Shoving the guards aside, I leaned close so that we were eye to eye. “I think that if you let her die because of what you have not done, you will find that guilt is not such an easy thing to escape.” Hands were snatching at me, pulling me back and away. And I could feel my father coming in our direction; this man of enough importance to him that he’d interfere himself. I had only a second. Jerking out of their grip, I whispered, “There is a loophole in the promise she made. Tell her to think on it.”

The human’s eyes widened, but there was no time to say more. I could only pray that I’d delivered Cécile an ally, not an enemy.

Chapter 27

Cécile

I spent the entire night sitting in front of the fire, hoping Catherine would contact me through the flames and tell me that she’d help; but all I’d got for my efforts were bloodshot eyes, smoky hair, and the realization that the other witch might be too afraid to provide me with assistance. If I hadn’t heard from her by tonight, my plan was to try the map spell again to see if the mark at the castle moved. It was a sure way to prove that it was Anushka, but I’d been avoiding using it again mostly because I so badly wanted to. The need to feel that flood of power lurked inside me, and I was afraid of how much worse the feeling would be if I gave in to the temptation.

Although I might not have a choice.

We were rehearsing in the foyer de la danse, because the stage in the room was much closer in size to the one we’d perform on at the castle than the massive one in the main theatre. A dozen young girls from the dance school played the roles belonging to the ladies of the court, their tarlatan skirts jutting out from their hips to reveal legs muscled from hours of training. The steps were no challenge to them, but their eyes gleamed with the excitement of holding the attention, however briefly, of the most influential members of the company.

I watched dubiously while crewmembers rigged a swing that would suspend me above the rest of the cast through the second half of the masque.

“And you will swing gently back and forth,” Monsieur Johnson explained to me. “The Queen of Virtue, smiling down upon her beautiful subjects.”

“I can’t smile while I sing,” I said, giving the swing a hard jerk with one hand to ensure it was secure.

“Smile with your eyes,” he exclaimed. “With your posture. With your very soul!”

From behind him, my mother rolled her eyes, and I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing. I was back in her good graces after my venture out with Julian, who had dutifully returned me home before midnight, and, to the best of my knowledge, not breathed a word about where we had gone. “My soul will be beaming, monsieur,” I said. “I will not disappoint.”