Headmistress Wake stood in the hall, her face set in hard, frustrated lines.
I closed the door just enough so she couldn’t see Alex shirtless in my bed, or my friends on the floor.
The headmistress gave a soft, unamused laugh. “Please, Miss Dane. It’s not as if I don’t realize what happens in these towers. Although I do find it strange that the four of you insist on being together so much. But that is your prerogative. Why don’t you shut the door and join me so as not to wake them?” She turned and placed her arms on the banister to look out over the quiet common space below.
A hard pit formed in my stomach as I slid my feet into slippers. Why was she here? Headmistress Wake rarely intruded on our dorms, and she’d never sought me out in my room. The pit deepened as two options stuck out to me. Either she knew about last night and wanted to confront me about it, which, considering the precautions we’d taken, seemed far-fetched.
I gulped at the second, more likely option. I’d just told my parents that there was something strange happening at the PIA. Did someone find out, and now Mom and Dad were among the disappeared?
My heart rate broke out into a gallop. “Did something happen to my mom and dad?” I blurted.
The headmistress turned to face me. “Pardon me, Miss Dane?”
“My parents. Are they okay?” I gulped. “Are you here to tell me they’ve disappeared?”
Headmistress Wake’s eyebrows pulled together. “You’re more informed than I believed about the strange events in our world.”
My hand flew to my mouth. “No! Are you serious?”
“That is not what I meant, Miss Dane. To my knowledge, your parents are well in California. However, seeing as they’ve had no connection to the espionage world, save you, for years, I’m interested to know why you would think they may have disappeared?”
My mouth snapped shut. Well, shit. I’d just gotten myself into a dilemma.
Under the guise of pulling myself together, I wiped my eyes.
“Miss Dane,” Headmistress Wake pressed. “Is there something you wish to share with me?”
With my eyes on the floor, I pulled in a shaky breath. “No, Headmistress Wake. To be honest, I’ve been worried about them since they mentioned that a few of their friends had gone missing. As you said, things have been strange lately.” Hoping she wouldn’t be able to tell I was hiding something, I wrenched my gaze from the ground. “Plus, you’ve never come to my room. That made me think something serious happened.”
The headmistress studied me with her intense, chocolate gaze for what felt like forever before shaking her head. “You are not wrong in anything that you’ve said. And unfortunately, the reason I have come here this morning is serious.” She released an annoyed huff. “The fae have altered the timing of the next Spy Games event. We leave today. As you did when we went to Nightdwellers, pack a bag. This event might take multiple days, so please be sure to have all that you need.”
My eyes bulged. “Wait? Can they do that? I had plans!”
Alex was going to flip if we skipped his warping lessons. Hell, after last night, I doubted that he would ever let me out of his sight again.
“As it is their event to host and their . . . atmosphere . . . they may do as they wish. Meet our delegation in Alice Kyteler Hall in precisely two hours.”
With that, Headmistress Wake made her way to Diana’s door.
My lips tightened, but there was no use in fighting it. At Spellcasters, what Headmistress Wake said was law. And as far as I could tell, she wasn’t too happy with the new arrangements either.
Exhaling a long breath, I turned to my door and twisted the knob.
Despite my attempts to let them sleep, Alex was already wide awake and sitting up in bed.
“Hey, babe,” he whispered. “Where did you go?”
I bit my lip and went to sit next to him. “Headmistress Wake came to talk to me,” I whispered, not wanting to wake Hunter and Eva. “The fae academy has moved up the day of their event. I leave in two hours, and according to Headmistress Wake, I might be gone for multiple days.”
As predicted, Alex stiffened. “No! But we—”
“Shhh, I know.” I grabbed his hand. “I’m so sorry, but there’s nothing I can do.”
Alex grabbed my hand. “It’s just . . . sweets, you might not remember, but we almost lost you last night.”
My throat tightened. “I remember, most of it—the important parts. What you and Amethyst did was amazing. I can never repay you.” Tears leapt into my eyes. “I don’t want to leave, but if I don’t, we’ll have a lot of explaining to do. Explaining that neither of us are ready for yet.”
Alex’s lips pressed together until they became white. “No. Not yet. After last night, I think we only have more to consider. I planned on having a long talk with Amethyst about last night. Make sure nothing we did could have changed or harmed you.”
