Dark Heart of Magic
Page 60
“You fought a good match,” I said, trying to cheer her up. “The way you moved out there . . . it was incredible how fast you were.”
She gave me a disgusted look as though I’d just said the stupidest thing ever. “Not fast enough. Not good enough. I’m never fast enough, I’m never good enough. Not with her around.”
She glared at Deah a final time, then stomped off into the fairgrounds. I let her go. Yeah, it sucked to lose, especially to the same person over and over again, but that was life sometimes. Katia seemed to specifically blame Deah because she’d lost, but Deah had clearly been the better fighter. I might not like Deah, but she’d won fair and square, just as I had against Devon.
And there was something else about Katia that was bothering me—some small, nagging detail that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. But the more I tried to figure it out, the deeper it sank into my brain.
After a couple of minutes, I gave up and moved on to the next thing—the final round of the Tournament of Blades. I wondered who would win, Deah or me. I looked down at the star carved into the center of my black blade and my star-shaped, sapphire ring.
I thought of my mom then, and I was determined that it was going to be me.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
I headed back over to the fence to hang out with Devon, Felix, Poppy, and Oscar before the final match. It took me much longer than it should have, since people stopped me every few feet to congratulate me and wish me luck in the final round. One tourist rube with a camera even asked if I would let her take my photo. I didn’t really want to, but I decided to be nice and pose for a picture, even though my smile was more of a snarl.
I had just moved away from the tourist and was blinking away the blinding camera flash when a hand settled on my shoulder.
I spun around to find Seleste Draconi staring at me with her bright, intense eyes—eyes that seemed to look right through me.
“You can’t win today, Serena,” she said in a dreamy voice. “You’re my sister, but you can’t win today.”
I couldn’t have been more shocked than if she’d zapped me with a bolt of lightning.
Sister? Seleste and my mom were sisters?
“You need to let the girls win,” Seleste continued. “It’s the only way they’re ever going to find each other. They’re blood, and blood should stick together.”
I shook off my shock. Seleste was just spouting nonsense again or somehow saying that she and my mom had been as close as sisters. Mom had never mentioned having an actual sister. Not even once. Surely, Mom would have told me that I had an aunt—
My stomach dropped. Or maybe not, since that aunt was married to Victor Draconi.
“I think you’re confused.” I didn’t want to hurt Seleste, but my voice came out sharper than I intended. “I’m not Serena Sterling. I’m her daughter, Lila. Remember? We met the other night at the cemetery.”
For a moment, Seleste’s face cleared, but then her eyes clouded over again, burning even brighter than before. “Lila . . . she finally came to her father’s grave, just the way I saw she would. . . .” Her voice trailed off, and she seemed lost in her own thoughts.
This conversation was going around and around in circles, and I didn’t need Seleste and her visions messing with my head. Not before the final match. I turned to head back to my friends, but Seleste latched out and grabbed hold of my arm.
She looked at me again, this time actually seeming to see me, and not my mom or some ghost or misty vision of the future. “You have to let Deah win,” she hissed. “Whatever you want, I’ll pay it and more. Just let her win the tournament. You’re the only one who can beat her. And you’re the only one who can beat him.”
I shook my head. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
She tightened her grip on my arm, still staring at me. “Victor will punish Deah if she doesn’t win. You know he will. The same way he punishes me when one of my visions turns out to be wrong or not what he expected. But he doesn’t realize that I’m telling him the wrong things. Never the right things. Never the important things. He slaps me and locks me away with no food, but I don’t care. Not anymore.”
Seleste cackled, as if she was happy she was lying to Victor despite all the pain and misery it brought down on her.
“I’m going to do my best in the tournament,” I said, trying to bring her back to the here and now. “Maybe Deah will beat me, and maybe she won’t. But I’m not going to just let her win.”
Seleste tightened her grip, her fingers painful and bruising on my upper arm. “But you have to. It’s the only way Victor will ever be defeated—if you and Deah work together.”
I had no idea what she was talking about. Deah loved her father and desperately wanted his approval. Even if she knew what a monster Victor was, there was no way she would ever turn against him. Especially not to help me. Deah hated me because I knew about her and Felix. Because I kept pointing out how stupid it was for the two of them to keep sneaking around when so many people could get hurt as a result.
“I’m sorry,” I repeated in a firmer voice. “But I can’t help you.”
Seleste’s face took on a sly, cunning look. “Not even to get your revenge on Victor for murdering Serena?”
Her words were like a slap across the face. “How do you know about that?”
No one knew about that, except for Mo, Devon, Claudia, and a few other people. It wasn’t like Victor had announced he’d murdered my mom to all the other Families. I doubted he’d given the horrible things he’d done to her more than a passing thought over the years.
Seleste gave me a pitying look. “I saw it, of course.” She sighed. “I see everything.”
Anger roared through me. “Well, if you saw it, then why didn’t you stop it? Huh? Especially since you were her friend. At least, that’s what Mo said.”
“Not just her friend—her sister,” Seleste snapped back. “She was my sister, and I still couldn’t save her.”
More questions crowded into my mind, including why she kept insisting they were sisters. Seleste didn’t look anything like my mom, with her blond hair and dark blue eyes, and she didn’t even have the same kind of magic—
Wait a second. Blue eyes. Mom had had dark blue eyes. So did I. And so did Deah.
She gave me a disgusted look as though I’d just said the stupidest thing ever. “Not fast enough. Not good enough. I’m never fast enough, I’m never good enough. Not with her around.”
She glared at Deah a final time, then stomped off into the fairgrounds. I let her go. Yeah, it sucked to lose, especially to the same person over and over again, but that was life sometimes. Katia seemed to specifically blame Deah because she’d lost, but Deah had clearly been the better fighter. I might not like Deah, but she’d won fair and square, just as I had against Devon.
And there was something else about Katia that was bothering me—some small, nagging detail that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. But the more I tried to figure it out, the deeper it sank into my brain.
After a couple of minutes, I gave up and moved on to the next thing—the final round of the Tournament of Blades. I wondered who would win, Deah or me. I looked down at the star carved into the center of my black blade and my star-shaped, sapphire ring.
I thought of my mom then, and I was determined that it was going to be me.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
I headed back over to the fence to hang out with Devon, Felix, Poppy, and Oscar before the final match. It took me much longer than it should have, since people stopped me every few feet to congratulate me and wish me luck in the final round. One tourist rube with a camera even asked if I would let her take my photo. I didn’t really want to, but I decided to be nice and pose for a picture, even though my smile was more of a snarl.
I had just moved away from the tourist and was blinking away the blinding camera flash when a hand settled on my shoulder.
I spun around to find Seleste Draconi staring at me with her bright, intense eyes—eyes that seemed to look right through me.
“You can’t win today, Serena,” she said in a dreamy voice. “You’re my sister, but you can’t win today.”
I couldn’t have been more shocked than if she’d zapped me with a bolt of lightning.
Sister? Seleste and my mom were sisters?
“You need to let the girls win,” Seleste continued. “It’s the only way they’re ever going to find each other. They’re blood, and blood should stick together.”
I shook off my shock. Seleste was just spouting nonsense again or somehow saying that she and my mom had been as close as sisters. Mom had never mentioned having an actual sister. Not even once. Surely, Mom would have told me that I had an aunt—
My stomach dropped. Or maybe not, since that aunt was married to Victor Draconi.
“I think you’re confused.” I didn’t want to hurt Seleste, but my voice came out sharper than I intended. “I’m not Serena Sterling. I’m her daughter, Lila. Remember? We met the other night at the cemetery.”
For a moment, Seleste’s face cleared, but then her eyes clouded over again, burning even brighter than before. “Lila . . . she finally came to her father’s grave, just the way I saw she would. . . .” Her voice trailed off, and she seemed lost in her own thoughts.
This conversation was going around and around in circles, and I didn’t need Seleste and her visions messing with my head. Not before the final match. I turned to head back to my friends, but Seleste latched out and grabbed hold of my arm.
She looked at me again, this time actually seeming to see me, and not my mom or some ghost or misty vision of the future. “You have to let Deah win,” she hissed. “Whatever you want, I’ll pay it and more. Just let her win the tournament. You’re the only one who can beat her. And you’re the only one who can beat him.”
I shook my head. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
She tightened her grip on my arm, still staring at me. “Victor will punish Deah if she doesn’t win. You know he will. The same way he punishes me when one of my visions turns out to be wrong or not what he expected. But he doesn’t realize that I’m telling him the wrong things. Never the right things. Never the important things. He slaps me and locks me away with no food, but I don’t care. Not anymore.”
Seleste cackled, as if she was happy she was lying to Victor despite all the pain and misery it brought down on her.
“I’m going to do my best in the tournament,” I said, trying to bring her back to the here and now. “Maybe Deah will beat me, and maybe she won’t. But I’m not going to just let her win.”
Seleste tightened her grip, her fingers painful and bruising on my upper arm. “But you have to. It’s the only way Victor will ever be defeated—if you and Deah work together.”
I had no idea what she was talking about. Deah loved her father and desperately wanted his approval. Even if she knew what a monster Victor was, there was no way she would ever turn against him. Especially not to help me. Deah hated me because I knew about her and Felix. Because I kept pointing out how stupid it was for the two of them to keep sneaking around when so many people could get hurt as a result.
“I’m sorry,” I repeated in a firmer voice. “But I can’t help you.”
Seleste’s face took on a sly, cunning look. “Not even to get your revenge on Victor for murdering Serena?”
Her words were like a slap across the face. “How do you know about that?”
No one knew about that, except for Mo, Devon, Claudia, and a few other people. It wasn’t like Victor had announced he’d murdered my mom to all the other Families. I doubted he’d given the horrible things he’d done to her more than a passing thought over the years.
Seleste gave me a pitying look. “I saw it, of course.” She sighed. “I see everything.”
Anger roared through me. “Well, if you saw it, then why didn’t you stop it? Huh? Especially since you were her friend. At least, that’s what Mo said.”
“Not just her friend—her sister,” Seleste snapped back. “She was my sister, and I still couldn’t save her.”
More questions crowded into my mind, including why she kept insisting they were sisters. Seleste didn’t look anything like my mom, with her blond hair and dark blue eyes, and she didn’t even have the same kind of magic—
Wait a second. Blue eyes. Mom had had dark blue eyes. So did I. And so did Deah.
