Gynelle’s eyes widened and then she looked down at her hands. She sent magic toward Cassia but before it fully left Gynelle, Cassia sent it back.
“My goodness,” said Gynelle.
“Yes. If only my power was something useful, like spreading sunshine or rescuing sisters.”
* * *
Gaius sicced Ember on the case immediately upon returning to Pemberley. “Search for Malum.”
“I’ll be gone for a while. Make sure this letter goes out today. It’s to Blythesome, telling him my apologies,” he told his sister. Gaius thought it best not to explain anything to her, for it would be too traumatic. He didn’t even explain it all to Blythesome. Best to keep as much a secret as possible.
Gaius had given Mr. Gareth an address and told him to say nothing of it when he went back into the Rose and Crown momentarily. It was the section of London near the gambling hall Blythesome had taken him to a few weeks earlier. When Malum had planned to flee with his sister, this was the part of London he would have traveled to. There were many dilapidated inns one could hide in, or small apartments nearby, and Gaius knew people often went there to escape from society.
From the moment he left Cassia, he knew an address wasn’t enough. Too many times Malum had gotten off easy, and this time Gaius wanted to make sure the snake was found. Once in London, it took two days, but Gaius finally found a trace of Malum. From the reports, he had just missed Malum gambling again, taking several winnings, and disappearing back into his hiding spot.
That same night Gaius thought he felt his relic nearby. But back in Hertfordshire, Malum hadn’t had it on his person, he was sure of that fact. Could he somehow have it now? How could that be possible, how could he as a heb access its power, and where had he stowed it?
Gaius knew of Malum’s gambling addiction. He would come gamble again, of that he was sure, and soon. He probably expected to live on his winnings. His regiment wouldn’t take him back now, not after such a scandal.
Whenever Malum came again, Gaius would be waiting for him.
* * *
The pandemonium at Longbourn did not calm in the following week. So when the maid entered the tense drawing room and reported a man had come to call, Cassia and Gynelle tried to create a feeling of normal.
“Mage Colonel Caliazo,” said Cassia as he entered. “How good it is to see you!”
She and Gynelle stood, and Gynelle took the role of hostess. “My apologies, our mother is indisposed. Do come in and have a seat.”
“I wasn’t sure you’d be back from your trip, Miss Cassia,” he began, “but I was passing through and thought to call on your family. I am so pleased to see you.”
“We are glad to see you too,” she said and she meant it. He had been one of the easiest and most genuine friends of her acquaintance. But she did not feel more than that, she knew that now. “Your visit is a breath of fresh air. My mother is ill, and my father is in London. We returned home from Derbyshire early, for we learned of some news...” she furrowed her brow in embarrassment.
The quiet of the room grew more strained. Cassia searched for some way to change the subject, but before Cassia could stop her sister, Gynelle spoke up. “We’d appreciate your discretion, but Alyria has run away with...Lieutenant Malum.”
Cassia swallowed. Why did Gynelle tell him? “It has turned our world upside down,” she added reluctantly, holding back her tears.
“My goodness,” said Caliazo. “What has been done?”
“My uncle and father are in London, looking for them,” said Cassia.
“I see,” said Caliazo. He stood. “I fear I must take my leave.”
Both girls curtsied and Cassia sniffed as she walked with him to the door. Were they to be completely friendless by the end of all of this?
* * *
Gaius sank lower into his chair, waiting for Malum to show his face. He’d camped out at this pub for the last three nights to no avail. If he didn’t show tonight, Darkwood vowed he would start breaking down doors at the nearby establishments.
The hair on the back of his neck stood on end. Someone just walked in. Someone with magic, someone he recognized. Malum had no magic, unless he had been the one who stole the relic and knew how to access it, a possibility Gaius believed more and more. His timeline matched perfectly. Hertfordshire, London, then nothing, now back to London. But if that were the case, why hadn’t they felt it? Ember hid in the outskirts of London, in the nearest woods he could find, but he hadn’t alerted Gaius of any movement of the relic.
A man stood in the doorway. He was too broad and the outline of his hair too curled to be Malum. He kept his eyes down, a short cap pulled over his curls, and walked directly to Gaius.
“Caliazo,” Darkwood said. “Why on earth did you come here?”
“I visited the Rettons. Miss Retton and Miss Cassia told me a little of their misfortunes, and somehow I knew that you’d be hunting Malum down. And after what you wrote me about searching for your relic, I knew you’d be here.”
“How can I do otherwise?” said Gaius. “I should have exposed him last year.”
