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Rhyven speaks after several moments. "You'll tell the Headmaster."

Professor Neris nods. "Tonight." My stomach tightens.

"And then?"

Professor Neris is silent for so long that I almost think she won't answer. "The Council." The word settles heavily between us.

Cassian finally breaks the silence. "They'll take over." "Yes."

"They'll seal the investigation."

"Probably."

"They'll close the Silent Archive." I finally manage to say.

Professor Neris finally turns toward us. "They will secure every document they consider sensitive."

I immediately understand what she means. Everything we've been reading. Every forgotten journal. Every map. Every record. Gone. Locked away. Professor Neris slows her horse. "There is a reason I delayed informing the Headmaster."

Cassian looks surprised. "You delayed it?"

"I needed evidence." She glances briefly toward the satchel carrying the ancient stone fragment. "Now I have it." She looks at the three of us in turn. "You have very little time." The words land harder than I expect. "I am not asking you to take unnecessary risks." Her tone sharpens. "I am asking you to finish what you've already begun." She continues before any of us can speak. "Review every text you've already identified. Organize your notes. Make copies. If the Council seals the Archive..." She lets the sentence hang. "I want us to lose as little as possible."

Rhyven nods once. "We'll finish it."

Professor Neris studies him for a heartbeat. "I know you will."

The Academy comes into view just as the sun begins dipping behind the mountains. Students fill the courtyards. Some laugh as they leave afternoon classes. Others hurry toward training fields carrying practice weapons. From a distance nothing has changed. The Academy still looks exactly as it did this morning. Strong. Orderly. Safe. Only now I know how fragile that feeling really is.

The western gates open. Ward keepers salute Professor Neris as we pass. The familiar hum of the wards settles around me almost immediately. Usually it feels comforting. Today I find myself listening. Trying to hear whether the melody has changed. As I dismount near the stables, a familiar voice reaches me. "There you are." I turn. Nyra. She walks toward us carrying three books pressed against her chest. She smiles when she reaches me. Then almost imperceptibly the smile fades. Not because she's unhappy. Because she's observing. Mud stains my boots. Cassian's sleeves are streaked with dirt. Rhyven's gloves carry pale stone dust. Professor Neris is holding her satchel much more carefully than usual. Nyra notices everything. Of course she does. "How was your field observation?" Her question is light. Curious. I open my mouth. Then stop. What can I tell her? That the wards are behaving strangely? That the Hollowborn may already be testing them? That history has been lying to us?

Professor Neris saves me. "Productive." She inclines her head politely toward Nyra before continuing toward the Academy. Rhyven follows after a brief nod to all of us. Within seconds they're gone. Leaving only the three of us standing in the courtyard.

Nyra watches them disappear. Then looks back at me. "You don't have to tell me if you're not allowed." No accusation. No disappointment. Just kindness. Somehow that hurts more.

"I'm sorry." The words escape before I can stop them.

She smiles gently. "It's alright."

I frown. "No. It isn't."

She studies me for a long moment. Then simply says, "When you're ready...I'll be here." She turns and walks toward the library. I watch her until she disappears through its doors.

Cassian quietly shifts beside me. Neither of us speaks. Because we both know the same thing. The Council is coming. The Archive will not stay open forever. And with every secret I keep from Nyra the weight of them grows heavier. As I look toward the library where my best friend just disappeared, a thought settles quietly in my chest. Perhaps the hardest part of carrying a secret is deciding who deserves to carry it with you.

Chapter Twenty-two

The wards are humming. I hear them before I open my eyes. A low vibration beneath the stone walls of my room. Steady. Familiar. So deeply woven into the Academy that, until Briar's Hollow, I barely noticed it. Now I lie still beneath my blankets and count. One breath. Two. Three. The hum continues. I tell myself to stop listening. It does not help.

By the time I leave for breakfast, I have checked it four times. The Academy looks unchanged. Morning sunlight spills across the courtyards. Students crowd the dining hall carrying unfinished assignments and complaints about the hour. Uniforms are fastened while people walk. Someone has forgotten a book and is attempting to convince a roommate to retrieve it. Normal. Nearly convincing.

Then I notice the ward keepers. Two stand beside the eastern entrance instead of one. Another kneels near the base of a courtyard anchor with a set of silver instruments spread across the ground. A fourth crosses the upper gallery carrying a sealed case marked with the Academy crest. No one else pays them much attention. I would not have either, a week ago.

Nyra notices me staring. "What is it?"

I force my attention toward her. "Nothing."

Her expression shifts. Not disbelief. Recognition. She has heard that answer too often. Still, she only slides into the seat across from me and places her books beside her plate. Cassian arrives a moment later. He looks almost as tired as I feel. He does not mention Briar's Hollow. Neither do I. Nyra glances between us. Once. Then begins buttering a piece of bread.