Thief Eyes - Janni Lee Simner [37]
“We’ll take what precautions we can,” Svan said, “but given the liberties Hallgerd took with her spell, I can make no promises.”
Ari drew his jacket back on, staring at me all the while. “If you need someone to blame, Haley, blame me and be done with it.”
“You didn’t—”
Ari picked up a gray rock and turned it in his hands. Outside, the wind and rain continued. “I came home early, okay? From my summer job. I opened the door, and there they were together. It’s not like Mom hasn’t had other boyfriends, but none of them were married. The worst part was how Gabe and Mom kept saying it was none of my business. The hell it wasn’t. I was so angry.” Ari drew a breath. “One day I’ll learn to keep my big mouth shut.”
“So you walked in on them.” I quickly pushed the images that brought up out of my mind. “That doesn’t make it your fault.”
Ari flung the rock out into the storm. “Who do you think told your mother? Do you think my mom and your dad just walked up to her and confessed?” Sparks flew up from the fire. Svan shut his eyes, but his shoulders remained stiff, watchful. “I thought Amanda had a right to know,” Ari said, quieter now. “I am such an idiot.”
“She did have a right to know.” My voice was low, too, almost too low to hear over the wind.
Ari shook his head. “You don’t understand. She got so angry. She just couldn’t stop yelling, while your dad—”
“Got really quiet.” My throat felt suddenly tight. “I know.”
“Who could blame your mom for running?” Ari said.
I can. Smoke stung my eyes. Because she ran from me, too.
“Your dad thought she just needed time to think, only she never came back. And then my mom, she started looking at the earthquake patterns—there was a decent-sized quake, you know, the day Amanda disappeared—then went down by the waterfall, found a place where some footsteps ended—and began going on and on about Hallgerd and sorcery. I thought it was just another excuse. Mom had all sorts of excuses, like when she told me your parents were thinking about getting divorced, anyway—”
“What?”
Ari scowled and threw another rock out into the rain. “See? I never know when to shut up. I thought you knew.”
“No.” Mom and Dad fought, sure, I knew that—but they weren’t getting-a-divorce fights. They’d never talked about getting a divorce.
How could I not have realized, anyway? “I am so stupid.”
Ari’s mouth pulled into a rueful smile. “So you see, we have something in common.”
It doesn’t matter, I told myself again. All that mattered was that Mom was gone. That was Dad’s fault, and Katrin’s, but most of all it was Hallgerd’s.
I looked at Svan. “Do you have any spells to bring back the dead?”
Svan opened his eyes, and I knew he’d heard our every word. “You need a body to bring back the dead.”
Hallgerd hadn’t even left me that much. I glared down at the coin I held. The fire in me rose toward it. Funny how I could feel so much heat, when every time I thought about Mom, everything in me felt like cold ashes.
The ground trembled a little, as if in response to the fire—my fire or the coin’s fire, I couldn’t tell.
Svan raised an eyebrow. “So you see, Hallgerd’s spell remains active.”
Ari scowled. I ignored him and shoved the coin toward Svan. “Hell yes, I want to destroy it.”
Svan nodded. “As soon as the storm ends, I’ll gather the necessary supplies. We shouldn’t waste any time. There’s no knowing what my niece’s magic will do.”
What about my magic? I kept the thought to myself. “The sooner the better,” I told Svan. I’d cast any spell, if there was a chance that Hallgerd might feel it. If there was some chance I could hurt her as much as she’d hurt me.
Nothing matters as much as that, I told myself. Nothing.
Chapter 9
I dreamed I held a bow made of fire. I dreamed I drew back the bowstring and released an arrow.
Flames leaped from the string, catching my skin, my hair. Fire roared through me. I knew then that I was the bow, the string, the arrow. Fire consumed me as I flew through the air. So much fire—but I also knew better than to scream—
I woke with a gasp,