church was located. 'But I'm here now, and ready to take on my full Zorya duties. Assuming, that is, you still want me?'
Kristjana looked at me with suspicion. Mattias, behind her, had a similar look on his face, although that was gradually replaced with a relieved smile. The two were joined by a third person, a man of indeterminate years with a soft French accent, who had been introduced simply as Frederic Robert.
'I don't think they're buying it,' Magda murmured softly.
Kristjana looked even more suspicious.
I sighed. 'All right, that was a big pack of lies. I'm not Anniki, and I didn't run from Mattias because I needed some time to cope with my sister's death and the awesome responsibility of becoming the new Zorya. The truth is that I really am Pia Thomason, a tourist, just like I told you before, only Anniki and I bumped into each other, and I inadvertently got the moonstone thingie that becomes a lamp, although I later returned it to her. She said she was going to see you guys. I take it she didn't?'
Mattias shook his head.
Kristjana's eyes narrowed. Frederic looked faintly bored.
'I'm sorry to have to tell you, but she was discovered dead in my bathroom.'
'Dead?' Kristjana looked instantly suspicious.
'Yes. I didn't kill her, and I don't know who did. I promised her I would find out, though, and I mean to do just that.' I gave all the Brotherhood people a long look to let them know I meant business.
'But why would someone kill her in your bathroom?' Kristjana asked.
'I don't know that,' I admitted. 'The only thing I can think of is that she wanted to see me because we'd talked earlier.'
Frederic nodded after a moment's thought. 'There might be something in that. We will, naturally, wish to conduct our own inquiries.'
'I figured you would. I'm trying to stay off the local police's radar, though,' I said, hesitant to put myself in their power.
'Naturally. The Brotherhood protects its own… just as it takes responsibility for seeing wrongdoers punished.'
There was a warning in his voice, but I simply gave him a quick nod. 'Thank you.'
'So you took the moonstone from her body?' Kristjana asked, her expression darkening.
'No. She wasn't quite dead, and before she died, she gave me the moonstone and told me I was the next Zorya, and begged me to make everything right. Since then, I've gathered up a few ghosts who want me to take them to Ostri, not that I know where that is, so I figured I'd better come here to get some help and try to do what Anniki wanted. Magda is my friend, and she came along to provide support.'
'You really are a tourist?' Mattias asked, his face scrunched up in confusion.
'Yes. I swore to Anniki that I would take over her job, and unless you have someone else to do it, I guess I'm it.'
'It does not work that way,' Kristjana said, her voice as cold as the icy waters surrounding the island.
'That's what someone else said, but the ghosts seem to think I'm a Zorya. And the moonstone turns into a little glowy moon when I'm around them.'
'There must be a blood tie between Zoryas in order for one to succeed another.' Her words were clipped and abrupt. I definitely had the feeling she was not happy to see me in place of Anniki. 'One cannot simply don the stone and become Zorya.'
'Well, I'm not related to her in any way,' I said, feeling oddly deflated. For some reason I couldn't pinpoint, I was a bit disappointed at the thought of no longer being Zorya. I was becoming fond of my little pack of ghosts, and looked forward to helping them.
'You will give me the stone,' Kristjana snapped, holding out her hand. 'I will take charge of it until another Zorya can be found.'
I stared at her hand with growing dismay.
'Pia,' Magda said, nudging me with her elbow.
I nodded, knowing exactly what she wasn't putting into words. If another Zorya was chosen, Kristoff and Alec would simply go after her, possibly even killing her if she put up a fight, as Anniki apparently did.
That wasn't the only reason I was hesitant. 'I might not be the most honest and moral person in the world,' I said slowly. 'But Anniki asked
'That is not your decision to make—' Kristjana started to say when she was interrupted by Frederic.
'You said Anniki was bleeding when you found her. Did she—this sounds strange, I'm sure—did she touch your mouth at any point?'
I stared at him in surprise. 'No.'
'Hmm.' He was silent another few moments. 'She did not harm you in any way? Cut you? Scratch you?'
'Anniki? She was dying!'
'Yes, and she must have known that, so she would make every effort to pass on to you the mantle of her responsibility. She would have instigated a blood exchange.'
'Well, she didn't do anything like that,' I said, shuddering slightly. I remembered the grip she had maintained on my hand and held up my palm. 'Other than dig her nails into me.'
Everyone looked with interest at the three faint crescent markings on my palm. Although the wounds weren't deep and had closed almost immediately, faint marks could still be seen.
'Ah, I thought it must be something like that. Very good.'
'It may be good to you, but frankly, I'm more worried about her transmitting some horrible disease because I had her blood all over me.'
He smiled. 'I can assure you that you will not receive a disease. What you witnessed firsthand was simply the passing of the light from one Zorya to another.'
'That does not apply here,' Kristjana protested. 'She is not of the Brotherhood.'
'Nonetheless, she has been chosen,' Frederic told her.
'Maybe you need to explain that a little more to me,' I said, still wary.
'There is normally a blood tie between Zoryas, as our learned sister says. But in the cases where there is not, one can be created by the exchange of blood between two individuals.'
'Is that the only way a new Zorya can be made?' I asked, rubbing my palm.
'No,' Frederic admitted. 'The stone itself can choose a Zorya.'
'The stone can?' Magda asked, clearly disbelieving such a thing.
'Yes. It does not happen frequently, but it can happen in cases where a blood relationship is not possible.'
Magda looked thoughtful. 'So Anniki was putting her seal of approval on Pia by digging her nails into her hand and making her bleed? That sounds painful, but pretty definitive.'
'It is indeed.' Frederic made one of those European bows that men here seemed to do so well. 'Welcome to the Brotherhood, Zorya Pia.'
'Thank you,' I said, heaving a sigh of relief. So far, so good.
'Now, perhaps you will tell me again what happened to Zorya Anniki,' he added smoothly, taking my elbow and steering me toward a back room.
'Again? I thought I went over it well enough already.' I glanced back over my shoulder at Magda, who was following close behind. 'There's really not a lot more I can tell you.'
Beyond Magda, Kristjana marched with a determined set to her jaw. I had a feeling she wasn't buying my tale. Mattias, on the other hand, looked positively sunny in comparison.
Frederic escorted me into a tiny, dimly lit office, holding out a chair for me before seating himself behind a thick Victorian desk. Magda took the chair next to mine. Mattias leaned against the wall, shooting me an anticipatory smile every now and again. Kristjana stood next to Frederic, her eyes veiled.
'Perhaps you would take notes?' Frederic asked her.
'Notes? There're going to be notes taken? Really. I don't know that I have that much to tell you—'
'It's just a formality,' Frederic interrupted, giving me a bland smile that made me more than a smidgen uncomfortable.
