Clary and Dori exchanged wary glances.
Okay, it seemed like I’d stumbled on a delicate topic here. “Look, forget it. It’s none of my business.”
Benedict’s shoulders slumped. He set down his ink pen and fixed me with a serious look. “The fire was an accident, but no one can know. If the covens find out I’m having problems controlling the thread, then… Just, please don’t say anything.”
“Of course. I won’t say a word.”
He dropped a nod, relaxing back into his seat as an awkward silence settled over us, leaving me itching to diffuse it. My gaze fell to my backpack where the corner of a book peeked out.
Timothy’s book! The perfect change of topic.
I tugged it out and placed it on the table between us. “Okay, so I met this guy the other day after Sterling did the Hamlin maneuver on me.”
“Oh? Do tell,” Dori said, smiling suggestively.
“Not like that. He actually seems to have a thing for you.”
“For me?”
“Yep.” I filled her in on the encounter.
“Nope,” Dori said once I was done. “I have no idea who this Timothy guy is.”
I passed her Timothy’s book. “He was carrying this. I was hoping to get it back to him.”
“Looks like an annual student record,” Benedict said. “There’s an ASR for every year.” He turned the book over and tapped the date on the spine. “This one’s from last year. Claaary…” he singsonged.
She slapped her hand to her bangs. “Don’t.”
“What?” I looked between them.
“Last year, Clary decided to trim her own bangs,” Dori said with an indulgent smile. “It didnotgo well, and there is image print evidence.”
Clary groaned and dropped her forehead to the table. “I hate that print.”
Benedict was already flicking through the book. “I love it. You look so freaking cute.”
Clary’s mouth turned down. “No one wants to be cute. I was going for sexy.”
“Here!” Benedict turned the book around and tapped at the black-and-white print of a frowning Clary with bangs that were slightly wonky and a little too short. “You look so mad,” he said. “I just want to squish you.”
I looked between the three of them—a sorcerer and two witches, all from different bloodlines and covens. It was rare to see such a friendship. “How longhaveyou three been friends?”
The trio exchanged fond smiles.
“Ever since the first day of Academy,” Dori said. “I met Clary on the tram, and we ended up sharing a table with Benedict for supper that first night.”
“I was getting my ass kicked by a couple of my brethren,” Benedict said, his mouth twisting bitterly. “Being the runt of the Ironhart clan isn’t always easy, despite the fact that my father is clan leader.”
“Dori punched Randolf in the nuts,” Clary said with delight.
“We’ve been friends ever since,” Dori said.
A soft ache filled my chest. To have that…to be part of it…
“Show me this Timothy guy,” Dori said suddenly.
I cleared my throat. “Good idea.” I flipped through the book slowly, studying each page, searching for his face, until I came to a blurred photo. The name below was smudged. “That’s weird.” I flipped the next two pages and found another blurred image print, words smudged as well. A few pages later, I found a third.
