“Okay, I’m going to go call Nick. I’ll meet you downstairs?”
“Yep. Levi will come get me when it’s time for the council meeting, but let’s work up until then.”
She nodded in agreement before walking out of the room. I stood and stretched. At least I wasn’t going to be trapped in the mansion alone or with Mario following me around all the time.
I shook my head and left the room, heading to the chamber.
“And where are you off to, Princess?” Mario asked the moment I left the room.
“To my chamber. Liz and I are going to work through some pictures tonight.” I glanced at him over my shoulders. “How are the vampires that were recovered from the crime scene, by the way?”
“That’s what the council will discuss with us tonight. So be patient, and you’ll get your answers.”
I took a few more steps.
“I wanted to say thank you, Abigail.”
Well, that was nothing I expected to hear from him. I turned around. “For?”
“Listening to Levi and me this evening. The order from Samuel has been tearing him up. He fights it, but there’s still that small thread of connection that makes him follow the powerful orders. You staying here eases that pain.”
I nodded. “Thank you for telling me what was really going on and not hiding it from me.”
“Levi was commanded not to tell you. Samuel forgot that I’m around and exist, so he didn’t put that in the order.”
I chuckled. “So, he doesn’t know everything.”
“Or he thinks I’m simply a nobody.”
“No one would ever give you that title, Mario.” And I meant it. Mario had been a valuable asset to Levi, even if he was a pain in the ass.
He laughed. “Go, figure out your case with Liz. I will see you later tonight.”
I left it at that and continued to the chamber. If we could get a break in the case tonight, then when I was free of my Samuel forced lock-in, and we could go right after Adrianna.
Liz and I sat in the middle of the chamber will all the images printed and spread around us.
“I feel like this woman knows exactly what she’s doing. There’s not enough here to connect the dots or track her down.”
Liz nodded. “She’s been at this a very long time, so I’m sure she’s learned a trick or two.”
“How did you track her down in the first place?”
“I might have had a tracking spell active.” She glanced at me and shrugged. “I mean, you don’t spend a month being tortured by someone and not come back with some sort of physical evidence.”
I frowned. “What did you use?”
“The stitching thread.” She dug in her bag. “And I came back with some fresh ones.”
I cringed and tried to figure out how she was so calm about the situation.
She motioned to the map. “Shall we figure it out?”
I nodded. “Might as well. We aren’t getting anywhere with anything else.”
“Will you do the honors?”
I nodded. “I’ve been itching to do some magic.”
She helped me clean up the photos and put them in an envelope. I grabbed a piece of chalk out of the desk and started to draw the circle.
“Physical circle? Typically you don’t need one.”
“Right, but because we’re dealing with another witch and I have no idea where her abilities lie, I’d rather be safe than sorry.”
“Fair. There’s two of us, so it’ll be stronger if she tries anything.”
I finished drawing the circle and dusted my hands off. I invited Liz in. I closed my eyes and invited the elements and the goddess into the circle and pushed my magic out. The circle closed with a snap of magic, and when I opened my eyes, purple washed over us in protection.
Liz smiled at me. “Still purple.”
“When it suits me.” I motioned to the map. “String down there, please.”
She put the string on the map, on Colorado. I picked up my blessed knife and pricked my finger. I dropped the blood onto the string and the map, but it was Liz that started chanting.
I hadn’t expected it, but I let her take control. The world around us changed as she completed her spell. Visions of a house in a forest appeared. It could have been any house, but I knew this one. I’d walked by it before. The regular world came back, slamming into me with a shove of painful magic.
I looked at Liz, and she grinned. “There.”
“What the fuck kind of tracking spell is that?” I tried to catch my breath.
“A visual one. I’ll teach it to you later.”
Man, that spell would have been so helpful before. “Okay, I know the house.”
“That’s good. Where exactly is it?”
We looked down at the map, and the string had broken into fibers and surrounded an intersection.
“About four city blocks away from my house. I’ll see if Merick can check it out, scout it before we get out of here.”
She nodded. “Good idea.”
I pulled the circle down and looked at her. “I thought you wanted me to do the spell.”
“Just the blood part.” She didn’t say anything else as she started erasing the circle with her foot.
I wasn’t going to push for an explanation. I could trust her. For all I knew, she didn’t want to see her own blood again for a long while.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Liz went to bed to rest. She seemed exhausted after the spell. I, on the other hand, went to my room to get dressed to meet the council. The first time Levi took me to meet them, I’d worn a fancy dress. Luckily the dress expectations had died down by now, and I could get away with a pair of slacks.
I pulled on the red dress shirt,
