Chapter 121

ISLA

My family lived on the northernmost edge of Fresonia, in a little alpine village nestled into the side of the Dragon’s Teeth mountains.

I had grown up here, in this region of rock and snow, my childhood shaped by wind just like the granite of the mountains. It was where my family still dwelled. I doubted they would ever leave. They were as much of a fixture of Stone Springs as the mountain itself.

It felt odd returning to my hometown with Joseph in tow. Although the King had sent him along to aid and protect me, it still felt a bit like bringing a man home to meet my parents. I’d had the foresight to reach out in advance to let them know that I was there on official business from the crown, knowing that my mother would have fussed over Joseph otherwise.

As we pulled into the driveway of my family’s thatched-roof cottage, Joseph smiled at me. “I’ve never been to Stone Springs before. It’s lovely.”

I buckled my seatbelt. “Yeah, well, you say that now. Just wait until it’s buried in snow. Winter starts in September around here. You can always come back in a few months when I have my autumn break.”

I don’t know why I said that. It sounded like a date.

Joseph looked at me fiercely–he had never looked at me that way before. “I’d like that.”

Pushing any and all thoughts of those terrifying implications out of my mind, I led Joseph into the cottage.

My mother, Luisa, was preparing a large kettle for tea, as she always did for company. My father, Edwin, opened the door for us, looking at Joseph with uncertainty.

“Well, it’s not every day our daughter calls us to tell us that she’s on a secret mission for the King,” my father said in lieu of greeting. “Come on in.”

My mother had a much warmer welcome–giving both me and Joseph large, long hugs, and expressing her delight at seeing us. I could tell that both my parents were nervous. Due to their magic, it was not often that a stranger came into their home, although they did a good job of concealing their secrets.

Still, you could sense that there was something slightly off about the house–the air thrumming with a quiet intensity, which only the most sensitive of individuals could pinpoint as magic.

“So tell us, Isla, why are you here?” My mother asked, reclining in her favorite chair in the living room.

I took a long sip of my tea before answering. “Joseph and I are here to ask you about magic.”

My parents exchanged a wary glance.

“Don’t worry,” I said quickly. “He knows. As does the King. They’re not angry with you, we just need your help in finding a friend of mine.”

My mother looked down into her teacup. “That friend wouldn’t happen to be the Queen, would it?”

Joseph nearly choked on his tea.

“What?!” I finally spluttered.

My mother shrugged. “She hasn’t been seen for several days due to a mysterious illness, then you come here asking questions about magic. It wasn’t difficult to put the pieces together.”

“Well,” I said, trying to hide my shock, “yes, it’s about the Queen. She’s been badly hurt. We think that there might be some sort of magic that could… revive her.”

My mother raised an eyebrow. “I’m going to need a little more information than that, honey.”

And so the entire story spilled out of us. I told my parents of my friendship with Mila and the growing sense that there was a magic inside of her that even she struggled to recognize, and Joseph filled in the gaps about Felix’s curse.

It took us nearly an hour in total to explain the entire situation, but when we finished, my parents’ jaws were on the ground.

“My word,” my mother finally whispered. “So that’s why the rumors of dragons are spreading.”

Joseph offered up a sharp nod, and I could tell that he was tucking away that bit of information to tell Felix.

“Well, I confess that I don’t know much about revival spells,” my mother said. “But there has been a strangeness in the magic lately.”

My brow furrowed. “What are you talking about?”

My father cleared his throat and leaned forward. “We have reason to believe that the magic all across Fresonia is dying, my dear. And from what it sounds like, our missing Queen might just have something to do with that.”

“Do you think that the Queen had something to do with the magic dying?” Joseph asked.

My father lifted both palms in surrender. “Not intentionally. I’m just wondering if the magic is tied to her in some way. It would make sense, given that she is the Destined Bride of the King. Magic has a funny way of connecting us all.”

I looked at him curiously. “And so Mila’s death would lead to the magic dying out as well?”

“It would make sense,” my father stated. “Certainly with what we know about magic, which I admit is very little.”

“We never received proper training,” my mother cut in. “Everything I know is from ancient texts, dating back to the creation of Fresonia and the seven kingdoms.”

“Do you have any of those books still?” I asked desperately. “There might be answers in there that we need.”

My mother shook her head sadly. “Not anymore. I gave them away, about twenty years ago, maybe more, to a young woman from the farmlands. She was about to have a baby, and she could sense that the baby had magic. She wanted to get some knowledge in order to raise her daughter properly.”

“Do you remember her name?” I leaned forward eagerly.

My mother bit her lip. “I don’t, honey. I’m sorry.”

I exhaled in frustration. “So that’s a dead end.”

Joseph interjected, as politely as he could. “Do you know anything about other commoners having magic?”

“Up until a few days ago, the royal family did not think such a thing was possible,” I explained.

My mother cast a glance out their large bay window. “There are definitely whisperings. No dragons, but there are signs of enchantments throughout Fresonia. Your father is the only shape-shifter that I’ve heard of, but there are still rumblings of strange beasts in the mountains. You have to wonder.”

“I’ve never encountered one like me,” my father said gruffly. “But that doesn’t mean that I’m alone.”

“I can confirm that you are not the only one of your kind,” Joseph offered up.

My father gave him a small smile in response.

“If there is other magic in Fresonia, that means that there are other options for finding Mila,” I mused aloud.

My mother’s face suddenly paled. “What did you say?”

“We have other options for finding Mila?” I repeated.

“Mila,” my mother breathed. “That was her name.”

I frowned. “The name of the woman who took the books from you?”

That was impossible. Mila was my age, if not younger. There was no way she could have been pregnant twenty years ago, let alone in Fresonia in the first place.

“Not the young woman.” My mother had risen to her feet and was now stalking around the living room, her eyes bright as she spoke. “Her unborn daughter.”

“The baby with the magic,” I murmured.

Could it be?

My mother’s face paled. “She must have been the baby with the magic.”