Baz paused time. Found the pocket watch. Activated the invisibility knob, then unpaused time and, panicking about how to get Baz and Kai’s attention, knocked a few books to the floor, wincing at the damage. He couldn’t help himself—he felt like he was hurting the books. But the resulting noise had the desired effect:
“What was that?”
His past self’s voice, a slight tremor of fear laced through it.
Baz could see himself through the shelves. His past self’s hand had shot out to grab Kai’s arm upon hearing the noise.
“Dark corner of a library where a party’s going on?” Kai said, a sultry note beneath the teasing in his voice. “Isn’t hard to imagine what that was.”
His midnight eyes lingered on Baz’s hand on his arm, before slowly raking up to look at him. They stood so close. Past-Baz looked flustered, cheeks burning red. He quickly removed his hand and cleared his throat.
Tides, even present Baz felt flustered, even as part of him wanted to wrest Kai’s mind out of the gutter. This was serious—and more importantly, this wasnew. He didn’t remember this conversation happening, which must mean hecouldchange the past.
And yet…
“I don’t like this,” he heard his past self saying.
“The fact that you, Basil Brysden, are going to an actual party? Or the fact that said party goes against the rules?”
“Both.”
This, he remembered.
And as present-Baz watched the scene unfurl, a gutting thought occurred to him. If he did manage to get past-Baz and Kai’s attention, if they did see the bodies, their night would be over before it could start. Baz wouldn’t find himself dancing close with Kai, wouldn’t finally come to terms with this attraction between them. And if not tonight, then when? Would he ever realize he had feelings for Kai or be confident enough to act on them? Would they ever kiss?
Did it matter, if he managed to save Kai in the process?
He glanced at the unconscious students beside him, rethinking his entire plan. Past-Baz and Kai seeing them here would prove nothing. Even if Wulfrid were to talk, it wasn’t enough to prove that Clover and Thames had meant to actuallykillthem.
This whole thing suddenly felt beyond him. Baz stood frozen with fear, the way he used to be before. Unable to act as a thousand different scenarios ran through his mind, each worse than the last.
What if he messed everything up?
It was the image of the threads of Kai’s fate severing that finally got him moving. He threw another pile of books on the floor, more forcefully this time, just as past-Baz and Kai reached the velleity painting. They looked at each other.
“Now tell me that wasn’t creepy,” past-Baz said.
Kai frowned at the shelves, taking a step toward them.
Yes, just come and have a look, you ass,present-Baz thought, face smushed between the shelves.
A soft sound made him whip around, thinking Wulfrid or one of his friends had regained consciousness. But it wasn’t them. Itwas Clover, standing over the four of them with a mildly panicked look on his face, puzzling over why his ward had vanished. Clover threw a glance over his shoulder, then quickly used his magic to make them invisible once more.
Damn it,Baz thought as Clover sidestepped the bodies.
Clover stopped with his foot in the air, tensing as if he’d heard something. As if he’d heardBaz. Clover’s gaze went to the fallen books. He bent to pick one up, and his eyes slowly traveled up, searching the empty space where Baz stood, invisible.
As if he knew Baz was there.
An edge of fear. Something darker honing to a sharp point. Because as Baz stood there, a foot from the man who had betrayed everything he believed in, who was a murderer and the source of all chaos to come, a wicked thought crossed his mind.
If Baz were a killer, he could end this here, now.
He alreadywasa killer, wasn’t he? Had killed before, an accident, yes, but would it be so different now if he did so intentionally, if it was for the greater good?
“So you’re the one making all that noise.”
Kai’s voice tore Baz from his thoughts. His heart stopped, thinking he’d been discovered. But Kai didn’t see him. He inspected the fallen books Clover crouched over, then looked around for someone else. He raised a brow. “Having fun all on your lonesome?”
