Free Arcane Magic (Stella Mayweather Series) by Camilla Chafer Page B

further by telling you what's in the package. Just trust me, please, Stella, Astra. It's very important. That's all I can say."
    "Okay," I replied. "I won't ask again. Do you have any other instructions for us?"
    Étoile pursed her lips as she thought. "Take an indirect route," she suddenly said decisively. "Shimmer to a few other locations, maybe three or four, before you arrive at Evan's house. Just in case anyone is following you, or tracking your movements from my apartment."
    "And when we get there?" Astra asked.
    "Give the package to Evan and forget you ever saw it. If anyone asks why you came there, say you just wanted to visit an old friend with Stella, emphasising that it was just a social call. Stella can make something up and you can play ignorant. Simple as that." Étoile turned her gaze on me. "If you get stumped and can't think of anything, just burst into tears. That always makes people uncomfortable."
    The withering glance I gave her in return wasn't altogether sarcastic, but she had a point. With Evan as my ex-boyfriend, crying could be a natural reaction; and also a way of preventing me from having to answer any pointed questions in that regard.
    Étoile continued, "When you're finished, you're free to carry on as you like. Stella, if you want to go home afterwards, that's fine. Astra, you should return here, or to Seren's, if you'd prefer."
    "I have Annalise and Beau's baby naming tonight," I informed them. "Apparently, it's a full moon. So I must get home in time."
    Étoile tapped her palm to her forehead. "Another event I'll have to miss. Beg their forgiveness for me?"
    "Beg it yourself! You already missed their housewarming." I pulled a face just to remind Étoile how much she had missed lately, but surely, she must’ve expected that to be the case when she ran for Council. She knew it would take over her life and it did. At once, I felt guilty and mean for pointing it out.
    "I'll send an extra large gift. Have they settled on a name yet?"
    "Not that I know of. I think they plan on sharing tonight."
    "I'm sorry I'll miss it." Étoile's mouth frowned in true disappointment and she looked down, seeming to remember the package in her hands. She handed it to me. "Guard this."
    "With my life?" I asked flippantly, but Étoile simply sighed. "Seriously?" I enquired.
    "Just don't lose it," Étoile replied. "Are you both ready?"
    "As I'll ever be." I glanced at Astra, who nodded enthusiastically.
    "I'm just here as your battery charger," she said, smiling, which lit up her face. For a moment, it struck me that she looked the best I'd ever seen her. She seemed healthy and strong; and her face had even taken on some colour. Her hair was a little longer, though not quite as long as Seren's yet, and she had highlights woven in that further enhanced her healthy appearance. Although I wasn't exactly following Astra's movements, I knew she now worked for Seren and David after spending a lengthy time in the care of her family, recovering from her uneasy past. After being manipulated by a murderer, and having her magic abused, her mind verged on the brink of insanity. I’d spoken to her a little during some of the Council elections, but rarely since then. Now I thought about it, this trip (of sorts) would be the first time Astra and I spent any time together alone. A year or two previous, that revelation would have made me deeply uncomfortable; but now? I wasn't sure what to feel. I certainly wasn't worried. She seemed so poised and fully in control, which was more than I could say for myself.
    I remembered the Winterstorm parents once mentioning they hoped Astra and I could be friends. It was something to do with an old spell our parents cast together long ago, and then forgot all about until Georgia, of all people, raised the issue. Perhaps this was a good time for me to start making the effort? After all, one could never have too many friends. Speaking of which, I realised I had to go if I wanted to make it home in