As soon as she’s gone, I begin preparing, and I implement my plan the next day when I announce a final class project to help prepare them for service to a clan. It is a paired assignment, designed to focus on collaboration, strategy, and problem-solving, where they take on requests from other pairs and score one another. Important skills for Arcanists who must work together in the clans.
Naturally, I pair Luren and Dristin together.
Naturally, their project mysteriously runs into issues that force them to stay late and work longer together.
At first, they’re so stiff. But as the day drags on, their conversation becomes easier. More normal. I sit, pretending to go over some plans while I eavesdrop.
Then something catches my ear.
“Ravin?” Luren repeats, surprised.
Dristin hums in affirmation, shuffling through papers. “He came to Clan Moon while I was there visiting relatives for the Swords celebrations. I overheard him saying something about a relic.”
A relic?I keep my eyes on my papers, hand tightening slightly around my pen.
Luren sounds thoughtful. “Now that you mention it…I wonder if he was making rounds to the clans, because he came to Clan Star, too.” A pause, and I see her eyes dart to me in my periphery. “In fact, I just received a letter from Liam that he was personally invited to a celebration here at Ravin’s manor soon.”
My eyes stay on my papers as Dristin scoffs and lowers his voice to be barely audible. “That Liam man is a weird one…better you don’t associate with him…”
Ravin is inviting Liam. Personally. Maybe it’s because of what happened with Emilia. Maybe it’s because he thinks he has the vessel and I can finally be tied up as a loose end. Regardless of the reason, I know in my marrow he’s finally investigating Liam’s attachment to me.
I might have the letters now, but Liam still knows my name. He’s still a risk. And I will not let him be my undoing.
Chapter 75
There is one person I go to before Ravin’s party. One person I trust with this information and can rely on. It’s well past midnight when I ease my way into Kaelis’s apartments.
He is still awake, hunched over his desk. Priss is perched on the edge and perks up the moment she sees me. I cross, scratching under her chin as I lock eyes with Kaelis and say, “Ravin is finally going after Liam.”
Kaelis sits a bit straighter. “Then we finally kill Liam.”
I lean on the desk, folding my arms. Priss stands and arches her back, rubbing against me as if asking why the scratches stopped.
“I want to try to talk to him,” I say at last.
“Excuse me?”
“I ran in blindly to kill the Hierophant, and making him my ally ended up serving me far better. Liam might be the same. Ravin is on the hunt for relics—he might know something about why.” I glance Kaelis’s way, and judging from the furrow of his brow, he’s not heardanything of the sort, either. “Having someone in a clan helping us could be a benefit.”
“Or it could be a major liability. ” A shadow passes over his expression. “Allies in the clans will mean little when the world is remade.”
“We don’t know that,” I counter. “Who knows what relationships or goodwill might linger into the new world.”
Kaelis folds his arms and leans back in his chair. “I would feel better if you killed him and were done with it.”
Priss meows, as if in agreement.
“I’m sure you would…but I want to try, Kaelis.” I resume my scratches of Priss and her purr tells me the meow was more in annoyance.The ring really does catch the light in the most perfect way. Such a gorgeous distraction it can be. “I want to try this first. I think I can trust him.”
Kaelis sighs. “If you think it is for the best, then you have my faith and my assistance.”
“Thank you. This is what I’m thinking…”
Ravin’s party has similarities to the last one I went to at his house during the Season of Wands. Except the decor, while equally lavish, is far more discerning—gone are the bright colors and the abundance of decorations that were an assault on the senses. This party grounds itself in steely grays and slate blues, focusing on the more serious transitions from swords to cups. And, this time, I’m not dressed in finery. This time, Kaelis arrives in the carriage alone.
I’m dressed in all black, reminiscent of a Worldkeeper: tight leathers and a hooded cowl that completely masks my face as I blend into a clouded night sky. I’m perched on a nearby rooftop, watching the party unfold. Watching Kaelis move in and out, weaving through the celebration. He brings people onto the veranda, showing me who all is in attendance, just as we discussed. Simultaneously, his eyes dartinside, looking for sight lines and what section of the veranda is the most secluded. I want to know all the variables before I make my move.
The party begins to shift; guests migrate from the open-air balconies and gardens to the lavish interiors of Ravin’s estate. There are no performers perusing the veranda, so there is little to keep individuals outside.
