to be there when he did.”
“No, that was the second time. I’m talking about the first time, at my condo.”
Graeme eyed him for a moment.
He’s stalling .
“We have a spy—someone inside Lukas’s inner circle. He informed us Lukas was making a play for a human.”
“Then why didn’t you know about my sister?”
“I don’t know,” Graeme said. “Either the informant has been compromised, or they were unable to get the information out.”
“If they’re still there, they can help us get her back!”
Graeme nodded. “In time.”
“In time? No! Now! Every second she’s missing makes it more difficult to get her back.”
“This isn’t a normal missing persons case. We know who has her, and we know where she is. We’ll get her back, I promise, but we’ll move when the time is right and we have a plan with a high probability of success.”
He was right. Allyn wouldn’t go to trial without a case that he knew front to back, and he would never go if he didn’t believe he would win. But that didn’t make waiting any easier. He exhaled deeply. “What did you want to show me?”
Graeme held out his arms to either side. “This. This is everything my Family has gathered since the Fracture. Every artifact, every story, every family tree. Our entire history rests before your eyes.”
Allyn gaped. He stepped up to the enormous bookcase. There had to be thousands of books containing vast amounts of information on those shelves.
“As you can imagine, it’s really quite sparse,” Graeme said.
Sparse? Allyn pulled a heavy, leather-bound book from the shelf. The spine cracked and popped as Allyn opened it. The pages were yellow and stiff with age, smelled musty, and were covered with handwritten text.
“Most of the books are similar to the one you hold in your hand, a journal or diary or the like. Together, they make up our history. There isn’t an encyclopedia detailing our history through multiple volumes. All we have lies here, in this room, and others like it.”
Allyn surveyed the room with a new perspective. While vast, the information on hand would be very limited. Journals and diaries would be great for firsthand accounts, but they would only tell a small part of the story. And what they did have was losing its battle against time. Their history was deteriorating in front of their eyes. Allyn closed the book and gently placed it back on the shelf. “What in here leads you to believe that Lukas thinks I can wield?”
“In all actuality, it’s what isn’t in here that I believe holds the key. Our records are broken. All we have left are bits and pieces. Entire Families were killed. Others died off or seamlessly transitioned into life with humans. Their history, and our history along with it, was lost with them. Magic comes from magic. It has been passed down from parent to child for hundreds of generations. But without the proper ancestral records, entire bloodlines have been lost.”
Allyn turned to Graeme, realization forming. “Lukas thinks I’m a long-lost descendant.”
“Perhaps,” Graeme said. “However, even if you were, it doesn’t mean you’d be able to wield. The power would most likely lie dormant inside you, silent, unable to be harnessed.”
“Why?”
“To put it simply, you haven’t been raised in a way that makes feeling it easy.”
“But it’s possible.”
“Yes, it’s possible.”
“Then I want to try.”
Graeme nodded, smiling. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
“When do we start?”
“Soon,” Graeme said. “But first, I want you to trace your ancestry as far back as you can. And I mean everyone. Brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins—everyone you can remember. But they have to be blood relatives. No step-relatives or children from a previous marriage. Family by blood.”
“I understand. What is your plan? Are you going to reference it with your records?”
“Yes,” Graeme said. “And if nothing comes up, I’ll contact other
“No, that was the second time. I’m talking about the first time, at my condo.”
Graeme eyed him for a moment.
He’s stalling .
“We have a spy—someone inside Lukas’s inner circle. He informed us Lukas was making a play for a human.”
“Then why didn’t you know about my sister?”
“I don’t know,” Graeme said. “Either the informant has been compromised, or they were unable to get the information out.”
“If they’re still there, they can help us get her back!”
Graeme nodded. “In time.”
“In time? No! Now! Every second she’s missing makes it more difficult to get her back.”
“This isn’t a normal missing persons case. We know who has her, and we know where she is. We’ll get her back, I promise, but we’ll move when the time is right and we have a plan with a high probability of success.”
He was right. Allyn wouldn’t go to trial without a case that he knew front to back, and he would never go if he didn’t believe he would win. But that didn’t make waiting any easier. He exhaled deeply. “What did you want to show me?”
Graeme held out his arms to either side. “This. This is everything my Family has gathered since the Fracture. Every artifact, every story, every family tree. Our entire history rests before your eyes.”
Allyn gaped. He stepped up to the enormous bookcase. There had to be thousands of books containing vast amounts of information on those shelves.
“As you can imagine, it’s really quite sparse,” Graeme said.
Sparse? Allyn pulled a heavy, leather-bound book from the shelf. The spine cracked and popped as Allyn opened it. The pages were yellow and stiff with age, smelled musty, and were covered with handwritten text.
“Most of the books are similar to the one you hold in your hand, a journal or diary or the like. Together, they make up our history. There isn’t an encyclopedia detailing our history through multiple volumes. All we have lies here, in this room, and others like it.”
Allyn surveyed the room with a new perspective. While vast, the information on hand would be very limited. Journals and diaries would be great for firsthand accounts, but they would only tell a small part of the story. And what they did have was losing its battle against time. Their history was deteriorating in front of their eyes. Allyn closed the book and gently placed it back on the shelf. “What in here leads you to believe that Lukas thinks I can wield?”
“In all actuality, it’s what isn’t in here that I believe holds the key. Our records are broken. All we have left are bits and pieces. Entire Families were killed. Others died off or seamlessly transitioned into life with humans. Their history, and our history along with it, was lost with them. Magic comes from magic. It has been passed down from parent to child for hundreds of generations. But without the proper ancestral records, entire bloodlines have been lost.”
Allyn turned to Graeme, realization forming. “Lukas thinks I’m a long-lost descendant.”
“Perhaps,” Graeme said. “However, even if you were, it doesn’t mean you’d be able to wield. The power would most likely lie dormant inside you, silent, unable to be harnessed.”
“Why?”
“To put it simply, you haven’t been raised in a way that makes feeling it easy.”
“But it’s possible.”
“Yes, it’s possible.”
“Then I want to try.”
Graeme nodded, smiling. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
“When do we start?”
“Soon,” Graeme said. “But first, I want you to trace your ancestry as far back as you can. And I mean everyone. Brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins—everyone you can remember. But they have to be blood relatives. No step-relatives or children from a previous marriage. Family by blood.”
“I understand. What is your plan? Are you going to reference it with your records?”
“Yes,” Graeme said. “And if nothing comes up, I’ll contact other
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