Page 122 of Sight of Fate

Keep her talking. Macklin’s calm voice orders in my head.

“I’m not the mole, but you’re right to suspect someone,” she grits out, her mouth pressed together. “Most of the witches here don’t travel to the other Vales. They’re too scared of the big bad world. But I do. Macklin’s fair. He treats everyone equally, regardless of their power level. That’s not the case in the other Vales, and some witches have decided to take matters into their own hands.”

“Who leads them?” Macklin asks, leaning against the doorway.

“I don’t know, but once you sicced Max on me, I knew you thought it was me or someone who wanted to frame me.”

He frowns. “Are you trying to tell us Maureen is the mole? She’d never put Raine in danger.”

“Think about it,” she urges him. “Which facility had the fewest guards? The least resistance? Almost like someone left the door open? Probably not the one with Raine in it. Maureen wanted you to save her daughter, but only because there was too high a chance they would relocate her.”

She puts the safety on and hands the gun to me. “The witches in the other Vales aren’t wrong to protest how they’ve been treated, but sacrificing other supernaturals to gain power is a betrayal of our most sacred laws. One I can’t condone. Instead, I want to offer them another alternative. An exclusive retreat for witches that allows us to expand our knowledge and power in a way that supports each other but doesn’t require a sacrifice to get it.”

She swivels toward Macklin. “That’s why I’ve been visiting other Vales, talking to witches. Not to plan a rebellion.” Her head turns toward me. “There are a lot of witches like you who don’t want to join covens anymore. I want the retreat to offer that knowledge without all the coven rules and restrictions.”

“I have a lot to learn, but honestly, that sounds infinitely better than a coven. I’ll give it some thought,” I tell her, passing the gun to Macklin. Although I doubt it’s going to be any time soon. I like being a seer, but I’m not ready to be a witch.

Clarissa nods. “I suspect Maureen has recruited a few others, but I highly doubt Raine is one of them. She’s likely not even aware Maureen feels this way.” Her gaze skips from me to Macklin to Andros and Teague, who are now standing by the door. “I’ll see myself out.” She snaps her fingers and disappears.

I sink to the floor and take a deep breath. “Are you a hundred percent sure I’m immortal? Like you would bet my life on it?”

“Yes, a hundred percent,” Teague confirms, squatting down beside me. “I can show you.” I tense, and he waves a hand. “A small demonstration. Give me your hand.”

I hold it out, willing it to stop trembling.

Before I have time to process what he’s doing, he slashes my wrist. Piercing pain makes me cry out, but then it quickly eases. Surprised, I stare down at my arm and watch the skin knit back together. Teague takes his shirt and wipes away the blood, revealing nothing but smooth skin behind.

With a frown, I stare at the unblemished skin. “If you can heal, why do you two have so many scars?”

Macklin sighs. “When we’re younger, we prevent our scars from healing to show other gargoyles we’ve been in battle. Like a badge of honor and skill.” He presses his lips together. “Or if the wound is severe enough, like my wings, the wound might not heal all the way.”

“I’m sorry.”

He shrugs and nods to my wrist. “You won’t have to worry.”

Blowing out a huge breath of relief, I slide my fingers across the unblemished skin. “Thanks. Hopefully next time someone points a gun at me, I’ll remember my immortality instead of freezing.”

Teague sweeps a swath of my hair back. “Doesn’t mean you can’t die, but it’s harder to kill you, so try to avoid catastrophic injuries.”

I gulp. “Good to know.”

Teague stands and pulls me up with him. “Get dressed. I’ll stand guard outside the door.” His expression is foreboding, as if the incident scared him a bit more than he liked.

Chapter Forty-Eight

CHARLI

Everybody’s been assigned to a team, and Teague’s team is setting up booby traps across the city to help minimize the need to actively fight the force descending on Greystone. But first, he’s coming to work with us to tell everyone what’s going on.

Andros sent an email to Susan, informing her of the plan with a request to gather everybody in the lobby. When Teague, Andros, and I walk in, everybody’s waiting for us. I try to step to the side, but Teague places me between him and Andros.

“I’ll make this brief. I’m not sure if everyone has heard, but there is a sizable force heading toward Greystone. We don’t want any of you caught in the crossfire, so we’re closing the offices for at least the next week. If you can work from home and keep the launch going, that would be great, but if not, we’ll figure it out when we come back. Everyone will get paid during this time. Gather your things and exit the building before noon.”

“Any questions?” Andros asks.

“Should we leave town?”

“That’s up to you. I’d talk with your respective leaders. They’re all aware of the situation.”