Teach him then to watch over the others.
Because one day, it will be them against the whole world.
Goodbye, my friend. I will wait for you in the clouds.
Okay—Really, Dessin?
I can only gather small slivers of possible clues from this letter. It’s a parent writing to a parent about their sons. Perhaps one of the sons is Dessin? Or the previous host that came before Dessin? There are no names other thanThe Leather Man.
The writer could either be his mother or his father, and it speaks of a great evil, preparing the sons for a puzzle. Do his troubles go back to his family?
Stuffing the items back into my pocket, I push against the door with the balls of my feet, letting the ladder fall to the carpet below so I can climb my way down. When my feet hit the floor, a cold wind blows against my damp dress, like shards of ice through the holes of the fabric. I turn around and shriek, falling against a console table, bumping into a vase that crashes to the carpet. At the end of the hallway, an abnormally tall man’s silhouette faces me, moonlight pouring over his shoulders from the window behind him.
“Aurick!” I shout, reaching my hand across the broken glass to use as a makeshift weapon.
A hoarse laugh comes from the tall man standing in the dark. He reaches out his hand in protest.
“There’s no need for that, Sky. I am not going to hurt you.”
Aurick exits the room closest to the tall man, looks at him, then follows his gaze to me. “What happened toyou?”
I lift my hand from the broken glass and straighten up. My hair is still wet, my dress is ruined. I must look like a stray.
“I was caught in the storm on the way home,” I say. “I didn’t know we had company.”
“Yes.” He smiles at the company still darkened in the corner. “This is my oldest and closest friend, Masten.”
“I didn’t mean to frighten you,” he tells me, stepping into the light of the sconce. Even though he dresses like Aurick and has hair like Aurick’s, something about him makes me tense. “In fact, you frightened me when you scaled your way from the ceiling.”
Oh no.It must look like I’ve been snooping.
As expected, Aurick raises his chin, glowering at me.
“Why were you in the attic?” he asks, suspicion rising in his tone.
I open my mouth to feed him an excuse, but nothing comes out. I didn’t prepare a lie, and now I have to do it in front of an audience. I repeatedly blink, begging my mind to conjure something to offer him. Nothing. I’m empty-handed.
“Have you not set house rules for her yet?” Masten turns his attention to Aurick.
House rules?Am I a stray animal to them?
I drop my jaw and wait for Aurick’s response.
“No, I have not. I suppose leniency is a weakness of mine.” Aurick expresses with casual coolness.
“I only required a moment alone,” I finally spit out.
Aurick raises his eyebrows, and Masten laughs. “And with thirty-seven rooms to this estate, that must have been difficult to come by.”
I blow out a frustrated breath, feeling the spotlight on me and the embarrassment warming my cheeks. Shouldn’t he ask Masten to leave so we can speak about this in private?
“Might this one possibly be a little jealous? Of your deceased beloved? That could explain her rummaging through Red’s belongings.” Masten gestures to the attic.
Are Red’s belongings stored up there? Maybe I should have snooped, considering this is becoming such a big deal. I’m being accused of something I didn’t do, all because I didn’t want Aurick to ask questions about the letter and necklace I found. I wanted to protect Dessin’s privacy.
“Quite right.” Aurick nods, considering Masten’s assumption. “Well, what did you find, Sky? Anything worth sharing?”
I grind my teeth, frozen in place. What is going on? They’re acting like I committed a federal offense. I was only in the attic, for God’s sake.
