“She’s a fine Healer,” Baz decided on saying, haltingly. “Though I wouldn’t say it’s her… defining ability?”
Luce watched Baz with keen eyes. Before she could say anything, they heard a noise coming from the hall.
“We shouldn’t be talking about such things out in the open,” Clover said tightly.
“How about in there?” Kai pointed to the painting behind which hid the secret party room.
And so it was that they found themselves there, in the disquieting emptiness of a hidden ballroom. Three people plucked out of time and the would-be author this had started with, all of their secrets filling the spaces between them.
“All right.” Kai crossed his arms, looking every bit the Nightmare Weaver. “Talk.”
46KAI
“HOW IS IT THAT YOU’REhere in this time?”
Kai tried not to overanalyze the emotion behind Baz’s voice as he stared wide-eyed at Emory’s mother.
“I came through a time rift, of course.”
Luce—Adriana; whatever the fuck she wanted to be called—said it like it was the most mundane thing.
“You mean Dovermere?” Kai asked.
“No, not Dovermere. Mine was off the coast of Harebell Cove.”
“That’swhat I felt,” Baz exclaimed, looking at Kai with wide eyes. “Remember when we found that weird cavern on the shore at Henry’s lighthouse? There was something about it that felt so similar to Dovermere. Like whatever magic lived there was the same.” He turned to Luce. “Is it still here in this time?”
“The rift I came through isn’t. I mean, the cave is there—I tried going back as soon as I got here—but whatever magic powered up the time rift inmytime doesn’t seem to work here.” She tilted her head. “Does yours?”
“The door in Dovermere isn’t there,” Kai said. He turned to Clover. “Though I suppose that’s what you’re trying to unveil by breaking through the wards?”
Clover’s eyes gleamed. “This door of yours… did it by any chance lead elsewhere than through time? Other places, perhaps?”
“Maybe,” Kai hedged. “But I suspect you already have an idea.”
“I believe this door was hidden behind wards centuries ago after the Tides and the Shadow left our shores, by the very secret society I am now part of. The Selenic Order, we call ourselves. Keepers of all the hidden knowledge here at Aldryn. Though you already seem to know about us.”
“We’re acquainted, yes. In our time, the Order’s run by murderous, Eclipse-hating pricks, so you’ll understand our distrust now that we know you’re a part of it.”
“I assure you, that’s not the case here.”
“Do they let Eclipse-born join their group?”
“No. But that’s in part why I joined in the first place. You see, the thing about being a Tidecaller is that no one ever suspects what I can do. The dreams I can walk into, the futures I can glean, the memories I can read. All of it is done in the comfort of secrecy, without anyone ever the wiser. The Selenic Order doesn’t know what I am. No one does except for the people in this room, plus my sister and Thames, of course. Being part of the Selenic Order gives me leverage, a voice where other Eclipse-born struggle to be heard. Do you think the college would allow those academic salons of ours to take place, or Eclipse-born to partake in the Bicentennial, if I did not know whose strings to pull?”
“Congratulations on doing the bare minimum,” Kai deadpanned, unfazed by Clover’s speech.
“It’s no coincidence the both of you have inserted yourselves so easily here,” Clover continued. “If it weren’t for my Glamouring theKarunang dean and all its students, your ruse would have been up before the first challenge ended.”
“And we’re forever in your debt.”
The biting sarcasm had Clover clenching his jaw. “Have I done something to offend you, Kai?”
Kai caught Baz’s pointed glare and decided it best not to unravel that thread. “No, please, go on.”
“The seat of the Order’s power is below the Vault,” Clover said, “in a grotto we call the Treasury. That’s why I’m granted access to the Vault. The entire Selenic Order is. The Treasury is the place we gather to hold rituals to the gods.”
Clover eyed Baz. “This research you and I have been doing into Aldryn’s history has led me to believe that the Selenic Order existed long before the school, before even the temple it was built on. They were the original devoted followers of the Tides and the Shadow. They knew of the doorways between our world and the Deep and all the realms in between, and were allowed to travel through them. Until these doorways were sealed forever shut.
