Chapter 20
The Bitter Root
As Charlotte, Tessa and Will were just getting back from successfully blackmailing Benedict Lightwood, Jem told Will that he could find Evan in the library. She had a few maps on the table, with more thick volumes opened.
"What are you looking for, Evan?" Will asked, leaning over the table with her.
"A thing. A passage, more specifically." Evan said vaguely, not looking back at him.
"From which book?"
Evan didn't answer. But finally, she smiled faintly and pointed to a passage from a book. It was thick volume, dusty, with a faded title. "This book. I had a hypothesis that I want to confirm."
"About what?" Will asked, leaning against the bookshelf, reading over Evan's shoulder. Angel summonings. "How would angel summonings help anything, fy nghariad?"
"Well, with a few things." Evan said. "If these clockwork things can't think for themselves, they're not much of an army, are they? And Mortmain stole a Pyxis, didn't he? And the binding spells you found hidden at De Quincey's? Of course, you already knew that he's hoping to make an army of clockwork creatures that house demons so I was thinking that -"
"We could do the same with angels?" Will asked, incredulously.
Evan spun on him horrified. "Absolutely not. I was thinking that Mortmain must have already tried with angels. You told me that Tessa's parents knew Mortmain and I was thinking of her clockwork necklace. There's no way to get into it, it protects her - you said. And Mortmain claims that he's the reason Tessa was born. What if the necklace is a way Mortmain insured Tessa's safety when he couldn't get to her?"
Realization dawned on Will's face. "Was this brought on from those books?" He asked.
Evan nodded slowly. "Yes. I - uh - I'm trying to find proof without dragging those books into it -"
"And that is what you're doing," Will put his hand on her cheek. "You don't want to tell the others?"
"If I can't find what we need, then I'll tell them." Evan said slowly.
"They are fantasy books," Will said softly. "Your aunt wrote them - I completely understand why you'd want to keep it to yourself. I will not tell anyone."
"Thank you," Evan breathed. "I'm going to find it, though." Evan promised.
"Will you at least tell me what you're going to find?" Will asked, kissing her forehead lightly.
Evan brightened. "Well, for one, I am going to find the exact location of Mortmain's whereabouts - that will take the longest seeing as I know roughly where he is but I also have to prove it. I am also going to come up with a kick-butt plan on how to stop him. I am also going to find a cure for Jem."
Will froze for a second. "He won't like that."
Evan rolled her eyes. "It ties in with the kick-butt plan of mine. Magnus agreed to help. I know everything, Will, I just need to prove it. But, Will, there's one thing you have to do as soon as possible...."
"And that is?" Will prompted, noting the seriousness of her voice.
"Get more of the yin fen for Jem." Evan said softly. "Two years' worth. I wouldn't recommend telling him, though, keep it just in case I can't prove it fast enough."