Starving myself won’t do me any favors with my glim either.
I pad downstairs in the leggings and fashionably oversized tee that feel way too luxurious for what should be a basic lounge outfit and find an equally opulent spread waiting in the dining room. Pancakes are heaped next to a pitcher of maple syrup; sausages and bacon nestle on a porcelain platter. Three types of eggs, five kinds of cut fruit. The smells, sweet and savory, collide in my nose.
All this easy decadence. I half expect caviar to start raining from the ceiling.
Dad walks in behind me while I’m still standing there staring. He sets his arm lightly on my shoulder and gives me a little squeeze. “I hope you’re hungry.”
Hungry? The three of us would have to be children of Bhima to plow through the entire feast.
A flicker of anxiety passes through me. “Are we expecting company?”
I don’t have to perform for the grandparents Devine again, do I? Their last visit did not exactly gowell.
Dad just chuckles, a warm sound that reverberates through my memories to the version of him I lost fourteen years ago in my own reality. “No, I just wanted to make sure we could all have everything we might want. The staff can take the leftovers. Think of it as celebrating your first week back at school after everything you’ve been through.”
He hugs me a little closer and brushes a kiss to the back of my head. “You’ve been so strong, Sunshine. I’m proud of you.”
My eyes well up in a way they really shouldn’t if I’m keeping up the ruse of being his actual daughter. It’s still hard to wrap my head around the fact that I have him back.
As I sit down, Aunt Daphne flits into the room with anexclamation of appreciation but no surprise at the spread. Since I don’t want to make Dad worry more than he already has, I carefully pick out a single pancake with the slightest drizzle of syrup I think I can get away with, a scrap of bacon, and then load my plate with poached eggs and fruit.
As I pop a bite of syrupy pancake into my mouth and allow myself a moment of silent appreciation for the fluffy heaven, Dad turns to me. “I was glad to hear about this extra combat program the academy decided to offer. Your first seminar was yesterday, wasn’t it? How did you find it?”
He’s managed to avoid his usual business trips since my poisoning, but he had to stay at the office so late last night I didn’t see him.
My stomach clenches up at the reminder of the blaring ephemera and treacherous obstacle course. “It’s definitely challenging. Pushing us to expand our skills.”
I guess the necessary self-control could be useful for guarding against my glim… as long as it doesn’t kill anyone before I learn everything Captain Ross is trying to teach us.
Dad nods approvingly. “I spoke with the headmaster to confirm this military man he’s brought in will ensure all the students’ safety even when he’s putting you through the paces. I know even the regular classes at Luminary can be… intense. But you’ve always handled them well.”
I doubt he’d like to hear my real thoughts on how brutally the academy is run.
“The world is intense,” I say instead, keeping my tone light. “We’ve got to be prepared for it.”
To reassure my stomach that I’m eating mostly healthily, I intersperse nibbles of pancake and bacon with the eggs and fruit. Thankfully, Dad switches from asking about my activities to answering Daphne’s questions about his latest meetings. Void creatures are still popping up more often than usual. There’s a new alliance he’s hoping to forge between our government and the lucent leaders in South America.
I think I’ve put on a good enough front as a happy daughter. After I’ve cleared all but a few tidbits off my plate, I make an excuse about an essay I need to get writing and slip away upstairs.
Daphne follows close behind me. At the second-floor landing, she taps my elbow and tilts her head toward her third-floor domain. “I’d like to have a quick chat. Maybe I can help you with that essay.”
The last bit is for Dad’s benefit if he happens to overhear. It’d sound strange if I argued about talking with my aunt.
Well, maybe I’ll be able to pump her for some useful information too.
Girding myself against the uncertainty of what she wants, I trudge after her up the next flight.
Daphne ushers me into her office with all its pale wood and laboratory-like neatness. I’d swear a trace of lemony tang lingers in the air as if she’s just wiped every surface down. She settles her delicate frame into one of the white leather armchairs in the reading area by the window.
Hard to believe this is the same woman who dragged a mangled corpse into the neighboring room.
I sink into the chair opposite hers and decide I might as well take charge of this conversation. “I’ve actually been wanting to talk to you too. It’s pretty unnerving that Kenneth Hearst up and vanished. Do you know anything about his family that might explain it?”
Now that his disappearance is common knowledge, the question shouldn’t seem suspicious. I still don’t know how she’d react if she found out I stabbed him to death and then watched one of my matches alchemize him into a stuffed toy dog.
Daphne’s gaze trails over me with the shadow of sadness that crosses her face whenever she remembers I’m not the niece she helped raise. “The Hearsts have always struck me as very dignified and reserved. And very traditional in theirexpectations… I’d imagine there was a lot of pressure on both of their sons. I don’t know more than that, but it’s possible it was too much for Kenneth.”
Which could be interpreted as maybe he ran away or maybe he offed himself. My aunt’s tone doesn’t differentiate between the two.
