Chapter 5

MAEVE

I've never seenAndrei in the daytime, although I"d sometimes spend time with him in his dark world, so this morning I imagine he"s in his room, sleeping.

This morning, once I"d composed myself enough to face the scene in Andrei"s bedroom, Tobias left me to sit with Andrei for a while. Tobias returned an hour later and suggested I leave him alone until later. He"d picked up my emotions heading downwards again, and reminded me that Andrei could be aware, which may not help.

I insist Andrei can"t be left alone, and the others agree that somebody needs to be with Andrei when he comes back to us. Nobody speaks the other reason—stay with Andrei in case he deteriorates. Tobias won"t speak to me about what happened last night, only that he found Andrei "in a bad way" and did what he could.

The visit to Lex"s sits distantly in my mind but Tobias wants to know what happened, partly in an attempt to switch our focus in a positive direction. Jamie holds the paper containing the runes I drew, and we sit at the table with Tobias, Ash watching Andrei not minding if we fill him in later. I suggested we held the meeting in Andrei"s room, but Jamie turned pale and asked if we could choose the kitchen.

Jamie saw Andrei once since he collapsed, and he"s struggling. He whispered to me that he"s angry with Andrei, which affects how he"s responding so he should stay away. I understand, but anger won"t solve the situation. Tobias suggested Jamie"s response is a stage of grief, which did not go down well with me. Andrei is not dead.

Now, Tobias examines the runes from Jamie"s memories that I've haphazardly drawn on the page, some no doubt incorrect and others missing. Tobias's grey face and tired lines show how much he's struggling, not as composed as usual, and I partly blame myself since helping me used a lot of his energy.

Jamie rests his elbows on the table, hands beneath his chin, silent.

"These are from Jamie"s memories?" asks Tobias, and I nod. "Are they accurate?"

"Not all of them." I bite my lip. "I didn"t stay in Jamie"s mind long enough to see everything."

"I"ve tried to recall the Blackwood runes too," says Jamie. "Ones I saw in the grimoire that I used at the academy."

Tobias pulls on his lip, before quietly saying, "I may be able to help with the Blackwood runes. I spent time at the house and with the family years ago."

Normally, Jamie would tense around any talk of Tobias"s past, but he merely nods. "Could you remember the runes, or will Maeve need to look in your mind?"

He"s silent for too long. "I"ll try to envision the runes and draw them. I don"t want Maeve looking into that part of my history."

"I"ve seen the worst," I whisper. "The day in your rooms at the academy, when I saw your memories of the Winterfall deaths."

"No," he says firmly. "I"d rather you didn"t connect with my past again, and I'd rather not either."

Because I haven"t seen the worst?

"Using runes might be pointless now, anyway." I take the paper and trace the shapes with my finger. "If we trap the First, we trap Andrei. These are locking runes used to seal the creature in the pit."

"What are you saying?" asks Jamie.

"If we"re to succeed in trapping the First again, we need to use different Winterfall and Blackwood magic to…" I drag hair from my face. "I don"t know. Whatever we do to the creature, the same might happen to Andrei. What do we do, Tobias?"

"Hope the First never returns?" puts in Jamie, scoffing at his vain hope. "That the thing has finished playing with us?"

"Unlikely," says Tobias.

I sink back in my seat. "We"ve no grimoires, no idea where the creature went, nor do we know precisely what it is. The First had no human body when held beneath the academy—the thing could leave the one it has and take another. And now the First tied Andrei to itself in some way. We"re hopeless."

Tobias rubs a hand down his cheek, and Jamie shakes his head. "No. We"re hopeless now, but there"s more knowledge out there," say Jamie. "The First is distracted by Gabriella and possibly Oskar. That gives us time."

"Unless she left to kill Gabriella," suggests Tobias.

"It," I say through clenched teeth. "Not she. That"s part of the act. The creature is not a woman we can attack and kill like we will Gabriella."

"Why is the First so insistent that we kill Gabriella?" asks Jamie.

"I"ve considered this over and over," says Tobias. "Partially, the First enjoys playing around with us, for whatever reason, and secondly, I don"t think the First wants the future disrupting. Maybe we"re destined to kill Gabriella and if somebody else does, that"ll change the future the First can see and control. The creature won't want that changing. Maeve already shifted future events once at the academy; the First wants things back in line."

"We're chess pieces," mutters Jamie.

Tobias"s hand closes over mine. "We will find a way to break the First"s hold on us and then seal the creature away from the world again, somehow."

I smile weakly at an optimism I struggle to share currently. "I need to see that future, Tobias. We need to change what the First plans."

"And we need to know more about her…its past," adds Jamie. "Why would an entity like that choose a weak human body? There"s a reason—is the creature harder to catch or deal with in physical form? Can we return the First to the state that the Winterfalls and Blackwoods trapped the creature in and win?"

"Fight pure magic energy?" Tobias"s brow tugs down. "That would be impossible."

"I"m only making suggestions," snaps Jamie. "Besides, you"re not a witch. You don"t know everything about magic."

"Jamie," I say softly. "I know you"re stressed, but don"t do this. We need to stick together."

He leans back, crossing his arms over his chest. "One thing I"m certain about—Maeve"s the answer. She"s Winterfall and Blackwood."

"Then why hasn"t the First killed me yet?" I ask, a question that cycles in my head daily. "I"m the creature's biggest threat."

"Not anymore," says Tobias softly. "Not if harming the First also harms Andrei. The creature is counting on that to stop you acting against it with Winterfall magic."

"No." I tap my fingers on the table. "There"s more to this."

"Yeah, the thing"s fucking game," says Jamie in disgust.

Tobias"s eyes hold the faraway look that comes when he"s considering theories or facts he doesn"t want to share. I poke him and he blinks. "Tobias?"

"We can"t understand the First and predict anything."

"Yes, we can," I say firmly. "Because I"ll see that future and we"re going to change what we can."