“We should bring my father in, if your father is moving up the timeline, he has to know he’s risking your safety. He wouldn’t do that unless he suspected you were already working against him.” I said as I moved to sit in the recliner opposite him.
“No! Absolutely not. It was clear from the way Daena was preening about it that my father is doing this to keep her father loyal. He doesn’t suspect me, not yet. Even if he did, I am still his only heir. He won’t risk my life, but any leniency I can have extended to you on that account won’t go further. He will execute your father for treason—if he doesn’t drain his magic first.”
“Vallynn… You may not even be able to sway the king to spare me. That’s a risk I willingly took, but with more help, we’re more likely to succeed. My father could help us. It’s not like we haven’t recruited others already. How is putting me or them at risk any different than my father?”
“Because you were already at risk by virtue of your position, andtheywere all planning to act against my father already, Dante. Even if you had chosen not to help me—if I released you from your position—my father would have hunted you down to discover what you knew of my plans. The others who’ve joined would have failed and died for nothing. They’ve thrown in with us so that their deaths can count forsomething.”
“Vallynn… My father has experience with stuff like this. He would gladly risk his life if he knew what your father was doing.”
“I said no, Dante. Besides, I've heard from Linoran. He's keeping an eye on the dungeon for any new arrivals and may have found us a way around my father's warding to track himwith the mirror.”
“That's a huge break. If we can spy on him with the mirror, we have a much better chance of identifying his targets and getting them underground before he takes them.” I replied, leaving further arguments for later. Vallynn had dug his heels in; there would be no swaying him to enlist my father’s help for the time being.
“I know.” Vallynn grinned. “He's also compiling a list of all the missing. It should arrive next week. We'll need to go through it and see if we can find anyone we missed. The ones weknoware victims of my father have already started to show a pattern, but I feel like the whole picture is just out of reach. Like, if we could discover some of his earlier targets that have gone unnoticed, we can figure out what connects them and why he's abducting people to steal their magic.”
“Do you realize how many supernaturals go missing at any given time? It's going to take us months to sort through a list of all of them, Vallynn. We're going to need help.”
“Selir sake, Dante. Why do you think I had Thrackborne placed as our new head of house?” Vallynn drawled, pinching the bridge of his nose. “It wasn't just for us to pass information faster. Now we have a reason to visit his office whenever we need, and it won't seem strange for us to take papers along when we do.”
“Right.” I smiled, clapping my hands together as I stood from my seat. “And in between all the clandestine adventuring, we show out like we own the place. At least maintaining our cover comes with a side of fun. Starting with the annual start of term bash.”
Vallynn chuckled, the tension in his body easing slightly. “Thereisthat.”
Chapter Six
Bechora
Gentle hands cupped my face, and the soft sounds of murmured conversation filled my ears.
“This is the only way,” a woman sobbed. “Selir willing, I will see you again, my little star.”
Suddenly, I was falling through darkness, my arms flailing as I fought to find balance.
I jolted awake, my arms windmilling as if I were still falling. My room was freezing, and my teeth chattered against the cold just as I noticed a thin layer of ice coating every inch of the small space.
“What the fuck.” I grumbled, wrapping my blanket around my body and climbing from the bed.
I carefully made my way to the door, planning to rip Shadrie a new one for her little prank. I'd asked her to wake me, butthiswasn't what I'd meant. Jerking the door open, I startled back. Shadrie was just on the other side, her hand poised to knock.
“You're awake,” she smiled, before her eyes moved to my room. “Holy shit, girl! You didn't tell me you're an ice mage, too!”
“This isn’t funny, Shadrie. You could have given me hypothermia!” I bit out. “Get the fucking ice out of my room.”
Shadrie’s brows dipped down, and she frowned. “You think I did this? I swear to you, B. I didn’t. I’ve been in my room organizing my things since you lay down.”
“I don’t have ice magic, Shadrie!” I shouted. “When they did whatever the hell they did to me at that weird ass orientation,I sneezed fire!”
“Wait… Then how…” Shadrie’s eyes widened. “I promise, B. I didn’t ice your room; I barely have enough control over my magic to encase the lights in the living area. Even if I could do this, I wouldn’t.”
The sincerity on her face caused my anger to deflate, and I scrubbed my hands over my face. “I don’t understand what is even happening.” I groaned.
“You should probably schedule a meeting with the head of Magus House. There’s a chance that not all of your abilities manifested during orientation, and you’re a true elemental mage.” Shadrie said, patting my shoulder in a comforting manner. “Come on, grab some clothes, and you can get dressed in my room. Once you leave your room, the academy’s magic will deal with the ice. It’ll be like nothing ever happened by the time we get back from the dining hall.”
I carefully turned and slid my feet across the ice to make my way to my closet. “I don’t plan on staying here long. As soon as I find a way home to Geordie, I’m leaving.” I called over my shoulder as I grabbed a pair of jeans, a light blue long-sleeved shirt, and my sneakers.
“Oooh, who’s Geordie? Is that your boyfriend back in the human realm?” Shadrie asked as I made my way back to my bedroom door.
“Eww, no. Geordie is family. My only family, really, and I’m sure he’s worried sick about me by now.”
