There’s no time to answer. Together we spring into action. My wrist twists, brandishing my dagger at Xavier and hoping to spook him or cause him to fall back. He doesn’t.
‘Don’t do this,’ I warn him. Xavier hasn’t taken a single combat class since he’s been here. Agate students don’t need them. They’re never on the battlefield, always behind the curtain, within the tents, leaning over maps and war plans. Always the strategist, never the fighter.
Has he carved a wound into my heart with his betrayal? Yes. Am I furious at him for hurting Tilly? Of course. But I can also see the pain he harbours inside himself. I hear the hidden meanings behind his words. He’s afraid and fear can change a person. So can the prospect of never having to feel that fear again. Someone who has felt torture will go to drastic lengths to never go back to that place again. To the dark memories they try to bury deep down inside but ultimately can’t. Because it lives inside of them, especially when you have physical reminders of them every day. Just like Xavier’s scars.
Xavier hates what happened to him and the monsters that hurt him. That’s what’s fuelling him. That and the whispered promises of his so-called saviour. But I don’t have time to convince him that whatever he was promised is a lie.
I pivot on my heel when he lunges at me, twisting my body to elbow him in the middle of his back. ‘Xavier, I don’t want to—’
‘Shut. Up!’ he shouts, whirling around to swing widely at me, but I leap back and duck down. I flip my dagger in my hand mid-air, so the flat end of the pommel is facing the ceiling, and when I rise, I use the flat end to whack it forcefully into his chin.
His eyes glaze over from the impact, which lands so close to the soft spot on his jaw that probably would have knocked him out. Blood stains his teeth, and he uses the sleeve of his robe to wipe it as it spills over his lips onto his chin. I hear Tilly hiss and whip my head around to see her aim another ice shard at one of the crones. The other is on the floor, her eyes open and unseeing, blood pouring from her nose into a small dark puddle that her cheek is resting in. A shard protrudes from her forehead, still frozen, but it too is starting to create a puddle, staining the concrete a darker shade.
Fuck.
The second crone snarls at Tilly, exposing crooked teeth, and with a flick of her hand Tilly is lifted from the air and shoved up against the wall, feet hovering several inches off the ground. The fingers of her right hand bend at an unnatural angle when both of her arms are pinned by her head by the crone’s magic. The air around her is holding her in place, and I watch in horror as, with a series of sickening snaps, five of Tilly’s fingers break into disfigured digits.
She screams so loud, it bounces off the walls. Even Xavier stills, and there’s a flicker of what looks like recognition in his eyes … of regret. I swear I see that black ring dissipate, just for a blink, before it’s back and his face contorts with rage.
My dagger is raised beside my head in an instant. I don’t think, I just act. My arm extends, my wrist flicks and the dagger Sebastian gave me soars through the air with precision and speed. It lodges into the crone’s skull with a sickening thud, stabbing through flesh and bone and killing her instantly. Tilly drops to the ground, clutching her broken fingers with her other hand and cradling them to her chest.
I run to her, willing to risk Xavier at my back to make sure she’s all right.
‘They always say if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself,’ a deep voice berates, followed by the clipped sound of polished soles hitting stone.
My stomach drops as Bartollo Zain emerges from the shadows behind Xavier.
FIFTY-FOUR
‘Tilly, I need you to run and find who we spoke about. I need you to run and not look back,’ I whisper in a shaking voice, reaching into my pocket and shoving the crumpled-up map into her good hand. ‘Get out and send help!’
Her eyes start to well with tears, but Ineedher to do this. I need her to get out because one of us has to and it needs to be her. I know that I won’t leave, I can’t. Not until I get answers from him about my brother. Answers to questions I’ve been collecting like badges along with the information that’s been helping me to piece together my puzzle.
I must know why Bartollo Zain killed Lukas, even if it means trapping myself down here with him.
‘Now, Tilly!’ My voice pitches louder, needing her go before it’s too late. I help her to her feet, mindful of her hand, biting back the heat pricking my eyes as she spins on her heels and takes off sprinting past the two dead women and out of the tunnel.
To my surprise, Bartollo doesn’t stop her. In fact, when I return my attention to him, he seems barely fazed that she’s left. But seconds later I hear it. The sound of ragged breathing and footsteps. There are more crones in the tunnels. My stomach sinks and all I can do is hope that Tilly makes it out before they find her. Bartollo’s milky eyes fall to my face, filling me with more dread.
Slowly I crouch down, keeping my eyes on him as he prowls closer, and yank my dagger out of the crone’s head. It releases with a sickening wet pull. I drag the blade along the fabric covering my thigh, staining the grey robe with deep crimson. Out of the corner of my eye I spot something silver and shiny hanging at the waist of the lifeless body at my feet.
Before I have time to reach out and see what it is, Xavier speaks, snagging my attention. I rise from the ground.
‘Headmaster.’ His head bows in subservience. ‘I tried to—’
‘Hush.’ Bartollo places a placating hand on Xavier’s shoulder. ‘I know you did.’ I see Xavier’s shoulders sag. His relief is so raw, so naked. My insides twist witnessing such devotion to this man … thing …monster.
‘Don’t touch him!’ I yell. The need to run and yank Xavier away from Bartollo propels me forward. One step – two.
Bartollo’s head tilts, his eyes narrow into thin slits. Xavier doesn’t even glance my way. His eyes are solely focused on his headmaster, as if he’s in a trance.
‘I’ll do whatever I please,’ he says, and to make his point a hand snaps out and grasps Xavier by the chin. His fingers gripping so tight that they turn white as bone. ‘Isn’t that right, Mr Davis?’
‘Yes, sir,’ Xavier’s voice cracks, he winces, and I can see the pain on his face, yet he doesn’t pull away.
My stomach drops and rage fills my veins. Something isn’t right.
‘And why is that?’ Bartollo asks him, though his eyes remain glued to mine. Making his point loud and clear. Xavier isn’t on my side any longer. Bartollo wants me to see how much control he has over my friend.
