Mary Grieve
Another dark witch and cousin to Imelda, Feydor’s mother. Mary comes from Ludnam, but grew up in Albia and thinks of herself as Albian at heart. She’s not as powerful as Imelda, but still thinks she should be #1 in the family. She has a black cat called Mite and has a magical mirror called an occulem that she can use to watch events far away. It’s Mary that tells Feydor the grim truth about who he is and why he is a castrato, thus triggering him to want to kill his mother, Imelda. Feydor and Mary establish an awkward alliance in the story, but the possibility of betrayal is never far from the surface.