Chapter 235

Agnes

Elijah lifted the lid of the capsule slowly and carefully, his fingers leaving smudges in the layer of dust that coated the old metal. I leaned in, eager to catch a glimpse of what was inside. James shifted closer too, his notebook forgotten on the ground beside him.

But as the lid came off completely, revealing the capsule’s contents, my heart sank.

There was no artifact. No stone carving of a wolf. No magical relic of any kind.

Instead, there was a single folded piece of paper—a yellowed letter, protected from the elements by the sealed capsule.

Elijah carefully removed the paper and unfolded it with care, and James and I crowded around to read over his shoulders.

The handwriting was faded but still legible:

“To whoever finds this letter,

If you are reading this, then our village is likely no more. We have made the difficult decision to abandon our homes, the place where many of us were born and raised, the place where we buried our ancestors. But we do so to protect something far more precious than property or tradition—the Lunaris Stone.

For generations, our village has been the guardian of this sacred artifact, passed down from the earliest days of our kind. The stone holds great power—it can both unbind spells and restore what was lost. In the right hands, it is a tool of healing, fresh starts, and renewal.

But in the wrong hands, it could be used for evil.

A coven of witches from the east has been pursuing the stone for months now. They believe they can use it to seize power over life and death. We have resisted their advances, their threats, even their offers of gold and protection. But they grow more desperate by the day, and we fear they will soon resort to more violent means.

Rather than risk the stone falling into the wrong hands, we have hidden it away. It’s nestled deep within the cave system beneath the north ridge, beyond the waterfall and through the narrow passage, there is a chamber with a pool of the clearest blue water. The stone rests there, under the water, protected by spells of concealment that only one with the purest intentions can get past.

We leave this letter in the hope that someday, someone worthy will seek the stone for its true purpose. May the Goddess guide your path.”

I read the letter twice, then a third time, trying to wrap my head around it.

“The north ridge…” James murmured, already turning to scan the surrounding landscape. “That must be those cliffs over there.” He pointed to a rugged ridge of rock that formed the northern border of the valley.

Elijah nodded slowly, still staring at the letter. “A cave system beneath the ridge. Beyond a waterfall.”

“Hidden in a chamber with a pool of blue water,” I added, hardly daring to believe it. “This is it, Elijah. We know where to find it now.”

James was already scribbling furiously in his notebook. “It’s not the same cave system my research turned up, but… This is as good a lead as any.” He looked up at us. “We should head there right away.”

I glanced at the sky, noting the position of the sun. “It’s already late afternoon. By the time we find the cave entrance and navigate through it to this alleged chamber… it’ll be dark.”

Elijah frowned, clearly agreeing with me. “I don’t like the idea of stumbling around an unfamiliar cave system in the dark. Plus, we’ll need to get home as well, and with Agnes’s lack of nightvision… No offense, Agnes.”

He glanced at me, and I nodded. “None taken. We’ll come back tomorrow,” I said, looking between them. “First thing in the morning, with everything we need. The stone isn’t going to go anywhere in one night if it’s been sitting in that cave for decades.”

Even though I could tell that all three of us were itching to continue the search immediately, reason prevailed. We carefully tucked the letter safely inside my backpack, and began the long hike back to Richard’s estate.

Sure enough, the sun was setting by the time we reached Richard’s estate, casting long shadows across the manicured grounds. Despite my exhaustion, I felt a rush of excitement at the sight of the house.

Tomorrow, we would find the cave. Tomorrow, we would retrieve the artifact that would allow us to unmark Olivia and put this chapter behind us.

And maybe, just maybe, we’d finally be able to enjoy the peaceful, quiet life that both Elijah and I craved.

But first… I needed a bath.

We entered through a side door, trying to be discreet given the state we were in—sweaty, dirty, and in my case, sporting a few scratches from navigating through thick underbrush. I hoped we could sneak up to our rooms without being noticed.

However, just as we passed by the parlor, a familiar, high-pitched giggle stopped me in my tracks.

“Mommy!”

Thea came bounding out of the parlor, her face lighting up at the sight of us. But she skidded to a halt a few feet away, her nose wrinkling as she took in our appearance.

“You’re all stinky!”

I laughed despite my fatigue. “Yes, sweetie, we are. We were hiking.”

Lena appeared in the doorway behind Thea. “Did you have a productive day?” she asked.

I glanced at Elijah, who nodded. “We did.” He looked at me. “Found an interesting spot for the photoshoot for the Isabella Project, too.”

Lena smiled, apparently accepting this explanation, which was a relief—but also filled me with more guilt about lying to her, a woman who trusted us enough to take our words at face value. “Well, Thea and I had a lovely day too,” she said. “We made cookies with the kitchen staff, and Richard showed her his collection of antique music boxes.”

“He even let me wind them up myself!” Thea exclaimed. “And there was one that had a little ballerina that spun around and around.”

“That sounds wonderful, sweetheart,” I said, smiling. “But now Daddy and I need to go upstairs and get cleaned up. We’re filthy.”

“Yes, you are,” Thea agreed with a fake gag that made James snort behind us.

“We’ll be down for dinner,” Elijah promised, ruffling her hair despite her attempt to dodge his dirty hand.

Lena wrung her hands and stopped us before we could go. “Actually, I was planning on visiting my siblings today. Now that you’re back…”

“Go,” I said with a smile, touching her arm. “Take as much time as you need.”

Lena nodded with a smile, and with that, we made our way upstairs to our suite, where a hot bath was exactly what my aching muscles needed. After we’d washed away the day’s dirt and dressed in clean clothes for dinner, I felt almost like myself again. Elijah headed down to dinner ahead of me while I finished drying my hair.

When I finally made my way downstairs, I paused at the foot of the grand staircase, hearing voices coming from the dining room—Thea’s small voice, punctuated by the lower timbre of Elijah responding to whatever she’d said. I smiled to myself as I turned to follow the voices.

But when I rounded the corner to the hallway, I bumped straight into Lena, who apparently hadn’t left yet. My eyes widened as I looked down and saw what she was holding in her hands.

The letter.

It must have fallen out of my pack when we came home. I’d been so tired and focused on getting upstairs and into a hot bath that I hadn’t noticed.

Lena held the letter up with a curious expression.

“What’s this about an artifact?”