She jumped up, unsteady on her feet, and darted over to the table where her stack of cards lay. She waved her hands over the deck, her whispered words unintelligible, and then expertly cut the deck in half.
She placed the first card faceup on the table. The tower card. The terrifying, yet familiar sight of the burning structure stared at me from across the room. A wave of nausea rolled in my stomach. Then Serena placed another card on the table.
It depicted a young woman kneeling at the edge of a small stream with two containers of water. She was pouring one of the containers back into the stream and the other she was pouring onto dry land. Behind her, there were several stars shining brightly. It was a sharp contrast to the bleak tower card lying next to it.
Serena looked up at me, relief etched on her face. “The star card,” she said, pointing.
“Please tell me that one doesn’t also predict my impending doom.”
“Oh, no.” Serena held up the star card and smiled. “This means there’s hope.”
“So what do we do now?” Gareth asked, moving toward the table. “Do we run? Go into hiding?”
Serena shook her head. “Well, now that we know what’s drawing them in, it’s possible that the vision will change. The future is subjective, after all, much like my visions. Nothing is set in stone until it happens.”
“Okay,” I said. “So, just so we’re clear—the Scavengers are tracking my magic. If I stop using magic, then they won’t be able to track me, right?”
Gareth nodded, his eyes lighting up. “Yes, that’s it. We just have to change the vision.”
“There’s only one small problem,” I said. “Changing the vision is contingent on me not using my magic. So far I haven’t consciously attempted to use it—it just happened. How am I supposed to stop doing something I apparently have no control over?”
Gareth and Serena shared a look.
“You’ll need training for your magic,” Serena said. “But there’s no time . . .”
I rolled my eyes again. “Okay, so we need something to draw the Scavengers’ attention away. Something to distract them.”
Gareth looked to Serena. “Would that work? If the Scavengers began to sense magic somewhere else, somewhere close enough to be connected, but far enough away that they wouldn’t be able to track it back to Lainey?”
“A diversion?” Serena’s eyes were wide, but she nodded. “Yes, I think it’s possible.”
“A diversion?” Maggie echoed. “How will that help?”
“We need to get the Scavengers off my trail,” I answered. “If my magic is drawing them into Lothbrook, then we need someone to draw them back out. Someone whose magic is more noticeable than mine.”
“But you’re a DuCarmont.” Maggie turned to Gareth and Serena. “Didn’t you just say that she was really powerful? Will you even be able to find someone with more power?”
“Probably not,” Gareth admitted. “But we won’t necessarily need to find someone with more power. We just need to find someone with more frequency. Someone who is using large quantities of magic on a daily basis. Any small spell that Lainey might accidentally cast would barely be a blip on their radar by comparison.”
“But it’s a crazy idea,” I argued. “How in the world can I ask a perfect stranger to go out there, perform magic, and potentially be captured by Scavengers?”
“Well, it’s obvious, isn’t it? It wouldn’t be a perfect stranger. It has to be me.”
I stared at Gareth, his words and the horrible realization of their meaning slamming me in the face. “No,” I said firmly when I found my voice again. “No.”
“There isn’t another option.”
“But you could be hurt . . . or worse. There has to be another way.”
Gareth crossed over to me and placed his hands on my shoulders. “I’m not afraid for myself. My only fear is what might happen if the Scavengers get their hands on you.” He gripped my shoulders even tighter. “They would deliver you directly to the Master, and that fate is not one I’d wish on my greatest enemy.”
I felt the tug of old Lainey on my psyche, the girl who would have accepted Gareth’s words as law without another thought—but I had made my choice and that wasn’t who I wanted to be anymore.
I stepped out of his hold and looked him square in the face. “I know you’re trying to protect me, but I won’t let you risk your life for me.”
“It’s not up for discussion.”
“Like hell it isn’t!” I hadn’t meant to raise my voice, but the words were fuel for my flames. “My mother died sacrificing herself for me. I won’t let you do the same.”
“This is the only way. We have to act now before it’s too late.”
“I refuse to believe that. I’m saying no, and I—”
“ENOUGH!” Gareth roared, his eyes flashing. “That’s enough, Lainey.”
I stared at him, my chest heaving.
“You think you understand what’s at stake here, but you don’t know the Master like we do. You don’t know what he’s capable of.” Gareth began to pace again, raking his fingers through his hair. “For years, the black magic in his veins has kept him alive, fueling his malevolence. He kills for sport and tortures his own kind for entertainment. If he gets his hands on you . . .” He whirled to face me. “I need to do this. Please, let me do this for you . . . and for your mother.”
Tell him no, the voice in my head whispered. There has to be another way. I opened my mouth, my lips already forming the words, but the look in Gareth’s eyes stopped me.
“Okay,” I finally whispered.
He didn’t wait for me to change my mind. Instead he moved back over to Serena and they began to discuss the logistics of the plan.
My entire body was shaking, a physical protest to the whole thing. Tiny arcs of green lightning were sparking from my fingertips again.
But my mind was made up.
“Don’t tell me to breathe,” I warned, when I saw Ty looking at my hands.
“Wasn’t going to,” he responded. Instead, he leaned over and pressed his shoulder against mine in a silent show of support. I bit my lip as an ache bloomed in my chest. It was a nice reminder of something good, even if it lasted only a second—even if my entire world was consumed with chaos.
“I’m gonna head home and pack a few bags,” Gareth was saying to Serena. “If the Scavengers are as close as you say, I’ll need to leave tonight for our plan to work.”
“What will you do?” Maggie asked, ever curious. “Where will you go?”
Gareth shrugged, a half smile on his face, though you could still see the worry painted across his features. “I’ll head toward the neighboring towns and search for my own kind. And I’ll do what I’ve always done—make swords. I’m a bladesmith, after all,” he explained. “And Faerie blades are infused with quite a bit of magic—it’s what makes them so powerful. It should be enough to draw the Scavengers away from here.”
Maggie’s face must have conveyed some hint of doubt, because Gareth winked at her. “Don’t worry, we Fae are tougher than we look.” He kissed Serena on the cheek and headed for the door without a single glance in my direction. Serena followed him, the murmur of their voices carrying down the hallway.