Maria made a small choking noise. Sienna scrambled over to her. “Roman, help me. She needs some fresh air.”

Together they lifted the old witch off her seat and led her outside.

“I saw my father this morning,” I told Evdokia. The sky above me was so blue. If only I could sprout wings and fly far away from all my problems. “He kidnapped Saiman. He’s refusing to release him and I can’t ignore it. There will be war. I’ve signed my husband’s and my child’s death warrants.”

Evdokia looked at me, her face at once sad and kind. “No. You didn’t. We foresaw this days ago. One way or the other, it would’ve come to pass.”

I came and sat by her. She reached out and stroked my hair. It felt so familiar. She must’ve done it when I was little, before Voron took me away.

“Help me.” My voice came out quiet and ragged.

“Anything in my power,” she promised. “All my magic is yours. I wish I knew what to do.”

Sienna came back into the cave and sat by me.

“Why haven’t the three of you left?” I asked.

“Because this is our city,” Evdokia said. “Our home. We can’t all leave, Katenka. The future will find us.”

“Roman is right,” Sienna said. “The future is fluid. But when it’s this close and this certain, you have to do something really big to change it. Something that will alter everything. Something nobody would expect.”

“I don’t have any Rubicons to cross,” I told her.

“Find one,” Sienna said. “If anybody can do it, you can.”

CHAPTER

4

THE MAGIC WAVE ended on our way back to the city and technology once again reasserted itself. When we got back to the office, it was early afternoon and nobody was there. Ascanio must have bailed early. My mammoth donkey was also MIA, probably back at our home, in the stables. I dropped Roman off, went into the office, and pulled a legal pad to me. I always thought better with a pen in hand.

I wrote Choices on the piece of paper and stared at it.

1. Fight my father now, before he expects a direct assault.
2. Wait until my father attacks.
3. Play ball.

Choice number one was right out. I still had no idea how to defeat my father. I’d felt his power this morning and while I could hold my own, if he gave it his all, he would crush me. Also, I had no army. I could ask the Pack and the Witches for help, but they would expect some sort of strategy besides “let’s all run at Roland’s castle and get killed.”