Page 2 of Alchemy of Souls

“I’m sorry, girls,” my mother says on an exhale, and it frustrates me even more. She’s either apologizing for Mages treating everyone like crap. Or worse, because standing up to them could cost her her job and the meager living we all rely on.

So, I say, “It’s fine,” even though it’s not.

“Well,Idon’t think it’s fine,” Delilah says, and I love her more for it. “That lady just stole my tart and no one tackled her.”

“How about this? Delilah, pick not one, but two pastries,” my mother offers in her most upbeat voice, trying to rally the mood back to celebratory. “And Eloise,” she says, grabbing a gorgeous flowered to-go mug and plunking it on the counter. “Pick any delicious drink you want and we’ll put it in this.”

“Mom—” I start to protest. It’s not that I don’t want the mug. I really do. But she doesn’t have the money. Even a small deficit will come from somewhere—our grocery bill or the money we never seem to scrape together for Gran’s arthritis healings.

“No protesting today, love,” Mom says with a firm smile. “You’ve trained and practiced and worked yourself ragged for this day, and we’re starting it out right.”

Delilah, who has no concept of money or the precarious position our family’s been in since Grandad was killed by the Lawless, beamswith reckless abandon. She squeals and turns back to the glass case, singing, “You’re going in my belly. I’m gonna eat you right up!”

So, I laugh for my sister and gush over the mug for my mom. But in my heart, I don’t let it go. I don’t concede. I take all my frustration and every last bit of my determination and make a decision—the same one I’ve made every day for the past four years. To pass my exam. To protect my family. To settle for nothing less.

Grayson

My uncle hasn’t even started talking and all I can think is—how much longer do I have to listen to this crap? I tap my fingers on the tufted armchair in his study at our family estate, looking out the window toward the craggy Maine shore.

I watch my mother walking along the beach, dark hair whipping around her like a hurricane, her sights trained on a dinghy thrashing in the ocean. The man who was once in the small boat now flails in the water, gripping the side and desperately trying to get back in. But the waves my mother’s creating with her Elemental spell keep pelting him in the face. He loses hold of the boat just as a wave takes him under.

I lift my hand an inch off the armchair and with a flick of my fingers I spellwork a crab, sending it skittering over my mother’s bare foot. She jumps backward, her concentration broken, which is all it takes for the water to calm and the man to scramble into his boat.

My mother glares at the pebbled shore, about to blast my illusion crab into oblivion, when I make it bow to her before disappearing into thin air. Her gaze whips toward the house.

Gotcha.

I smile—these small victories are the only way I survive my awful family. The sad part is my mother is nicer than my uncle.

“Something amusing?” my uncle asks, because he can read other people’s emotions like they were street signs.

“It’s just a good day,” I say with confidence, because it’s true. I’ve waited for this day since I was twelve.

I glance out the window where the man in the dinghy now grips his chest, his mouth opening in distress. Only this time I don’t do anything.

My uncle draws his icy blue gaze in my direction. We all have blue eyes. It’s the only thing we have in common. “Not going to save him a second time?” he asks.

“The heart attack is an illusion,” I reply.

He almost smiles. “How do you know?”

I sigh. “The illusion itself is perfect, nothing hazy or glitching. But you’d never kill one of the magicless so close to the property because of the inconvenience of the police.”

Now he does smile. “Clever.”

I look back at the ocean where the man is rowing full speed away from us as though he senses something nefarious is lurking here. I wish I could do the same.

My uncle leans back in his desk chair, assessing me. “You’re representing the Stone family today, Grayson,” he says with weight. “This is a one-shot deal. You can’t test twice. Don’t fail me.”

“Failure’s not an option, Sir,” I say, adding the honorary title he often demands as the highest-ranked member in the entire Mageworld. He’s basically a king with none of the checks and balances the magicless enjoy.

He nods. “Good. Because your cousin is such a disappointment. And well, your brother…”

My smile disappears. My brother isdead.

For a flash of a second, I lose control of the relaxed confidence I carefully maintain around him. “Aurora graduated University in the top position in Botany. I would hardly call her disappointing.” But I don’t mention my brother Liam, because if I do, my emotions will broadcast true anger, knowing I’m staring at the person responsible for his death.

My uncle waves his hand in dismissal. “Botany’s a useless magic. What will she do? Become a healer?” he says like I should know better. “What we need are fighters, strategists.Leadersto defeat the Lawless.”