Page 82 of House of Malice
Jolene shook her head. “I don’t think so. Let’s just use the usual energy for this one. It’s a very small object.”
Val nodded and started a chant. They all joined her, and a moment later, the crystal in Val’s hand started glowing.
Slowly, she placed the canvas on the altar with the broken statue of the Gods. Then she held the crystal next to the canvas, hovering it around the perimeter.
They continued to chant while they all watched the canvas and the crystal in Val’s hand. There didn’t seem to be any sort of spell active on the canvas.
“Alright, we’re clear,” Val said, cutting off the spell. “Let’s cast a circle.”
They all took their places around the circle. Val placed the bronze bowl with the ingredients in the middle, right next to the canvas. Then she took her spot, and they all linked hands.
“Locarccio prioti,” they all chanted together, and not long after, the cloud of smoke rose from the bowl.
The grey and black tendrils swirled together for what seemed like forever. Alecto was impatient, her heart hammering against her ribs. It was the only hope for them, their one real chance at protecting themselves once and for all.
Finally, the smoke cleared, and a room appeared. It was an old home, similar in style to their brownstone. There were huge windows overlooking the street. Heavy emerald-green curtains framed them.
In the middle of the room, there was a heavy wooden desk with lion legs. A leather chair sat behind it. The Dean was there, writing something on a piece of paper. There was a slight frown between his eyebrows.
Alecto focused on keeping the chant going, despite the fear that gripped her. They were casting a spell while he was there, in the room with the art. Could he sense them?
Finally, Alecto noticed the artwork hanging on the walls around the room. There were six large paintings she could see.
The Dean’s hand stilled for a moment. Val cut off the spell right then, and the view in front of them evaporated.
“It’s his house, isn’t it?” Andro asked, breathless.
“It is,” Val said. “It’s his study.”
“He keeps the art with the magic in his home?” Alecto asked, still shocked from the experience. “That’s very arrogant of him.”
“There must be wards around it, of course,” Jolene said. “And it’s not like anyone can enter the Dean’s home.”
“He won’t be home in three weeks,” Blaze said. “We might have a chance.”
Jolene rubbed her hands together. “We’re crazy if we think we can break into the Dean’s home and steal his art.”
“Do you have a better plan?” Val asked. “I’m all ears if you know how else we can put a stop to Dean trying to destroy our House.”
“There must be a way,” Andro said, crossing his arms. “What if we have Galia do that for us?”
“If you want the job done well, do it yourself,” Val said. “We’re going in and we’re doing it. We have three weeks to prepare.”
They all exchanged glances but didn’t argue further.
“Now, there is one other thing we need to figure out,” Val said. “We need to find out about the people who got the Dean into power.”
“You want to find out more about Grimswater?” Blaze asked. “How do you plan on doing that? Nobody knows anything about the secret club. We already know that.”
Val smirked. “That is absolutely impossible. No secret is ever fully a secret, not when more than one person is involved.”
“I feel like you have an idea who might know something.” Alecto said with a sigh. “Just fucking tell us already.”
“I will tell you, Black. No need to be so impatient,” Val said. “First, we’ll take a quick trip to Hel. Rogue said they know a lot about the secret club in Hel. Let’s see just how much they know.”
Alecto was stunned. A trip to Hel was the last thing on her bucket list.
Andro pinched the bridge of his nose. “Unbelievable. Now we’re going to Hel. As if breaking into the Dean’s place isn’t enough.”
