“Perhaps they have. Sadly, they would have failed. Or perhaps because, if elementals are even aware of the Shadow Society, they don’t know who’s in it. You didn’t know any of the members until recently, did you? I assume not, since you appeared to trust Archer Davenport.”
Ridley examined Christa, her frown still in place. “So Archer came to you, proclaiming to be on our side, and all the while you knew his father headed up the Shadow Society. You knew Archer was also one of them.”
“Well, Archer always seemed genuine, from what I could tell, so I never questioned him about the Shadow Society. It was possible he didn’t know what his father was involved in. Unlikely, but possible. And I didn’t want him asking how I knew about it, so … saying nothing seemed easier.”
“Of course. Let everyone keep their own secrets.” Ridley sighed, knowing she was including herself in her next statement. “That’s the way we do things.”
“That’s the way we’ve done things,” Christa said, “but we both know where we stand now, so why not stick together?”
Ridley shook her head. “I’m grateful for your help. I honestly am. But I have friends in this city I trust far more than you. That’s where I’m going when I’m ready to leave here.”
23
Ridley felt truly awful by the time she arrived at the Lins’ place. It was directly across the road from Kayne’s Antiques, so she made sure not to reveal herself anywhere outside the building, just in case someone was monitoring her old home for any sign of her. After drifting past the Chinese takeout shop below the Lins’ apartment—where Mr. Lin was behind the counter, taking an order—she floated up to one of the windows on the floor above and slipped inside.
Remembering what she’d told Saoirse about randomly showing up in people’s homes, she moved through the apartment to the front door and released her magic. She slumped against the door and raised one fist to knock against it. Sure, it wasn’t as polite as waiting on the outside of the door and knocking, but the Lins were like family. They would understand.
Her eyes slid shut as she waited. On the way here, she’d pushed her questioning thoughts out to the magic around her, but so far she’d found no one. She tried to keep her panic at bay. They couldn’t all be dead, could they? No. Dad was somewhere in the city, and the city was full of arxium structures, so magic would have a hard time getting around everything to find him. That had to be the reason.
And Saorise, Nathan and all the others … perhaps they were back at their mountain home by now, packing up and moving somewhere else. Maybe they were planning a second attempt at their revolution. Or maybe they’d given up. But they couldn’t all be … dead.
“Oh, Ridley!” Ridley’s eyes sprang open as Mrs. Lin rushed out of the kitchen. She wrapped her skinny arms around Ridley. “Your father will be so relieved.”
Ridley’s heart leaped wildly. “Is he here?”
“He … unfortunately not.” Mrs. Lin stepped back. “He was, but he left.”
“When?” Ridley swayed and put a hand out against the door to steady herself. “Why did he leave?”
“You look like you need to sit,” Mrs. Lin said, taking Ridley’s arm and guiding her into the kitchen and onto one of the chairs that sat around the small table. “Your father arrived late on Sunday afternoon, sometime after the shudders ended.” She took a glass from the drying rack and filled it with cold water from the fridge. “By Monday morning—yesterday—he was gone. We assume he’s looking for you.”
Ridley accepted the glass of water. She took a sip, which turned into a gulp, and then another several gulps until the glass was almost empty. She hadn’t realized how thirsty she was. “But,” she said, taking a deep breath as she lowered the glass, “where would he go? How would he know where to begin looking for me?”
“He thinks the Shadow Society has you.” Mrs. Lin took the glass and refilled it. “It’s possible he’s gone to confront Alastair Davenport, now that we’re aware he’s the director.”
“He wouldn’t be that stupid. He can’t possibly think that would end well.”
Mrs. Lin shook her head. “We don’t know what he’s thinking. He’s desperate, Ridley. He said … well, that the two of you didn’t part on good terms the last time he saw you. He can’t bear to think that those moments may be the last he ever shares with you.”
Ridley placed the glass on the table and buried her face in her hands. “This is my fault. I was so upset. But … I couldn’t not be upset. And now … ugh, what a mess.”
“He told us about everything. The big plan to change our world. How something must have gone wrong, because everything suddenly stopped. But he couldn’t contact anyone, so he couldn’t find out what happened.”
“So he has a commscreen with him? Do you have the number?”
“Yes, but I’ve tried contacting him and there’s no response.”
“Maybe … maybe the battery died?” Ridley suggested, trying to keep her hopes up.
Mrs. Lin looked doubtful, but she said, “That could be it. Your father is a little on the scatterbrained side. He probably wouldn’t notice if the device turned itself off unless he needed to use it himself.”
“Yes, exactly.” Ridley appreciated Mrs. Lin playing along, even though she was fairly certain this was not the reason Dad wasn’t replying.
“Can I get you anything else? Some food? I have a little more time before I need to join Bo downstairs. And I should probably tell you that—”
“Ridley?” The familiar voice sent Ridley’s blood rushing through her veins. Without thinking about it, she was suddenly standing, looking toward the kitchen doorway.
“I should probably tell you that Shen returned,” Mrs. Lin finished quietly.
Ridley was so surprised that all she could do was stare him. It was Shen who moved first, striding toward her on long legs and wrapping her in a tight hug. Still, Ridley couldn’t bring herself to unfreeze. Shen had lied. He’d murdered. He’d chased after her with a gun through the Wallace Academy library. Well, not her specifically, but that’s what it had felt like. And yet … he was so achingly familiar that she wanted to cry. He had been her friend for so long that this moment—him hugging her in his kitchen—was like coming home and finding that nothing had changed.
Except that things had changed. Everything had changed.
“I’m so sorry,” Shen said, stepping back before Ridley managed to return the hug. “About everything. And I’m so happy you’re safe. I wanted to tell you about all of this so many times. So many times, Rid. You’re my oldest friend, and it was so, so hard having to keep it all from you.”
She nodded, unable to meet his eyes now. Unable to find the right words to say. “I … I understand.”
“Do you?”
“I … it’s just … so much has happened. So much is different now.”
“I know.” He let out a long sigh. “I know I couldn’t explain things, but I wish you’d listened to me about Archer Davenport. You never should have trusted him.”