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You’ve only placed the first tie on Chevalier. Two ties are required, each bound during a new moon when you’re able to access the most earth energy. You have almost three weeks to wait until the next new moon.” He paused. “This may not proceed as smoothly as you plan, Marguerite. It’s wrong, not to mention dangerous. Chevalier is powerful.”
    She shivered, uneasy. “Trust me, Luc. I won’t tell you why I’m doing this, but it must be done.”  
    Luc watched her with eyes that invited her to confide in him. They shared almost everything. She wouldn’t have survived their parents’ death without him. Yet, she’d never told him of the dreams. And she couldn’t explain the path she now walked to free their grand-mère. She wouldn’t taint him with the evil, also.  
    The lights in the room flickered and power flowed in her veins, washing out her need to confide in her brother, washing out her doubts. “I am the most powerful Walker of this generation. Harrison will be my consort, tied to me.”
    Luc folded his arms across his chest. “So you’ll have a fierce lion by the tail.” When Marguerite didn’t respond, he shook his head. “You’ve changed. Power was never so important to you. Why, Marguerite?”
    “Power frees you.”
    “What do you need to be freed from?” His eyes narrowed.
    “Power creates opportunity.” Marguerite quickly tried to deflect his line of questioning.
    “This power you wield creates the opportunity for much sorrow.” When Marguerite didn’t respond, Luc frowned, but continued. “While you slept, I’ve been studying. I found an obscure reference that I think we need to pay attention to.”
    Marguerite picked up the book he’d been reading, relieved he’d changed the subject. “ Mots de Sagesse ?” She read the title aloud. “ Words of Wisdom ? This book is read by school children.” She dismissed it, tossing it back on the table beside Luc.
    “The book is read by children because it forms the foundation of Triad teachings. It tells the story of Patre and Yesmi, father and mother of energy wielders. It outlines the prophecies. You would do well to remember these, Marguerite. To remember the balance that must be maintained.”
    Marguerite laughed. She couldn’t help it. He sounded so sure of himself, so passionate, so full of book learning instead of life learning. She leaned over and placed her hands on both sides of his beloved face. “Sanctimonious drivel, mon frère. Close your book and look around you.” She patted his cheek and stepped away. “Balance is an illusion. The ones with the most power will always control the scale.” Soon she would have the strength to free Grand-mère Belle—and in doing so, be free of her.
    Luc didn’t take offense. He never did. “The reference I found is in the prophecies. The verse talks of one who will rise to great power in the aftermath of a divisive war. ‘A daughter shall be born in light and shadow, a guardian who rises out of evil. Wild power circles her and chaos follows in her footsteps.’”
    Cold settled across Marguerite’s shoulders. “Fifty years ago the Great Rift tore the Triad apart.”
    Luc nodded, silent.
    “We were born during a lunar eclipse, as the earth’s shadow darkened the moon—in the light of the moon, and then in shadow.” Marguerite swallowed, tasting fear. The dreams and the surges of power she experienced might all be signs. “Perhaps it speaks of me. Perhaps I’m the one prophesied.”  
    Luc watched her, a serious expression on his face. “Prophecy does not equal destiny, Marguerite. You are free to make your own choices.”
    She’d not been free since the dreams first came, but soon, soon she would be.
    “Today while you slept I felt something.” Luc said. “A wisp of Dancer power.”
    “There are no Dancers in the area.” None had lived in the Montagne Noire area since the Great Rift. Luc, however, was a powerful Sensitive. He would not be mistaken. “Where is this