“No?” Priscilla didn’t have time for a dog, and my training kept me far too busy—though I would’ve made time and asked her frequently for one. I internally laughed at the thought of Mr. Scott frowning at all of the dog poop in the yard and muddy paw prints next to my own shoe prints on the kitchen floor.
“If a dog wants to run but you don’t want them to run, what do you do?”
“Put the dog on a leash.” If he was going to say Selene was a—
“Yes.” He clasped his hands in front of him. Despite his dress pants, collared shirt, and relaxed posture, he radiated power—not magical power, but power in knowledge. “You then walk the dog outside and it pulls and pulls, causing itself to choke. If you take them off the leash, they’ll run, but they are no longer choking. They now face the challenges of the weather, traffic, hunger, but they will acquire new knowledge and do not feel restrained. Most of them come home.”
“Selene is not a dog.” I narrowed my eyes at his comparison. “Yourdaughteris not a dog.”
“No.” The headmaster shook his head. “Sal most definitely is not a dog. But keeping her at the academy would ensure her own chaos and internal struggles. Sal was the initial target. In her mind, keeping her distance from Vivian would keep the dark mages away. If she wanted to leave, she would, unless I put herin a holding cell. She is brilliant and would do anything to keep her sister out of harm’s way.”
I looked at the small flat-screen TV. His use of the wordsisterthrew me off. Knowing the truth, it was hard to hear him say it.
“And now that she knows what happened, you think she’ll go back?” The truth didn’t change the danger following her.
John glanced at the carpet, then back at me. “I think she’s torn. While the dark mage after her could give chase, it could also go for a target that’s not hiding.”
“Vivian.”
“Yes.” John nodded. “Out here, Selene could be found by dark mages. They can find you too.” He paused, letting that information sink in. I still didn’t believe I was an ether mage. “But if it is the dark mage who killed her aunt and uncle who is after her—which we have reason to believe—the better tactical plan would be to go after what she treasures and would do anything for, if it is an easier target. A dark mage may have a dead soul, but it does not mean they have lost their intellectual capabilities.
“Plus,” the headmaster continued, “we believe there is someone inside the academy after her.”
I glanced back at him. “You mean someone my grandmother may or may not be involved with.”
“Possibly.”
“She escaped,” I said.
“Yes—once she was out of our custody.” He nodded. He started to say more but there was a knock on the door connecting our rooms.
The headmaster strode over to the door, unlocking the silver latch and opening it—the heavy wood would not keep a strong mage out. Priscilla stood on the other side with Selene behind her. Selene clutched her mom’s white hoodie in her hands, the ghost visible.
“Sal would like to see you, Ender.” Priscilla’s gaze landed on me. She had taken the news about us being soul-bound surprisingly well and vowed not to disclose the information to Selene. She had, however, encouraged me to tell Selene soon, and there was no doubt the look she was giving me now was indicating that tonight would be as good a time as any. She had said bonds like this were sacred and rare, and leaving the other half in the dark could end badly.
“What?” Selene asked the headmaster, who had been smiling at her.
“I gifted that hoodie to your mom in good fun. She was essentially a ghost to the world.” His expression softened and his eyes glistened as if he were somewhere else; another memory perhaps. “She adored it.”
“Oh.” Selene held the hoodie tighter, shifting her weight from foot to foot. “Can we walk the hotel?” She asked, changing the topic.
Headmaster John looked at her.
“Do not leave the building,” he finally said.
“Not that I plan on running, but you let me travel across the world and now you’re tightening the restrictions?” Selene put a defiant hand on her hip.
“You were never alone.” The headmaster’s expression didn’t change. “You have two hours, and Aura goes with you.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
Selene
Auratrottedalongthehideous blue and green checkered carpet. The few people we passed in the hallway didn’t spare a glance at her. A small amount of magic tickled my nose when she was near, but that could just be because she was a familiar or from the spell hiding her.
“Here.” I abruptly turned and pushed open a door so Ender could enter.
Aura spun around, tilting her head slightly to the side.
