“Two years later, when Yiran was eight years old, my grandfather lost all interest in him. The experiments stopped, and my grandfather’s been cold to him ever since.” Ash looked up, his face bloodless. “It’s been ten years of that coldness. Sometimes I wonder how Yiran stands it, how he’s able to keep going. I know he resents me on some level too, and I understand why. I wish I could make up for what he went through.”
Rui’s anger at Song Wei grew, a man so callous he’d once called her mother’s deathcollateral damage. A man so cruel he would inflict such pain on his own grandson. “You were a child too,” she said. “It wasn’t your fault. Song Wei’s the only one who should be blamed.”
“Yiran’s my brother. It’s my duty to protect him. Maybe I could’ve done something to stop what happened.”
“You were just a child,” she repeated softly.
Ash’s eyes were suspiciously watery. “You know, Kodie’s right about you being a good kid.”
Rui sat stiffly, her cheeks warming with embarrassment. Ash was patting her head. It was a light but firm pressure, a comforting mix betweenyou did wellandthere, there. She wondered if, in the absence of being able to do anything for Yiran, Ash had poured his efforts into her. He was always hard on her during training, never mincing his critiques and spare with his praise. But he’d also been the first to recognize her talent, and the first who believed she could be so much more. She found herself hoping that the Song brothers would bridge the rift between them one day.
“The thing is, I’m not a child anymore,” said Ash. “And neither is Yiran. What happened between the two of you was unfortunate. But howYiran chooses to behave now is on him. He needs to figure things out for himself. It’s his life. There are other peopleIhave to be responsible for.” Ash adjusted his bucket hat, tucking his emotions out of sight. The cool and composedCaptain Songthe world was used to seeing had returned.
Kodie was walking over, balancing three paper cups in her hands. If she sensed the heavy atmosphere around the table, she made no mention of it. “The sun’s about to rise. Since none of us are getting sleep anytime soon, I figured we needed a boost. I’ll drop you off at the Academy, Rui.”
“Thanks.” Rui accepted her coffee gratefully, warming her chilled hands on the cup as the three of them headed back to the parking lot. “What happens now?” she asked, avoiding the slush that had formed on the sidewalk.
Ash said, “Everything you told us and what you saw in the lab stays between us.”
“Aren’t you going to report the information to the Guild? Shouldn’t they know about the body in Kodie’s lab?”
“We need to figure out something else first.”
He was holding something back from her. “What could be more important?”
The older Exorcists exchanged a glance.
Rui bristled. “I told you everything. Be honest with me.”
“Ever wondered why the Hybrids seem like they’re always one step ahead of us?” Kodie said.
Now that Rui thought about it, itwasodd. From the ambushed Night Hunts to the Hybrids using the tunnel network at Outram freely and all the other setbacks the Exorcists had encountered in the past year...
“Do you think they’re getting help from someone else? Like a mage from the underground magic community?” she asked, even though she hoped it wasn’t the case. Everything she knew about those magic practitioners she’d heard from Zizi, and she’d never thought they were anything more than people who just wanted freedom to study and practice their magic in peace.
“The underground magic community and the Guild aren’t friendly, but we’re not enemies,” Ash said. “Neither side wants to see Revenants or Hybrids proliferate. But I have doubts about the sorcerers—the white lanterns. They’re chaos agents with no single agenda. That said, we haven’t observed much activity on their end for years, and their numbers have always been small.”
Red lantern good, white lantern bad.That was a saying among the normies who sought out mages for everyday charms and the like. Those sorcerers didn’t play by the rules of magic or morality.
“The Guild runs a tight ship,” Ash continued. “But if the Hybrid Revenants have intel on its operations, it must be coming from our side.”
“Are you saying there’s a mole?”
“It’s a theory,” Kodie said, reaching into the car and starting the engine. “Those with a high level of security clearance know our strategy and tactics. We can’t ignore the logistics and planning teams either, or anyone who works at the headquarters. You’d be surprised how loose tongues can get with the right combination of alcohol and ego-stroking.”
“That’s why my grandfather can’t know about tonight,” Ash said. “Not yet. Not until we’re certain there’s no spy in the Guild, or until we find the mole and eradicate them.”
Was he saying that he didn’t trust Song Wei?
“But what can we do if it’s just the three of us?” Rui wondered.
“Oh, it’s not just the three of us,” Kodie said as she reapplied her plum-colored lipstick. She smacked her lips. “Tastes like mango. Surprising for the shade, huh?”
Rui peered at the tube, making a mental note to get one for Ada’s birthday.
“I have some people I trust, and a few others I’m thinking about recruiting,” Ash said, steering the conversation back.
“Who?”
