Page 33 of Birthright

“Do I have another choice?”

“You can’t go. Coyle is likely dead.”

I sighed.

“Never mind. I know you’re going.” She looked terrified for me. “I wish I could go.”

“Not again.” I sighed. I was going alone.

She jumped up and clapped her hands. “But you do have help! I told you I had been trying to find the potion Bevin used to make that amulet for Tynan.”

I gave her a puzzled look.

“Well,” she continued, “my cousin was helping her Gnome friend clean up after Bevin did some particularly nasty potion. She makes some of the weirdest stuff for her healing. I would love to get a peek at her supply chest. God knows what that Witch has in there. Anyway, let’s just say my cousin saw the recipe for your communications amulet…”

“So?”

“So? So I have it!”

“How does that help me with Thule?”

“Think, wild thing.” Her tone was laughingly condescending. “If we change just one of the ingredients, it can let you share sight instead of thoughts.” She held out her hands and cocked her head as if to say “Duh!”

“Howard!” I exclaimed, suddenly catching on.

“That’s the most frivolous name I ever heard,” she smirked. “But yes, Howard could do some scouting for you once on the island.”

“Howard the Hawk is a great name,” I insisted. “And you are the smallest genius I know. What’s in the potion?” I closed the slimy little book and slid it back in the stack with the others while Abbey rattled off a list of fairly common ingredients and a few I hadn’t heard of.

She got quiet and looked down at her feet. “You’re really going, right?” I’d never seen so much concern on her face.

“Not much choice. Tomorrow night’s the full moon, and we won’t have another chance for the amulet. But I swear, if Bevin doesn’t relax with the practicing… I’m so worn out.” I took the tea Abbey had made while I was talking. “Oh yeah, I got a boat arranged.”

“How’d you manage that one?” She sounded as surprised as her big eyes looked.

“From one of the Trolls. I traded some gold buttons from one of my dresses. It not a great boat but it’s the best I could do,” I said.

“Hogan let you have gold buttons from one of his master creations?” She was mimicking his accent and tone as she spoke.

I laughed. “No. Remember when Feldema tossed me into the fountain?” I’d had a few more altercations with Feldema since the pipe incident. The first two, she’d gotten the best of me. Silly stuff really, spilling wine on me at a meal and once tangling my hair in knots from across the yard. During the most recent incident, though, I saw her lips start to move and could have stopped her before she used a blasting spell to knock me back into the fountain, but I allowed her to continue. I wanted her to go on thinking she could best me. It had worked once, and I wanted that advantage again. “I took off the buttons before I gave the dress back to Hogan. He was furious that I ‘lost’ them. But we needed the gold. I only traded nine of them with the Troll, in case I need more later.”

“And Hogan hasn’t found the rest?”

“Nah, I put them in the pocket of the jeans Tynan bought me on his last trip. Hogan hates them so much he won’t touch ’em.”

Abbey cocked her head, “You’re getting too good at this. So we have the boat, almost all the supplies, and tomorrow night we’ll have the amulet. Are you sure you’re ready to do this?”

“I think. My casting has gotten fairly good. I’m as ready as I’m going to get.”

“You know your spells won’t help you with the Slaugh, you’ll just have to fight them,” she said as she stood to examine my face for doubts.

“I know. I’m not afraid.”

She gave me a “yeah, right” look.

“Fine. I’m terrified—but I have to get him, Abbey. I’ll fight the Slaugh. It’ll be daylight, and most of them can’t be out then. I’m hoping good old-fashioned knives will help with whatever else is out there.” I had been carefully asking various beings on the island for their impressions of Thule. Most shared outrageous rumors they had heard over the centuries, though everyone was adamant that Witch powers wouldn’t work on the island. The bottom line was, I wouldn’t know what was real and what was speculation until I got there.

“I’m more worried about Nessum. He’s a fallen angel, Keena. I don’t think he can be killed.” She shivered, and I did too.