“After she assured everyone on campus that he wasn’t a threat,” I say.
“As I’ve said before, I don’t always agree with her decisions or communication tactics, but I do know she has the Academy’s best interests at heart.”
I stifle an eye-roll that would make Carly proud.
“Anyway,” Casey says, “not long after Janelle’s arrival, Trello caught her messing with the security cameras outside the library storage area. Janelle played it off, insisting she’d found them that way, but Trello didn’t buy it. Then, even though she’d set Janelle up in a nice house here in Red Sands, she discovered Janelle was spending most of her nights sleeping in Phaines’s old office. So Trello waited until Janelle fell asleep one night, then crept down to the basement. That’s when she discovered Phaines’s setup. It was clear to her that Janelle was keeping Phaines alive and helping him with his experiments.”
Carly barks out a bitter laugh. “Goddess, if that woman had puthalfthat much effort into being a mother instead of an evil henchwoman, I might not need to spend the rest of my life in therapy.”
Casey offers a sympathetic smile. “Your mother wasn’t working alone in this, Carly. After Trello’s grim discovery, she brought her suspicions to Agent Quintana and me. From there, we pored over the myriad findings from our contact in New York and determined that Eastman was also involved in supporting Phaines. Apparently he’d learned about Phaines’s experiments with spying and siphoning magick through his online connections, and saw an opportunity. We don’t know exactly how it all came together, but at some point, Eastman made contact with Phaines and struck up a deal of his own. He wanted access to Phaines’s magick, and Phaines wanted back on campus. Eastman figured out how to break the portal security and bring him back in, and from there, they joined forces with Janelle. They kept Phaines alive, and helped coordinate the attacks and magickal thefts—also with the help of other students or faculty they managed to convert to their causes.”
“Like the dark mages who attacked us in the library,” Kirin says.
“Exactly,” Casey says.
“We had all these theories,” Quintana says, “but no hard proof. Until the brilliant Agent Appleton decided to go in as bait—an idea I opposed from the start.”
“So did Trello,” Casey says. “But ultimately you both knew it was the best way to get the irrefutable proof we needed.”
“Without telling me,” Quintana says, “she set herself up for the attack.” He glares at Casey something fierce, but his energy is nothing but protective.
“We knew the patterns—late at night, students walking in more remote areas. I dressed up in Academy clothing and took a jog out behind Flame and Fury. Two cloaked mages nabbed me right away. I figured they’d try to siphon my magick—I had an undetectable counterspell in place for protection. But I wasn’t prepared for them to shoot me full of Fairy’s Breath and let Phaines take my mind and body for a joyride.”
“You all know how wellthatworked out,” Quintana says.
No one responds to that. We don’t have to; the collective energy in the room immediately turns to worry for Ani.
“Fast forward to my and Janelle’s capture,” Casey says. “When Dr. Devane showed up at Trello’s house, demanding access to a remote house in the Red Sands community, she knew immediately that our plan had gone well—too well. I hadn’t checked in with her since the night before. At that point, she decided Phaines had to be eliminated. She wasn’t willing to risk my life or further attacks on students.”
“And Eastman?” I ask. “How does he come back into play?”
“Trello contacted him to report Janelle and Casey missing,” Agent Quintana says. “She expressed concern that the women had been kidnapped or harmed, though of course she knew they were here with Dr. Devane.”
“Being kidnapped and harmed,” Casey adds, shooting a death glare at Doc.
“I was a complete professional,” Doc says.
“A professional kidnapper is nothing to brag about,” she quips. Then, with a resigned sigh, “But in the end, I would’ve done the same to protect the people I love.”
Her attention shifts toward Kirin, her energy warming.
“When Eastman learned Phaines was dead,” she says, “he sent in his minions to collect the essences and related research from the library storage—that’s his prize in all this. Finding a way to eliminate magick from the population without eliminating the population itself.”
A shiver rolls down my spine. “And this is the man with ultimate authority at the Academy now? The one that’s been locked down to keep people from leaving or even interacting beyond the dorms? I can’t believe you guys are okay with that.”
“Far from it,” Quintana says. “But we need more time to get the evidence together. Besides, with Phaines dead and Janelle out of the picture, Eastman is on his own now.”
“Along with his shadow-mage minions and whoever else he’s charmed into his savior mission,” Kirin says. “We fought those guys, Case. I don’t want to go up against them again.”
Casey shakes her head. “Eastman needs time to regroup. He doesn’t want to ring any alarm bells. His whole plan relies on secrecy—he needs the students to remain calm and trust his authority. That will buy us a little more time.”
“Where is Trello?” Baz asks. “If she’s so high-and-mighty in all this, why hasn’t she made an appearance?”
“A question I’ve been asking since I enrolled here,” I say.
“She is off-campus following another lead,” Casey says. “I’m waiting for her to make contact again with more information, but from what little she’s told me, it’s important.”
“What little she’s told you,” Doc says. “That’s a theme with Anna Trello—one you’d be wise to examine rather than taking her at her word.”
