“You can’t blame yourself.”
Amelia scanned the room, her eyes glistening. “Everyone here looked to me for leadership. I thought we were overthrowing a tyrant. But the moment my vortex watch was finished, Daddy Dearest sent everyone away except for Clothilde and me.” Her eyes flashed with hatred. “That’s when I figured out the truth. Daddy Dearest never intended to overthrow the Tsar. He wanted to become him. He plans to use the vortex watch, soak in the power of a thousand Necromancers, and become the only ruler of the continent.”
I thought back to Rowan’s claim that the Vicomte was trying to kill Genesis Rex. His plans could very well reach beyond our continent.
Amelia thumped her chest with her fist. “The vortex watch was my work. My creation. It was meant to be something good, and Daddy Dearest twisted it into evil.” Her blue eyes narrowed into angry slits. “So I created a second device.”
Her words bounced through my consciousness. It seemed too good to be true. She made another watch? When I spoke again, it was an effort to get out every word. “Tell me what you built.”
“Daddy Dearest had stolen a number of totem rings from the Tsar. When all my machinists left, there were still some bands left in the laboratory. Most were rubbish, yet one totem ring had possibilities. I tried everything I could to build another vortex watch from it. Nothing worked. The totem ring inside the first vortex watch contained unique spells. The Tsar never cast anything like it again.”
I slumped against a desk. “So, you couldn’t build another vortex watch. What did you create?”
“There was one totem ring with useful qualities. It was perfect for spying on what was happening with the vortex watch. So I built that into a device. I call it my witness watch.”
The words echoed through my mind. Witness watch. My body felt numb. “Can it show us the location of the vortex watch? Because wherever that thing is, we’ll be sure to find Ada, Veronique, and the others.”
Amelia shook her head. “It’s not that kind of witness. While the vortex watch stores Necromancer magick, the witness watch tracks how much power has been gathered.”
“That could still be useful.” I think.
“The witness watch also shows you exactly how much more power is needed before the totem ring in the vortex watch is fully charged.”
I twisted my hands together at my waist. “I don’t want to know the answer to this question. Still, I have to ask. Once the vortex watch is fully loaded, can it transfer that power to whoever wears it, regardless of whether or not they’re a mage?”
Amelia stared at the floor. “Well, before it’s fully charged, the vortex watch can only drain out power. But once it’s full and ready? The vortex watch can transfer magick to anyone, mage or not.”
The walls seemed to press in around me. “I was afraid of that.” I scrubbed my hand over my face. A vortex watch and a witness watch. “Do you still have copies of the plans for either device?”
Amelia sashayed over to one of the tables, her dress rustling with every step. “I can do better than that. I have the witness watch right here.” She pulled open a drawer, took out a small watch, and held it up on her palm. “This was my own secret project. Daddy Dearest doesn’t even know the thing exists.”
The world took on a dreamlike sheen. I stood here, in a laboratory, and about to touch my first clue about my Sisters. It didn’t seem real. I walked up to Amelia. With shaking fingers, I pulled the device from her hand. It was a small disk on a leather wristband. “How it different is this from the vortex watch?”
“They look identical from the outside.”
I brought the witness watch closer. On the device’s face, there stood spindly hands to mark the minutes and hours. The image of a tiny moon peeped through a hole on the surface. “Is this supposed to tell the time?”
“Only as a decoy.” Amelia plucked the device from my palm. “The watch doesn’t show the true time, only how much Necromancer power has been pulled into the ring. When then hour reaches midnight, then the totem ring inside the vortex watch is fully charged.”
My stomach sank. “This reads nine p.m. Only three hours to go until the Vicomte has enough power. What does that mean in terms of our schedule? How much time do we have left?”
“At this point, there isn’t a lot of time remaining. By my calculations, every hour on the watch marks a day for us.”
I paced a line on the floor and tried to organize my thoughts. “It’s nine o’clock now. That give us three hours—I mean three days—until the vortex watch reaches midnight.”
Just three days. Amelia’s right. That’s not a lot of time.
How I hated to ask this next question. “What happens when the vortex watch is fully charged? How exactly will the Vicomte get the power?”