“Yes, but maybe the mesmer didn’t take and they found out she was like me.”
We both sit in silence for a moment. I can hear the gears turning in his head. His voice is wary, low. “If you accuse the High Council of Regents of murdering your mother, then you’ll expose yourself in the process. It won’t matter if you’re right or wrong.”
For the second time today, it feels like I’ve been punched by someone’s words. “Of course it matters if I’m right!”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that.” He sighs. “I just—I don’t want anything to happen to you. I of all people know how it feels to want to go after the Regents for their sins, but I can’t protect you from them and the Merlins. Not on this. No one can, not even my dad. The only way…”
I grip the phone tight. “The only way what?”
When Nick speaks again, the familiar heaviness is threaded through his voice. “The only way I could stand between you and the Regents is if Arthur Calls me and I’m fully Awakened. As king, I’d control the whole of the Order, the Regents included. But if Arthur Calls me…”
“Camlann.”
“Camlann.”
“So we just let them get away with this?”
“No, we keep looking for proof, and when we find it, I bring it to my father. He never got over what they did to my mom. I think he’d help with this. And who knows, the way things are going, I might be king in a few weeks. Having proof in hand will only make it easier for me to find out who’s responsible.”
“And punish them for what they did?”
A long pause.
“Punish them how, Bree? What would you have me do?”
I don’t respond, but it’s not because I don’t know the answer.
28
“WELCOME TO THE second trial, Pagelings.”
Sel stands like a drill sergeant on the Lodge’s front lawn, feet planted wide and hands behind his back. He’s dressed in black, as always, but his long coat is gone. His tattoos are on full display below sleeves rolled at the elbow. They wind down his forearms and wrists, and I can’t help but study them. I wonder how far up they go and how many he has before I remember that I detest him and shouldn’t care about his tattoos at all.
The only people who don’t appear to be intimidated by him are Whitty and Vaughn. Neither one of them even looks tired; they bounce on the balls of their feet. Ready. The rest of us are barely awake, dragging, and fighting yawns.
Evan, Fitz, and Tor had gone from dorm to dorm to wake us all up in the middle of the night. They’d banged on my door dressed in black tactical gear, faces covered in black and green grease, and yelled at me to get dressed in less than two minutes—or forfeit the tournament entirely. I’d gotten maybe three hours of sleep after getting off the phone with Nick.
“Tonight’s event is a scavenger hunt.” From the way Sel’s gaze pauses on us, one at a time, I get the feeling he can definitely see better in the dark than we can. “We provide each of you with a list of aether-formed objects, and you all scurry around campus collecting them. The six Pages with the highest number of objects in their possession at the end of the night will progress to the third and final trial.”
I glance down the row of Pages to my left. There are eight of us remaining. Greer, Whitty, Spencer, Vaughn, Sydney, Carson, and Blake.
“How does a scavenger hunt…” Spencer yawns, a hand covering his mouth. “Test our strategic abilities?”
“Look alive, Monroe.” Tor strides between Spencer and Vaughn, smacking her Page on the back of the head. Spencer steps forward with the force of it, indignation flashing on his face and delight rippling across Vaughn’s. “Sel left out the juiciest part. The more aether objects you collect, the more Sel’s aether hellhounds will be drawn to you. If you get cornered or injured, you automatically fail.”
Tor and the rest of the Legendborn, eight Scions and Squires altogether, have emerged from the Lodge and joined Sel, lining up in a row across from us.
Each sponsor moves to stand across from their Page, except for Evan. He’d sponsored Ainsley. I hadn’t seen her since she was disqualified, but I assume she only comes around the Lodge as needed now. I heard the eliminated Pages are still welcome for meals and events, even though they can’t compete.
When Nick stands in front of me, my stomach leaps up somewhere near my lungs. Even covered in paint, even ten feet away, his face sends a wave of relief through me. If Nick’s here, I’ll be all right. The thought rings in my mind, clear and bright as a bell.
Nick’s eyes take me in, flitting rapidly across my face. He mouths, “You okay?” I respond yes with a subtle dip of my chin. From the look on his face, he’s not happy that he’d been forced to keep tonight’s trial a surprise. Who knows? Maybe he himself only found out an hour or so before I did. He looks tired. And pissed.
My cheeks prickle, and Sel clears his throat. Aside from his eyes flicking sharply away from me, the rest of his body has gone still with tension. “Lest anyone has forgotten, your sponsor cannot aid you during the Trials. Violations of this rule will result in elimination.”
Tor produces a folder of papers and hands them to the Legendborn to her left and right. She also passes out drawstring bags to each Page. “Tonight’s hunt will pair each Page with a Scion or Squire who is not their sponsor, for monitoring purposes only. They will record your progress, report your final score, and dispatch a hound if you find yourself in trouble.”
Tor pairs us off. Felicity is paired with Spencer. Russ pairs with Whitty. Victoria and Sarah split Carson and Blake, taking one each. William takes Greer, who seems pleased with this. I curse under my breath. If I couldn’t have Felicity, Evan, or Russ by my side, I’d want William. Greer shoots me a look of genuine apology, and I send a weak smile back; I could be disappointed, but it’s not their fault.
That leaves Nick and Pete, the Scion of Owain. And Fitz. A needle of fear spears my insides. I silently beg Tor not to torture me with Fitz. I don’t know Pete at all, but I know he’s new, and kind.
“Pete, you’ll go with Vaughn.” Tor taps her bottom lip, staring at me and Sydney. We’re the only two Pages left.
If I can’t be paired with Nick, that leaves me with Fitz.
Fitz lands on this outcome a heartbeat after I do, and his lips pull back in an eager grin. He starts walking toward me when Sel intervenes.
“I’ll take Briana. Fitz, you pair with Sydney. Nicholas, you’ll stay in the Lodge behind the wards.”
The murmuring behind us goes silent. Nick looks like he’s just eaten an icicle. “Everyone else has a Scion or Squire.”
Sel tucks his hands in his pockets and strides through the grass, holding me still with his electric stare. Tiny pinpricks across my cheeks. “You heard me. I’ll keep track of Briana.” From this distance I can see he’s swapped his pea-shaped black earplugs for silver ones. He speaks to Nick without releasing me from his gaze. “The three skills and abilities tested by the Trials are fixed, but the format of those trials is left up to the chapter leadership in place during the tournament.” He shrugs and the gesture speaks for him. “And I’ve changed my mind.”