A Study of Poisons

THIRTY THREE

       Two days.

That's how long I have until a lifetime of marriage. For once this is all over, I will be subjected to wed a mad man who will only care about me if I bare his child. That is also how long I have to put the pieces together about the witches and vampires. I was running out of options, so I made the decision to go back. It was only an hour after Alex and I had our moment of curiosity and my brain had finally screwed on right. I was so focused on the love of a boy who hasn't even said the words that I've forgotten the real reason I was here. To make sure he was safe and right now with Vampires going lost left and right because of a curse, he wasn't safe at all.

My knuckles knocked on the wood of Holstein's room, he came quickly to the door as he looked down at me. "What?" He asked me as he answered it. I chewed on my lip.

"Can we put our hatred for each other to the side for a second, I need you to do something for me." I told him. His brow rose, leaning against the doorframe he just simply watched me move. "I need to go to town again. You have to promise to watch the Prince while I'm gone." He scoffed as I spoke, as if I was pointing out the obvious. "I'm serious Holstein, especially with everything now." My voice turned cold as I looked up to him again.

He reset his attitude and asked me, "What are you going do?"

"I need answers and getting them on my own isn't working." I looked past him. Holstein could tell we were at the center of whatever was happening. He just nodded and with that I was off on my way back to the town. The driver was on his break down in the servant's quarters but I caught him before he was off to bed. He even laughed at me when I asked him to take me to the town. The drive there was quick and easy, but not enough to where I wasn't stressing out about everything.

Rain began to pour down as I hurried off to the shop, knocking on the door until I could see some form of life through the glass. A short creature came to let me in. The grandmother laughing, "You can't keep away now can you?" She asked me as she let me in, turning on the light in the shop. "Why you look so worried my child?" The woman asked me and it caused me to wonder what color my aura was right now.

"My friends are in trouble, I can feel it in my bones. I've tried to scry but all I see is death." I told me immediately, she left for a second and returned with a hot kettle and two tea cups. She drew up me something to drink as she listened in. "The Vampire I am hosting for is Prince Alexandur Vladimir Tepes, I was sent here because someone is attempting to assassinate the Queen. No one has done any harm to Alex but a soviet witch has cursed the manor and two Vampires have lost their lives to it." It was like the plot of a murder mystery, as I continued I could see her stress rise and fall. "Well I did the scrying spell from your book but everytime I do it I see the same thing. Alex going Lost, but I have a feeling. One that's hard to misplace that something is going to happen." I yelled out my frustration as she gaped at me with an almost smile on her face.

The grandmother didn't say anything for a moment, then she did. "You have a lot going on don't you?" She asked me and right there I felt like crying. As she finished pouring our tea, I reached out for it. She stopped me. Switching our cups. "This one is for me." I didn't know the different but I didn't bother asking. I took a sip.

I nearly choked on it.

The elderly woman simply sat before me and stirred her cup, watching the swirling transform in the water. "Scrying shows you the truth of an outcome. May it be one person's future or their inner thoughts. You cannot command a scry to give you answers." She told me, making me wish that I knew that before had. It would have made my life a whole lot easier. "I can however, read my tea leaves and tell you what I see." She said, once the silence filled up the room she dropped her spoon to the side. She began to drink it without a care in the world. I sat worried in my seat. Now knowing how this was going to help me.