My heart sank. I most certainly had nothing of Tristan’s. I didn’t even have anything that belonged to him. I sighed – the notion that I might be able to contact him had been foolish anyway. He wasn’t human – the earth’s magic didn’t know him. What’s more, there was no fire in Trollus.

But I did have Anushka’s grimoire. If I used it to contact her, I’d see her face. What more proof would I need? “What’s the incantation?” I asked.

She laughed, her tone mocking and amused. “You really know nothing, do you?”

My cheeks burned. “I don’t recall saying otherwise.”

“I suppose not.” She pursed her lips. “The incantation – what you say – matters not. What matters is that your thoughts are focused on what you desire to occur. Some find it easier to focus their minds by speaking words. By making a ritual of the spell. Some don’t.”

“I see. And after you focus your thoughts, you…”

“Consign the hair, fingernail, or whatever it is you are using to the flames.”

I winced. That was going to be problematic. I’d only have one chance, and what if she wasn’t near a fire? Then I’d have lost her grimoire for nothing.

“Magic requires something to be given up,” Catherine said, as though reading my thoughts. “Only the dark arts require nothing from the practitioner, because blood magic is all about taking that which is not freely given. That’s why using blood for even one spell is a slippery slope.” Her hand slipped unconsciously into her pocket to retrieve the bottle of absinthe. “It always catches up to you in the end.”

As it had obviously caught up with her. Nibbling on the tip of one of my curls, I considered how to phrase my next question. “I’ve heard that you were once Lady Marie’s maid.”

Catherine’s face smoothed into the expressionless mask of someone trying to hide a reaction. “That’s no great secret.”

“Were you dismissed because she discovered you were a witch?”

She barked out a laugh. “Hardly. That was half the reason I was in her employ.”

I blinked, surprised to have my suspicions so easily confirmed. The Regent, or at the very least, Lady Marie, was apparently not as opposed to witchcraft as the laws would suggest. Which only cemented my belief that she was helping Anushka hide from the trolls. “I’m performing at her solstice party,” I said. “She’s shown an interest in me, and I was starting to become concerned that it was because she knew…” I trailed off when Catherine blanched.

“You must go now.” She leapt to her feet, knocking her chair onto its back.

“But I’ve only just arrived. You said you’d help me.”

“That was before I knew Marie was watching you.” Snatching hold of my arm, she hauled me with surprising strength to the front of the shop. “Don’t come back.”

“What is wrong?” I demanded, unwilling to leave with so many questions left unanswered. “What happened to cause her to turn on you?”