“Most of them were from Hatha House. Have you asked Ciaran?”
“Course I have. More than once. He thinks I’m overreacting.” A pause. “I have to find Aine. I know something’s wrong. She’d never leave without telling me.”
“I know. I’m with you.”
A floorboard creaked beneath August’s boot.
Somewhere between one step and the next, Felix appeared in the mouth of the hallway, eyes glinting an odd gold in the lamplight, the order to stop sent toward August like a gunshot.
The air rippled around the single word like a pebble disrupting a tranquil pond.
His feet came to an abrupt stop.His entire mind could focus only on that word, that order. Of course he would stop. He wanted nothing more—wouldneverwant anything more.
“Gods,” Felix breathed.“You scared the hells out of me.” In a blink, the gold in his eyes vanished, and August’s thoughts rushed back over him like a wave, leaving him disoriented and his head tingling like a sleep-numbed limb.
A small line formed between Felix’s eyebrows as his expression tightened. “I’m so sorry.” The fear in his voice unsettled August more than whatever weird thing had just happened.
Marlow stood at his side, dressed in a black frock coat, pants tucked into knee-high boots. She folded her arms, and they both watched August like they were waiting for something.
Finally, August gathered himself enough to form a coherent sentence. “What was that?”
“I thought someone had broken in,” Felix explained, raking a hand through his hair. “It was a knee-jerk reaction. With everything going on, I’m a bit jumpy, I guess.”
Understanding hit, knocking August back a step.
He hadn’t actually wanted to stop moving. Felix hadmadehim.
Compulsionists are the most dangerous of wielders, his tutor’s words echoed in his head.They can bend you to their will, make you do terrible things. Make you hurt others, or even yourself.
Fear clawed at him, scraping and gouging at his insides.
No, that couldn’t be right. Felix was a conjurer. He had a harmless magic, not a dangerous one. Not aprohibitedone.
“Hope your trust in this one’s justified,” Marlow said dryly. “Hate to have to kill him. Bodies are a fierce pain to carry.”
August’s heart stuttered. “What?”
“Marlow,” Felix chided. “Not the time for jokes.”
She snorted. “Who’s joking?”
Felix took a careful step forward, hands out as if trying to soothe a frightened animal. “I didn’t mean to. I swear. I would never…Idon’tever—”
“I’m early,” August blurted, retreating a step to keep the space between them.
“Yeah, I see that.”
August’s next words poured out in a steady stream. “You weren’t downstairs your mother sent me up I didn’t mean to sneak up on you. I need to go. I forgot, I have a…” The sentence fell away as he fumbled for an excuse. None surfaced. His thoughts were a tangled jumble.
Pinpricks crawled up his fingers as everything inside him screamed to run.
“Please, Auggie. Just let me explain. Then if you still want to leave, I won’t stop you.”
He could, though. Hecouldforce him to stay.
The most dangerous of wielders.
He was more of a threat than the monster with glowing pink eyes who had burned the royal guard alive.
