Witch Born(89)
Senna suddenly couldn’t breathe. She felt the Composer’s knife gaze on her.
“But I will offer you an alternative.”
“What alternative?” Senna asked, realizing her chances of escape were slipping by the second.
The door opened, letting in a breeze that stirred the tendrils of her hair around her shoulders. Cord came through, his dark eyes grave.
Ellesh nodded toward Cord. “Take on Cord as your Guardian.”
Senna looked from him to the Composer. “I’ll take my chances with the cave.”
Cord winced. “Don’t be stubborn, Senna.”
Ellesh held out a small jar of ointment. By the musky smell, Senna recognized it as the potion that allowed a Witch to create a Guardian. “I will permit you to roam about the city of Lilette unfettered.”
Unbound…Senna would have a much better chance of escape. Still, she glared at Cord. “I already have two Guardians.”
He didn’t respond.
She hesitated. Ellesh was far too keen to risk Senna escaping or warning Haven, which meant having Cord as a Guardian was somehow as secure as confinement. Dared Senna risk falling into their trap for the chance of escape? Did she really have a choice?
Obviously reading the defeat on her face, the Composer put the wooden jar in Senna’s hand. “Sing.”
Senna stared at the ointment, her head spinning. “Fine.”
Ellesh visibly relaxed. “The song for our Guardians is slightly different than yours.”
“Composer, perhaps—” Cord began.
Ellesh silenced him with a slicing motion. He clamped his mouth shut, but he didn’t look happy.
Senna eyed the sheet music Ellesh held out. She sang it once.
Guardian of Sisters and Witch Companion decree,
Bound in purpose and solidarity.
Hesitantly, Senna stepped toward Cord.
His lips were pursed. “Ellesh, she doesn’t—”
“Shh,” Ellesh whispered. “It is nearly done.”
He opened his mouth to say something more, but Senna had the song in her heart now. She walked toward him and began the verse again. Rubbing the potion onto her lips so it would gather the residue of her song, she sang softly. The music of the Four Sisters coiled around her like hundreds of silky threads.
On the third and final repetition, Senna stood directly in front of Cord. She looked up to find the concern on his face replaced with awe. She should have been used to that reaction to her song by now, but it never failed to surprise her. The look of rapture always made her feel like she could never live up to the beauty of her voice.
Ellesh whispered, “Hold the final note for eight counts on the third rotation.”
The final note rang from Senna’s mouth as she hesitantly rolled up Cord’s sleeve.
One.
The strands of thread spun faster. Like a hurricane.
Two.
Cord couldn’t see it, but he must have sensed something. His face was filled with a sort of longing.
Three.
Seeing his bare arm, she hesitated. She’d only ever made one other Guardian—Joshen.
Four.
With a pang in her heart, she looked back to Ellesh. The woman motioned for her to continue.
Five.
Senna gazed into Cord’s inscrutable eyes. She didn’t want to do this. Something was wrong. But it might be her only chance for freedom.
Six.
She closed her eyes and thought of Joshen.
Seven.
Her lips buzzed with the residue of power from the song.
Eight.
She pressed a kiss against the soft skin on the inside of Cord’s arm. She pulled back and studied the perfect green imprint of her lips. Suddenly, the white filaments around them snapped tight, jolting Senna into Cord’s arms. Only his firm grip kept her from falling.
Quick as a striking snake, Ellesh pressed Senna’s wrist against Cord’s and shoved a tiny, doubled-edged blade between their arms.
Senna blinked and shook her head. She glanced at her enemies in confusion. Warm, sticky blood beaded between her skin and Cord’s. She felt a tingle—like a wriggling feather—between their arms.
Senna jerked free. Beneath the sheen of fresh blood, a waning gibbous had formed on Cord’s arm. That wasn’t right. It should be a circle. With a start, she realized the wiggling feather feeling hadn’t stopped when she’d pulled her arm away. Her heart heavy with dread, she lifted her wrist. Just beneath the shallow cut, a waxing crescent was forming on her skin.
Her eyes traced the partial moon on Cord’s wrist. She knew if she pressed them together, they’d form a perfect circle. Ellesh’s satisfied smile woke a terrible intuition in Senna’s mind. “What have you done?”
Ellesh gestured to the pendant at Senna’s throat. “Long ago, we discovered how to incorporate the process used to make the Lilette Stone to alter the potion used to bond a Guardian to his Witch. Now, Cord will always be aware of you. He’ll be able to keep you safe.”