“And who might that be?” Runa asked. She didn’t struggle against her restraints, but the sound of her voice was icy.
“Cyril Harlow.”
Runa took a deep breath and wore a smile so terrifying, Barclay’s skin prickled. “How charming. Then if I’m to be imprisoned, who will leave to find Tadg?”
“L-leave?! It’s almost Midwinter! The Beasts are at their most dangerous!” Erhart blubbered. “I won’t be sending people out to their deaths! If the boy had any sense, he wouldn’t have left. Little did he know his father’s murderer was here all along.” Then Erhart turned his attention to Barclay. “You both! Get out of my office! The Exhibition award ceremony and the trial will be tomorrow!”
Barclay and Viola were shoved out the door into the Guild House, which was now deadly silent. The other Masters had all crowded around the door to eavesdrop.
“Arrest the Fang of Dusk?” Mandeep said. “That’s absurd!”
“Wasn’t she Murdock’s friend?” Floriane asked.
“Of course she was, you two turnips!” Athna huffed. “I don’t know what Soren said to convince Erhart, but if Soren’s plans go wrong, Gravaldor could murder us all before the end of the Midwinter.”
Barclay and Viola stumbled through the crowds to the Guild House’s door. The cold air forced Barclay’s muddled thoughts to clear and made him more alert.
“Tadg’s gone after Soren tostophim,” Barclay groaned, “not to help him.”
“But it doesn’t make sense!” Viola said. “If Soren only came to Sycomore to seek out Gravaldor, why would he wait through the entire Exhibition? He could’ve left earlier and given himself more time. Even if he left last night, he’d have to rush to make it to the heart of the Woods by Midwinter.”
Barclay admitted that she had a point. But then he remembered something.
“When I was in the Woods with Soren, he told me that he wanted to find apprentices.”
“Apprentices? As in, more than one?” Viola asked. “Who would they be?”
The dread in Barclay’s stomach knotted tighter. Abel had already known Soren was gone.
Barclay grabbed Viola’s hand and ran to the Ironwood Inn. They charged up the stairs to Abel’s and Ethel’s rooms on the top floor, but the only person they found inside was a maid.
“Where did they go? The people staying in these rooms?” Barclay demanded, panting.
“They already left,” she told them. She huffed as she stripped the sheets off their beds. “In a bit of a hurry too. Left so many bits and baubles. Didn’t even leave a cleaning tip.”
It wasn’t like Ethel and Abel to leave behind any of their collectibles, but sure enough, he spotted a few of Abel’s champion cards and one of Ethel’s notebooks on the bureau. Barclay flipped to the first page of the book, his hands trembling.
There was a detailed sketch of Ethel’s Doppelgheist, notes scribbled along the margins. Except there was one piece of handwriting that didn’t belong. It was cold and precise, its ink bleeding red through the paper. Written, Barclay guessed, before the second exam, when Soren had examined Ethel’s notebook.
I’d like to make you an offer.
Barclay exchanged a dark look with Viola. “No wonder Tadg didn’t trust us. That was who he meant, when he said some Masters had already taken on apprentices. He meantSorenhad taken on apprentices… Ethel and Abel.”
TWENTY-TWO
It was them,” Barclay breathed, dropping the notebook and slapping a hand against his forehead. Beside him, Viola looked equally stricken. “Soren didn’t just trap me in the Woods—they led me to him. Maybe when Soren overheard us talking about their Beasts, he was interested—not intakingtheir Beasts—but in teaching them.”
“He could’ve killed you in the Woods that day!” Viola squeaked. “But why leave now? Why not leave last night with Soren? The center of the Woods isn’t close. They’ll never catch—”
“They will. Abel said they can move faster in mirrors,” Barclay said.
“And the way Soren planted Conley’s notebook to frame Runa… I don’t think it was a coincidence. He probably got the idea from Ethel!”
The room spun around him. Soren had left, and so had Ethel and Abel. Tomorrow was Midwinter. Tomorrow Soren and the twins would greet Gravaldor while he emerged from his lair, and Soren would attempt to bond with him. Whether Soren succeeded or not, the entire Woods was in danger.
“Then we need to find Tadg,” Barclay said hurriedly. “Tadg left to stop him. We need to help him.”
The maid cast each of them a stern look. “AndIneed to clean.” She ushered them out of the room and into the hallway, but Barclay and Viola were already sprinting downstairs.
