Chapter 13
“What is the meaning of this?” Thalienne didn’t stand but remained seated in defiance to even the suggestion that she stand on their order.
Oh yeah, there was House Phoenix attitude showing up. Her hands rested on the armrest of her chair, her fingers twitching ever so slightly. I didn’t want to like her, but this move was something I would have done.
Just to make a point.
I was pretty sure I knew the meaning of why they were here – she’d been unwittingly harboring fugitives – and it was taking everything I had not to make a dash for the door. The only thing holding me in place was the fact that the rest of my crew wasn’t by my side, and I’d never leave them behind.
“We would prefer to speak with you in private, Sage,” the fancy Runecoat said.
“Your preference is not law here. This is my school, and I would prefer to know what’s going on.
Right. Now. I assume you have a signed directive from the Senate advocating this intrusion?
” she demanded, wriggling her fingers impatiently.
Still not standing. Forcing him to bring the paper all the way to her.
The one I assumed was the leader of the group strode forward.
I scrambled to get out of his way, his duster snapping around behind him as he passed by me.
Sharp, angled face, weathered, squint lines around his eyes.
He looked like some of the hardened detectives I’d met in my travels and thievery.
They had seen the underbelly of society and had no rose tint left on their glasses to pretend that the world wasn’t as ugly as they’d thought.
He handed her a scroll and stepped back. “Just following orders, ma’am.”
“I am aware, Winston. But orders from a leader should be questioned when you know they are . . . biased.”
His back stiffened, almost as if they’d had this conversation before.
Dinner curdled in my stomach as she broke the seal on the scroll and read it out loud.
“Sage Thalienne of Heathermoor. We have been alerted to the fact that there have been instances of wild magic being used on the premises throughout your tenure as headmistress. This is in direct violation of law 357, section 4B, which disallows unsanctioned magic by anyone, no matter their position, without the express, written permission of the Senate. Runecoats will investigate these accusations, and an impartial emissary will be overseeing your training program at Heathermoor for the next five days in order to complete our investigation and ensure that all laws are being followed to the letter. To meet that end we’ve assigned Senator Mallachtan to act as an adjunct doyen during that time. ”
The gasp that went through the room was so loud I was surprised there was any air left. Everyone else sucking wind because they were shocked. Me sucking wind because I needed the oxygen, as I was about to drop to the floor in relief.
The Runecoats weren’t here for us, and that was the important bit. Not great to have more eyes on us, but better than the alternative by a landslide.
Winston stepped aside and the door banged open for a second time.
A plump man in a tweed suit with leather patches on the elbows stepped through the door.
Bald, with massive bushy white eyebrows and glasses that only seemed to make his watery blue eyes look smaller.
Piggish. None of this boded well for my first impression of him.
I would have put him in his sixties, but he could have been older.
But all that wasn’t what kept my eyes on him. It was the thin line of his mouth, the deep gouges running between his eyes that said he did a hell of a lot of scowling.
Every part of him screamed ‘angry old man.’
Thalienne laughed and snapped the scroll shut. “Oh, the Senate and their overactive imaginations. Winston, you and yours are welcome to investigate and oversee any class you wish. Mallachtan, I’ll see you after I finish eating and assign you an office. You’re all dismissed for now.”
Winston and his fellow Runecoats didn’t leave but instead shifted themselves so that they were against the walls of the massive dining hall.
“I’ll eat,” Mallachtan said coldly, as if his chin wasn’t wobbling like a bowl of jelly as he walked toward the buffet. But it was his next line . . . muttered, and yet I saw the flick of his fingers. He amplified his own fucking whisper. “The necessity of it has naught to do with camaraderie.”
The room had another of those less than subtle intakes of breath.
Thalienne’s expression went so dark, I half-expected thunder clouds to appear overhead, but she said nothing.
“Hannah. Let’s go, I’ll give you the quick tour,” Liam said. It took me a moment to remember it was my name he was calling. I hurried after him as he led me away from the scene. Likely because Thalienne was about to murder the Senator and I wouldn’t blame her one bit.
“Doyen –” I wanted to ask him who the hell that Mallachtan was.
“This hall leads to the stairs you will use to get to Sage Thalienne’s personal quarters.
” He pointed to the left, and I marked it in my mind.
We passed a small group of students, who he nodded at even as he spoke to me.
“Do try not to embarrass yourself. As the only member of House Phoenix, you have a great deal riding on you. A great deal to prove.”
Liam led me through the massive building, pointing out the bathrooms, offices, libraries, the kitchens, a few classrooms, and some strange kind of gymnasium where there were more weapons than sports equipment.
It wasn’t until we were on the top floor that he held his fingers to his lips and motioned furiously toward a closed door.
Finally, we’d have a chance to talk. Once I had a minute to catch my breath . . .
My skull thrummed with pain, reminding me to ask about a nurse station, someone surely had an aspirin or two. Liam whipped off a quick rune, unlocking the door and pushing it open, all with a single spell.
Blessedly, the room was dark, which made my head happy. I could make out a few tables, chairs. Nothing special, from what I could see.
I turned as he shut the door, and he pulled me into a hug so tight it was if he were afraid I’d blow away. I hugged him back, relief washing away the pain and exhaustion for a moment. His warmth and the smell of vanilla sunk into me, and I just let it buoy me up.
“What a day,” I muttered with a groan.
Liam’s laugh rumbled through his chest into mine, in a not unpleasant way. His hands slid from my back, up to my neck, and then he was gently cupping my face. “I wanted so badly to come and find you sooner, but we can’t . . .”
I leaned into him, shaking my head. “Liam, we’re all playing roles here. I can’t seek you out, you can’t seek me out. I understand. At least you don’t see a nineteen-year-old girl.”
He tugged gently at a lock of my hair, inhaling deeply. “No, I most certainly don’t.”
Shit, the intensity of his gaze was . . . a lot. It would have been worse if I thought he was seeing me as a young girl but seeing as it was just me . . . the heat in my cheeks was quick, and I turned my head to catch a breath even as my friends’ words whispered in the back of my head.
Liam was a good guy.
His voice was gentle. “How are you holding up? Still hurting from your fall into the loch?”
“Not too bad,” I lied even as my head reminded me I was not ‘too bad,’ closer to ‘laying down in a dark room with a migraine’ bad. Strange, because I’d never been prone to headaches before.
He pulled his head back and raised an eyebrow at me. “We might not have known each other for very long, but I already know you too well for that, Harlow. Spill it. What’s wrong?”
Closing my eyes, I fought back a wobble.
“I’m not doing great, to be honest. My skull has been pounding on and off all day, and I’ve had these rolling waves of nausea.
I haven’t really felt like myself since we left Neverthorn .
. . but worse today than yesterday . . . it’s not getting better . . .”
“Look at me,” his expression darkened with concern as his hand rested on my face once again. He tugged my chin gently from side to side, seeming to stare all the way into my soul with those dark brown eyes. “Did you hit your head when you fell?”
“It’s not that. And Ellie healed me right away. She would have caught anything serious.”
He raised his other hand, pressing his finger to my forehead, right to that third eye. “May I?”
I winced at even the gentle pressure but gave him a nod. “Will it help?”
“I can do more than just find Quirks. If something’s wrong, I should be able to pinpoint the issue.”
“I trust you.” Trusted him enough to let him go probing through my brain again, apparently. And this time, without any drugs to take the edge off.
But that didn’t mean I was excited about the process.
I let out a gasp as his energy flooded into me, permeating every inch of me, down to my innermost self.
It was different this time. No visions from the past or of anything else.
Just two minds, swirling together as if they were one.
I couldn’t read his thoughts, and sensed, somehow, that he couldn’t read mine.
But I could feel him, on a level that went far deeper than the surface.
His concern for me. His protectiveness.
His desire.
I shivered and drew back a little. This wasn’t the place or the time. “D-do you see anything?”
“No concussion,” Liam replied, a hint of concern in his voice that had me stiffening. “But there is something. A dark energy I can’t identify.”
My immediate thought went to my bloodline. Could this be something tied to Nocta waking up inside of me? No, please gods, not that. I put a hand to my head. There had to be another reason.
“Could it be . . . the bond, or what’s left of it?” I asked, leaving Typhon’s name unsaid. It felt somehow wrong to say it here, in this moment.
“I don’t think so.” He let out a ragged breath. “But I don’t like what I’m sensing one bit.”