Janus?”

Malachi pinches the bridge of his nose in exasperation. “It doesn’t exist anymore. It was built by the second king of Rome, and it stood in the Roman Forum near the Basilica Aemilia. Scholars debate if it was a gate or a bridge, but regardless, it’s not fucking there any longer.”

Fantastic.

The only way to find Dido’s tomb is to go to something that doesn’t exist anymore. That place should have a map to a booby-trapped ancient burial site that contains an unknown artifact that I have to destroy with a potion that will kill me.

Have I mentioned that I hate everything about this?

Because I do. So much.

“How long has it been since it was there?” I ask, hoping it was only recently demolished.

I know I’m not that lucky when Malachi says, “Oh, only about twenty-five hundred years, give or take.”

Sounds about right.

Although, if it hasn’t been there for thousands of years, then Livy would’ve hidden it somewhere near there that existed in her time. That should’ve only been a few hundred years ago at the most.

“Well, that might actually be a good thing because I think Livy Asper was my great-grandma. She was killed a hundred years ago. Wherever she hid the map should hopefully still be accessible to us.”

Malachi rubs his chin in thought. “Huh. That makes sense with Asper and Aspera translating to wild, so somewhere along the line your family must’ve anglicized their name from Asper to Wylder.”

“I didn’t know that.” My lips tip up in a small smile at learning something new about my family. Ava and I are the only ones left, and my mom didn’t get time to teach us much about our ancestors. While I wish it were under different circumstances, it was cool to see my family library and read letters from relatives long gone.

It would be awesome if any of these letters said something helpful about how to fix the curse without the death potion.

Saint looks down at me. “Who killed her?”

My mouth twists in a grimace. “Who else? The Knights. They’ve killed everyone in my family, other than Ava and me.” And if the letter is to be believed, they’ll kill me with their curse, too.

Hugging me to his side, Saint presses a kiss to the top of my head and mumbles, “I’m sorry, little shadow.”

I shrug because what is there really to say? Nothing about the Knights killing my entire family is fine, but I can’t do anything about it now. All I can do is fuck up their plans and try to keep them from hurting anyone else. “So what do we do now?”

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