I narrowed my eyes. "Promising? You cited me for 'Public Endangerment'."
"A formality," he waved a hand. "To satisfy the Board. They get nervous about unauthorized magic."
He leaned forward, lacing his fingers together. The Void behind his eyes seemed to pulse.
"Let's be honest with each other, Lina. May I call you Lina?"
"No."
"Lina," he continued, ignoring me. "I watched you today. In the Quad. Do you know what I saw?"
"A student saving a life?"
"No," he shook his head. "I saw a conductor. A vessel capable of grounding immense, chaotic energy without breaking."
He stood up and walked to the window, looking out at the darkening campus.
"The bond system is flawed," he said softly. "It is messy. It creates pockets of uncontrollable power—like your Triad. It creates volatility. It wastes magic."
"Wastes it?" I asked, my blood running cold.
"Think of that boy today," Marrow said, turning back to me. "He was leaking magic. Bleeding it into the air. It serves no purpose. It feeds nothing. It is... inefficient."
"He's a person," I said, standing up. "Not a battery."
"is he?" Marrow tilted his head. "Or is he just a container? One that leaks?"
He walked toward me. I forced myself to hold my ground, even as my wolf whimpered in the back of my mind.Predator. Run.
"I come from a long line of... conservationists," Marrow said. "My ancestors understood that magic is a finite resource. It shouldn't be hoarded by unworthy vessels. It should be collected. Centralized. Used by those who have the vision to shape the world."
"You mean eaten," I said bluntly. "You're a Moro. A Magic-Eater."
Marrow stopped. His smile vanished. For a second, his face went slack, revealing something ancient and terrifying underneath.
"You've been to the Archives," he whispered. "Clever girl."
"I know what you are," I said, my voice shaking. "You don't want to regulate us. You want to consume us."
"Consume is such an ugly word," he murmured, stepping closer. "I prefer... integrate. I take the chaos and I give it purpose.Mypurpose."
He stopped inches from me. He smelled of nothing. Absolutely nothing. It was dizzying.
"Here is my offer, Lina," he said. "Join me."
I stared at him. "What?"
"Join the Safety Task Force," he said. "Become my Enforcer. Use that incredible gift of yours—that ability to absorb and ground magic—to help me 'stabilize' the campus."
"You want me to help you drain students," I realized, horror dawning on me. "You want me to catch them so you can feed."
"I want you to help me bring Order," he corrected. "And in exchange... I will let them live."
He gestured to the window, down toward the courtyard where three figures were waiting.
Kai. Rhett. Lucien.
"The Triad," Marrow said softly. "Beautiful. Powerful. Dangerous. Did you find my calling card, Lina? The Queen of Hearts I left on your pillow? A delicate warning that hearts are easily broken."
