Page 88 of Death Warden
“Yeah, I punch hard.” My gaze flicked to Curo’s face again. To the dark shadow of old bruises around his eyes, as if he was healing from a nasty fight.
He caught me staring. “Don’t ask.”
“I don’t understand this.” Chrissy looked miserable. “I fell asleep and then next thing I know I wake up in her room with a headache from hell.”
“It makes no sense,” Logan said.
I’d been sleeping. Dreaming about…something important. Why the fuck couldn’t I remember?
“Adi, what is it?” Curo asked.
“I’m trying to remember my dream. My gut tells me it’s important.”
“Dreams can be the window to another soul,” Finley said, leaping up onto the kitchen table. “Maybe the soul you peeked into would rather you forget what you saw.”
“That feels true.” I stroked his head. “You’re so clever.”
“Forget the dream,” Chrissy said. “We need to figure out what happened to me. How did I get to Adi’s room and why was I strangling her? Why can’t I remember anything?”
“Because you weren’t in control of your body.” Spectre entered the room, bringing his evergreen aroma with him. “Someone else was.”
He set a backpack on the floor, grabbed a seat, flipped it, and straddled it. His gaze locked with mine for a beat and a pulse of awareness shot through me.
“The Circle for Bay View is dead,” he said.
“What?” Logan said, incredulous. “What do you mean they’re dead.”
“Exactly that,” Spectre said.
“How?” Curo asked.
“Something, orsomeone, got into the Circle leader’s head and messed with the location spell. Whatever it did killed all the mages.”
Spectre pulled a silver chalice decorated with symbols from his bag and placed it on the table.
Curo sucked in a sharp breath. “Those symbols…They’re the same as the ones on the dead mage. The same ones on the amulet the trader wore.”
“I suspected as much,” Spectre said. “Just needed you to confirm it.”
“But how did they get on the chalice?” I reached for it but changed my mind.
“Maybe the chalice is an heirloom,” Logan said.
“Wait, you think Lewis is related to the trader?” Curo asked.
“It makes sense,” Logan said. “Artifacts used as conduits usually have meaning to the mage or are very old. Lewis may not even have known who this chalice originally belonged to.”
Spectre nodded slowly. “Suspicion confirmed.” His mouth turned down. “I felt his power. It was unlike anything I’ve ever felt.” He focused on Chrissy. “I think this trader is able to get into people’s heads. I think he got into yours.”
“But why me?” Chrissy said.
“To get to Adi.” Spectre narrowed his eyes.
I was so confused. “Why would he want to get to me?”
“Because I’m beginning to think that this trader and your Dralos are one and the same.”
CHAPTERTHIRTY
