“Evie!” a familiar voice hollered, followed by loud thumps pounding against my door. “Evie, open up!”

I sat up in my bed, brushing the hair out of my eyes. I didn’t know when I’d finally fallen asleep, but it must not have been for very long. I felt exhausted. I sat there in a daze, forgetting for a moment what I’d been woken up by, when I was brought back out of it with the loud noise of fists against my door.

The pounding continued, and I worked up the energy to crawl out of bed and trudge across the room. As soon as I swung open the door, my cousin came bounding in, her voice alarmed. Her long, dark hair was strung up in a tight pony tail, and I briefly wondered if it had been cutting off her circulation with all the yelling she was doing.

“You have to come now! One of the underclassman was found dead this morning!”

I stood there, blinking at her without recognition. She stared at me like I’d gone mad as she waited for understanding to sink in. It didn’t.

“Did you hear me?” she asked impatiently.

“What did you say?” I finally answered, my brain slowly coming back to life.

“An underclassman was murdered, Evie! For Cyathea’s sake, what’s gotten into you?” her voice pierced my ears and realization finally dawned on me. Murdered? What was she talking about?

Then I remembered last night’s events and a chill washed over me. This was bad. Very bad.

“What, why? When?” I rambled, running to my dresser to pull out clean clothes. I could sense the urgency in her voice, and I was desperate to go investigate. She continued on with her fast-worded explanation while I rummaged for pants.

“They found her this morning. They don’t know what happened, but your mom was just arriving when I left” Korrheya, my cousin and closest friend, yelled at me. “We have to get back there!” she exclaimed, her high energy making me feel even more exhausted than I already felt.

I quickly changed out of my pink-plaid pajama pants and threw on jeans instead. I went to pull off my shirt, then decided that my plain white t-shirt was fine enough. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and all but groaned at my appearance.

I looked like shit!

I didn’t have time to do much about it, but I did settle on grabbing a hairbrush at the very least.

“Okay, okay, just let me brush my hair” I choked out.

“We don’t have time for that!” She screeched, before pausing momentary and finally taking a moment to notice my disheveled appearance. “Damn, you really do need it, though. What happened to you? Are you alright? You look like you saw the bad end of a spell” her voice filled with concern.

“I’m fine, I’ll explain on the way there. Who was killed?” I asked nervously. Only one thought was echoing in my head at this point. The Umbrath had to have done this, right?

“Charlotte” Korrheya’s voice was skeptical as she watched me finish getting ready. I slipped on my last shoe and stood back up, a frown on my face.

“Oh” my voice was filled with sadness. I’d barely known Charlotte, but she’d always been kind to me. I felt something in my heart shift at the thought that she was now dead. How did this happen? How had one of us died? I didn’t really need to confirm what had happened. Deep down, I knew. It could have been me, after all.

If only I hadn’t let it get away the night before, then an innocent student would still be alive. This was all my fault!

Moments later we left my room and were racing down the halls toward the underclassman dormitories where Charlotte had been found.

“So, are you going to tell me what happened now?” Korrheya’s voice broke through my thoughts.

I took a moment to think about the events myself. Being chased through the dark library by a creature I couldn’t see. The dread and fear I’d felt that night and still felt this morning despite having escaped the situation. I finally pulled out of the nightmare and told her about what happened.

“I was attacked in the library last night” I grunted, putting extra focus on where I was putting my feet. I didn’t have time for my usual clumsiness.

“What?! Why are you just now telling me?” Korrheya screeched, practically pulling us to a halt as she placed her hand on my arm to slow me down and meet her gaze.

“It was nothing” I assured her, pulling her back to a run. “I’m fine, I promise”.

“You don’t look fine” She shot back.

“Well, I am. Just exhausted, that’s all. We have much bigger issues to worry about” I kept my voice as calm as possible.

“Who attacked you, anyway?” she asked.

“Not who. What” I corrected her after a moment’s pause. She snorted in disbelief.

“Okay, I’ll bite. What attacked you?” her voice was strained. I couldn’t tell whether she was running out of breath trying to keep up with my long legs (which happened often), or if she was finding it hard to believe the words I was saying.

“You won’t believe me” I responded a little too quickly. I had already prepared myself to receive a bad reaction. My own mother had barely believed me for crying out loud, why would Korrheya?

“Try me” her response was lighthearted, but she had a skeptical look on her face.

“It was an Umbrath” my words had her stopping in her tracks again.

“You can’t be serious!” her eyes were wide, and when I didn’t respond, she muttered, “You’re not lying, are you?”. The look in her eyes told me was conflicted. She wanted to believe me but couldn’t convince herself I wasn’t pulling some kind of sick joke.

“I’m serious. It got away, and I fear that’s what attacked Charlotte” my voice came out in a guilty whisper.

“Evielynae. Why didn’t you tell me as soon as this happened!?” she pulled me into a tight hug, surprising me.

After a moment, I let out a long sigh. Korrheya knew me well, and she must have read my thoughts, for she squeezed me tighter and whispered into my ear, “This isn’t your fault”.

“It is my fault. I let it get away, and now it’s gone off and killed one of us!” I yelled, letting anger overtake me as I pulled out of her arms.

“We don’t know for sure that’s what killed Charlotte” Korrheya’s voice was level-headed, and calm despite my outburst.

“Yes we do. What else who have done it?” I said, defeat marring my voice.

“It still wouldn’t be your fault. You didn’t bring the Umbrath here, did you? You didn’t tell it to go after Charlotte” her voice was an echo in my ears as I flashed back into the darkness again. I felt uneasy as I recalled the moments when it had been so near, ready to close in on me. Is that how Charlotte felt when it attacked her, too?

“It doesn’t matter. If I’d killed it last night, none of this would have happened” I said, turning my attention away from her in shame.

I may still have a chance to prove myself, but no matter what happened now, I’d never forgive myself. Another witch had lost her life because of my failure.

“Come one, let’s go” I started forward again, not waiting for her response. She took my cue and stayed silent the rest of the way.

When we arrived at the dormitories, a large crowd had grown around the crime scene. I looked around in despair and nearly crumbled in on myself when I met my mother’s gaze. She stood in the center of the witches, preceding over the investigation.

I drowned out the noise of all the young girls gossiping around me and felt my heart crack even more with the look she gave me. It was a look of confirmation. I didn’t need to talk to her to know for sure this was the Umbrath.

“Okay, everyone. Go back to your classes. It’s finals week, and you needn’t let this set you back. I will handle it from here” her voice was calm, yet firm. It left no room for misinterpretation or disagreement.

I watched as all the girls slowly disappeared; their voices all muffled as they scrambled around me. I didn’t even notice Korrheya anymore. I stood frozen to the ground, guilt weighing me down as my focus narrowed on the broken body on the ground. Someone had thought to put a sheet over her at least, but I could still tell it had been a brutal death.

“Come one, Evie. We should go” Korrheya pulled at my arm, finally bringing me out of my daze. I looked up at her, then at her hand on my arm, but I made no efforts to move from where I was standing.

“Korrheya, why don’t you head to class. Evie will catch up with you” my mother’s voice pierced the quiet between us, and I was thankful I didn’t have to say anything myself.

“I’ll see you later” she said to me, letting her hand come up to briefly caress my cheek in silent knowing before she walked away without another word.

I knew she was only worried about me, but right now I couldn’t muster the energy to reassure her. I could barely process Charlotte’s death. I’d failed her, and if I didn’t hurry up and find the witch behind this, I’d fail more people. I couldn’t let that happen.

“Well, this definitely puts more urgency on the situation we discussed last night” my mother’s voice reminded me that I wasn’t the only one here.

I looked up at her and saw the stressed look that was evident across her facial features. It was a rare look; not one she typically shared with others, which meant this was as bad as I thought it was.

The headmaster stood off to the side, unsure what to do. Normally, this would be her jurisdiction, but with the High Witch taking charge, that left little room for her to interfere. I barely noticed her, instead turning my full attention to my mother.

“This is my fault” my voice cracked as I addressed her.

“No, it is not” my mother responded with frustration.

“Yes, it is! Why can’t anybody see that? If I’d caught the damn thing last night like I should have, Charlotte would be alive right now” I hissed back at her.

She looked at me, and her expression burned with fiery determination. She stormed forward, her finger extended accusingly at me.

“For Cyathea’s sake, Evielynae. Stop making this about you! Quit whining about what you didn’t do and help me find the damn witch actually responsible for this! I don’t have time to hold your hand and tell you it’s going to be okay”. Her angry words stung.

She was right. I’d been so caught up in my feelings and putting the blame on myself that all I’d really done was make the whole thing about me. I felt ashamed of myself. I may still be filled with intense remorse, but it would be far better suited turning that disappointment into finding the witch who’d done this rather than chastising myself over it.

“I—” I started but was caught off before I finished.

“Don’t you dare say you’re sorry. I don’t want to hear it. Just do something now” her voice was starting to lose the harsh tones, though she hadn’t completely thawed out.

The headmaster, understanding that this was turning into a family matter, dipped her head, and returned in the direction the other students had disappeared to. My mother half-heartedly acknowledged her as she took her leave.

I turned away from my mother with a nod and approached the still body on the ground, reading myself to investigate the scene. I stood frozen for a moment as I stared down at what had been Charlotte, but quickly shook myself out of it. I had a job to do.

I looked around the area for any signs of the Umbrath. Now that I was looking, I immediately noticed the circle of black powder surrounding Charlotte’s body. I bent down, and dusted my finger through it, rubbing it between my fingers. It felt like chalk between my fingers but peculiarly smelled like sulfur.

I scrunched up my nose at the smell, rubbing the powder off on my jeans. My skin was starting to burn where it had touched, and I stared at my fingers with wonder. How odd. Must be some sort of byproduct of the dark magic; it wasn’t something I’d seen before.

I made to lift the sheet covering Charlotte’s body to look for more clues, but a sharp voice stopped me.

“Don’t look at the body” my mother’s voice was stern.

“Why not?” I shot back.

“You don’t need to see it. I’ve already examined it. There is nothing to see that will help you” she left no room in her voice for me to argue. I let out a sigh and leaned back up. How bad had it been if my mother wouldn’t even let me see it?

I spent another ten minutes searching the area but came up empty handed. I was starting to convince myself there was nothing else there, when I caught sight of something sparkling in the bushes several feet away.

As I approached, I noticed an object that looked like a piece of broken glass, though it was silver and more shiny than glass could be on closer inspection. Whatever the material was, it was about as pliably as paper, though based on the angle it was stuck in the bushes, I assumed it was more sturdy.

I picked it up and examined it closely. It crinkled softly in my fingers, but didn’t tare or rip. I’d never seen anything like it, so I waved over my mother.

“Do you know what this is?” I asked, holding it up.

She looked at it as she approached, pulling it out of my hands to feel it in her own fingers. A shadow seemed to fall over her face as she scrutinized it.

“Caragin. It’s an ingredient typically only used in dark-magic spells” her voice was dark, and I felt a shiver run down my spine.

“Do you think it was used to summon the Umbrath?” I asked curiously.

“No, it wouldn’t have been used in the summoning spell. I’m pretty sure this is used for spying spells” her voice was curious. She handed it back to me.

“How do you know all this?” I looked from her to the thing she’d called Caragin as I scrunched it between my fingers. It reflected the sunlight in a bright beam that I was careful not to shine right into my eyes, though I still squinted as I looked at it.

“I learned a lot about dark magic when I was investigating the coven all those years ago” her voice turned sad, and I suddenly felt bad for her. It must be hard for her to see the same thing happening again.

“Why haven’t I seen this kind of information in your journal?” I asked, looking back up at her with curiosity. I’d read her journal so many times, and yet I’d never seen any mention of details about things like Caragin.

“I didn’t think it was necessary. Besides, I didn’t want dark magic spells to land in the wrong hands if someone had happened upon my notes, not after everything I’d seen” she turned away before I could see her expression.

“A spying spell, then” I mumbled, returning my attention back to the present. “Do you think they were watching when Charlotte was killed?”

“I wouldn’t be surprised. They’d have wanted to be there to make sure whatever they were doing worked, but they also wouldn’t want to get caught, either” her tone turned inquisitive again.

“Is there any way to trace it?” I felt hope as the words left my mouth, but it quickly fell away. The look on my mother’s face answered me before she did.

“Yes and no. You won’t be able to trace the person from that by itself, but if you can find where it came from, you might be able to trace the person who bought it. Caragin is not easy to come by. You’ll probably have a hard time finding the source, though. With it being forbidden, you’ll only find it in the underground market”.

“Sounds like I’ve got some work to do, then” I let a small smile play the edges of my lips. I didn’t let her words deter me. I was determined to solve this case and put a stop to the witch responsible for using dark magic.

I caught a hint of pride flash across my mother’s face before she left.

***

I hated to admit it, but I was too afraid to return to the library by myself so soon after the attack. Instead, I returned to class and found Korrheya. After I filled her in, I asked her to join me on my mission to acquire more information once classes were out for the day. She was only too eager to help, as I knew she would be.

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Hours later, we sat at one of the tables near the beautifully carved library doors. Though desperate as I was to catch the Umbrath, I was still afraid of it and wanted an easy exit. I knew it was cowardly, but if things went awry, I didn’t want to be trapped with no way out.

“What did you say the stuff was called again?” Korrheya asked, looking up from one of the large tomes sitting in front of us. My mother had asked the librarian to give us access to the forbidden texts they stored in a locked vault underneath the library. We were combing through a handful of them now.

The librarian, who hadn’t been pleased with the request, was sitting at her desk not too far away, eyeballing us warily. She hadn’t been on duty last night when I was attacked and my mother hadn’t provided her any details, so she didn’t understand the urgency of our situation.

“Caragin” I whispered, in case anyone else in the library was listening in.

Korrheya returned to the text in front of her with a nod. We’d been searching for any mention of the dark-magic ingredient for several hours now but hadn’t come up with anything useful yet. I was starting to think we’d hit a dead end but willed myself not to lose hope.

I returned my attention to my own book, which detailed the history of dark magic. I hoped to find some sort of information that would help me in my search, but I wasn’t sure exactly what I was looking for.

Dark magic as we know it wasn’t always what it seemed. In the era when the Gods reigned over Trinyaddae, such a force did not exist in the form we understand it today. Each of the Gods possessed unique powers, and it was through their divine wills that magic was shaped and brought into being. What is recognized as dark magic in the present, is the magic that can be traced to one God in particular—Valkar.

Initially, Valkar did not embody the dark attributes we know now. When the Gods first inhabited Trinyaddae, Valkar was primarily a scholar, consumed by a relentless desire to expand his knowledge. He sought to improve himself and his powers through study and experimentation. However, while Valkar dedicated himself to self-betterment, the other Gods turned their attention to the creation of life upon the lands. Uninterested in further personal growth, they focused on shaping and ruling over their creations. They sought only to live in harmony with what they’d built. This divergence in priorities led to a growing rift between Valkar and the eleven other Gods.

As the Gods distanced themselves from him, Valkar began to experience deep isolation. His yearning to share the fruits of his studies with others went unheeded, as the Gods rejected his advancements. They only viewed his pursuit of power as unnatural and believed the types of magic Valkar sought to harness violated the very essence of their existence. This rejection fostered a bitterness within Valkar, one that only deepened over the course of centuries.

In his solitude, Valkar increasingly turned to darker methods to augment his magic. Unbeknownst to him, these methods began to corrupt the natural order of Trinyaddae, an outcome the other Gods had feared from the beginning. Driven by a desire to gain the Gods’ approval, Valkar sought to use his newfound powers to manipulate them. Believing that he could force their compliance with his will, Valkar wielded his dark magic as a weapon against the divine.

This culminated in a catastrophic conflict, and the other Gods united in an effort to neutralize Valkar’s influence over their creation. A fierce battle ensued, with Valkar fiercely resisting, but ultimately, the Gods prevailed. In the end, Valkar was driven from Trinyaddae, fleeing into the void between worlds to escape the wrath of his former kin.

Although Valkar himself departed from Trinyaddae, his magic endured. Fragments of his dark power were scattered across the land as remnants of his earlier studies and the final battle. This magic, now forbidden, continues to linger within the world. While it is not easily wielded due to the diverse magical abilities of the species in Trinyaddae today, those who can tap into it are to be feared, for they have the potential to rival the power of the Dark God himself.

My curiosity peaked as I read the text. Since Dark magic was forbidden, most were also prohibited from learning about its history. I’d briefly heard of the Dark God Valkar, but I hadn’t known much outside of that fact that he had been a bad guy and the good guys had chased him off. I certainly didn’t know that he’d been the original source of dark magic.

I was shocked to discover that dark magic hadn’t always been inherently bad, as it was seen now. It had simply been born of the desires for one to be more powerful; to have more knowledge.

Today, most scholars were celebrated, never shamed for their desire to know more. I couldn’t help but wonder if things would have been different if the other Gods had just accepted Valkar as he was and not pushed him away. After all, it was that act of discrimination that pushed him toward the darkness in the first place.

I’d always wondered what had made it so that only witches could harness dark magic, unlike any of the other magical-species alive today. What made us so special? Did we have some sort of unique connection to Valkar that I didn’t know about?

Though fascinating, the text wasn’t truly helping me now. It may have leant insight to the desires a witch might want to use dark magic, but it didn’t point me to who was doing it now. Just as I let out a sigh of disappointment, Korrheya practically screeched with excitement.

“I found it!” her voice was loud, causing others to turn to us in curiosity.

I was briefly embarrassed by her outburst, but too thrilled to hear what she had to say to scold her. Instead, I leaned toward her, my voice trembling with anticipation; “Show me!”

“It says here that Caragin is a product of the Ice Flower, a forgeable plant that only grows in the remote parts of Our Lady of the Cauldron Mountains.” She started, jumping from one spot to the next in the book, “It was created on accident by a witch who was trying to harvest the flower for medicinal purposes, though she could never figure out what it was then. Centuries later, a witch experimenting with dark magic discovered that when combined with Foxglove, it can be used to look through the very fabric of space as easy as looking through a mirror” Korrheya said, looking up at me. “Basically, you could spy on anyone in Trinyaddae with nothing more than a hand-mirror”.

“Does it say where you can get it now?” I asked, trying to keep my voice low, which was very hard with the exhilaration I was currently reeling in.

“No, but knowing it’s derived from the Ice Flower might help. There are only a couple of witches in Litreateine who harvest and work with it because of how remote the source is” she said with triumph.

“Do you happen to know who they are?” I asked, noting her building excitement.

“Why, however did you know to ask?” she said with a wink. “I happen to know of one, yes. She’s right here in Beehana. She sells medicines and other magical knick-knacks at the local market” a mischievous look had grown on her face.

“When's the next market?” I asked, trying to figure out how we’d sneak away to go.

“Not for another quarter moon…” Korrheya trailed off for a moment, “but I know where she does business outside of the market. We can go there now, if you want” she shut the book in front of her with a smirk.

“What are we waiting for, then?”

***

Once in the city, we crept through allies I’d never seen before, though I’d grown up here all my life. I was surprised that Korrheya knew about this part of town, though I supposed it did make sense. She had always been an adventurous spirit and always found herself in some trouble or another.

“Where are we?” I asked hesitantly, not entirely sure I wanted to know the answer.

“Maker’s street. It’s where a lot of the underground market stuff takes place” her voice was hushed.

“Oh” I felt myself say. We were at the heart of the underground market. I could feel my heartrate speeding up with anxiety at the realization.

“When we get there, don’t say anything about who you are. This crowd won’t take kindly to the High Witches daughter” she warned.

I wanted to ask why, but something had me holding my tongue. I felt a lump grow in my throat, but I managed to squeak out an “okay” instead.

I stayed silent as we winded our way through the busy, derelict streets. I was too busy looking around us. The homes and stores were crafted of old wood, chipped stone and other poor-quality resources. Most were falling apart and dirty, barely still standing. The roofs on the buildings were made of straw or other soft materials that couldn’t keep out the cold, and most were caving in from wear. It looked like the whole street was one storm away from being lost to history.

The people didn’t look much better, either. They all wore tattered, dirty clothes, some not even wearing shoes. Their faces were covered in grime, just as the streets, and the children clung to dark corners like street-rats. They looked up at us with large, hungry eyes, holding out their hands as if begging for anything we could spare.

I was astonished. I knew that parts of Beehana city didn’t have the same kind of money the royal grounds and school did, but how had we let it get this bad? Why hadn’t my mother done something to help these people?

“Does my mother know about this place?” I whispered so softly that I wasn’t sure she’d heard me. I didn’t want any of the citizens to hear my words. I feared what would happen if they learned my identity after Korrheya’s warning.

“Yes” her voice was tinged with anger, catching me off guard. Was she angry with me for asking these questions? Regardless, I was too desperate for the answers to stop now.

“Why hasn’t she sent any money for maintenance? This place looks like it’s falling to pieces” I couldn’t imagine her leaving them to fend for themselves.

“Because it’s the underground market, Evie. She doesn’t want any money supporting the forbidden parts of the Witch Kingdom. No matter how badly some of the citizens here suffer for it” she all but hissed. I knew she wasn’t angry at me, probably just the situation, but I bristled just the same, feeling naïve for even asking.

I didn’t respond or ask further questions, though I still had some. I could tell it was a sore subject. I felt horrible for how so many people were neglected by my mother’s administration. It wasn’t right, even if this was the birthplace of the underground market. I vowed to myself that this would change one day. If I ever had the opportunity to change it, that is.

Korrheya stopped and clung to the shadows of an old brick building, gesturing me to follow her lead. I leaned into her under the cover of the shadows, as she pointed at a stone cottage across the way. Moss was growing in the cracks of the building, and I could smell the musty scent from here. Some of the windows were broken, and the door had a large crack growing up the center. On the front, a small sign was plastered above the porch steps: “Maggie’s Medicines, Potions and Wears”.

“That’s it” Korrheya kept her voice hushed. I nodded at her, letting her take the lead on this. She was far better suited for this part of town, evidently.

We crossed the street, keeping our heads down, and Korrheya knocked softly on the cottage door. A grunt sounded from inside, and she took that as permission to enter.

Dingy light streamed in from a frosted window on the south side of the cottage, and it was hard to see clearly as we stepped inside. I held my breath at the smell of mildew and cigar smoke that hit me in the face, and I tried to look around at the dark room. It took me a moment to notice the older woman sitting in a beaten rocking chair in the corner of the room.

“You girls look lost” her voice croaked. It sent a shiver down my spine, but I tried not to let me fear show on my face.

“We are looking for Maggie” Korrheya spoke evenly. I wondered if she’d done something like this before to earn the confidence she clearly displayed.

“Well, you found her. What do you want” the woman’s voice was husky, and she didn’t look up from whatever she was looking at in her lap, which I couldn’t make out from here.

“We are looking for Caragin” Korrheya spoke again. I was surprised with how straight forward she’d been. Wasn’t she afraid we’d get in trouble so blatantly looking for something we shouldn’t?

“Don’t sell it” the woman replied with dark, curious eyes.

“That’s not the word around the block. I’m willing to pay top dollar for it” Korrheya spoke clearly, now holding up a dark velvet pouch for the woman to see. It was clearly filled with coins I hadn’t known she’d brought.

The woman, Maggie, stared at Korrheya for a long time, before setting down whatever she was holding and pulling herself out of her chair with a huff. She approached us cautiously, before snatching the pouch out of Korrheya’s hands and moving toward the room in the back of the cottage.

“Follow me” she grunted.

I shared a look with Korrheya, before we obeyed Maggie’s demand. I was glad to have her expertise; I wasn’t so sure I’d have spotted the woman’s bluff had I been alone.

Once in the back room, I could feel my throat tighten. The rooms was filled with potions, spell ingredients and tomes, and I could only guess how many were forbidden. I kept my mouth shut, only observing, as Korrheya continued the deal.

Maggie was rifling through a drawer at the back of the room, letting out soft wheezes with every breath. “You came at the right time, I only have a little left”

“Just my luck” Korrheya said with a fake sweet smile, trying to play off the scheme she was clearly up to.

“What did ya say you needed it for?” Maggie asked, looking up with the silver ingredient in her hand.

“I didn’t” Korrheya replied, her voice tinged with coldness.

“Hmph. You youngsters have gotten rude these days. Ye don’t show a lick of respect to your elders. You must be with the young miss who came in here a couple a days ago. Looking for the same stuff. Something going on at that school up the hill?” Maggie eyed Korrheya warily.

“Someone from the school bought Caragin from you?” Korrheya questioned carefully.

“I rather ’sumed you were with that smart-mouthed brat. I don’t ask names in this business, but you both have a similar look to ya. She also had a nice sum of coins for me in the same velvet pouch. Kept her mouth shut just as tight as yours, too” Maggie grumbled. She placed the Caragin in a small, clear pouch, but held on to it as she looked Korrheya up and down questioningly.

“Don’t know nothing ‘bout it” she mimicked the old woman’s accent, pretending to lose interest. I thought she might be growing uncomfortable at the woman’s questioning, though you couldn’t tell it by looking at her.

“I’ll be damned if I believe that!” the old lady grunted, continuing to stare at us. She made no move to hand over the package. I could feel sweat begin to drip down my forehead, and I couldn’t be more grateful that I wasn’t the one under Maggie’s intense gaze right now.

Finally, with an exasperated sigh, Korrheya broke the silence as if she’d been caught red-handed.

“Fine, I might as well tell ya then” Korrheya confessed with exasperation, looking back at me with mischief. She returned her attention back to Maggie with a straight face. “There’s a little competition going on between some of us girls up at the school. Trying to see who can come up with the coolest spell without getting caught by the headmaster. Whoever does, wins” she lied.

I felt a knot grow in the pit of my stomach. I could only hope we wouldn’t get caught; who knew what this Maggie character was capable of.

The old woman merely rolled her eyes, tossing Korrheya the bag of Caragin. “Better know what to do with that then, young’n” she remarked.

“Say, mind telling me what this other girl looked like? Sounds like she had the same idea as me, might be my only real competition” Korrheya drawled inquisitively. So this is where this whole plan had been leading. I had to give it to her, it was very clever.

“Why should I tell you? I keep my business affairs private. Discreet” It was Maggie’s turn to become icy with her response.

“You see, I don’t like to lose, Maggie. That includes this little competition, too” Korrheya took a step closer to the old woman. “Sure would be a shame if the headmaster discovered students were purchasing forbidden ingredients from your respectable establishment” she winked.

The old woman balked at her, and I did my very best not to do the same. Was she out of her mind? Where had this side of Korrheya come from? I’d certainly never seen it before.

“Are you threatening me?” Maggie hissed back. Korrheya inspected the pouch of Caragin, before shoving it into her pocket.

“No, of course not. Just speaking aloud, is all” Korrheya responded with a sweet smile.

The old woman didn’t say anything as she stared at Korrheya, and then me, with a suspicious glare. Finally, she signed, throwing her hands into the air.

“Fine. There was nothing remarkable about that girl, though she did have a marking on her neck. Right side—looked like a dove” Maggie spat, before marching back through the house to the front where we’d first met her. It wasn’t much of a description, but it was unique enough I hoped it would do.

“Is that all?” Korrheya asked.

“She also purchased Veran root, if that’s what you’re asking. Now I’ve given you all the information I’ll share, you best be leaving now” she spat, plopping down in her chair once more.

Veran root? If I wasn’t mistaken, I thought that might be a substance used in summoning spells, but I’d have to double check with my mother to be sure. Whoever this witch was, she was up to no good. It had to be who we were looking for, I was sure of it. It was too much of a coincidence that someone else from the school had purchased dark magic ingredients just days before the Umbrath attack.

Korrheya nodded politely, making way for the door. Just before we stepped back out on the street, Korrheya turned back to the old woman. “Pleasure doing business with ya, Maggie”.

I stayed silent as we wound our way back through Maker’s Street, keeping my head down. Once we were clear of all the people who would possibly be listening in, I reached out and wrapped my hand delicately around her arm to draw her attention.

“How did you know what to do back there?” I asked with peaking curiosity.

“Not all of us can be the perfect little Heiress, Evie. Some of us have to learn how to get through life thinking outside of the box” she responded, a smirk playing out on her face. I knew she didn’t mean offense, but I still took some. I chose to ignore it.

“Do you know who she was talking about?” I asked instead.

“As of matter of fact, I think I do” she said with a wink, grabbing my hand and leading me back to the school.

Once we were on campus grounds again, I felt like I could finally breath. Though I had grown up in the city, I had spent must of the last four years of my life behind these very gates. I certainly hadn’t spent any time in what I’d always known as the slums.

I felt a multitude of remorse and anger for the situation I’d seen. Remorse that I had grown up part of the problem; living pretentiously on the royal grounds without a care in the world for anything but myself, only referring to the poor parts of our city as nothing more than the slums. I also felt a deep anger for what my mother had done. She known known about the neglect of her people and chose not to do anything about it because it would support the darker parts of our kingdom.

The underground market would always find a way to flourish. That was just the nature of the beings inhabiting Trinyaddae; where there was good, there would always be bad. Instead of punishing the bad, my mother had turned a blind eye to those less fortunate. Those who couldn’t afford to live outside the underground market.

She may not have known it, but her very actions were fueling the underground market; making it as strong as it had become. By turning her back on those who needed her most, she gave them no other options than turning to the place that would shelter them; give them any semblance of power. This in turn, made this side of the Witch Kingdom stronger.

I tried not to focus on that now. There would be plenty of time to confront her; time to make a change. Right now, I had to focus on the mission at hand. We were closer than ever before to finding the witch who’d summoned the Umbrath and put the whole school in danger.

Korrheya led me toward the office buildings near the front of the school. These buildings where the residence and offices of the school administrators, teachers, and the headmaster. She carefully snuck us around the back of the building, attempting to stay hidden in the bushes that surrounded the old brick walls.

Once we were on the west side of the building, she stopped just under a window near the front. She held her finger up to her lips in a silent way to tell me to stay quiet and then crept up to peer through the bottom of the window, careful that she wasn’t in view from the occupants of the room we were spying into.

I copied her execution, and found myself squinting my eyes into a dark, empty room. Or I thought it had been empty, until I caught site of a lone girl sitting at the front desk, hair brushed over her shoulder as she worked. On the right side of her neck, the side facing us, was the dark dove-shaped marking.

I held my tongue as I looked to Korrheya with exasperation. This was her! I couldn’t believe we’d found her this quickly.

“Demi Veratoth” Korrheya mouthed to me.

I made a mental note of the name, trying to recall if I recognized it. She pulled me down back into the bushes, and only when we were certain we had enough cover, she leaned into me and told me more.

“Demi’s part of a newer coven if I remember correctly” she started, and I listened diligently. “There’s maybe only 5 of them in total. Demi works as the school secretary, and two of the younger witches are students here.” Korrheya told me.

“Veratoth. I don’t recognize the name. What grades are the students in?” I inquired.

“One of them just started as an underclassman. The other is a sophomore. That’s how I know her” Korrheya responded. So Korrheya was a classmate of one of them. That was interesting. I wondered if we could use that to get more information.

“Do you think it’s just Demi, or are the other two in on it?” I couldn’t help but wonder. I had always assumed the Umbrath had gone after an underclassman because she wouldn’t be able to fight back like I had in the library. Now I wondered if the underclassman from the coven had been in on it helped arrange the whole thing. Did she knew Charlotte? Pretend to be her friend?

Bile rose up in my throat at the thought. Who could be so evil as that?

“I honestly don’t know. I think it’s time we go back to Corrine” Korrheya admitted. She wanted to take all we’d learn and go running back to my mother? Where was the sense of adventure she’d shown earlier?

I bit my lip. I knew she was technically right, but I couldn’t help but want to take matters into my owns hands. This was supposed to be how I proved myself, after all. I could just catch Demi in her schemes and apprehend her for what she’d done. I could force her to dispel the Umbrath, and have this whole mess cleaned up before even approaching my mother.

Just as I was resolved to do just this, a commotion in the building caught our attention. Korrheya and I leaned back up on her knees to peer into the window. We could just barely make out the voices.

“There’s another attack!” it was the headmasters voice, she’d stormed into the front office room and was waving her hands frantically at Demi. “Call Corrine, tell her to meet me at the food hall!”

Her voice sent alarm ringing through my body. Another attack? Was it still happening, or had the monster already made its next kill?

I didn’t wait to find out. Without waiting for Korrheya, I ran as fast as my legs could carry me to the food hall.

As I ran into the danger itself, I could only hope that the shadow-creature was still there. It may have gotten away the first time, but that wasn’t going to happen again. No, now was time for me to let out the Evie I’d been training my whole life to be.

The Evie capable of killing a dark creature.

The Evie who’d save the whole school.