I sighed. "It would be unnatural to bring him back,"
"It is also unnatural to linger in the shadow," she said softly. "The power to return him to his original state on this earth is within me. Why else would it be there save to use?"
I went silent, thinking of this, then said, "Lady, I do not envy your choice."
She smiled bitterly. "But it is my choice, as the gods seem to have decreed. And, in the end, I would have it no other way."
"And what do you wish me to do?"
"Stay," she said. "Until after Lammas Night. I will make my decision that night. I have no other alternative."
I blinked. "Why not?"
"Because after that night he departs whether I do anything or not."
I frowned. "Shouldn't that answer all your questions right there?"
She shook her head. "You don't understand. He has... for whatever twisted reason of the gods, become bound to my soul, like strings on a lute. Pluck the strings, and the lute vibrates. Cut the strings yourself, and they snap, leaving the lute intact. But expose both to wind and weather, and not only do the strings corrode, but the lute will warp and crack."
The shiver of ice now grew claws, drawing ragged lines of chill across my chest.
"So if he departs..." I said slowly.
Her voice went so quiet I could hardly hear her, "I go with him."
Benzamin waited until Maakus' glass had been refilled before talking.
"What else?" he asked.
"Other than that, I saw her but a few more times. All other knowledge I have acquired was from the book."
Benzamin nodded.
"The book is not accurate, though."
The High Lord raised a brow.
"It only holds passages of what occurred before Lammas Night. Nothing after it."
"And that is what you wish to know?"
"Indeed, High Lord."
Benzamin nodded and rubbed his chin.
The madrigal paused for a moment. "As she bid, I went to her home after Lammas Night and found the journal. There was a hand-written note pinned to it naming it mine. I found circles of chalk in the attic, some candles, ashes, and what appeared to be the burnt remains of a book... probably the grimoire she spoke of."