Kingdom of the Wicked

Wrath tells Emilia he did not murder Vittoria, that she was already dead when he arrived. He also claims that Vittoria “made a bargain with [his] brother” (83), though he does not specify the terms of this bargain. 

Wrath wants to know which Latin phrase Emilia used when she summoned him. Emilia is hesitant to tell Wrath because she fears he will use this knowledge to free himself from the summoning circle. When she tells him the phrase, Wrath is angry because it stipulates that he must be Emilia’s protector. He suggests that they use a “blood trade” to set the duration of the spell, but Emilia does not want to accept.

In his attempts to get Emilia to agree to his blood trade, Wrath explains that the spell she used to summon him not only prohibits Wrath from hurting Emilia (as was Emilia’s intention), but that he must also protect her from others. He suggests they make the spell binding for six months, but Emilia fears being bound to him. Wrath says he “want[s] to stop the murderer before he strikes again” (91), but Emilia is uncertain if this is the whole truth about his intentions in the human realm. Out of her deeply rooted mistrust of the Wicked, Emilia rejects Wrath’s offer of the binding blood trade.

Emilia buys a shirt for Wrath to wear from Salvatore, a local merchant in the marketplace. She encounters her friend Claudia on her way to the cave where Wrath is contained. Claudia tells Emilia about having strange visions of dark omens, and that Domenico is very upset over Vittoria’s murder and prays every day over the loss. Claudia offers to help Emilia investigate the murder, and Emilia gives her Vittoria’s diary to see if she can break the spell keeping it closed. Emilia hears a disembodied voice warn her that “He’s here” (101), which sends her into a state of paranoia. She convinces Claudia that nothing is wrong.

Wrath refuses to wear the shirt Emilia bought. He does not want to be under Emilia’s containment spell, and neither of them know how to negotiate their bond. Emilia says she will accept the blood bond if Wrath answers some questions about Vittoria’s murder first. Emilia asks him which of his brothers Vittoria summoned before her death, and Wrath tells her that it was Pride, “the devil” himself. Emilia remembers Vittoria telling her sarcastically that she had made a deal to marry the devil and regrets not believing her before. Pride wanted to marry Vittoria “to break a curse that was placed on him” by witches (105). The curse stipulates that Pride must take a witch as his bride and use her magic to break the curse. Wrath is helping Pride contact candidates for betrothal. He will not tell Emilia how Pride selects a bride. Emilia reveals she was never willing to accept the bond and goes to the monastery, leaving Wrath alone in the cave.

Before Emilia arrives at the monastery, she feels “the unmistakable sensation of being watched” (109). Envy, another of the Wicked, reveals himself. He influences Emilia with his powers, making her feel an overwhelming sense of desire to possess greater magical abilities, causing Emilia to point Wrath’s dagger at her own heart. She looks at her tattoo, breaking the spell. Envy explains that he had “allowed [Emilia’s] inner desires to surface” with his spell (112). He offers her a bargain: sell her soul to House Envy and he will help her solve the murder. Emilia declines, and he calls her a “shadow witch” (114), a term she has never heard before. He encourages her to reconsider his offer for protection before the danger truly begins and walks away, vanishing into the night.

Reeling from her experience with Envy, Emilia runs to Claudia’s house to check on her and the diary. Claudia has not yet broken the spell, and Emilia tells her to stop trying as it is too dangerous. Emilia vaguely tells Claudia that the Wicked have come to their city. 

Claudia tells Emilia about the curse placed on Pride by La Prima Strega, who cast a vengeance spell on the devil after “he stole her firstborn’s soul” (119). The curse “trap[s the devil] in Hell for eternity” (119). The only way for the devil to break the curse is if he marries a witch “wearing the Horn of Hades” (119). Claudia does not know exactly what the Horn of Hades is. Because La Prima used dark magic to cast the curse, its exact terms are erased from memory rendering the witches unable to break it.

Back at home, Emilia re-examines the gambling chip she found with Vittoria’s hidden belongings. It says “avaritia” on it, the Latin word for “greed.” This indicates that it is linked to the demon Prince of Greed, and that Vittoria must have met Greed before she was killed. 

Emilia makes notes regarding her murder investigation thus far, considering how the diary, Vittoria’s “deal with the devil” (123), spell sheets, and the Horn of Hades relate. Unable to determine how these factors explain Vittoria’s murder, Emilia decides to take the gambling chip to Salvatore, a notorious gossip, the following day to get some information. He tells her that the chip comes from a trendy gambling house that changes locations and requires a chip to enter. She searches for the gambling house by the cathedral, feeling lured by the demon magic, and finds a door with the frog symbol.

There are many patrons inside Greed’s gambling house. The rooms are opulent, and many of the patrons are over-indulging. Domenico Nucci Senior, Domenico’s father, drunkenly mistakes Emilia for Vittoria, calling out to her. One of Greed’s henchmen approaches Emilia to take her to meet Greed in his office. 

Greed will only answer one of Emilia’s questions unless she gives him her cornicello. Emilia strategizes and phrases her question as a sentence, suggesting that Greed “tell [her] about the Horn of Hades” (135). He reveals that it is “a key that locks the gates of Hell” (135), but that it was a gift, not part of the curse. Emilia then asks about breaking a demon spell cast on an object, prompting Greed to realize that she fooled him to ask two questions instead of one. This upsets Greed, who mysteriously replies that one “must sacrifice a bit of” themselves to undo a demon spell (136). Greed tells Emilia that Vittoria gave him her amulet, which is now underneath the cathedral protected by a “Viperidae,” a magical snake that protects objects of value. Emilia refuses to give him her amulet and leaves.

After considering her conversation with Greed, Emilia realizes that breaking a demonic spell requires blood. She puts a drop of her blood onto Vittoria’s diary, breaking the spell. The diary is disorganized, and Emilia struggles to find useful information. Vittoria describes hearing magical objects. This power led her to the truth about the Horn of Hades: They are the devil’s horns and the key to the gates of hell. Emilia and Vittoria’s cornicello amulets are the Horns of Hades.

Emilia confronts her Nonna about the amulets. Nona explains that La Prima cut off and shrunk the devil’s horns when she cursed him, intending to hide them. She also explains that a shadow witch is “an ancient line of witches who had ties to the Wicked prior to the curse” that La Prima placed on the devil (145). Before she can finish explaining, an invisible attacker cuts Nonna’s throat, injuring her badly. Emilia and her mother treat Nonna’s wounds. Emilia discovers that her cornicello has been stolen by the attacker.

Emilia returns to Wrath to gather information about Greed and his Viperidae. She plans to steal Vittoria’s amulet back because she believes that Greed has stolen her amulet, giving him both parts of the Horn of Hades and thus the power to unlock Hell. Wrath explains that once a Viperidae “choose[s] to guard something, [...] no denizen of the underworld may interfere” because the snake is so dangerous (151). Emilia goes to find the Viperidae. Emilia travels through the tunnels under the cathedral, and when she finds the Viperidae, she casts a sleep spell on it. Carefully, Emilia finds Vittoria’s amulet and grabs it, but the Viperidae wakes up and bites her back as she flees. She kills the Viperidae by “shoving Vittoria’s amulet into one of its eyes” before succumbing to the effects of the snake’s venom (157).

Wrath arrives to find Emilia succumbing to the Viperidae’s venom. Emilia is too disoriented to communicate with him. Wrath takes Emilia to an unknown location, where he gives her a liquid antidote to the venom and kisses her. 

Emilia awakes naked in a bathtub, unaware how she has gotten there. She remembers flickers of how Wrath saved her but is uncertain about how accurate her memories are. Wrath is waiting for her. She asks him why he saved her and about what kind of magic he used to revive her. He refuses to give her a clear answer, telling her only that if he had not intervened, she would be dead. Frustrated by his charm and her attraction to him, Emilia casts a containment spell that banishes Wrath back to the original summoning circle in the cave. Emilia feels deeply conflicted about being attracted to Wrath, and she is confused by his actions toward her. She leaves to find Wrath and ask for his help.