21. Silas

When I come to,I stare down at a bloodied knife clutched in my right hand. I"m standing in my private dorm, and for a moment, unadulterated panic swirls in my gut because the only person I have ever let in here is Maven. So if I stabbed someone in here?—

But then I feel the pain scorching through me, emanating from my right upper thigh. Swearing, I drop onto the seat beside the fire, clutching at the wound to keep the blood from gushing while simultaneously drawing on it to send healing magic deep into my leg.

Stabbing myself is a new and rather unpleasant development to my curse.

He snapped out of it,one of the voices in my head complains.

Finish the job,my father"s voice hisses.

Another one of them cackles at my pain.

My head throbs, my ears ring, and for a moment, I can barely focus on healing my own leg as an overwhelming wave of paranoia has my gaze darting about my dorm in alarm.

"Who"s there?" I snap when I hear a sound come from my kitchenette.

It"s the one who stabbed you.

Here they come.

Ignoring the laughing voices in my head becomes impossible. Finally, I limp into the kitchenette, still clutching the bloodied knife, my breathing quick and labored. But all I find is a pot boiling over from when I started on the concealment potion for Maven…which, according to the clock on the stove, was hours ago.

I swear again. Slumping to the floor, I set down the blade and cover my face with trembling, bloodied hands.

I"m losing it.

How much longer do I have before my curse takes hold entirely? It can"t be long. At this point, I likely have days or weeks left. Perhaps this could have been avoided had I come to Everbound immediately after my twentieth or twenty-first birthday, as is standard…

But then, no. Maven wouldn"t have been here, anyway, and I have always been destined to suffer without my blood blossom.

The Garnet Wizard is the one who insisted I wait an additional year before enrolling at Everbound University. The Legacy Council was furious about it, but he"d dared them to try entering his sanctuary—which is more of a glorified death trap—and retrieve me themselves.

When I asked why the delay, he gave me a vague answer insisting he had an extremely valuable source who instructed him to keep me at his side for another year. I didn"t ask follow-up questions, but now I wonder if he somehow knew that Maven wouldn"t be here for me until this year.

Maven.

It"s already nearing midnight. I need to finish the concealment potion and return to my keeper as soon as possible. But before I"ve even finished healing my leg, there"s a knock at the door of my private dorm.

Immediately, my nerves are on edge.

It"s someone with a knife. They"ll attack the moment you open the door.

Gritting my teeth against the voices that refuse to leave me alone, I answer the door and go perfectly still. Because instead of Maven or any other legacy, Somnus DeLune waits with a sneer.

"Follow me, young Crane. It"s time for your interrogation."

Damn it. This is going to end badly. And now that I know about Maven"s past, if they ask questions about her…

I can"t lie.

"Awfully late for an interrogation," I note, trying to keep my voice light.

The incubus monster bares sharp teeth at me. "Please do continue stalling. I"m to execute any who resist on the spot, and it would be immensely pleasing to kill any of your quintet."

My heart hammers in my chest. I glance over my shoulder at the cacophony of spell ingredients on my coffee table. "I won"t resist, but allow me to finish bandaging my wound."

His black, soulless gaze drops to my leg, and he snorts. "Attacked, were you? Excellent. A weak quintet is fitting for him."

He must mean his son.

I nod absentmindedly because nodding isn"t an explicit lie. Then I move quickly to the coffee table, leaving the front door barely ajar so he can"t see inside. I grab a bandage soaked in bergamot poultice and wrap my leg until I can fully heal it later.

I also grab a talisman and slip it into my pocket. I crafted before the Matched Ball after hearing that the Immortal Quintet was at Everbound. It will keep Natalya out of my head.

I hope.

Somnus DeLune escorts me through silent hallways, which are dimly lit by fae or mage lights occasionally. No one dares step foot outside curfew, not when the number of legacies at Everbound has been dropping at an alarming rate over the last few days. The Immortal Quintet"s hired hands keep a close watch at night, ready to pounce.

As we enter the faculty hall, Somnus scoffs, "Let"s hope you"re found guilty."

"Of?"

"Anything. You"ve no idea how I longed to kill you and be rid of your bloodline after your parents fell prey to that son of a bitch"s meddling. Amusing that you now share a cunt with the one who murdered your family, don"t you think?"

Hot anger floods my veins, and I feel the prick of my fangs as my temper pushes me into my hunting state. As much as I loathe Crypt DeLune—which is immensely—I hate his father more.

Until recently, I"d only seen Somnus up close one other time. When I was eleven, he came to my family"s house in the countryside unannounced to commission my father to make a powerful potion for him. My father wouldn"t tell me what the potion was for, only that it was for unsavory purposes. When the time came for the concoction to be delivered, my father sent one of our house"s human staff members. They came back in pieces in a blood-soaked body bag, and I decided not to cross paths with Somnus DeLune ever again.

Yet here we are.

"I"m not the last of my bloodline," I mutter through the anger, correcting his earlier statement. "There are other Cranes."

"None that are blood fae." Somnus stops in front of Headmaster Hearst"s old office. He motions at the door as if I should go in. "Let"s get on with it. Your inability to tell a bald-faced lie should make this rather quick."

I brace myself and walk through the doors. The room is spotless compared to the last time I saw it, but I"m still careful not to look at the place where we found Maven lying in a pool of her own blood. Instead, I stare straight ahead at the three monsters in the room.

Natalya, Iker, and Engela.

They"re going to kill you immediately, a voice in my head snickers.

Make the first move. Attack them.

That would be suicide, and the voices know that damn well. I resist the urge to slip my hand into my pocket where my crystal waits.

Playing my cards close to my vest, I sit across from them and tip my head curiously. "Is Hearst engaged elsewhere?"

After all, no one but my quintet knows that he was killed. Hopefully, this will give them less of a reason to question me. But if they"re grieving, none of the Immortal Quintet shows any sign of it as Natalya snorts softly and folds her hands on the desk between us.

"It hardly takes all of us to get the answers we want."

Her blue eyes begin to glow. I hold my breath, sending a silent prayer to Koa that my concealed talisman will work. He"s the god of invention, lies and truths, and magic, among other things.

Natalya"s lips pinch, and her eyes stop glowing. "I see you have a buffer to keep me out of your head. Something to hide, fae?"

I shake my head no, relieved that I can at least lie with body language. "I prefer to be the only one inside my head. It"s not a pleasant place to be, courtesy of my curse."

Typically, I would never overshare like that, but I remember well the lessons my father taught me at a young age. He"d explained that we blood fae are at a disadvantage, being unable to fib—but that there were ways to bend the truth even without a bald-faced lie. Nonverbal actions, asking questions instead of answering, redirecting attention…and offering information freely, so long as it isn"t what is truly being asked of us.

My abrupt truthfulness regarding such a taboo topic has Del Mar raising an eyebrow. It looks odd on his semi-scaly face. He exchanges a brief look with Natalya, and I wonder if they"re communicating telepathically, as some powerful quintets can. No one knows if the Immortal Quintet has that ability. I imagine anyone who has ever asked didn"t survive to share the answer.

"Interesting," Del Mar muses. "I"ve heard some curses are hereditary, as it appears to be with you. Your parents" deaths were unfortunate. I always liked the Crane family of Arcana. Such a loyal lot."

Somnus scoffs as he stands beside Engela Zuma. "They proved quite useless in the end, ripping each other to bits like that."

I keep my eyes forward, pretending to ignore their conversation. But in my head, I can still hear the screaming and shouting as my parents turned on each other. I"d hid in the nearest coat closet so they wouldn"t spot me and turn on me, too, and listened to the sickening sounds of them fighting to the death. They were the last of my parents" quintet after two died at the Divide and the Nightmare Prince drove Omar, their keeper, to suicide along with my uncle and several other random legacies.

I will never fucking forgive Crypt for his part in that.

"Very well. We shall be frank in our questions," Natalya says, her voice like a bell as she toys with the ends of her ruddy brown hair. "Where were you at dawn on the day of the Matched Ball?"

"My quintet and I were returning from a romantic getaway to a cozy small town," I reply, tipping my head. "Why do you ask? I"ve wondered what inspired the Immortal Quintet to grace us with your presence."

"Our business is our own," Del Mar replies coolly. "Don"t presume to question us."

"Could it be a family visit?" I suggest, glancing innocently at Somnus.

His glare is laced with warning. "Say anything else bordering on impudent, and I"ll gladly kill you to weaken that unmanageable prick"s pathetic so-called quintet."

Evidently, he hates Crypt as much as he always has. I understand the sentiment.

"You were apprenticed to the Garnet Wizard, were you not?" Del Mar asks.

"I was."

"He"s in good health, I hope?"

"As curmudgeonly as ever," I say breezily, avoiding a real answer.

That makes Del Mar chuff in an inhuman show of amusement before he nods. "I expect he"s going to continue ignoring any correspondence we send his way. Natalya would have killed him decades ago if he hadn"t proven so useful with charms and spellbinding."

I nod. Natalya is their keeper, and the Garnet Wizard cursed her name daily when I was under his tutelage. He made it no secret that he wanted the Immortal Quintet removed from power—but not killed. He never told me why leaving them alive was important, but he was very creative with his swearing when describing each of them.

"Moving on, then," Natalya hums as if bored by this small talk. "Do you know the real reason we"re here at Everbound? Answer yes or no."

Yes or no questions are the bane of every fae"s existence. My pulse picks up as I realize they"re trying to back me into a corner. If they know that I know of Hearst"s death, I"m fucked.

So, instead of answering, I feign deep thought as I study each of them and redirect to the most distracting topic I can think of. "Is it because the anti-legacy movement is growing more severe? Were they targeting the five of you, so you came here for shelter?"

Somnus snorts, and I thank the gods as he falls for the bait. "As if their little movement won"t blow over in a few measly decades. We seek a far more pressing threat."

I try to channel Maven and keep my expression blank because it"s not difficult to work out his meaning now that I know there"s a prophesied telum…as in, Maven. She"s the Entity"s weapon, and I can only assume she"s a danger to the Immortal Quintet.

So they"re no longer looking for Hearst"s killer at all.

They"ve started looking for her.

My theory is confirmed when Del Mar studies me keenly with his pale yellow eyes, his pupils slit like a hydra"s, even in his more humanoid form. His forked tongue flicks out briefly to wet his lips.

"I heard your keeper is human-born. Odd that a mere atypical caster has survived so long in such a brutal semester, is it not?"

"She has strong matches, and we will continue to protect her no matter how brutal things become," I reply smoothly, holding his gaze.

"Where is your keeper from, pray tell?" Natalya hums.

I hate that they"re asking about Maven, but I hate even more that I"m incapable of lying to protect her if it comes down to it.

You"re going to betray her. They"ll be after her now, a voice in my head snarls.

She"s not strong enough to protect herself from them, and neither are you.

Just let her die already. We hate her. She's going to end us.

My left eye starts to twitch, but I finally manage, "She wasn"t raised in the world of legacies, so I"m afraid her time at Everbound has been quite the adjustment period."

"That"s not what I asked, fae," Natalya pouts dramatically, standing to walk around the desk.

The immortal wears a semi-sheer dress better suited for clubbing than interrogating students. She perches just in front of me, her blue eyes penetrating as they start to glow again. She"s trying to pluck the truth from my head, and I pray the talisman holds up. I can feel it heating in my pocket.

"Let"s try this again. What plane of existence did your keeper come from?"

My pulse is racing with alarm, but I recall that Maven told us she was taken to the Nether as a child. So the absolute truth is…

"The mortal realm, of course. Where else?"

"And has she always been in the mortal realm?"

My palms grow damp, and I keep my wording careful. "Where else would she go? Although technically, I"ve heard we all venture into Limbo when we"re unconscious, so I suppose she"s been there in that way."

Natalya"s hand bolts out lightning-fast to wrap around my neck. I have no access to oxygen as her face twists into a hideous snarl, all that old-world beauty now ugly with anger.

"Don"t dare to play games with me. Answer yes or no only. To your knowledge, has your keeper ever crossed through the Divide?"

She flings me back into the chair so I can choke for air and offer an answer, but I will never answer this. I can"t. If I do, they"ll know the truth.

But if I remain silent, they"ll assume the truth just as quickly. There"s no way to bend this. My voice will cease to work as it always does whenever a lie tries to pass through my lips.

So, instead, I feign absolute shock. "Through the Divide? As in, into the Nether? How would that even be pos?—"

Del Mar moves so fast I don"t see him until I"m flung across the room, slamming into the wall. Somnus is there an instant later, fisting my hair to drag me to my feet. He drives a knee into my fresh thigh injury. It"s so unexpected and painful that, shamefully, a sharp cry of pain escapes.

Obviously, I"ve pissed them off. And as Natalya prowls toward me, that same hideous scowl twisting her features and her eyes glowing ominously, I know I"m about to be tortured for information.

Then they"ll kill me.

And all I can think about is everything I won"t get to experience with Maven if I die here. I won"t get to wake up beside her in the morning, taste her mouthwatering blood, or watch the way her dark eyes flash with mesmerizing anger whenever she"s angry. I won"t get the answers I still desperately want about her. I"ll never again get to listen to the intoxicating sounds my beautifully vicious sangfluir makes in bed or watch her expression turn soft just before I kiss her.

I wonder if she"ll weep for me.

Somnus is still pinning me against the wall. But as Natalya bares her fangs and sinks them into my wrist, pulling an excruciatingly long draw of blood from me, there is a soft knock at the door.

"We are not to be disturbed," Del Mar booms angrily. "Who would dare?—"

"It is Pia, sir."

The prophetess from the temple of Galene? I"m too dizzy from suffocation and pain blossoming in my arm to understand why on earth she would be knocking at a time like this. For a moment, my ears ring, and the voices in my head come roaring to the surface. I"m left pinned to the wall, choking for air while Natalya releases my wrist, exchanging words through the door that I can"t make out.

Abruptly, Somnus releases me with a sharp swear just as Engela moves for the first time, throwing the office door open and storming out. Del Mar, Somnus, and Natalya follow her, leaving me blinking in confusion as I"m alone in Hearst"s office with a burning wrist and the prophetess standing nearby.

The white-cloaked figure"s head turns in my direction.

"You"re bleeding," she says quietly.

I fight for breath as I stagger to my feet, gripping my burning wrist. Natalya is a vampyr, meaning unlike legacy vampires, her venom has the ability to turn someone into a vampire…if they die with the venom in their system.As I do now.

But they"re gone, so I have no plans to die.

"Where did they go? What"s going on?" I ask hoarsely.

The only thing I can think of that would draw their attention away so quickly would be if Pia announced that someone had tried to escape the wards. What if she was reporting Maven"s attempted escape? What if my keeper is about to be caught and killed at any moment?

"Your keeper is perfectly safe, Silas Crane," Pia replies, reminding me that she"s clairvoyant and quite possibly a mind reader. "She is currently outside the wards surrounding Everbound."

That only adds to my panic, though. "Are they looking for her? Did you tell them?"

The prophetess shakes her white-robed head. "No. I merely came to report to them that a swarm of wisps broke out of Limbo and are ripping to shreds anything and everything they come across within the western wing. Without the Nightmare Prince, it will likely take them a couple of hours to trap and fade the wisps."

Why is she mentioning Crypt? Her words spin in my head, not making sense. Between the earlier blood loss and the vampyr venom pulsing through my system, I can"t seem to focus on anything. The ringing in my ears is getting worse.

"I need to get to Maven," I mutter. Only too late do I realize I spoke in fae.

But Pia must understand because she hums. "So loyal. Just as we had hoped."

That statement also makes no sense, but I"m far too exhausted and pain-riddled to ask follow-up questions as Pia supports me and helps me leave Hearst"s office. But when we arrive at my quintet"s apartment and not an exit, I blink blearily and scowl.

"Maven," I repeat emphatically. "I must get to my keeper."

Pia doesn"t even acknowledge my protest as she knocks on the door. A moment later, Baelfire opens the door and stares at us. His eyes are wild in the way that tells me he"s struggling with his inner dragon. The scratch marks around his neck, as if he"s been trying to pry off his collar, further prove that he"s struggling.

"Where were you?" he snaps, dragging me inside and slamming the door without so much as a hello to the mysterious prophetess. "Maven left an hour ago. Why the fuck didn"t you get here sooner to go with her outside the wards?"

I squint at him through the blurriness crowding my eyes, determined to make his three heads converge into one. "I was preoccupied. But why the fucking hell didn"t you go with her?"

He swears and yanks hard on the leather around his neck again. "She pointed out that we don"t know whether this motherfucking collar has a tracking spell woven into it. It might"ve tipped off the Immortal Quintet if I left, and then we would"ve been fucked."

"You"re saying she"s alone out there?" I snap, storming toward the kitchen to get spell ingredients to null the venom.

At least, I try to storm into the kitchen. But my equilibrium has started to spiral, and I smack right into the wall, falling on my ass and hissing at the pain in my leg.

Everything spins as the edges of my vision darken, but I can make out Baelfire standing above me with a frown that almost looks concerned, of all things.

"Shit. What the hell happened to you, Si?"

I"m about to black out, but I can"t let myself go unconscious with this venom in my system. What if I somehow die while unconscious and come back as a vampire? I wouldn"t have my magic anymore, and my powerful line of blood magic is utterly invaluable. I refuse to ever give it up.

So I try to focus on Baelfire"s six pairs of eyes and grit out, "Wyvern blood."

"Come again?"

"In thekitchen. Labeled bottle. Ten dropsinmy mouth."

My words slur together, my eyes sliding shut without permission as the vampyr venom continues to burn through my system. I"m lying supine now, and everything is starting to fade.

Please come back to me, sangfluir.

The last thing I hear before blacking out is, "Hell no. I am not fucking with wyvern juice, you blood-guzzling freak."