by Fiona Starr
Before I can respond, I’m surrounded in a web of bright blue light and pinned to the wall beside Angus's seat. Daria’s arms are outstretched, pointing the light at me.
Tendrils of light wrap around my neck, choking me as it smashes me against the wall. My lungs burn and it feels like my head is going to explode.
My self-defense teacher’s voice comes to me from my memory, and I conjure a force field covering my body. The blue web bounces away from me and I take the opportunity to throw a ball of flame right at Daria’s face.
She wings a blast of energy at me and I try to dodge but it’s moving too fast and catches me on my hip. I’m forced aside and I drop to the floor, knocking Angus's IV stand over and ripping the needle from his arm.
Angus thrashes and his body starts to puff up again, and I both worry and hope that his wolf appears. Because his wolf will break him loose, but it will also ruin any chance we have of concealing his identity. I feel for Van and his mission, but if there is a choice between saving Angus and saving the mission. I’m sorry, but that’s no choice at all. I choose Angus.
“You don’t want to play with me, Joely. I’ve got a lifetime of experience to your month. Just stop and maybe the headmaster will let you live.”
“I saw you with Mel. You’re killing innocent people. Students who trusted you! Why?” I grab a tray of surgical tools and throw it across the room at her. She deflects it with a wave of her hand, sending the silver implements tumbling through the hole in the floor.
Daria storms across the room toward Angus. She punches the air in front of me. The wallop hits me in the belly and I double over, unable to catch my breath.
“The Society of Ancient Magic is the oldest organization in all the magical realms. We preserve the power lines by keeping everyone together. It’s very simple, really. You recall the words you spoke at the initiation? The Vessel of Truth brings the four lines of Ancient Magic together, forming a nexus of power to benefit us all. We must keep the ancient lines pure. It’s a sound philosophy.”
“It’s a racist philosophy,” I say, gulping for air.
“One worth preserving.”
“By killing people?”
She reaches Angus and picks up the IV stand off the floor. She opens a drawer next to his bed and unwraps another needle. “The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. The Society needs the Vessel to survive, and the Vessel demands sacrifice. I wish Headmaster Underwood were here to explain, he’s much more eloquent. You’d be a believer in no time.”
Angus groans, his voice hoarse and raw. “Joely?” He turns and smiles like a drunkard, but he’s focused on my eyes which means he’s still with me and he’s coming out of the haze. I can’t let Daria hook him back up to those drugs.
With every passing moment, Angus's presence grows stronger as the drugs slowly wear off. At the same time, the noise from the Vessel increases, and green tendrils of light beam up through the hole in the floor and whip around like a frantic, glowing octopus.
Daria looks worried. “Damn it! We can’t do this now!”
“Joely…” Angus calls to me and I watch as his wolf fights to spring free.
The noise from the Vessel changes to a clanging, then a horrible ringing noise like it had before when Marco shifted. It must be sensing Angus's wolf.
The room explodes in a burst of green light. The tendrils that were whipping around now encompass Angus completely. Daria stands in the beam, her face resigned as she drops the needle. “I tried, Angus. I really did.”
Oh my god. The Vessel is going to take him.
I push off the wall and run to Angus, crashing into the seat and shoving him to the far side of the room. The Vessel magic doesn’t stick with him, it still covers Daria.
She glances down at her hands as if realizing for the first time that she’s the one the Vessel has picked. The light all around her makes her eyes look like white glass. The force from the Vessel lifts her off her feet. The light carries Daria over the hole in the floor and holds her suspended in the air. Thin layers of green light peel away, drawing down into the hole, and as they fall, they pull streams of shimmering golden energy from Daria’s body.
She spins slowly in the air, and when I catch a glimpse of her face, it’s covered with tears.
When the last string of light is gone, Daria’s limp body falls through the hole, and disappears into the cavern.
I crawl across the floor to the lip of the hole and peer over the side. The shattered Vessel is in pieces on the floor, a curl of red energy flickering around the broken pieces. Daria’s body lays over the top of the plinth, a shard of the Vessel poking up through her abdomen.
On the other side of the Vessel room, Van appears. He circles the plinth, taking in Daria’s body and the broken Vessel, looking all around the room to try to figure out what happened.
“Van!” I scream into the hole.
He looks around, searching for the source of the voice.
“Van! Up here! I have Angus!”
He looks up, but clearly he doesn’t see anything except the ceiling of the ritual room. “Joely?”
“I’m upstairs. In the hall above the solarium. Angus is hurt. I need you.”
A few minutes later, the door flies open and Van is standing there, staring at the fake bedroom.
I never thought I’d be so happy to see him. “It’s an illusion, Van. Close the door.” I say, no longer shouting.
He does as he’s told and as soon as the latch catches he takes a step backward, bumping into the wall. “What the hell is this place?”
“It’s evil. Pure evil. Come on. Help me get him out of here.”
Between the two of us, we are able to break the metal bands holding Angus.
Van wraps Angus in a sheet and lifts him over his shoulders in a fireman’s carry. “I’m going to conceal us and get Angus out of here.” He holds his arm out for me. “Gather up your gown and stay close, it should be enough to cover you too.”
Angus groans and tries to move out of Van’s grip.
Van doesn’t let him slip an inch. “I’ve got you, brother. You need to be quiet now, all right?”
A huge smile spreads over Angus's face. “Hey Van. Hey Joely…” He slurs our names through his stupor.
Tears well up and spill from my eyes. “Hey you. Glad you’re back.”
Angus smiles wide. “Van, man. We’re so lucky… so lucky… I know you don’t want to admit it but… God, doesn’t she feel amazing?” He pats Van’s back. “She’s with us now. I hope we don’t fuck it up.” Angus glances at me again and then his eyes roll up into his head and he passes out.
Van hefts his brother, getting him into a better position. “Well, at least he’ll be quiet now.” Van lifts his arm for me again. “Ready?”
I wrap my dress in a tight wad and hike it up as I slide in under Van’s arm. He pulls me to him, pressing me against his side. His woodsy, citrus scent is mixed with sweat, and his shirt is damp, but I don’t care. He’s here and Angus is alive, and everything is going to be all right.
“Nice Chucks,” Van says.
I smile and open the door so we can leave.
Chapter Twenty
JOELY
It’s after midnight when I feel like I can finally leave. What I really want is to crawl into bed next to Angus, wrap myself around him, and hold on until he wakes up. But what he really needs is rest, and I think Van needs some time alone with his brother.
Van and I worked together to set Angus's arm, which, as it turns out, is broken in two places. But Van assures me that once whatever drugs he’s on clear his system, his wolf healing will take care of the rest.
My gown announces my arrival in the kitchen before I get there. Van is at the table trying to fix the clasp on Angus's chain. He’s a big guy, with large hands and thick fingers, and it’s obvious he’s struggling.
“Let me.” I move in and lend him my much smaller fingers, holding the metal so he can clamp it closed.
“Thanks
.”
I feel like we’ve turned another corner, Van and I, but I don’t want to push it. He’s a good man, even if he’s determined to keep me as far away as possible. I guess I can learn to live with that. But all I have to do is close my eyes and breathe him in…
“Do you need anything else before I go?” I ask, not sure what that might be, but wanting to offer regardless.
He shakes his head and bunches the chain in his hand. “Nah. Marco should be back before long. I’ll be all right. Are you all right walking home? I could walk you…”
I stop him with a shake of my head. “I’m fine. What fun is a gown if you don’t get to show it to anyone?” I say.
“Good luck finding an audience at this hour,” he says, and the smile he gives me is so warm and real, I make myself hold his gaze so I can remember it forever.
“You did good, Joely,” he says. “I don’t think Angus would have made it if you hadn’t been there.”
“You’re the one who saved us both,” I say, feeling my throat tighten as emotion fills my chest. I want so badly for this man to let me in. I don’t care if it’s nothing more than friendship. But I like this version of Van that I’m getting right now.
He gives me another one of those winning smiles. “I guess we’re even.”
“Goodnight, Van.”
“Goodnight, Joely.”
The walk home from the house is quiet. The Samhain festival is still going on in the quad, and I’m sure everyone is still at the Society house too. When Van and I left, it was like nothing had happened. Under his concealment we walked down the main stairs and through the gathering without anyone seeing us. The chamber music played, the waiters walked around with trays of food and drink, and the entire scene was normal.
You’d never guess that the Vessel had taken someone’s life and that Daria’s body lay one floor below.
I try to piece together the things that Daria said, and I feel pretty certain that she didn’t know anything about the Underwood’s real purpose. She seemed like a true believer. A bigoted, elitist one… But she was a true believer nonetheless in the need for the Society of Ancient Magic to continue its important work.
I take the path between Bristol and Kabon dorms, picturing my bed in my dorm and the hot shower awaiting me. It’s such a gorgeous night, I’m tempted to take the long way around the lake, but with every step I take toward Rubydown, I feel exhaustion seeping in.
The hands that grab me come out of nowhere. They cover my mouth and grab me by my waist, lifting me off my feet and carrying me into the woods.
I flail and kick but he only holds on tighter. Then I open my mouth and bite down on the hand covering me. He drops me and I hit the ground on all fours, scrabbling to get away. My gown makes it impossible to move like this and he’s on me in a second.
Something smashes into my head and the world explodes into a galaxy of twinkling stars and then everything goes dark.
My arms are stuck at my sides. My feet dangle in the air. I’m tied to something big and solid. I feel around with my fingers and recognize the crumbly rough bark of a tree. I’m in the woods, and I am starting to wonder if maybe I should ask for a transfer to a dorm on campus.
“You were never supposed to be a mage,” the man says.
He’s standing somewhere behind me and I know that voice, but I can’t place it.
“What do you—” I try to speak but nothing comes out. I try again. “Wha—” Nothing. I scream as hard as I can, but no sound leaves my body.
“Don’t bother. I’ve disabled your voice.”
Panic grips me and I wriggle against the restraints but they don’t give. I’m trapped and I don’t even know why.
Footsteps crunch on the dry layer of forest fall and Mr. Allbright appears over my shoulder. He steps in front of me and just watches me as if he’s trying to decide what to do. He’s been drinking; I can smell it on him, and when he talks his words are muddy and thick. That’s why I didn’t recognize him when he first spoke, because earlier at the party, he was putting on a show of jovial good temper.
This man is not smiling, and I don’t know what he wants from me. If he would let me speak I could maybe bargain with him.
He peels a piece of green wood with a knife as he circles the tree. “I never wanted this, you know. It wasn’t something I ever imagined doing.” He kicks at a twig and continues walking round and round, slowly picking his way around me and the tree.
“When my son was born, my mother pulled some strings and got me in to see the Oracle of Le Tance. She was this old wise woman who could predict the fortune of anyone. She’s never wrong, they say.” He laughs to himself and looks up into the night. The moon is bright on one half of his face while leaving the other half in shadow.
“The Oracle told me all about my boy. My beautiful Sebastian. He’s destined for great things. A career in politics. A broad and distinguished education that will propel him into a magnificent career. He will be a good man, beloved by the people, and everything he does will be revered down through history. He’s going to be a truly, truly great man. You can probably imagine the joy I felt at this revelation. What father wouldn’t want all of those things for his son?” He stops as if waiting for me to reply.
“But the Oracle wasn’t finished. You see, there was a little surprise in store. Something none of us knew was coming.” He raises his finger at me as if he’s about to blow me away with the news. “The Oracle says, that my daughter will not have the same fate. ‘Where your son will build the world with his gifts, your daughter is going to tear it all down.’” He stares at me, his eyes wide and wild.
He comes in close and presses a knife to my throat. I The blade is cold against my skin. I freeze, not wanting to move and cut myself. I want to scream but I can’t make a sound. I am helpless and alone and I am going to die tied to a tree. My tears are warm against my cheek and they tickle my neck as they run down.
He looks at my face. “You look so much like her. I couldn’t believe it. When I saw you tonight, it was like looking back through time.” He blinks and a tear rolls down his face. He pushes off me and wobbles on his feet, the knife hanging from his limp hand.
I exhale and try to calm my racing heart. My hands and feet are numb from the restraints and my fingers are starting to ache.
“My daughter will bring about the demise of the power that embraces the world.” He laughs again as if it’s a very funny joke. “A son who will build an empire, and a daughter who will tear it down. I couldn’t allow it. My wife had just learned she was expecting that very morning. She would tell me as soon as I got home. I couldn’t tell her about the Oracle, not now. I needed the one thing a child does not give… time. It took almost nine months to find a place for you. You couldn’t imagine the lengths I went to find another family. One who wasn’t in a position to turn down the offer I was prepared to make.” He shakes his head.
“There was no other way. You were never supposed unlock your power. I was assured that it would stay hidden forever. You were never meant to be a mage…”
Something shifts behind my neck. I feel it pop like a water balloon and trickle down my back, spreading out over my body and up over my head. My throat opens up and my power surges in my chest.
“Forgive me,” he says, raising the knife again and stepping toward me.
I loosen the restraints enough to get my legs free and when he’s close enough I kick him right between the legs. He doubles over and falls to the ground, and I waste no time.
I use a cutting spell to break the rest of the restraints and I drop to the ground, my gown billowing out around me. I don’t know where we are but we can’t be that far from campus, so I take off running, hoping that I’ll find my way out of the woods before too long.
He’s on his feet and right behind me, his breaths heaving as he runs. I hike up my skirt so I can run but the scrub keeps catching and tugging, and slowing me down.
His body slams into my legs and I hit the ground hard. Blood
fills my mouth and I claw the ground to get away. He won’t let go of my sneakers and they are laced so tight that I can’t wiggle out of them. I pull and pull and then my hand finds a rock.
It takes both my hands to lift it, but once I have it, I sit up and swing it down onto his head.
Porter Allbright’s head cracks open and blood pours from the wound. His eyes flutter and he tips onto his side, his hands go limp.
Someone crashes through the trees behind Mr. Allbright and for a moment I think it’s his son, coming to finish the job. But then Marco steps into the moonlight.
“Joely? My god, I thought I would never find you.”
“Marco?” My chin quivers as I try to decide if I need to laugh or cry.
Then Marco’s strong arms are around me and he’s carrying me away as my tears flow.
Chapter Twenty-One
JOELY
Marco doesn’t say a word as he carries me all the way back to campus, up to my dorm, into my room, and places me on my bed. Once there, he unties my sneakers and tucks me into my bed, even though I am still wearing my gown.
I can’t believe the night I’ve had. First Angus and Daria, and now Mr. Allbright? I can’t process any of it.
“Is he dead? Did I kill him?” I ask, not sure if I want to know.
Marco sits next to me and brushes my hair off my face. “I don’t care. All that matters is that you’re safe.” His smile is almost sad.
I take his hand and lace our fingers together. “How did you find me?”
“I was on my way home from my run. Underwood followed me all the way into Pennsylvania. There’s a wolf pack that lives in the hills up there. Gray wolves… I got close enough for him to pick up their vibe and then when he was focused on them, I came back. Is Angus home?”
I nod. “Yeah. Van’s with him. He’s going to be fine.”
“I guess I’ll go now.” He moves to stand but I don’t let go of his hand.
