Nightingale Read Online Free

smoothness of her voice is almost convincing, but when she turns toward the window, I notice the tenseness of the muscles in her neck.
    “Because you know everything that goes on in the Western Society.”
    Mother shakes her head. “You give me too much credit, Love.”
    “Would you tell me if you did?” I challenge.
    Mother purses her lips as if carefully considering her words. “No. I wouldn’t. Dwelling on a boy you should have no part of isn’t healthy. Trust me, I have experience in this.”
    “With my father?”
    Mother clenches her jaw and doesn’t answer me.
    “Why won’t you talk about him? You had no problem with it at Summer Hill. Or was that just a ploy to get me to trust you? So that I would believe you were on my side? Was it all just a way for you to start a war with the Light witches, Mother? Henry told me—”
    “Enough!”
    The chandelier above us explodes into a million tiny slivers of crystal. I duck and cover my head with my arms, preparing for the inevitable pain of glass piercing my skin.
    But there’s nothing.
    I slowly open my eyes and lift my head. The shards hang suspended in the air, each one reflecting the light of the fireplace and sending a cacophony of color dancing around the room.
    Mother stands just to the side of my bed. A red, mottled flush covers her exposed chest and neck. “Do not push me, Lark. It may appear I’m in control of my emotions, but I assure you, that is not always the case.”
    I open my mouth but she glares at me and I snap it shut. “You are a Dark witch. It’s time you behaved like one.”
    With a flick of her hand, the shards of glass fly back into place and the chandelier looks like new.
    My heart seizes. I hold my hand before me. It quivers and shakes, but unlike in the past, my magic remains trapped inside me. The restraint somehow prevents me from using it.
    “This isn’t fair,” I scream, sitting up. “This isn’t what was supposed to happen. Beck was supposed to be safe and you were going to teach me how to use magic.”
    “Beck was supposed to be safe? From who? Me? You?” Mother paces along the edge of the bed, her fingers twirling her long necklace. “His own people? Who was he supposed to be safe from?”
    I bang my balled fists against the bed. “Me.”
    Agitation simmers in her voice. “Perhaps it’s better if you don’t know where he is.”
    Her words are like a slap to my face. Because as much as I don’t want to admit it, if Beck is alive, there’s a good chance he’s hiding. From me.
    Because he understands I’m a threat.
    And I have no idea what I can do to him. Set him on fire, like Mother’s done to me? Melt his flesh from his bones? Choke the air from his lungs like the poor healer? Freeze his eyeballs? What ?
    I slump back into my pillows and pull the covers over my head. Mother is right, if Beck is alive, he needs to stay away from me. The rational part of my brain understands this. My fragile, empty heart does not.
    Mother lifts the edge of the comforter and peers into the warm, comfortable darkness of my cocoon. “I don’t want to fight with you, Lark. Please believe me when I say this.”
    I nod.
    “Would you like a visit from Kyra?” Mother’s voice is soft. All the anger from the past few minutes has disappeared.
    Other than an endless stream of healers, I haven’t seen anyone besides Mother in two days. Not even Annalise. 
    I sniff loudly and clear my throat. “I’d like that.”
    Mother points to my closet. “Then get dressed. She’ll be here in a few minutes.”
    I slide off my bed and shove my feet into a pair of fleecy slippers. Mother strokes my knotted mess of hair as I pass her. “Wear purple,” she says. “You look lovely in that color.”
    I run my hand across the day dress section until I find a soft lilac sleeveless dress. With one hand, I tug my night clothes over my head.
    Once I’m dressed, Mother hands me a brush and a hair tie. The brush catches in the tangles as I try to glide