Page 38 of The Iron Hex

“How did you figure out you were a potions witch after your memory was wiped?” Hugo leaned forward.

Eira shrugged uncomfortably. “I just knew. It wasn’t part of the memories that are gone. I mean, I don’t think I can tell you what exact memories aren’t in my head anymore, but being a potions witch, and how magic works... that never left me. But there’s more to magic than just the fact that I knew that I had alchemical ability.”

She paused, looking back at the fire and cradling her chin in her hand. “I’ll admit, I have heard that it’s possible that witches can sometimes learn spells outside of their domain if they know how to talk to the Flow in the right way, or are taught by a witch in that domain. The Flow is all around us, and I assumed that while I didn’t have conjuration domain capabilities that I’d justbeen taught the spell for Beatrice at some point that I couldn’t recall,” Eira continued.

Hugo hadn’t heard anyone say “the Flow” like that since the Iron Empire rose and Lord General Kerrigan had banned the term. It jarred him for a moment, shocking him out of the conversation and into his head.

“So,” Hugo asked after a long moment, curious now. “How do witches learn how to do their type of magic? I know you don’t remember, but how does a witch learn magic within their...domain.” Hugo felt strange using terminology that witches used, words that he’d been using against them to find them and... he didn’t want to think about that, not now that he knew Eira was one of them.

“It’s a gut feeling.” Eira’s eyes sparkled in the light as she started to speak with more animation. “I innately know how to create the potion I need when I need it. It feels like a swelling of power and knowledge within me. It’s not a recipe in my mind, but if I let my hands and body guide me I can always create the working I need. That, and family. Generally, the type of magic a witch can cast is passed down from family member to family member, and in the cases they aren’t, witches in the community will help them learn what they can do. That’s what I’ve been able to gather from other potions witches passing through Cilirien over the years, anyway. We seek each other out, especially in dark times like these.”

“And conjuring the hand, Beatrice, that felt the same? Like a gut feeling and a movement of power for you?” Hugo asked.

“Yes, and—” Eira paused and smiled, and Hugo remembered all the ways he had chased that smile before the Iron Empire. “You think that if I let my gut guide me when it comes to other types of magic and I try to tap into the Flow, we could possibly figure out if I have any abilities hidden behind these locked doors in my memory, don’t you?”

“Exactly,” Hugo said, leaning back in his chair. He was grateful to see that Eira’s sharp mind hadn’t been lost when her memory was. They were going to need that.

“Well, that’s not going to be an easy feat,” she countered, one eyebrow raised. “By that logic, I can only conjure a spell if I’m in need of it. Most of the domains that I don’t know how to access would be triggered by danger, and we’re trying to avoid that... right?”

“Hmm.” Hugo scratched at his healing shoulder through his tunic as he thought. She was right—if everything went according to plan, Hugo was hoping they could somehow retrieve the princess, get to the Corisians, get Eira’s memory back, and then send Eira to a safehouse where no one would be able to hurt her or take advantage of whatever her abilities might be. Now that he had her back, protecting her would always be part of Hugo’s duty, one he wouldn’t trade for the world.

“Fair point,” Hugo said. “But I’d like you to try with nondangerous workings first, and in the slim chance we are in danger... try to follow your gut?”

Eira grinned. “You have a deal.” She held out her hand to shake his.

He reached forward, grasping her small hand. It was warm and soft and he couldn’t help but imagine how it would feel on other parts of his body. Hugo needed to not be thinking about this. Eira was not the type of woman who would have wanted him before the Iron Empire rose, and they certainly were not in a situation right now where a budding romance would do either of them any good. But that didn’t stop him from wanting it... from wantingher.

22

Eira

The next day, Eira and Hugo rode out of town as the sun rose, the city barely awake as they galloped away from Fallstead. The night before, they’d decided over their second drink that they’d head south in the hopes that they’d find another town where Eira had been seen with Evangeline, and then, if they still found nothing... well, Hugo hadn’t divulged yet what his plan was in that case.

But right now, Eira was groggy. A nightmare had woken her up in the middle of the night, shadows in the shapes of people running through a town, screaming. It felt like a memory, but one she couldn’t hold on to, the colors and faces slipping back behind the locked door in her mind.

She’d had nightmares like this before, shadowed silhouettes of people leaving her in the dark about what she was seeing, literally, but she’d always just assumed that was how her fractured mind dreamed. Now, though, she wondered if it was her mind fighting to resurface the memories that had been stolen from her.

Eira still wasn’t sure what their next steps were, but she was increasingly convinced that it needed to be finding the witchwho had cast this spell on her, or finding someone else who had seen her in Astra. She had half a mind to head back to Cilirien despite the danger, simply because the people of Cilirien might be able to help her retrace her steps. Or at least help her understand how long she’d been in town before her memories were wiped. The guards in Cilirien most likely wanted to talk to the two of them as well, which was a reason to stay far, far away... but what if she’d left something there? What if she’d hidden something important there before she lost her memories, something that might help them figure things out now?

Arthur’s hoofbeats pounded on the ground as they galloped out of Fallstead and into the increasingly gold-and-orange autumnal forests of Astra. More than anything, Eira missed her home.

“Is this what your life has been like?” Eira asked, her arms wrapped around Hugo’s waist as they headed down the dirt road, her body pressed against his. Eira could feel Hugo’s heart pick up its pace whenever she shifted, and it brought her a moment of joy to know how she was affecting him each time.

“Yes,” Hugo answered.

“Since the uprising?” she asked a second question. She’d realized late the night before, as she struggled to fall asleep watching Hugo’s form on the ground in the dark, that she didn’t really know anything about what his life had been like after the Iron Empire rose to power.

“No,” he grunted.

“You woke up in a great mood,” Eira retorted, letting the silence gather in the space between them in the hopes that he would say something more.

“I only left the capital a few months ago,” he finally relented and broke the silence.

“That’s... relatively recent,” Eira said, dread pooling in her stomach.

“I know,” Hugo answered.

“What did you... do in Astrad? You know, after my familydidn’t need protection anymore?” Eira asked, afraid of what the answer would be.