"Death?" I asked, my heart pounding.
Lucian turned toward me, "The legends say that when a banshee marks someone that person will die. The future is uncertain, so it's very rare that this actually happens. The most common experience with banshees is the sound of their wailing, a harbinger that someone may die. But to have the mark itself..." He sounded both horrified and in awe. I stared at it. My arm was sore, but nothing I couldn't handle.
"The shrine," I perked up, remembering what had happened. "Something happened when the banshee attacked me. There was light from the shrine, and it hit the banshee... It killed her." I explained.
"Is that right?" Professor Atwater sounded stunned.
"It appears to have also neutralized the wound, though not healed it completely," Lucian remarked.
Kairn looked like he was about ready to tell them both to get out.
"Did the banshee flee?" They asked pointedly.
"Well, whatever happened at the shrine, it seemed to have killed her," I explained.
Professor Atwater looked puzzled, but also excited. "I wonder if somehow you were able to call on the powers of the Queen of Witches."
"Interesting theory," Kairn huffed, "But what is going to happen now?" I turned to look at him and I saw something I'd never seen in his eyes before. Fear. It made my stomach lurch.
"It's going to be ok," I whispered to him. He pressed his lips against my ear, no longer trying to maintain a pretense for the professors.
Lucian chimed in, "We'll simply have to keep an eye on it. Esther, you let us know if anything changes or it begins to cause you more pain."
I nodded in agreement. Professor Atwater smiled grimly, "Lucian is right, there isn't much we can do. Watch and wait is about the best option."
Kairn gritted his teeth, but what other choice did we have but to comply.
"We'll leave you to rest then Esther," Professor Atwater said, letting himself out of the room.
When they both had left Kairn wrapped his arms around me. "I think you should stay with me. At least until you're better." He said.
"Okay, if it's not too much of a burden" I agreed tentatively. I didn't want him to feel like he had to offer for me to stay here.
"I'm not letting you out of my sight." He said, brushing his fingers through my hair soothingly.
That reminded me. "Speaking of not letting things out of sight, I had a letter. It was on parchment. What happened to it?" I asked.
"Oh, I think your things are still downstairs." He said, quickly adding, "Don't get up, I'll get it."
My heart raced as he went to bring the letter upstairs. I would finally read the only evidence that was buried deep inside the shrine.
His footsteps creaked on the old hardwood floors as he returned.
"Is this it?" He held up the aged parchment.
"That's it." I smiled.
6
Ancient Protections
I carefully unfolded the parchment, to retrieve whatever was inside. I hoped for something of my mother's, something that would help me learn more about her, and maybe about myself. Inside was another piece of folded parchment. It was definitely old, but not as warped and faded as the envelope had been. I let myself soak in the experience. Kairn seemed aware of the importance of the moment that was happening. He sat quietly beside me as I unlocked the secrets of the parchment.
It was a letter addressed to the same person, Aradia. I started to read the delicate cursive.
Aradia,
My dearest love, I'm writing to you in desperation. It's been too long since I've seen you last. Though we quarreled at our last meeting, do not remember me by the words I spoke in anger. You know that as long as there is night the Morningstar rises in the dawn. We were meant to be together. Are those not the words we spoke when we made the vow of ourselves to each other. We can find another way because I cannot bear the thought of losing you. Even forever is not enough time with you. Please, my dear, see reason and come back to me. I know that it is important to you, but what about us. Together we could have everything, more than anything you can imagine. I promise you that.
Yours,
Phosphoros
I could feel the passion in the letter. Phosphoros, whoever he was, clearly loved her very much. But there was so much left unsaid in the letter. I couldn't connect it to my mother's shrine. It was a letter between two lovers, and it seemed out of place buried in the ancient shrine. I handed it to Kairn, watching him scan the contents.
"Who do you think they are?" He asked.
"I don't know," I said. "All I can tell is that they were lovers in some kind of quarrel." I tried to hide the disappointment in my voice. This didn't tell me anything about the Queen of Witches.
"That's pretty much what I got from it too." He said.
I spent the next week or so recovering at Kairn's house. I was feeling much better within a couple of days, but he insisted that I stay. I didn't argue with him. It was nice to be close to him. After the incident with the banshee, I had not ventured into the Liminal world again. There was a sense of looming dread hanging over me, with no apparent cause or end. To get back to a sense of normalcy, on my fifth day of recovery I decided to head to the library. It was the only possible step I could take. I was trying not to think about it, but I had a definite sense of fear about resuming my training. The banshee's hollow face was still so fresh in my mind.
I gathered a few things that had been brought over for me, a backpack, and my notebooks. It felt good to get back to something normal.
The Library was busy, though not overly crowded.
