Clarke
Unlike the drawing of the entrance to Mars College, there was nothing in the background that could hint at clues elsewhere. It was simply a portrait of Halston on otherwise blank paper.
Both of their instincts screaming that Halston was innocent meant that he probably was. That was a tremendous relief. Thinking she couldn’t trust herself was a terrible feeling.
She had missed Russell, and their conversations. It would be lovely to see him again. But if she was preoccupied, he would notice.
Russell heaved a sigh, and leaned against one of the study tables. “I’m sorry I didn’t realize how far Mitch would take this. All of you could have died.”
“That’s not your fault, and we didn’t,” Clarke said.
“I still wish I could have done more. His mental state is worse than I had guessed.”
There was really nothing to say in response. “The new monitor seems like a good guy,” Clarke commented.
“I hope so. I haven’t met him yet,” Russell said.
The sudden awkwardness between them was odd. Clarke didn’t know what to make of it. She continued shelving books, making occasional small talk. Eventually, some of the ease of their usual dynamic returned.
Clarke had too much on her mind to dwell on it. During her classes, she was able to put everything else aside and focus on the boys. But her thoughts were a jumbled mess the rest of the day.
Finally, it was over. The boys were studying in the common room after having dinner in the cafeteria. Jace wanted to meet in the basement, and she hoped he had a plan.
After checking on the students once more, Clarke headed for the stairs. One benefit of organizing shelters for the feral cats was that she didn’t have to sneak. It was the perfect excuse to be in the basement regularly.
They met in their usual spot. Jace pulled her into his arms, and kissed her on the cheek. Just being held by him eased her tension.
“I followed Heath at a distance after classes,” Jace said. “He runs in the early evening. Over the next few days, I’ll find out if he sticks to the same route.”
“Ok, then what? We can’t kidnap him,” Clarke said, and then frowned at the expression on his face. Jace looked mulish, and ready to break laws on her behalf. “You are thinking about kidnapping him. Are you crazy?”
This man. The fact that he was all in was one of the many reasons she’d fallen for him. But she didn’t want Jace to get arrested over this.
“Heath has wards around his house. We can’t sneak in and search it without him being alerted, and knowing we were there,” Jace said. “The only thing I can think of is ambushing him while he runs, and asking what he knows. I won’t hurt him, or commit a chargeable offense.”
Clarke felt like her blood pressure was rising. There had to be more options. “I know combat and interrogation are your specialties, but how are we supposed to ask him about Dad without mentioning my last name? It sounds risky.”
“Leave the details to me, and try not to worry about it,” Jace said, making Clarke roll her eyes at the idiocy of that statement. Of course she would worry. That was a given. “I want to do this Friday night. The football team will be traveling for an away game, meaning less students in the dorms.”
Clarke nodded mechanically. She didn’t like this plan, but had no idea what else to do. Revealing her identity and purpose for being here to Heath Halston wasn’t worth the risk.
Whoever was holding her dad captive, or knew why he was missing, could be alerted to their investigation. She could also be ousted from campus, with no access to the clue they still hadn’t found. Clarke was damned if she did, and damned if she didn’t.
She went through the week on autopilot, with her mind on confronting Heath Halston. Clarke needed whatever information he had, but was afraid of what she would hear at the same time. And that was if the crazy plan actually worked.
By Friday, her nerves were shot. Clarke had to return to her apartment three times for things she’d forgotten. She lost track of a lesson in the middle of a sentence, getting baffled looks from her students.
In the library, Russell pulled her unceremoniously into a study room the moment she crossed the threshold, and closed the door. “You can talk to me about anything. You know that, right?”
Clarke rubbed her temples. She’d had a headache for two days that refused to go away even with medication. “I honestly wish I could, Russell,” she said wearily.
Pretending to be a man and keeping all these secrets was a burden she wished she could unload. It wasn’t to be, though. Clarke wouldn’t put her dad in more danger by inadvertently trusting the wrong person.
“Look. You’ve been a mystery from day one,” Russell said.
“I like to unravel mysteries, but after weeks, I still haven’t figured you out, or what you’re hiding.
But what I do know is that you are a good, caring person, and a great teacher.
So, the offer stands if you need to talk.
No flirting, no bullshit. I’ll be an ear and a shoulder. ”
That was tempting. Clarke and Hannah texted regularly, but it wasn’t the same as having a friend who knew all the people currently influencing her life, good and bad.
She wished she could tell Russell about her dad, her bond with Jace, her crazy attraction to Heath Halston, just all of it.
He would have intelligent, astute opinions.
“Thank you,” she said sincerely. “I’ll think about it.”
The rest of the day seemed to speed by, probably because Clarke was dreading what came next.
Lane had invited all the underage students to a movie night in the elemental dorm, with the goal of making Brandon and Paul more comfortable there.
That gave her and Jace hours to enact their plan without needing to check on the boys.
By the time Jace met her at the powered dorm with a large duffel, Clarke was a ball of anxiety. Wordlessly, she let him in, and walked to her apartment.
“I know you’re stressing over this, but everything will be fine,” Jace said when they were in her unit with the door closed. Stressing was an understatement, but his calm confidence did help steady her.
They each took a drop of the DSV potion to disguise their voices. “Ok, what’s next?” Clarke asked, weirded out by how strange her voice sounded.
“The first part of the plan is simple. Once we have Heath contained, let me do the talking,” Jace said.
This could go totally sideways, but procrastinating wouldn’t change that. “All right. Let’s do this,” Clarke said.
They took her car to a public park west of the college, where a sleek, black and silver motorcycle waited. Jace lifted the duffel, and pointed to the bathroom. He handed her a padded motorcross jumpsuit, and a helmet with a tinted visor.
Clark put the jumpsuit on over her slacks and shirt with shaking fingers. It was a tight fit, but if necessary, they could shed the suits, and look completely different in seconds. She donned the helmet, and Jace tightened the strap, making sure it was secure.
She climbed onto the bike behind him, and the motor started with a throaty roar. Clarke hadn’t been on a motorcycle in years, because it was one of the few things her dad got stern about. Motorcycles were dangerous, and her dad feared the thought of her being in an accident.
Respecting that, Clarke avoided them for his sake. Under other circumstances, she would have reveled at the freedom of the wind in her hair as she held tight to Jace. However, she was too nervous to enjoy the ride.
A few minutes later, Jace turned onto a winding country road, and pulled into the drive of a nature preserve.
They dismounted, and walked the bike along one of the paths until there was a break in the trees.
Jace hid the motorcycle behind a couple of maples.
Walking several yards from where the bike was stashed, Jace gestured for her to join him in the greenery where they would have a good view of the running trail.
“Now, we wait,” Jace said quietly.
Since his voice was already deep, the DSV potion just made him sound different, which was fine. It suited their purposes.
Clarke was starting to wonder if Heath was taking a different route when she heard footfalls on the path. Jace was alert, but calm as he waited for Heath to appear. Heath came into view looking straight ahead and wearing earbuds.
He was nearly past them when Jace pounced. In a blink, Jace had Heath’s wand arm behind his back, preventing him from casting. Clarke knew Jace had been trained, and taught others to safely disarm evolved citizens quickly.
But she was still impressed. She had barely seen him move. Jace marched the caster to the other side of the path, and behind a few saplings, watching for dog walkers or other joggers.
Clarke followed, trying to move silently, but she hadn’t been trained for stealth. At least with earbuds in, Heath wouldn’t be aware of her presence. Jace would prefer that it stay that way, but knew she’d want to be here for this.
Jace took the set of cuffs Clarke handed him, and secured Heath’s hands behind his back.
Heath was calmer than Clarke thought he’d be, as if being marched into the woods and manacled by an unknown assailant was no big deal.
Maybe he recognized the futility of struggling, or was brave to the point of stupidity.
“I don’t carry my wallet or any valuables when I run,” Heath commented.
Jace pulled the earbuds out of Heath’s ears. “Money doesn’t interest me. You have information I need.”
He had affected a terrible New York accent that anyone would know to be fake. Clarke hadn’t been to New York, but a lot of her students were addicted to a reality show filmed there.
Instead of sounding intimidated, Heath snorted. “If you’re trying to sound like those idiots on ‘Bad News in Brooklyn’, to throw me off, you’re failing miserably.”
“Just answer my questions, and you can go about your night with no more hassle from me,” Jace said, still with the horrible accent. “There have been disappearances over the summer, and you know something about it.”
Clarke wasn’t facing Heath to see his expression, but he suddenly stood at attention.
“I don’t actually know anything,” he said.
“But if you’re trying to determine what happened to the missing students from Mars and Venus, and where they are, I am too.
Instead of all this strongarming, cloak-and-dagger shit, we should collaborate, and pool our information and resources. ”
Missing students? Clarke hadn’t heard about students disappearing. Did that have anything to do with her dad? If they were connected, that might be why her first vision had led her here. This could also be much bigger, and more nefarious than she’d suspected.
She shared a long look with Jace. He hadn’t known about the missing students, either. “A potion maker also went missing,” Jace said. “But he graduated decades ago, and not from Mars. Do you know anything about that?”
Heath shook his head. “I’m sorry. I don’t, and would help you if I could.”
The only way to get more specific would be to mention her last name, which Heath would recognize. This was frustrating, but Clarke didn’t think they would learn anything else this way. She shook her head at Jace, pantomiming that they should let Heath go.
They had a lot to think about, and another mystery to solve. Perhaps trying to call a vision about the missing students would indirectly lead to her dad. It was worth a try.
“I’m not ready to show my face, but like your idea of collaborating,” Jace said. “I’ll be in touch with a way to communicate soon.”
At Jace’s nod, Clarke stepped up close behind Heath to unlock the cuffs. She was prepared to jump back fast in the event he tried to cast when his hands were free. Her bare fingers brushed one of his wrists, sending warmth and tingles up her arms, and down to her toes.
Clarke froze with wide eyes, and looked to Jace in a panic as Heath went stiff with shock. She had a second mate, and that mate was Heath Halston. Logically, Clarke knew that lots of people had more than one mate. But somehow, it hadn’t occurred to her that she might be one of those people.