Chapter 9. Grayson
Grayson
I only have one shot to convince my uncle not to kill everyone. I’m fairly certain he already intended to take Eloise out with the dog.
“Are you claiming you have some method of calling the Key?” my uncle asks, his tone carefully neutral. “You know very well that it appears when and where it wants.”
“It’s appeared for me and Eloise before,” I say smoothly, because anything less than total commitment and my uncle will pick out the lie.
“Only I wasn’t actually sure what it was until it showed up on that stage today.
My theory is…” I lean forward for this part.
“That there’s something about us being together that triggered it. ”
My uncle’s gaze flits to Eloise, who’s staring at me like I just suggested waltzing naked down Main Street.
But when his gaze meets mine, he seems to understand my communication—that I saved her from the dogs, not because I had anything to do with the discernment spell, but because she’s integral to calling the Key.
I can scent his greed—a deep desire to possess that Key.
“We’ll call the Archive Key and we’ll hand it over to you,” I continue. “But only if you agree that when we do, you’ll clear our names of all things Lawless.”
“You do not make the conditions,” he says with a hard tone.
“I do if you want that Key,” I continue, walking a dangerous line. “Unless you know someone else who’s called it in the last hundred years?”
Warning flashes in his eyes. “Careful. Or you might find yourself in a hole until you learn to speak more politely.”
“Is that a yes or a no?” I ask, and Eloise sucks in a sharp breath.
“If you’re so confident,” he replies icily, “then call the Key now.”
I lean back in the armchair. “I would, of course, but with its uncontrollable nature, it’ll take time.”
My uncle’s silent for so long I almost doubt the way I’ve played this. “Two weeks,” he bites out. “You have two weeks to produce that Key. If you succeed, your names will be cleared of all wrongdoing. Otherwise, you’ll both be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
“Deal,” I say, before he changes his mind.
“There are four Guardians outside that door,” my uncle says, looking from me to Eloise. “Two of them will escort you to your home, Miss Belrose, and will stay with you while you pack your belongings.”
“Pack?” she asks, and the word sounds forced.
“As I’m sure you’re aware, I’m traveling back to the University with the new graduates.
The wards there are second to none. Once you cross them, there is no way out unless I so decide,” he says, letting her know that her life is still very much in his hands.
“You’ll tell your family exactly what everyone knows, that you were admitted to the Alchemy Guild, and nothing more.
If either Guardian gets the sense that you’re violating this simple instruction, I’ll scrap the deal and they’ll bring your entire family in for interrogation. Is that clear?”
He doesn’t wait for her acknowledgment; he doesn’t need it.
His gaze lands on me. “Given your claim that the Archive Key appears when you and Miss Belrose are together, you’ll remain that way for these next two weeks. Until further notice, Grayson, you’re also admitted to the Alchemy Guild, where you’ll be assigned the same schedule.”
My jaw flexes. “I was marked Gifted.”
“You were marked nothing. Absolutely nothing. You’re lucky you’re going to University at all,” he replies, and my usual calm slips.
Even though I clamp down on my anger a second after it arises, he reads it, because a small smile appears on his face.
Satisfied he’s put me in my place, he leans back in his chair.
“As far as your classmates are concerned, the Lawless interfered with the discernment spell and that complication has been fully resolved. Your fates are now tied, and since this deal was yours, Grayson, you’ll be taking full responsibility for it.
If Miss Belrose does anything untoward, it’ll be you who suffers the consequences by her side.
” With that, he snaps his fingers and the door behind us flies open.
All I can hope is Eloise knows how she called that Key. Not that I have any intention of handing it over to my uncle.
“Remember, I have eyes everywhere,” he adds like the threat it is.