by Cara Wylde
Val shrugged. “I don’t know. Loki will help us find out.” She looked at the god. “Right?”
Loki shook his head, a small, mysterious smile playing on his lips. He leaned against the backrest, making his chair stand on its back legs, and crossed his arms over his perfectly ripped chest. “We’ll see, Keeper. We have plenty of time to talk about it.”
Valentina pursed her lips. “Sia, do you think you can start with the Hanged Man?”
Loki’s smile widened. “Be careful, love. I wouldn’t want to see you disappointed so soon.”
On the one hand, “love” was back, and that made something flutter in her stomach. On the other hand, what was he saying? She furrowed her brows.
“Sia?”
“Sure. The Hanged Man. Consider it done. I can start today.”
“Can I suggest the Magician for the second painting?” asked Loki.
“Err... sure...”
“Why the Magician?” Val asked, leaning forward.
The god pointed at a page in I misteri degli Arcani. “Well, it says right here. What do you do when the tracker card is compromised?”
“The Lovers...”
“How do you find the other suits?”
“I... I don’t know. You don’t. Only the original Lovers can track them down, and Eros and Psyche are asleep.”
“You really think who came up with this whole complication to protect the cards, sometimes from the Keepers themselves, didn’t also come up with a fail-safe in case something like this happened?”
Valentina grabbed the book. “They did? Where? What is it?”
“Don’t torture your pretty head with it,” he grinned wider when she scowled at him, “It will take you forever to read that. If you can’t use the Lovers as a tracker card, there are four more trackers in the Major Arcana, each leading to one of the four suits. The Wheel of Fortune leads to the Suit of Swords, which is safe with you, so no worries there. The Moon to the Suit of Cups, the Chariot to the Suit of Wands, and the Magician to the Suit of Pentacles. Now, do you see why we need the Magician?”
“Because the Moon and the Chariot are asleep... At least, we can try to find La Congrega di Denari.”
“Exactly.”
“And then what? The others will still be lost.”
Loki shrugged. “One mess at a time, love.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
It felt weird to leave the jar of ashes with Sia, but Valentina toughened up and promised herself she would trust the painter. Magny reassured her that as long as Sia believed she would get rid of what she considered a curse after the job was done, she would never betray Valentina. That made things even worse, though. Val wasn’t the kind of person who lied to people. Especially about things that were so important to them. She kept telling herself that she had to. She had to. There was no other way. She didn’t have time to find another painter of souls, and neither to convince Sia that she had a gift. Later. She would deal with whatever consequences she’d have to deal with later.
Val, Piper, and Magny went back to the hotel. Loki was relieved that he could finally have some time and space for himself. He hadn’t thought any of this would go the way it was going. First, it had never even crossed his mind that it would take the Keeper of Spades three years to find his phone number written on her arm and call him. Secondly, deep down, he’d hoped she’d go on this journey alone, not drag along a best friend who was obviously head over heels for her, and an annoying hobgoblin that kept bouncing from one shoulder to another and who, for sure, was waiting for his moment to ask for something ridiculously unorthodox in exchange for his help. Hobgoblins never did anything selflessly. At this point, Loki was questioning his own reasons for still wanting to help Valentina De Rossi. Did he really still want to help her, though? He’d have to sleep on it.
The moment Loki was gone, and Valentina and Piper were in their shared room, the tug on Val’s ribs started making its presence known.
“Oh no... Not again!” She sat down on the edge of the bed and held her left side.
“What? What happened? Are you hurt?”
“It’s her... She was so quiet while Loki was around. It felt so good and... and like I was actually free.”
Piper sat next to Valentina and rubbed her shoulder.
“Tell me about her. Her name is Ravenna?”
“Yeah. And she’s not my Higher Self. I don’t know where my Higher Self is.”
“I’m still not sure I understand this whole Higher Self thing, but is it like... you don’t know where a part of you is? Like you’ve been separated from yourself?”
“Kind of like that, yes.”
“So, tell me.”
Magny climbed off of Piper’s shoulder and onto Val’s knee. He didn’t want to miss a thing.
“Not poofing back and forth anymore?” Val asked.
“I figured some exercise wouldn’t hurt,” he patted his round belly.
Val dragged in a breath, then straightened her back and pulled up her blouse, showing Piper and Magny the left side of her body. Across the ribs, starting under the rim of her bra and extending deep below the rim of her black pants, there was a pink birthmark that covered her skin, making it look smooth and glowy, like a wide patch that had grown out of her body and reached the surface.
“Do you know what a chimera is?”
Piper shook her head. “Like the mythological creature?”
“No, like the condition. A very rare condition, but I’m special, right? So I have it.” She laughed sarcastically. “It’s when one person has two or more distinct cell lines, err... DNA. Just two, in my case. I have my own DNA, and then I have my twin sister’s DNA, whom I absorbed in the womb.”
“What?!” Piper jumped off the bed and started pacing frantically. “You had a twin sister?!”
“No, not exactly... She was never born. Because I... I was the strongest one, and I absorbed her soon after my mom got pregnant with us. Sometimes, when something like this happens, there’s a birth mark on the baby who survives. I was born with this patch of almost red skin on my left side. My parents explained to me what it was when I was finally in school and able to understand at least part of it and what it implied.”
“Oh my God! That couldn’t have been easy for you... To know that you... that you...”
“Yeah. That I could have had a twin sister, but instead I absorbed her. And now I also carry her DNA within me, and sometimes...” She took a deep breath and blinked rapidly to hold her tears at bay. “I shouldn’t complain. I was the one who survived and got to see the light of this world. But sometimes, her DNA makes me sick. Ill. Like, you know how I’m allergic to the chemicals you usually find in soap, shampoo, face cream, and so on? Cleaning products? Although I can’t say I had to touch those too much, so far. And you know how I only use organic products? It’s not because I’m allergic to them, but because she is. Or was. I can use normal soap on the right side of my body, but if it touches the left side, I break out in rashes.”
Piper thought about it for a minute. She was at a loss. Now she was wondering whether this could be why she’d never seen Valentina in a bathing suit. They had spent many summers by the pool in her parents’ backyard, and Valentina had always insisted on wearing a one-piece bathing suit with a skirt.
“Why didn’t you tell me? Val, we’ve been friends since forever! Why didn’t you ever tell me? This is so... big.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t like talking about it. After my parents told me, Mom made it a rule to never mention my twin sister, if possible. I was very young, and I didn’t want to hurt her. Then, I guess I just got used to the idea, never thought about it much myself. I learned to live with it.”
“Okay, so no one is going to ask the obvious question?” When Piper shot him a strange look, the hobgoblin continued: “I’ll do it, then. Pipes here asked you about Ravenna. What does the twin you absorbed in your mommy’s belly have to do with Ravenna?”
V
alentina patted him on the head. He swatted her hand away. “Good question. I’m not sure. But there’s a connection. There has to be. These past few years, it’s been getting harder and harder to ignore it. Every time the voice in my head gets loud, or very angry, or wants me to do something, no excuses, my side hurts, too. Sometimes, it hurts so bad that I can barely stand upright.”
Piper nodded. “All those times when I saw you gasping or doubling over... That was the voice?”
“Yes. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before. I should have.”
“And before Loki gave you back your memories, you didn’t know her name was Ravenna?”
“No. I found out during the Test, but I only knew for a few hours before she made me forget.”
“Does it hurt now? Is she saying anything?”
“My birthmark hurts, but she’s silent. For now. For some reason, she doesn’t seem to like Loki. When I wanted to walk away, she insisted that I needed him, but then she kind of faded. When he touches me... like, don’t think of anything inappropriate...” She blushed.
“I wasn’t.”
Val blushed harder. “She goes away completely,” she continued. “Like she was never there, and my mind is so blissfully blank. My side doesn’t throb, or hurt, or sting... It’s like a breath of fresh air.”
“Why do you think that happens?”
Val shook her head. “Magny, you’re a knowledgeable creature. Any ideas?”
The hobgoblin stood up on Valentina’s knee, waved his hands in denial, and poofed himself on the coffee table.
“You’ve lost me there,” he said. “I know what a Higher Self is, I have conversations with mine all the time. In my head. And if this girl called Ravenna is not your Higher Self, then who is she? And if you think there’s a connection between her voice and your birthmark, then is she your twin sister?”
“Impossible!”
“Hey, hey... don’t get angry at me for following the most logical train of thought. And yes, I think that’s pretty impossible, too. At least, I’ve never heard of anything like it before, and I’ve heard and seen some creepy things in my life. I will add this, though. If you promise you won’t freak out on me.”
“Why would I?” As she said the words, Val felt like she was starting to freak out at the possibility of Magny saying something that would freak her out. “What is it?”
“You know that I can... kind of sniff out curses?”
“You can?”
Piper nodded eagerly. “Yes. I forgot to tell you about it. He told me when we talked to Sia.”
“I learn something new about you every day,” she said in a way that clearly meant she hated the fact that he never seemed to tell them everything about him. “So, what? Am I cursed? Is that what your nose is telling you?”
The hobgoblin covered his nose with one hand, as if to protect it. He could feel the tension rising in the room, along with Valentina’s impatience. Or anger? Either way, he suddenly felt like his nose was in danger. She was a witch, after all. If she didn’t approve of his nose, God, – or Goddess, – knew what she’d do.
“No, not quite. That’s the thing. I’m not sure. It doesn’t exactly smell like a curse, but when she’s around... I mean, when the Trickster is not around and she is, you really do smell different.”
“Different how?”
Magny shrugged. “Like, you know... You usually smell of those orange-y creams and products you use, but then it changes, and you smell like... the oranges went bad and made all the other fruits in the fridge rot.”
Piper laughed out loud. She tried to stop herself because the conversation was obviously serious, but she just couldn’t help it.
“Dude, you just told her she smells like rotten fruit.”
Valentina didn’t seem very amused, though. First, she went silent. Then, she stood up slowly, still holding her side, and walked to the bathroom.
“Are you okay?” Piper tried to stop her. “He didn’t mean it, Val. I’m sure he didn’t mean it. Magny, tell her.”
The hobgoblin crossed his arms over his chest, defiantly. “I only told the truth. You want the truth, now you have it. It’s not my business what you choose to make of it.”
“It’s okay, Pipes. I just... I’m tired. I’ll take a shower and then go to bed.”
“No dinner?”
“I don’t feel like it.”
“You haven’t eaten since morning!”
“I’m fine!” Valentina snapped. “I’m sorry... I need some time to think.”
Piper didn’t say anything. She let her go into the bathroom, and when she heard the shower running, she asked Magny what he wanted for dinner. After she placed the order, she asked the hobgoblin: “So, it’s not a curse?”
“It doesn’t smell like any curse I’ve ever smelled before, that’s for sure. So, no, there’s a chance it’s not that. But I don’t know what it could be, anyway. It could just be her... Ravenna... whoever she is.”
Valentina heard them through the door. She’d turned on the shower to make them think she couldn’t hear them, but a simple hearing sigil did the trick. She didn’t think that Piper and Magny were talking behind her back, but she did know that if there was anything that Piper thought might hurt her, her friend would try to keep it away from her. For a time. Until she was better. Probably, until she ate and slept well. When the food came and Piper and Magus started eating, she stepped into the hot shower. As she stood there, letting the spray hit her back, she thought about what Magnus had said. Not exactly a curse, but something... something strange. Something he hadn’t smelled before. Something he’d never encountered before. Could it be? No. It couldn’t.
No.
There was no way.
Not a curse. He’d said so himself. Something else. Definitely, not a curse.
She’d left her leather pouch with the deck of cards on the edge of the sink. When it fell to the floor, Valentina almost jumped out of her skin. She pushed the shower curtain aside and saw one card had escaped the deck. The High Priestess.
“Damn it! I have to see someone. A guide. I can’t figure this out myself.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Hyde Park was a thing to behold in summer. Loki had insisted to take Piper and Valentina out, and Valentina hated him for it. She’d wanted to stay in the room, sulk, and sleep until she couldn’t sleep anymore. Piper, on the other hand, was excited beyond belief. She had already taken a bunch of pictures, and to Val’s chagrin, her tired face, with bags under her blue eyes and a fresh pimple on her chin, was in most of them. Yes, when she was super stressed, Valentina De Rossi got pimples. Tiny, red spots that appeared either on her chin or around her temples, and which she hated with a passion. The last thing she had wanted was for Loki to see her like that. At least, she had taken half an hour in the morning to style her hair, which was now flowing in rich waves down her back, and put on some makeup. She was wearing a cute, red, simple dress she had found at the bottom of her suitcase, and red flats. She had tried. But the pimple on her chin made her look at her feet every time the God of Mischief talked to her.
Sia had started working on the Hanged Man, with the Magician next on the list. Valentina had made her promise that she’d be as quick as possible. She didn’t need complicated paintings. She just needed something that resembled the old cards and contained the ashes she’d collected at the Temple of the Trionfi Chiari. Sia had scrunched up her nose and said she’d do her best. She didn’t like to be rushed, but Val couldn’t care less. London unsettled her. She had felt fine in Italy, but there was something about this city that made her feel on edge. Also, Loki... She wanted him inside his card as soon as humanly, or godly, possible. The fact that he’d suggested he wouldn’t make it easy on her, worried her a bit. What had he meant? She’d thought that was the plan all along. If he didn’t want to help, then why give her his number and wait for her for three years? Had he changed his mind?
“Say, what’s your name? I mean
, here. What’s your human name?” she asked when Piper left them behind to take pictures of a beautiful swan couple floating on the lake.
“I go by many names,” he said. “Depends. I change them all the time, so they don’t matter. Why? Tired of calling me by my real name? There are people, Ordinaries, in the world called Loki. It’s rare, but not that strange.”
“I haven’t met anyone called Loki before.”
He rolled his eyes. “Then maybe you should visit Iceland.”
They fell silent for a few long minutes. Valentina didn’t know what else to say. It was odd. She felt like she wanted to talk to him, like she wanted his attention, to hear his annoyingly sarcastic, yet warm voice in her ear, but at the same time, she had no idea how to make normal conversation with someone who was... well... a god! Piper and Magny had long disappeared from their view. Piper was trying to take pictures of the hobgoblin, but he refused to make himself visible to the camera.
“Why do you want to help me?” Valentina finally asked, eyes still fixed on the ground. “I came to you, okay, but during the Test, I also visited other gods, and most of them didn’t want me there. Jove was surprised, but Elias refused to talk to me, and the one who is Death pushed me off a roof. Not to mention he shot me first. And Osiris helped me only after I promised I would leave him alone forever.”
Loki let out a heavy sigh. He remained silent for a minute, lost in his own thoughts, trying to come up with an answer. Valentina looked up at him, and she was relieved to see he was gazing ahead, in the distance, at some birds chirping and playing on the green, lush grass. She could look at his profile, admire the perfect curve of his neck, and wonder just how it would feel to run her fingers through that long, brown hair of his. He always wore it in a low ponytail, and wild, stubborn strands always escaped their trap. He looked so young and boyish for someone who’d walked the Earth for thousands of years. She was so lost in her daydream that when Loki turned to her, his green eyes boring into hers, she forgot she was supposed to look away. Was she, though? Blue eyes lost themselves in green, godly eyes, and Valentina felt like time itself had stopped. She licked her lips and asked again, this time in a whisper. An almost pleading whisper...
