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“Never a good sign when someone says that.”

He ignored me. “Look, I think … we need to accept the fact that Blake isn’t coming back.”

I stood up. “Is that it? The answer is no.” I started walking toward the door.

“Please hear me out.”

I turned around. “Absolutely not. How did you even arrive at that idiotic conclusion?” His mouth opened, then closed. “That’s what I thought,” I said furiously. “What else aren’t you telling me? There’s something, right?”

“That’s unfair,” he said weakly.

I folded my arms. “I don’t think it is. Are we really going to do this again? Do you remember the last time? Nothing good comes from keeping secrets from me.”

Rodriguez exhaled heavily. “Fine. Yes. All right.” Then he leaned down, his upper half disappearing behind the desk completely for a moment. I heard the sound of something heavy being dragged, and then he straightened up and dumped a stack of ancient-looking books onto the desk with a thud, followed by several brittle, tattered scrolls tied with faded cords.

“Old books? Also not a good sign. You have got to be kidding me with this shit, Rodriguez.”

He grimaced. “Look, the reason every one of these books and scrolls is here is because they all contain the same thing.”

“Not another godsdamned prophecy.”

He looked at me with genuine sympathy—and true regret. “They have those in the world you’re from, too, do they?”

“Yes, they fucking do.” I could feel myself starting to tremble with rage.

Rodriguez sighed. “You’ve been the subject of one before, then?”

I nodded, tightly.

“Then, you can probably understand—guess—why I didn’t want to tell you about this before.”

I stepped closer to the desk, my eyes blazing. “What does it say, and how long have you known it existed?” He hesitated. “How long, Rodriguez?”

“Since before you arrived. Long before I met you.” He held up his hands. “Look, let me explain. This prophecy has existed for hundreds of years. The Emberwatch—”

“Not the fucking Emberwatch, too,” I said with disgust.

“They have played a pivotal role in protecting Sangratha.”

“Yes, yes, and you’re the very last sorry member of the club,” I scoffed. “Forgive me if I’m not impressed by the absolutely idiotic stunt you pulled in the name of the Emberwatch the last time.”

“On the positive side, you might say the Emberwatch is the only reason Miss Shen is still standing,” he reminded me.

I sighed. “I suppose that’s fair. Besides, they’re almost extinct, aren’t they?” I eyed him. “You are the only member, isn’t that right?”

“That’s right,” he agreed quickly. He rubbed his chin. “Although I was hoping to add another.”

My eyes widened. “Who? Me?”

He nodded. “Sharing this prophecy with you—well, let’s just say it’s like an automatic acceptance letter. Of course, you’ll need to abide by the code.”

“Code? I don’t want to join your stupid secret society,” I grumbled. “You can’t tell me what the prophecy says unless you swear me to secrecy first, is that it? What is there, a password? A special handshake?”

Rodriguez’s ears were pink again. “A handshake,” he said sheepishly. “And a password.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” I exploded, throwing up my hands. “Teach me the handshake and tell me the password later. But tell me the prophecy now or I will walk out that door.”

“Fine.” He licked his lips. “There’s a little bit of backstory that’s customary to share first.”