AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“This way,” Morgana directed, sashaying her way toward the back. Several men perked up, watching her go with undisguised interest. No one paid me much mind, which stung a little.
Quite a few of the tables were occupied. I even recognized a few of the faces: the brown-haired boy from Verglas’ class, a girl with long, plaited red hair I’d seen on the quad the other day when I was chasing Oleander. And of course, the faerie in question was seated at a table near the back, bent over a stack of newspapers and yearbooks. He glanced up in surprise when he saw me trailing behind his study buddy.
“Astrid, what are you doing here?” Oleander asked. “I thought there was at least a half hour left in Lavant’s class?”
“There was,” I said, sliding in beside him. It put me opposite Morgana, which was more than a little intimidating. Though not as intimidating as sitting next to her would have been. “He let us out early. A few people had strong reactions to the songs… including me. He wants us to study and practice so we’re better equipped to deal with things next time.”
“Was that before or after my gutless cousin tried to bespell the books I gave you?” Morgana asked, propping her heels on the table, using a nearby pillar to support her weight.
“Wait,” I started. “The books came from you?”
Morgana frowned. “Well, they didn’t come from Santa Claus.”
“I mean, I knew that but,” I started, feeling stupid—like I should have already figured out they’d come from Morgana, which of course, was impossible. “Um… thank you.”
She nodded and then inspected her nails. “I kept a few enchantments on my old things, just in case someone tried to steal them from you. It would be just like Aunt Aurea to try to swindle your only hope of staying in this school. Not that I’d blame you if you left. This place is a real hellhole, especially if you can’t leave.”
Things finally clicked into place. Morgana Grimsbane. Oleander had mentioned her not long after we met. She was the Grimsbane hostage, kept under watch by the vampires and their lackeys to keep the Grimsbanes honest. The witches had a hostage too and now it dawned on me just whom that hostage was: Chesley Thorne.
Better known as ‘Rook Thorne’ now.
No wonder Rook hated me. I was a symbol of everything he despised but could never escape. It also explained why Professor Valserak had been sure Rook knew the layout of the west wing dormitories. As the hostage, he’d been living alongside witches in the day class dorms. Morgana must have slept in the night class dorms, which explained why she could come and go more freely. Vampires usually slept during the day.
“That was before your gutless cousin tried to bespell the books you gave me,” I said. “And I’m so sorry about... your situation.”
Morgana rolled her eyes. “Don’t be sorry. You being sorry doesn’t do anything for anyone. Instead, you can help us.”
“How?”
“I’ve been trying to get Oleander to recruit you since you got here, but he and Chesley have said ‘no’ at every turn.”
“Don’t call him Chesley, Mo,” Oleander said, frowning. “You know he hates that. And he’s going to be royally pissed you’re spilling this much. Stop while you’re ahead.”
“I know he hates the name,” Morgana answered with little interest. “Why do you think I keep calling him by it?” she continued with a laugh. “The pointy-toothed prick needs to learn to loosen up. We’re hitting brick wall after brick wall, and your little shortcut can only take us around campus, not to the towns beyond.” Then she turned to face me. “You’re the only one who doesn’t have to shake an enemy tail every time she goes out. We need fresh blood, no pun intended. And thanks to my catty cousin, Depraysie even has an excuse to be out at night. I’ve seen her making food runs. If someone asks, she can just hold up brownies and a hall pass. It’s perfect.”
“Rook’s going to kill us both when he hears about this,” Oleander answered.
“Don’t get your pointy ears in a knot,” Morgana said, waving away his protests. “Besides, the lives of the missing Fae should outweigh the risk of pissing off one vampire, right?”
“Missing Fae?” I echoed, looking between the pair of them. “What do you mean, missing Fae?”
“Titania’s blood...” Oleander groaned. “Morgana, you can’t do this.”
“I can and I am,” Morgana said. She folded her arms behind her head and gave me a smirk. “You want to help, don’t you? You’ve got that eager Labrador look about you.”
I decided not to comment on the ‘Labrador’ bit, especially since the comparison was embarrassingly accurate. I did want to help, no matter what they were after. If I could do something good and annoy Vivian at the same time, it was worth doing.
“I do want to help.” I started. “So… what’s going on? Why doesn’t Rook want me to know?”
“Mo—” Oleander began weakly.
“Hush. I’m tired of both of you infantilizing her,” she said to him, waving away his concern with a manicured hand. In personality, she reminded me quite a bit of Wanda. “I overheard Aunt Aurea raging about you days after you arrived,” she continued, turning to face me. “You beat the mirror trick, pushed your way through even Aurea’s strongest spell to make it to her meeting on time—or at least that’s what Daegal told me.”
“Daegal,” I repeated. “The snake?”
“You can’t trust a word that snake says,” Oleander responded. “You know he’s Aurea’s familiar.”
“Of course, of course,” Morgana answered. “But he’s also a huge gossip and he’s usually got his gossip right.” Then she turned to face me again. “Anyway, all signs seem to point to the fact that you’re powerful,” she shrugged. “And you seem moral… enough.” She turned to face Oleander. “And she’s already proved she’s willing to circumvent the powers that be. We need her, end of story.”
