"No wonder I couldn't trace Miranda's scent anywhere—it's turned rancid," Rowan muttered under his breath.
"And I doubt she's doing well," Lyra said, her tone calm but laced with certainty. "Soon, she'll need the spellbook to undo the magic she meddled with without permission."
Casian, who had been silent until now, finally spoke. His voice was quiet, but the weight in it was unmissable.
"How do you know so much about that spellbook, Lyra?"
She hesitated, lips pressing into a thin line. She had never meant to admit it—never wanted him to know she had trespassed in his library—but there was no way around it now.
"I went into your library," she confessed, her voice low but steady. "I needed to see the spellbook you mentioned. But I suppose you missed the very first warning—it states that every spell comes with a price."
The air in the room seemed to thicken. Her voice gained a sharper edge, a quiet authority that made even Rowan glance at her differently.
