Chapter 13
“Don’t call me Julia,” Brody growled at her.
It was perverse of her, Maeve knew, but she was so angry, she felt satisfaction when her barb hit home. “What should I call you, then? Liar?”
With his teeth gritted, he pointed at her. “You’re the one who lied. You said you would wait on the Isle of Moon for me to return. Do you have any idea how furious I am?”
“It could be only half of what I’m feeling.”
He scoffed. “There’s no reason for you to be angry.”
“Are you jesting?” She gave him an incredulous look. “I’m hearing your voice, but it’s coming out of a stranger’s mouth. Do you have any idea how creepy that is?”
“Fine.” His gray, wrinkled face began to shimmer.
Maeve’s breath caught as Brody shifted right in front of her. His shoulders and chest grew broader, filling the Seer’s brown woolen robe. His familiar face replaced the old wrinkled one, while his hair changed from silver to black. His beautiful blue eyes sparkled like icy shards as he glowered at her. His gorgeous mouth—how could she look at his lips without remembering his kiss?
He was so damned handsome, blast him. In the four years that she’d known him, he’d matured, becoming more attractive every time she saw him. She’d admired him from afar. Longed for him to pay her some attention while he was in human form. But now, she had to wonder if she even knew him. How many more secrets was he hiding?
“You should have stayed put on the Isle of Moon,” he fussed at her. “Now you’re in danger—”
“It was my choice. I’ll deal with it.”
“Dammit, Maeve. Have you always been so stubborn?”
“Have you always been so secretive? Did you ever tell anyone that you can shift into a person? What am I to think? Are you just like the Chameleon?”
He hissed in a breath. “Don’t you dare compare me to that bastard.”
She had to admit he was right to take insult. The Chameleon was a mass murderer, while Brody always helped others. But still, it hurt that he’d hidden his true nature from her. It hurt badly enough that angry tears gathered in her eyes. “Am I the only one who didn’t know? Or did you keep it a secret from everyone? Do any of us even know who you really are?”
He groaned. “You’re making too much of this.”
“I don’t think so.” She motioned to his face. “Is this how you actually look?”
“Of course it is.” He gave her a frustrated look. “I’ve never taken on a person’s form before. I only did it now because the Seer begged me to.”
“My . . . father asked you to do this? How can that be? Isn’t he allied with my mother?”
“He only pretended to be, so he could find out what she was doing. Your father was a good man.”
She blinked. “Was?”
Brody nodded. “He passed away. I’m sorry.”
A twinge of regret lodged in her heart. She would never know her father. But apparently, she had inherited his power of foresight. Her vision of Brody burying someone on the Isle of Mist had been correct. “How well did you know him?”
When Brody hesitated a moment, she wondered if he was deciding which secrets to hide and which to reveal. The annoying man.
Finally, he replied, “After I was cursed, I washed up on the Isle of Mist. The Seer found me and raised me. He was like a father to me.”
That was obviously true, for she could see the pain of mourning in Brody’s eyes. “How long have you known that my father started the Circle of Five?”
“I found out the afternoon before he died. At first, I was horrified. But then I read his journal and understood what had happened. I’ll give you his journal someday, so you can see for yourself. His only crime was a mistaken belief that he could bring peace to the world. It was Cahira who twisted his idea into something evil.”
Maeve winced. “So masquerading as the Seer was the plan you wouldn’t tell me about?” When he nodded, she narrowed her eyes. “Was it you who was so rude to me on the Isle of Mist?”
“I was trying to pro—”
“It was you!” Her anger flared. “Did you enjoy deceiving me?”
“No, I didn’t,” he ground out. “But I did what was necessary to protect you.”
“You told me my future was back at Ebton Palace. You lied to me!”
“I was trying to keep you safe, dammit, but you—”
“You don’t have the right!” Hot tears burned her eyes. “You told me we could never have a future together, but then you tried to control my future? How dare you!”
“Maeve—”
“How long have you known who my mother is?” A tear ran down her face. “Were you intending to keep that a secret, too?”
He took a deep breath and glanced around the room as if he were trying to figure out what to say.
Her heart constricted in her chest. “You weren’t going to tell me, were you?”
He closed his eyes briefly. “I knew the truth would be devastating for you.”
“So you were never going to tell me? You were going to deceive me for the rest of my life?” She balled her hand into a fist and punched lightly at his chest. “How could you do that to me?”
He grabbed her by the wrist. “I would do it again. I would go to hell and back if it kept you from feeling pain.”
She ripped her hand away. “Then why did you reject me? Nothing is more painful than that!”
His face turned pale.
She turned and walked away a few steps. As she wiped more tears from her face, she realized her anger was fading away. All that was left was a horrible fear that her feelings for Brody would continue to be rejected.
“I can’t deny that I care about you,” he said softly behind her.
Her heart squeezed in her chest. She’d always hoped to hear him confess his feelings for her, but she’d always thought it would be a joyous occasion. Not like this. She curled her hands into fists. Dammit, why did she have to accept this? “I know you can be yourself for only two hours a day, but I’d rather have two hours than nothing.”
“That wouldn’t be fair—”
“Since when is life fair?” She whirled around to face him. “I am stubborn, Brody. I’m not giving up on you.”
His eyes flared with an intensity that stole her breath away. He did want her—she could feel it. She took a step toward him.
A knock sounded at the door; then the latch moved and caught on the lock.
“We have your food,” a voice called from the hallway. “And clothing.”
Brody ran and jumped into bed. Maeve approached the door, waiting to be sure Brody had shifted back into the Seer before she turned the key and opened it.
Ruth and two more servants came inside carrying trays loaded down with food, goblets, and pitchers of wine. They placed the trays on the round table in the sitting area. More servants brought in the Seer’s bundle of clothes as well as some new garments. They took them to the dressing room.
“This is medicine to relieve pain.” Ruth showed Maeve a small green bottle. “In case your father needs it.”
“Thank you,” Maeve told her.
“Are you all right?” Ruth whispered. “You look like you’ve been crying.”
“I—I fear I will lose my father soon.”
Ruth clucked her tongue in sympathy. “I’m so sorry, lass.” She motioned to the trays. “We’ll come back for these later.”
“No need,” Maeve assured her. “I’ll put them in the hall. I don’t want anything to disturb my father’s rest.”
Ruth glanced at the false Seer, who was moaning in bed. “Very well. But if you need me, just tug on the bell pull.”
“I will. Thank you, Ruth.”
She and the other servants curtsied, then filed out of the room. Maeve quickly locked the door.
Brody leaped out of bed, shifting back to his true form. “I’m starving.” He dashed toward the table.
Now this was the Brody she knew. Maeve sat across from him. “How are we going to stop my mother? Do you have a plan?”
He bit into a chicken leg. “I’m flying back to the Isle of Moon tonight, so I can have a message sent to Leo. Are Nevis and Captain Shaw still there?”
“I suppose they are.” Maeve poured two goblets full of wine.
“Thanks.” Brody took a sip from one, then went back to eating. “Tell me what you’ve learned so far.”
She described everything that had happened that morning. Brody’s eyes widened when she described Alfred’s and Darroc’s powers.
He wiped his mouth with a napkin. “Lightning and wind power? That won’t be easy to beat. How many soldiers are there in the Embraced army?”
“I don’t know.” Maeve fiddled with her food, wondering if she should tell Brody about her upcoming wedding. If she did, he might try to kill the evil shifter. He could end up injured or dead. Also, his disguise as the Seer would be exposed, and then Cahira would have the Embraced army attack him. If Maeve wanted to protect Brody, she had better keep her mouth shut.
“Anything else I should know?” Brody asked.
She winced. Now she understood why Brody had withheld information from her. She was doing the same thing. But he did need to know what she had learned about the Chameleon. “The general of the Embraced army is the Chameleon.”
Brody sat forward. “Is he here?”
“He’s supposed to arrive soon.” Maeve explained who he was.
Brody’s mouth dropped open. “He killed his own father? And half-brother? Damn.” He stood and paced across the floor. “No wonder he tried to take Eberon first. We have to tell Leo about him. You say his name is Kendric?”
Maeve nodded and suppressed a shudder at the thought of being forced to marry the monster. She couldn’t do it. Somehow she had to stop it. Without telling Brody. He hated the evil shifter with a passion. And from what she’d heard, the hatred was mutual. Had the Chameleon sensed that Brody had the same powers he had? That would explain why the evil shifter hated Brody so much.
She couldn’t risk a fight between the two of them. There had to be another solution . . .
While she was thinking, Brody opened a window to peer outside. “The sun is setting. I’ll leave as soon as it gets dark.” He glanced back at her and narrowed his eyes. “Is something bothering you? You’re pale. And you hardly touched your food.”
She crushed her napkin in her fists. “It’s nothing.”
He gave her a wry look as he walked toward her. “I guess I’m not the only one with secrets.”
“I-I’ll tell you later.”
“All right.” He picked up his goblet. “I’ll hold you to that. Make sure no one comes in while I’m gone.”
“I will.”
“Good.” He took a long drink.
She tossed her napkin on the table. “When you come back, I want to lose my virginity.”
He sputtered wine down his robe. “What?”
“I believe you heard me.”
“What?”
Surely the Chameleon would reject her if she told him that she’d already bedded his archenemy, Brody. Besides, Brody was the only man she could ever take as a mate. She rose to her feet. “It has to be you.”
He set his goblet down with a clunk. “Isn’t this a bit sudden?”
“You are capable, are you not?”
He arched an eyebrow. “Are you trying to insult me into bedding you?”
“If that’s what it takes.”
He scoffed. “Maeve—”
She stepped up to him and placed her hands on his chest. “You do want me, don’t you?”
He gulped. “What has come over you?”
“Lust. Pure unbridled lust.” She smoothed her hands up to his shoulders.
“Wait a minute.” He grabbed her wrists. “You . . . you must have experienced too much of a shock today. You should lie down and rest while I’m gone.”
“I’ll be sure to be well rested.” She pressed her body against his. “And I’ll be ready for you when you return.”
He frowned at her. “I’m going to be really tired.”
“Then I’ll do all the work.”
He gave her an incredulous look. “How would you know what to do?”
“I’ll figure it out.” She glanced down to where she could feel a growing bulge beneath his robe. “How hard can it be?”
“A lot harder.” He grabbed her by the shoulders to move her back a few inches. “I’m not sure what this is all about, but we’ll talk when I get back. Turn around while I shift.”
“Must I? I’d rather watch you undress.”
“Maeve.” He scowled at her.
“Fine.” She turned her back. Why was he acting so damned noble all of a sudden? “I know you want me. So when you come back, it will be you and me. You agree, don’t you?”
She turned toward him, but he was already in eagle form, his hooded robe and small clothes discarded on the floor. He swooped through the window and out into the darkening twilight.
* * *
“You’ll be safe after the sun has set,” Bettina told Nevis and his companions. “The soldiers come to the village during the day to harass us and make sure we’re working, but they never come at night.”
“Are you sure?” Nevis asked.
Bettina gave him with a wry look. “They’re not worried about any of us escaping. Where would we go?”
Nevis nodded. “We’ll stay for a while, then.” If he learned more information, he might figure out a plan to rescue Maeve. But at the same time, he needed to send a message to Leo. Somehow, he would manage to do both.
“We should remain hidden till the sun goes down,” Bettina told them, and they followed her over a big sand dune. After she set her basket down, they sat in the sandy valley to wait for sunset.
“What can you tell us about the island?” Nevis asked.
“What can you do for us here?” Bettina countered.
“What do ye need?” Elinor asked.
Bettina sighed. “It’s hard to explain. We were raised here, so this is the only home, the only life, we have ever known. But from what Maeve told me, I believe we were taken away from our families in Eberon.”
Nevis nodded. “That is true.”
“There are young children in the village and two toddlers in the castle nursery,” Bettina said sadly. “If they could be returned to their homes, I would greatly appreciate it.”
“We can certainly do that,” Nevis told her. “But we’ll need to defeat your queen and her cohorts first. For now, I need all the information I can get.”
“The Sea Witch is going to kill us all,” Lobby muttered.
“We’re not going to die,” Nevis growled. “We just need to increase our number. Once I get a message to Leo, all the kings on the mainland will come here with their forces.”
Bettina’s eyes widened. “You mean there will be a battle?” When Nevis nodded, she asked, “Can you take the young ones to safety before that happens?”
“Of course,” Nevis assured her. “So Cahira lives in the castle with thirty guards. What else can you tell us?”
“The guards have their headquarters at the south end of the garden. There’s also a dormitory there for the Embraced army, along with some practice fields.”
“Ye mentioned a village?” Elinor asked.
“That’s where I live with the other Embraced children,” Bettina replied. “Once the little ones in the castle nursery reach the age of five, they’re moved to the village so they can work.”
Elinor gasped. “Children that young are forced to work?”
Bettina nodded. “The Embraced children live at the village until their powers are manifested. Then Cahira and Kendric decide if their power is good enough for the army.” She ducked her head, blushing. “There are older ones in the village like me. Our powers were deemed worthless.”
“What is yer power?” Elinor asked gently.
Bettina grimaced. “I can communicate with birds.”
“Ah.” Nevis recalled the flock of seagulls on the beach. “That’s how you knew we were here. The birds told you?”
Bettina nodded.
Elinor huffed. “That is not a worthless power.”
“It’s an excellent one,” Nevis agreed. “You have access to a huge network of spies. Cahira was foolish not to realize how valuable you are.”
“Oh.” Bettina’s eyes widened.
“How many soldiers are there in the Embraced army?” Nevis asked.
“Seven,” Bettina replied.
Nevis blinked. “That’s all?”
Elinor gave him a wry look. “Ye wanted more?”
“I feared there would be many more,” Nevis admitted.
Elinor shrugged. “Perhaps there weren’t very many children born in Eberon on the nights the moons embraced. Or it could be that most parents simply lied about the time of their baby’s birth so their babe wouldn’t be taken away from them. I know I would certainly lie in order to keep my child.”
Nevis nodded. “I would, too.” He glanced at Bettina. “So there are only seven.”
Bettina frowned at him. “Seven may not sound like many to you, but with the powers they have, I fear they could destroy a much larger army. And then, there is their general, which brings their number up to eight. But Kendric is rarely on the island.”
“Who is this Kendric?” Nevis asked.
“He’s a powerful shifter,” Bettina replied. “He can take the form of any animal, bird, or person.”
Nevis sat back. The Chameleon. “Is he here now?”
Bettina shook her head, then rose to her feet and picked up her basket. “The sun is almost gone. I can take you to the village now.”
As they followed her, Elinor sidled up close to Nevis. “Can we take the children to my boat? We need to get them away from here as soon as possible.”
Nevis considered. “We should wait a few days. If we do it now, their disappearance will alert the army and they’ll come after us. We won’t be able to help anyone if we’re captured.” He gave her a pointed look. “Speaking of which, I would feel a hell of a lot better if you got away from here. You can take the boat back tonight with Lobby.”
She shook her head. “I’m staying.”
He groaned. “It’s not just for your safety. You need to go back so we can send a warning to Leo.”
She bit her lip. “I’ll think about it.”
By now, the last of the twilight was fading away, and Nevis was grateful Bettina knew where she was going. He never would have found the village in the dark.
At the summit of a hill, he spotted the village. A half dozen torches illuminated a few wooden huts. They headed downhill, then traversed a field of wheat and a vegetable garden.
“That’s the house where the smith lives with the boys.” Bettina motioned to the different buildings. “This is the smithy. And over there is the house where I live with the other girls.”
“Bettina, is that you?” An elderly man stepped out of the smithy, along with two boys and a young woman. “Catriona was just telling me that ye were missing.”
“Bettina!” The young woman ran toward her. “We were worried about you.”
“I’m fine.” Bettina motioned to Nevis and his companions. “I was waiting until it was dark to bring our guests.”
“Who are these strangers?” the younger boy demanded.
“Mind yer manners, Quentin,” the elderly man grumbled. “Ye’re still in trouble for the way ye snitched on that poor woman earlier.”
Quentin winced and shuffled his bare feet in the dirt. “I said I was sorry.”
Nevis assumed the elderly man was the smith. “Good evening, I’m Nevis.”
“Tommy?” Lobby whispered. “Is that you?”
The smith gasped. “Lobby?”
“Holy goddesses!” Lobby lurched toward the smith. “Ye’re alive!”
“Lobby!” Tommy grabbed him in a tight embrace. “I thought ye were dead.”
Tears streamed down Lobby’s old weathered face. “I thought ye were dead, too. I thought all me mates were gone.”
“I did, too.” Tommy leaned back to look at his old friend. “After the shipwreck, I washed up here on this accursed island. What happened to you?”
“I hung on to a broken mast for two days; then some fishermen found me and took me back to the Isle of Moon.” Lobby grinned at Nevis and Elinor. “I found one of me mates!”
Nevis nodded, smiling. “We gathered that.”
The young boy, Quentin, pranced around the two old men, grinning.
“I’m delighted to meet you.” Elinor shook Tommy’s hand. “We’ll be happy to take you back home.”
“She’s the princess,” Lobby whispered in a loud voice.
“Princess Elinor? Good goddesses!” Tommy quickly bowed.
Bettina’s eyes widened. “You’re a princess?”
“She’s a princess?” Quentin gawked at her.
She nodded. “Please call me Elinor. And yer names?”
“I’m Quentin!”
“A pleasure to meet you, Quentin.” Elinor ruffled his hair, and the boy grinned up at her.
“Elam.” The young man sketched an awkward bow.
“I’m Catriona.” The young woman sidled up close to Bettina. “Where did you find these people?”
“They found me. Come this way.” Bettina led them all to the girls’ cottage. After leaving her basket by the front door, she ushered them inside.
Elam agreed to stand watch outside. Inside, Nevis noted five girls of various ages, all eating bowls of soup as they sat on the wooden floor at one end of the cottage.
Quentin sat beside them and whispered loudly as he pointed at Elinor. “She’s a princess!”
The girls all stared.
“I’m afraid we have only two chairs.” Bettina motioned to a chair in front of a large loom and another by a spinning wheel. “If Your Highness would like—”
“I’ll be quite comfortable here.” Elinor sat on the floor next to the girls. She smiled at them. “Hello. I’m Elinor.”
They all nodded, their eyes wide.
Nevis smiled to himself. He loved how the princess never put on airs.
Catriona sat next to Quentin. “We never get any visitors here, so they’re a bit stunned.”
Nevis settled on the floor on the other side of Elinor while Lobby and Tommy sat by the door, whispering to each other.
Bettina brought two wooden cups to Nevis and Elinor. “I’m afraid we’re out of soup. All we can offer you is water.”
“Thank you.” Nevis downed his cup.
“Ye’re very kind.” Elinor took a sip, then set her cup on the floor so she could rummage through her canvas bag. “Ah, here it is. I brought this in case we needed it.” She opened a linen-wrapped bundle, revealing seven honey cakes topped with cherries.
The young girls gasped.
Elinor passed the bundle to Bettina. “Please enjoy these. Nevis and I are quite full, so we don’t need them.” She gave him a pointed look. “Isn’t that so?”
He winced inwardly. He hadn’t eaten in hours. “Exactly. We’re stuffed.” His stomach growled, and he cleared his throat to cover up the noise.
With a smile, Elinor gave his hand a squeeze, and he suddenly felt full to the brim.
“This is wonderful. Thank you.” Bettina handed out the seven cakes to Catriona, Quentin, and the other five girls.
“The other boys don’t know what they’re missing!” Quentin laughed, then gobbled down his cake.
“What about you?” Catriona asked Bettina.
She waved a dismissive hand. “I’m fine.”
The youngest girl rose to her feet and hesitantly approached Bettina. She tore off a piece of her cake and offered it to her.
With tears in her eyes, Bettina knelt down and gave the girl a hug. “Thank you, Sarah. You’re very sweet.”
Nevis took a deep breath. Damn, but Elinor looked like she was about to cry, too. He needed to get back to business. While the girls in the room happily nibbled on honey cakes, he turned to the older men. “Lobby, can you and Tommy take the boat back to the Isle of Moon tonight?”
The two men exchanged a glance, then nodded.
“I can’t stay away for very long,” Tommy said. “The soldiers will know I’m missing.”
“We could tell them you’re ill,” Bettina suggested.
Tommy nodded. “That could buy us a day or two.”
“Good.” Nevis turned to Elinor. “You have paper and pen with you, right?” When she nodded, he continued. “I need you to write down as much information as you can. Then Lobby and Tommy will take it to your mother, and she can have it sent on to King Leo of Eberon.”
“A king?” Quentin whispered, then turned to Bettina. “What’s going on?”
“Hope,” she whispered back. “Freedom and a better future for all of you.”
Quentin’s eyes widened. “A better future?”
Elinor took out her stack of paper, then opened a bottle of ink and readied her pen.
“Now let’s start with a list of your names and ages,” Nevis began.
As the girls introduced themselves, Elinor wrote down their information. Then Quentin told her the names of the boys.
Elinor paused in her writing. “Yer names seem to be in alphabetical order.”
“They are,” Catriona agreed. “The queen named us that way so she could keep us straight. Alfred and Bettina are the oldest, followed by Darroc and myself.”
Nevis glanced at the list. “Is this everyone who isn’t in the army?”
“There are two four-year-olds in the castle nursery.” Bettina winced. “And there are the twins, Gabby and Gavin. They’re seventeen years old. We . . . we don’t know where Gavin is.”
“He’s missing?” Nevis asked.
“The queen insists he’s still alive, but we don’t know what happened to him,” Tommy grumbled. “No one has seen him for two years.”
“That evil Sea Witch,” Lobby muttered, and his friend agreed with a mumbled curse.
“Gabby’s in the dungeon,” Olana whispered, and the other girls shuddered.
“She can turn iron into gold,” Bettina explained. “But she didn’t want to help the queen, so Cahira took away her brother and locked her in the dungeon.”
Elinor shook her head. “This is terrible.”
“That’s why I spend most of my time making iron coins,” Tommy mumbled.
Catriona sighed. “I hope Maeve isn’t in the dungeon.”
Nevis winced. He hoped not, too. “So the youngest Embraced children are four years old?”
“Aye.” Bettina shrugged. “We don’t know why the babies stopped coming.”
Nevis thought back to when Leo had taken over Eberon. That had been about four years ago, so that was when Lord Morris had lost his position as chief counsel and head of the Eberoni Church of Enlightenment. “Lord Morris fell out of power, so he was unable to send any more children. Shall we talk about the Embraced army now?”
Elinor readied a new sheet of paper.
“First we have the general,” Nevis began. “We call him the Chameleon on the mainland.”
“You know about Kendric?” Bettina asked.
Nevis nodded. “Who else is in the army?”
Bettina described them all while Elinor took notes.
Nevis looked over the finished list. There were a total of eight, including the Chameleon. Five males, three females.
“They’re so powerful,” Catriona muttered. “I don’t know how anyone could defeat them.”
Her concern was echoed by Quentin and the other girls as they talked amongst themselves.
“The kings from the mainland will help us,” Nevis assured them all. “They’re very powerful. You all have Embraced gifts, too, don’t you?”
Catriona winced. “Our powers aren’t any good.”
Elinor scoffed. “Says who? We think Bettina’s is excellent.”
Nevis nodded as an idea formed in his head. With the right strategy, he might be able to turn these rejected Embraced children into a formidable force. “What is your gift, Catriona?”
Sarah opened her arms wide. “She blows things up!”
Nevis and Elinor gasped, while Catriona winced.
“That’s a fantastic power!” Nevis exclaimed while Elinor quickly wrote it down.
“But it’s quite limited,” Catriona mumbled, her face turning pink. “I can blow up only one thing.”
“Castles?” Nevis asked. “Mountains?”
Catriona bit her lip. “Fish.”
Nevis blinked. “Fish?”
Catriona looked away, her face bright pink.
“That’s why she stays here, working the loom,” Bettina said quietly. “If she goes to the beach, too many fish die.”
Catriona nodded. “And I’m not allowed anywhere near the castle, because I make the queen’s fish dinner explode.”
Nevis bit his lip to keep from smiling. “I see. What other gifts do you have?”
“Elam can make people trip!” Quentin boasted.
“That’s a good power.” Nevis imagined making an entire army of soldiers fall flat on their faces.
“Only one person at a time,” Bettina added.
Sixteen-year-old Hannah raised her hand. “I can make it rain.”
“That’s a wonderful power,” Nevis told her and she blushed.
“But I can do only a small area,” she mumbled.
“We’re very grateful for your gift,” Bettina told her. “We’re able to water the vegetable garden every day while leaving the wheat field dry.”
“And then there’s Kurt,” Catriona said. “He can shift into a rabbit.”
“A human-sized rabbit?” Nevis hoped. “With huge, chomping teeth?”
“He’s a cute little bunny.” Eight-year-old Rose grinned. “I like to feed him carrots.”
Bettina sighed. “We have a hard time keeping him out of the vegetable garden.”
Nevis glanced at the list. It was going to be a challenge to turn these outcasts into an army. “Anyone else?”
Bettina shook her head. “The others are so young, their powers have yet to be revealed.”
“I want to make honey cakes appear!” Sarah said.
“I want to make our chores disappear,” Quentin muttered.
“So Kurt is a shifter.” Elinor finished writing her notes. “Has anyone seen my brother around here? He’s a shifter, too. Usually in the form of a dog.”
The children shrank back with frightened looks.
“The only dog on the island belongs to the guards,” Bettina explained. “They use the dog to scare the young ones into working.”
Elinor grimaced. “This is terrible.”
A flurry of scratching noises sounded at the door.
“Oh!” Elinor sat up. “That could be Brody!”
Nevis jumped to his feet, silently beseeching the Light that it would be his old friend.