“You have my word—”
“—withoutresorting to barbarism,” Professor Broome adds sternly, and Maddox nods her agreement.
I lower my eyes, unable to hold their penetrating gaze. “I don’t appreciate the preemptive accusation, Professors.”However true it may be…
“Dr. Devane, please.” With a gentle touch on my arm, Professor Maddox reclaims my attention. In her eyes, I find the humanity I was hoping to avoid.
“This isn’t your concern,” I say, but she’s not going to give up so easily.
“Casey and Janelle are alive, essentially trapped inside their own bodies. They’re aware of everything that’s happening to them. They will experience—feel—everything. And they will remember it the rest of their lives.”
I gesture to our prisoners, still passed out in the cage. “They are both on Fairy’s Breath. They came here tonight with the intent to steal the Sword of Breath and Blade, and probably kill us in the process. Believe me, Professors. This is not the time for second chances.”
Maddox shakes her head. “Stevie confirmed Janelle has been taking Fairy’s Breath from the start, but not Casey. And we have no evidence that either woman consented to the possession. It could’ve happened against their will. In fact, that seems likely—Casey was working for the APOA until this very evening.”
I stand before them, quietly seething. Deep down, I know they’re right. But we’re essentially at war. The risk of compassion, of hope, is almost too great.
“If theywereforced into this,” Professor Maddox presses, “we’re condemning innocent women to pain and suffering.”
“I can’t speak for Casey,” I counter, “but Janelle? That woman is hardly innocent.”
“Of this particular crime, she may be.” She folds her arms across her chest and glares. “Capture her, yes. Interrogate her, by all means. But I won’t stand by and let you torture anyone, even if theyareguilty. The moment we give in to those baser instincts… That’s when we lose the core of who we really are. Who we want to be. That’s when we become the very enemy we want so badly to defeat.”
As if that little pep talk weren’t enough, Broome comes in for the big finish.
“Stevie would never stand for this,” she says.
Rage simmers inside, my muscles clenching with the effort of holding back. “Stevie is risking her life to save us tonight. Donotuse my respect and admiration for her to manipulate me.”
I’m towering over her, practically shaking with fury, but Maddox doesn’t back down.
“A respect and admiration she obviously returns,” she says. “But if you do this, Dr. Devane, she’ll never look at you the same way.”
The truth stings, but I can’t let emotion cloud my judgment on this. We need answers, and I’d bet my life our prisoners aren’t going to offer them up willingly.
“It doesn’t matter,” I say. “You know why? Because if we don’t figure out who’s behind this, who’s seeking out those artifacts, Stevie—and the rest of the students and faculty here—won’t survive the semester. So if keeping her safe and alive means risking her opinion of me, you candamnwell bet I’ll—”
“Cass!” Ani calls across the scorched earth. “Come quick!”
The professors and I exchange a quick glance—this conversation is far from over—then run over to check on Ani and the others.
“Something’s wrong with Baz,” Ani says. “His hand is turning black. That can’t be good, can it?”
Professor Broome kneels down for a closer look, her deep sigh all the answer we need.
“What’s happening?” I drop down next to her, pressing the back of my hand to Baz’s cheek. “He’s burning up.”
“The blood connection between them is broken,” Professor Broome says. “It means they’ve been apart too long in the realm. They should’ve found one another by now.”
“What about Stevie and Kirin?” I ask.
She looks over the others in turn, their hands clasped tightly over their blanket. “They have reunited. They’re safe—for now.”
The news offers little comfort. They won’t return without Baz. None of us would leave one of our own behind.
“What happens if they don’t find Baz?” Isla asks.
Professor Broome sweeps the hair from Baz’s forehead, a gesture so sweet and protective it damn near breaks my heart.
