Page 42 of To Dwell in Shadows
“Oh, no. Please don’t.”
“He should be punished.”
“No, I don’t want anyone to know. It’s kind of embarrassing that I was tricked so easily.”
“Let me know if you change your mind,” Queen Thema said before her gaze shifted to the traveler’s stone hanging around Selene’s neck. “However, I have an idea that might help. That stone you carry has another capability—one I believe you’ve overlooked.”
Selene frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Scrying! You can look within it to check on how your family fares anytime you wish.”
Selene blinked in surprise, then looked down at the stone. Her fingers brushed over its cool surface. “I forgot it could do that.”
Queen Thema nodded, obviously pleased with herself. “Let’s try it now.”
“But…” Selene hesitated. “If I hold it and think about my sister, won’t it transport me to her?”
“Try holding it by the cord. Not the stone itself.”
Selene slipped the stone from around her neck and carefully pinched the cord above the gem, avoiding direct contact. Keeping her eyes open, she concentrated on every detail of her sister’s face: the freckle on her cheeks, the highlights in her hair, the wry little smirk she made when cracking a joke.
She thought of how Cass’s eyes lit up over a greasy slice of pizza, her love forThe Golden Girls, and the endless stream of funny stories about her disastrous dates. She imagined how much Cass would’ve liked Sam, how she’d call him a major upgrade from her ex and ask if he could set her up with any single demons.
Slowly, the surface of the stone shimmered. Then, after a moment, a faint image gradually took shape.
Queen Thema leaned closer and gasped. “I see something!”
Relief and gratitude rushed through Selene as her sister’s face came into view.
There she was, seated at Maynard’s Tavern, the dim but familiar bar where she liked to sip mojitos while sorting through her photography backlog. The details were a little blurred, but there was no mistaking her.
Cass was alive. Safe. Doing something mundane and utterly normal. After a few seconds, the image faded.
“This is incredible,” Selene whispered. “Thank you.”
The queen smiled, looking satisfied. “I’m glad it brought you peace.”
“I want to see my brother now, too,” Selene said.
She repeated the process to focus on Evan: his lopsided grin, thescar on his chin from when he crashed his bike, and the shelves full of Bigfoot collectibles in his apartment.
The stone glinted with his profile, then brightened into an image of him sitting on his couch, scrolling through his phone. He looked healthy. A bit bored, but nothing out of the ordinary. Selene breathed a sigh of relief. Then the stone winked out into nothing, as if it had run out of batteries.
“Oh, Thema, I’m so glad you showed me this,” Selene said.
“Now,” Queen Thema said with a glint in her eye, “let me show you something else. Shielding.”
Selene straightened a little. “What’s that?”
“It’s an old trick,” Queen Thema explained, her tone almost conspiratorial. “A way to guard your mind when someone tries to gain access. Arkaya taught me after I encountered an enchantress who tried to bend my will.”
She brought her fingers to her temples. “Picture a pyramid,” she said. “Strong. Impenetrable. No one can see through it, and nothing inside can be taken out.”
Selene nodded and closed her eyes. “Okay.”
“Now,” Thema continued, “imagine that pyramid protecting your innermost thoughts—your fears, hopes, desires, regrets. Everything that makes youyou. All of it safe within.”
Selene envisioned a great hand, bigger than life, holding a shimmering silver pyramid by its apex. Beneath it, she imagined her brain: pink and fragile, pulsing like a newborn creature, raw and exposed. Every thought, every secret, every memory she held close shimmered faintly within its folds.
