Killin’ a whole slew o’
mixed-bloods would just be bringin’ the water to boil.”
It was after dinner when we all finally met
in the library. I had slept for a couple more hours, then spent a
few hours working with my mom according to Liz’s instructions.
Speak slowly. Tell her what really happened. Don’t get frustrated
when she goes blank or doesn’t remember.
I had been in medieval France when they
brought my mom out of the Monger ring daze the first time, when she
and Millicent had been hit with Slick’s words in the Council
meeting, and I had no idea it was so hard. Liz said that this time
seemed worse, so the effects might be cumulative, and I couldn’t
imagine what it would feel like to have my will pre-empted like
that. I thought we’d made some headway though, because her eyes
cleared at one point and she suddenly realized it was me sitting in
front of her.
“Saira! You’re safe!”
“Yeah, Mom – I’m here,” I said, grabbing her
hand.
Then she lapsed back into her dreamy state.
“Of course you’re safe. He said you would be.”
I left her room soon after that and
Millicent took my place. She squeezed my hand briefly as she went
into the bedroom, and I was ridiculously grateful for that
touch.
Connor was already in the library, looking
hollow-eyed and a little lost when I arrived.
“How’s Jeeves?” I asked.
His eyes focused slowly, but he finally
answered. “Did you know his first name is Mason? That’s what my mum
calls him when she sits in front of him, holds his hands, and tells
him things that are true.”
“What kind of things?” Liz had only just
moved her family into Jeeves’ flat above the garage during the
summer, so it wasn’t like she’d known him for very long.
“That she watches him work on the cars and
she likes how strong his hands are. She notices all the nice things
he does for us, but her favorites are the fresh flowers that
magically appear in the kitchen window every week. And she loves
that he’s teaching me things – things a boy should learn from his
fa—” Connor’s voice broke and he cleared it wetly. “His
father.”
I caught his gaze in mine. “How do you feel
about that?”
He held my eyes for a long moment before he
finally spoke. “I want to shake him and make him wake up to her
sitting in front of him. He needs to wake up, Saira. It’s not
fair—” he cleared his throat again. “It’s not fair for Mum to
finally find someone, just to have him disappear in front of her
eyes.”
“I got through to my mom for about a second.
Has she been able to reach him at all?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know, she hasn’t
told me. But he’s not a Descendant. What if he doesn’t come out of
it?”
I couldn’t answer that, and Ringo saved me
from having to try when he came into the room holding a book open
to a marked page. “I found the Monger ring!”
Both of us were by his side in a second.
Ringo had been with me in Slick’s office when we’d taken the
genealogy, and he’d actually held the blood red gemstone ring in
his hands for a second until I made him put it back. I didn’t
regret it, because that ring just felt nasty, but this
wouldn’t even be a conversation if I had let him nick it like he
wanted to.
Ringo pointed to a drawing of a ring that
instantly sent shivers down my spine. It was the same ring we’d
seen in Slick’s office, and the same one he was wearing when he
snake-charmed my mom and Jeeves. Ringo read the description.
“It’s called Le Sang du Christ, and it
disappeared in 1842.”
My limited French was enough to translate.
“The Blood of Christ. That’s graphic. Disappeared from where?”
“From the Vatican. The Blood of Christ has
been in the papal records since about the ninth century.”
I stared at Ringo. “The popes had the Monger
ring?” It sounded blasphemous to even say it.
He shrugged. “It was part of the Vatican’s
collection until 1842.”
“Do you think the popes
mixed-bloods would just be bringin’ the water to boil.”
It was after dinner when we all finally met
in the library. I had slept for a couple more hours, then spent a
few hours working with my mom according to Liz’s instructions.
Speak slowly. Tell her what really happened. Don’t get frustrated
when she goes blank or doesn’t remember.
I had been in medieval France when they
brought my mom out of the Monger ring daze the first time, when she
and Millicent had been hit with Slick’s words in the Council
meeting, and I had no idea it was so hard. Liz said that this time
seemed worse, so the effects might be cumulative, and I couldn’t
imagine what it would feel like to have my will pre-empted like
that. I thought we’d made some headway though, because her eyes
cleared at one point and she suddenly realized it was me sitting in
front of her.
“Saira! You’re safe!”
“Yeah, Mom – I’m here,” I said, grabbing her
hand.
Then she lapsed back into her dreamy state.
“Of course you’re safe. He said you would be.”
I left her room soon after that and
Millicent took my place. She squeezed my hand briefly as she went
into the bedroom, and I was ridiculously grateful for that
touch.
Connor was already in the library, looking
hollow-eyed and a little lost when I arrived.
“How’s Jeeves?” I asked.
His eyes focused slowly, but he finally
answered. “Did you know his first name is Mason? That’s what my mum
calls him when she sits in front of him, holds his hands, and tells
him things that are true.”
“What kind of things?” Liz had only just
moved her family into Jeeves’ flat above the garage during the
summer, so it wasn’t like she’d known him for very long.
“That she watches him work on the cars and
she likes how strong his hands are. She notices all the nice things
he does for us, but her favorites are the fresh flowers that
magically appear in the kitchen window every week. And she loves
that he’s teaching me things – things a boy should learn from his
fa—” Connor’s voice broke and he cleared it wetly. “His
father.”
I caught his gaze in mine. “How do you feel
about that?”
He held my eyes for a long moment before he
finally spoke. “I want to shake him and make him wake up to her
sitting in front of him. He needs to wake up, Saira. It’s not
fair—” he cleared his throat again. “It’s not fair for Mum to
finally find someone, just to have him disappear in front of her
eyes.”
“I got through to my mom for about a second.
Has she been able to reach him at all?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know, she hasn’t
told me. But he’s not a Descendant. What if he doesn’t come out of
it?”
I couldn’t answer that, and Ringo saved me
from having to try when he came into the room holding a book open
to a marked page. “I found the Monger ring!”
Both of us were by his side in a second.
Ringo had been with me in Slick’s office when we’d taken the
genealogy, and he’d actually held the blood red gemstone ring in
his hands for a second until I made him put it back. I didn’t
regret it, because that ring just felt nasty, but this
wouldn’t even be a conversation if I had let him nick it like he
wanted to.
Ringo pointed to a drawing of a ring that
instantly sent shivers down my spine. It was the same ring we’d
seen in Slick’s office, and the same one he was wearing when he
snake-charmed my mom and Jeeves. Ringo read the description.
“It’s called Le Sang du Christ, and it
disappeared in 1842.”
My limited French was enough to translate.
“The Blood of Christ. That’s graphic. Disappeared from where?”
“From the Vatican. The Blood of Christ has
been in the papal records since about the ninth century.”
I stared at Ringo. “The popes had the Monger
ring?” It sounded blasphemous to even say it.
He shrugged. “It was part of the Vatican’s
collection until 1842.”
“Do you think the popes
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