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I blink at her, not really sure what to say. “I am Rosalind, yes. But I’m not sure what you’re heard.”
She waves an elegant, wrinkled hand. “Your gentlemen have been pestering me about you, talking you up to ease your transition into our little club.”
“Theresa,” I blurt as the realization strikes me. She’s the elder for Shadow and Veil, the person who would choose me as her heir if I get to that point.
She tips her head. “Indeed.”
Mr. Harris makes an unhappy noise and Theresa glances at him. “That’s enough of that, Robert.” She chides like he’s an errant puppy or something, and I get the immediate feeling that whatever Mr. Harris’s plan is for me, Theresa is not a part of it. She’s not behind all the attacks and the order to get me to leave this school.
That realization gives me more confidence. Not every member of this coven is a conniving asshole.
Theresa gives me a smile, like she knows my thoughts. Fielder tugs me closer to his side as he feels some of the tension drain from my body.
“Well, I’ve had enough of this.” Mr. Harris is back to sounding bored. His eyes run over me. “I suppose we should just get this over with while we’re all here, yes?”
I glance around at all the smiling, happy families. Most of them are not witches, I’m sure, and I’m surprised that he wants to have this conversation out in the open.
“Here?” I blurt. That’s all I’m capable of at the moment. That one single word as I wait for them to decide my fate.
He nods once before reaching into his inside coat pocket. Around me, all of my men tense, preparing for the worst, but he simply rolls his eyes and pulls out an envelope. It’s cream colored and made of thick paper like parchment and there is a red wax seal holding it closed. Mr. Harris holds it out in invitation and not one of us moves to take it from him.
Fielder eyes the envelope and then his father. “What is the meaning of this? I thought the elders would get to know Rosalind and then make a decision about her acceptance.”
His father shakes his head. “It doesn’t matter what you thought, son. This is happening now. I think we’ve all seen enough of your…playthingto understand exactly what she is.”
Next to me, Hardin makes a rumbling sound like a growl and I tighten my fingers on his. The last thing we need is him attacking the elders in the middle of the quad while surrounded by non-magical folks.
Mr. Harris holds out the envelope again, and this time I move to take it. Both Fielder and Hardin tighten their grips on me, holding me back. Even though they assured me that Robert Harris would not attack me today, they aren’t willing to take the chance. Ezra is the one that approaches him, plucks the envelope from his fingers and slips it into the inside pocket of his jacket without bothering to look at what it says inside.
I open my mouth to ask why, but Hardin presses his lips into the side of my head. “We’ll check it first and make sure it’s safe.”
I nod my understanding.
Mr. Harris claps his hand together and looks around. “Well, I believe that concludes our business here today.” He turns his back on the five of us and regards the other elders. “Shall we?”
In a blink, they’ve dispersed. Melted into the crowds of people around us. I try to keep Mr. Harris in sight, but fail. Before I even fully understand what’s happening, Hardin is turning me and ushering me through the crowds of wellwishers and toward Proctor.
“What the hell just happened?” I’m practically running to keep up with their long-legged stride. “I thought I was going to have to talk to them.”
Hardin’s arm tightens on me as we mount the steps to the dorm door. No one answers my question, though, not until we’re upstairs and in my dorm room. There Fielder tilts his head back and viciously hisses, “fuck,” at the ceiling.
I look at him, concerned about what exactly this means. “Can someone tell me what happened?”
Ezra plops down on the couch and pulls the envelope out of his coat pocket. It makes a thump as he drops it on the wood. Like it has weight, like there’s something else in there besides paper. “Gideon,” he says, holding his hand over the envelope.
Hardin steps up behind me and wraps his arms around me, his chin resting on my shoulder as we watch them work.
“Are you physically incapable of telling me what happened?” I ask the room at large, because this lack of information is annoying.
Fielder glances over at me before shrugging out of his robe and tossing it over a chair. “They voted without properly meeting you, without giving you a chance to prove how much power you have.”
I frown. “And that’s a bad thing because it means I won’t be let in?” I try to hide the relief flowing through me at that. I don’t particularly want this. Not to be a member of their coven. It just doesn’t seem worth it. But I understand they think it’s the safest place for me. I’m just not sure I agree.
“It also means that if they let you in, it likely won’t be easy going for you.” Fielder looks at me his, his eyes full of apology. “If he lobbied to get you let it, I would bet it’s because he thinks it’ll be easier to take care of you during your trials.”
“And by ‘take care of,’ you mean ‘kill me’?”
Hardin’s arms tighten around me, and he nuzzles his nose into my neck. “We won’t let that happen, love.”
