Cold crept down my spine, and my chest clamped so tight I struggled for breath. There was writing on the back. Corbin’s spiky handwriting spelled out an address, and above it, the words,Rowan, I’m sorry.
I hadn’t eventhoughtto look on the backs of the post-its. I missed this personal message from Corbin.
I wrote it all down for you.
I knew without looking it up who lived that that address. My grandparents, Lord and Lady Pembroke, who disowned my mother after she married a black witch. The grandparents who knew I existed and that I was an orphan but instead of taking me in, allowed me to enter the foster care system and cycle through abusive homes until I’d broken and went to live on the street.
“I take it from your expression that this address means something to you,” Blake said.
I nodded.
Blake snapped his fingers. “Let’s go, then.”
“Huh?”
“Corbin left you this note. He obviously wants us to go there. Maybe it’s a clue.”
“Blake, I don’t think?—”
But Blake was already heading to the entrance, his fingers swiping across the screen of his phone, calling up a rideshare. Numb with fear at what I’d discover at that house, I trailed after him.
The heavy knocker fell on the door, hammering in my chest like an earthquake.
Pembroke Hall towered over me, a Georgian facade of gleaming white columns and high, narrow windows. Although it was only a stone’s throw from the castle, I’d never seen this part of Crookshollow before. I never had much cause to leave the house. It looked like the kind of house filled with chairs you couldn’t sit on and golden toilets you weren’t allowed to piss in.
It looked like the kind of house filled with secrets and ghosts.
My teeth rattled in my mouth.What are you doing here? Go back to Briarwood. You’re dealing with enough right now between Corbin’s death and Arthur’s hospitalisation, without adding this to the mix. Maeve needs you, even if she is being a stubborn science nerd. Go back to her.
I turned away from the door. Behind me, Blake’s mouth curled up into a smirk. He reached around me and battered his fist against the door.
My heart stopped. My legs froze in place. I stared at the door, willing it to open and at the same time hoping it would remain closed forever. When no one came I turned away, relief surging through me.No one’s home. I’ll come back tomorrow, or maybe next week, after the Slaugh. That’s a good idea?—
The door jerked open, startling me. In the entrance stood a stern-faced woman with silver-streaked dark hair pulled back into a severe bun. Her hip cocked haughtily, in a similar way Maeve did when she wanted one of us to listen to her. “What do you want?” she frowned at me.
“Ah…” The careful speech I’d composed flew out of my head. I fumbled for my pocket where I’d stashed the paper. “Um… you see, I…”
“Didn’t you read the notice on the gate?” the woman snapped. “No solicitors.” She tried to shut the door, but Blakeshoved his foot into the gap. She and slammed the door against his foot, but all he did was whistle between his teeth.
Thank the gods for Blake.
“My name’s Rowan,” I muttered, staring down at my shoe as she battered the door against Blake’s boot. “I’m Dana’s son.”
The door flew open as the woman stumbled back, her hands on her mouth. Her eyes – deep and dark and green, a mirror image of my own – widened, shot with fear.
“You’re not supposed to contact us,” she gasped. “I gave very strict instructions.”
“He never got yourinstructions,” Blake said easily. “He grew up in the street.”
“I’m not here to hurt you,” I said. “I know you’ve got your life here. I don’t want money, and I’m sorry about my friend putting his foot in the door. I just want to talk...please?”
She glared at me, but she did hold the door open. “Fine. Only you. Your friend waits outside.”
“Fine by me,” Blake lifted his boot and grinned. “I think I’ll go for a walk.”
“I’ve got a panic button under the table, and the police will be here in a moment if you try anything.”
“Noted. Thank you for your hospitality.” I slipped my boots off and padded across the foyer after her. She led me through an opulent Georgian hall decorated in shades of white and into a pale yellow drawing room. The house was silent, save for the ticking of an antique clock over the mantelpiece. Shelves on either side of the fireplace housed gold and crystal objects.
