The vision left her breathless.
Lisa clutched the edge of the stone window, knuckles white, heart racing. The echo of the words "The key must bleed" still hissed in her ears. She stared out over Bellflower, the moon shrouded in passing clouds, and for a fleeting moment, she swore the stars blinked out one by one.
Something had awoken. Inside her. Around her.
She didn't know where the voice came from... only that it sounded familiar.
Not long after, the door creaked open.
Lydia entered, soft-footed and anxious. "Mi lady... there's someone asking for you. She came with the trade carriage from the northern gate. The guards say she... insisted to see you. But she cannot speak."
Lisa turned. "She's mute?"
Lydia nodded. "A maid. But strange. She has a mark on her shoulder,a crescent within a flame. She showed it to the guards and wouldn't leave until they brought her in."
Something stirred in Lisa's mind.
A distant memory. Rain falling on cobbled stone. A girl, younger, silent, always watching her from the trees. A friend she'd forgotten... until now.
"Bring her to me," Lisa said, voice barely above a whisper.
⸻
She came in just before midnight.
The girl was small,no more than Lisa's age, with wide eyes too haunted for her youthful face. Her dark hair was braided back tightly, her dress simple, worn from travel.
She dropped to her knees the moment she saw Lisa.
"Please stand," Lisa said, crossing to her.
The girl shook her head and slowly rolled back the sleeve of her gown.
The mark was there. Red as fresh blood, shaped like fire encircling a crescent moon.
Lisa gasped. "You... I've seen you before. In Solenna."
The girl nodded.
Lisa knelt beside her. "What is your name?"
She pointed to her throat, then raised one hand and traced letters into Lisa's palm.
S-Y-R-A.
"Syra," Lisa whispered.
The girl nodded again, fiercely.
Lydia hovered at the door. "Mi lady... she won't speak. But she brought this."
She handed Lisa a small, wooden box. Inside was a crumpled piece of silk, embroidered with symbols Lisa didn't recognize until she did.
They matched the glowing ones from her vision.
Syra stared at her, eyes pleading, then took Lisa's hand and pressed it over her heart. The mark on her shoulder shimmered faintly.
A connection. Not just a servant. Something deeper.
Family?
Magic?
Lisa swallowed hard. "You came to warn me."
Syra nodded.
⸻
The next morning was anything but peaceful.
The aftermath of the banquet left the castle buzzing. Rumors spread like fire: the girl was possessed, the Queen was cursed, witches were already within Bellflower.
Leonard hadn't spoken to Lisa since the night before.
He was cold again. Distant. Buried in shadows and secrets.
But as Lisa walked the palace halls with Syra trailing silently behind her, she noticed it guards doubling in the west wing, hushed voices by the barracks, and nobles leaving early with pale faces.
Something was coming.
By midday, a summons arrived.
Lisa was to attend a closed council meeting with Leonard.
"Why now?" she asked Rhys, who had delivered the parchment himself.
"Because they know," Rhys said darkly. "And your visions... they're waking up."
He gave Syra a cautious glance. "Who's the girl?"
"A maid from Solenna. She has the same mark as the witches that tried to take me."
"Then she's dangerous."
"No," Lisa said quietly. "She's mine."
Rhys raised a brow but didn't argue.
⸻
The council chamber was cold.
Leonard sat at the head of the long table, Caelum and Hadley to his left, Rhys to his right. The Chancellor, Lady Verona's father, was absent for reasons no one addressed. Replaced by his advisor, a man named Master Drelos, whose pale eyes never left Lisa.
She took her place beside Leonard.
For a moment, she thought he might look at her. Say something. But his eyes stayed forward.
"Begin," he said.
Caelum was first to speak. "There was a witch circle found in the forest three miles west. The symbols match those found in the possession girl's blood."
Rhys added, "We've traced the coded crow-letter to a highborn merchant from Avedon. He was found dead this morning. Tongue carved out. They're silencing their informants."
Lisa shifted uneasily.
Hadley's voice was softer, more pointed. "They know who they're after. They're not hiding it anymore."
Leonard's gaze flicked to Lisa at last.
"Someone in this court is helping them. Feeding them knowledge."
Lisa froze. "And you think it's... someone close?"
"We don't think," Caelum said. "We know."
Leonard's voice cut through the room. "Which is why you must be careful at all times. No wandering the halls alone. No guests in your chambers without my approval."
She stared at him. "So now I'm your prisoner?"
"You're a key," he replied coolly. "And keys get stolen."
⸻
After the meeting, she stormed away.
The corridors blurred past her as anger and confusion built in her chest. She didn't notice the footsteps until someone grabbed her arm.
Caelum.
He didn't smile. "Don't be stupid."
"Let go of me."
"Leonard may not say it aloud, but you're the only thing keeping him sane."
She blinked. "You think he cares about me?"
"I think," Caelum said, voice low, "he's never looked at anyone the way he looks at you. And that scares him."
She tried to pull away.
He leaned in closer. "We've both done terrible things. But none of us want to see you burn."
Lisa trembled.
Not from fear.
From the truth buried in his words.
She was the key.
And if the witches were done hiding...
Then the war was only beginning.