Page 26 of Tanglewood Legacy (The Three Sisters 3)
“You think Delphine is responsible for her husband’s death?” Pierre’s brows knit. “She’s the…”
“Vampire,” Isis said, noticing the way he cringed slightly at the word.
“Please excuse me. I fear the scientist in me is still resistant to the idea of magical beings.”
She flashed him a wicked smile. “Do I need to prove it to you again?”
His eyes turned hooded, and he opened the door for her. “First, let me show you a little magic of my own.”
Inside, kegs were stacked against one wall across from a wood-burning stove with a giant, capped cauldron atop it. A pipe ran from the top of the sealed cauldron to a copper vat. “What is this, Pierre?”
“Science of a different kind.” He pulled a small glass from his pocket and opened the tap on one of the barrels. Clear amber liquid poured into the glass, and he handed it to her.
She sniffed it, alcohol vapors singeing her nose. With a lift of her eyebrow, she tried a sip, coughing as the burn traveled from her throat to her toes. She giggled. “I’ve never tried this sort of brandy. It’s…strong.”
“That’s because it’s not brandy. It’s rum, made from molasses, not fruit.”
“Molasses? Plantations in Haiti feed it to their pigs.”
His eyes twinkled as he took another sip. “They send it to me for the cost of getting it here. I ferment it and sell it to Touze. It’s proven popular.”
She tossed back the rest. This time, the burn didn’t catch her off guard as before, and a delicious buzz made her smile. “I can see why. It’s stronger than tribiscal wine.”
“What’s tribiscal wine?”
She handed him back the empty glass, and he refilled it. “Where I come from, it’s a dark purple fruit, similar to your grape but larger. It grows on trees. And when it is fermented, it’s extremely intoxicating to witches.”
His expression grew serious. “This place you’re from sounds beautiful.”
Memories of Darnuith came back to her, and her eyes brimmed with tears. She took another sip of rum. “It is. Our kingdom rises from whitecapped mountains where it’s always winter. We travel in sleighs pulled by massive hounds, bigger than any dogs you have in this realm.”
“Sounds brutal.”
She laughs. “No. We all have magic, so the places we want or need to be warm are. Every season you have here, we also have there, exactly where and when we need them. But beyond the magic, there is ice and snow. It protects us.”
He studied her, his silvery-gray eyes flicking between her features. “It sounds like a botanist’s dream.”
She grinned. “I’m sure you’d enjoy yourself. I should introduce you to Rhys. He was an apothecary in Darnuith.”
“Darnuith. That’s the name of where you are from?”
She nodded. “Medea would kill me if she knew I was telling you this.” She glanced down at the drink in her hands. “Is there truth serum in rum?”
He chuckled. “In all alcohol, I fear.” A refreshing breeze blew through the door, and Isis turned her face to it, smiling at the way the cool air tickled her skin. Dark clouds had moved in, and she smelled rain, although it hadn’t begun to fall.
“I shouldn’t be telling you so much,” she said.
“You can trust me, Isis. I want to know everything about you. Everything that crosses your mind.” He moved in closer and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Why did you leave Darnuith?”
“We were fleeing political unrest.” That seemed like a safe enough explanation. He wouldn’t understand the details anyway.
He sipped his drink again, a frown following his swallow. “I’m sad to hear there is no dimension free of the threat of war.”
She chewed her lip. “You’re right about that. Hate is universal, unfortunately. It transcends time and space and exists in every dimension.”
He gripped her chin, his body close, his eyes hooded. “What about love? Does that exist in every dimension too?”
The corners of her mouth lifted of their own accord. “I’ve heard it does. I’ve observed as much.”
