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“Professor Valserak took them?” I whispered.
Rook’s eyes flashed with anger as he took the folder back. “Not just him. He’s strong, fast, and clever, but there’s no way he could have subdued and hidden this many faeries without help. He’s working with someone else—maybe a group of someone else’s.” He leafed through the papers in the folder. “There are correspondences in here. Code names and allusions to their hideouts. Location A and Location B are somewhere in or around the castle.” He was quiet as he read and then he looked up at me before dropping his attention back to the page and reading aloud: “We’ve done what you said. Here is proof. Commit it to memory because this folder will self-destruct as soon as you finish reading it.”
I frowned. “But it didn’t self-destruct.”
Rook cocked his head to the side. “No, it didn’t. Whoever magically powered it to destruct obviously didn’t do a very good job.”
I swallowed hard. “Or they didn’t want it to self-destruct.” He looked up at me. “If they got one of the missing faeries to magic the file, they wouldn’t want it to disappear. They would have wanted it to be found… by someone like us.”
Rook nodded. “So they botched the magic.”
“Exactly,” I answered. “Yet Valserak didn’t destroy the evidence.”
Rook looked around at the pile of paperwork all over the desk. “Clearly, he isn’t very good at taking out the trash, as is. This file probably just got pushed into this drawer to be dealt with later.”
I nodded. “We should go to your father,” I said. “Tell him what’s going on.”
Rook shook his head. “No. We can’t tell anyone.” He started reading silently to himself and then nodded. “From the sounds of these letters, one of the families of Blood Rose is involved. If we tell the wrong one, we’re the next ones to go missing. Even if we choose correctly, we’re going to spark a conflict, which won’t help us save these people.”
“They’re still alive?” I asked.
“Looks that way.”
“But they’ve been missing for so long!”
“Wait…” he said as he scanned the notes. “Looks like one of them died,” he continued, skimming the file again. “A Spring faerie named Weigela. The rest are alive and...” He stuttered over the words, looking faintly green. “Successfully transitioned.”
“Transitioned?” I echoed. “What does that mean?”
“Turned,” Rook said quietly. “Witch magic doesn’t survive the transformation from witch to vampire, but apparently faerie magic does. It means that this entire time, Valserak and whoever he’s working with have been trying to create vampire foot soldiers that can go toe-to-toe with witches and win.” He looked up at me, his eyes wide. “The letter to Desmond says they’re ready to start phase two.”
“What’s phase two?”
“Mass turning and training,” Rook said grimly as he grew quiet for a few seconds. Then he looked over at me again. “We can’t wait for the dance, Astrid. We need to rescue these people tonight, before Desmond and his brethren can start using them as templates. Judging by these photos, I think Shasta is being held in Location B.”
“Location B? Where in spell is that?”
Rook shrugged. “I’d say you should try to find it in one of the villages.”
“I can’t materialize all four of us—especially that far!” I protested.
“Take Oleander and go,” Rook said, shoving the folder back where he’d found it. “Morgana and I will search the dungeon. It’s the only place in the castle we haven’t looked for the missing students.”
“But if he finds you here—”
“I’ll distract him. He was my friend once upon a time, which means I might have a reason to be here, but you don’t. If I’m lucky, I’ll make it out and find Morgana before Desmond gets back. Now go!”
I cast one last fearful glance around the room before screwing my eyes shut, finding the rapidly shrinking calm at my center. Then I stepped backward into Autumn, leaving Rook to face the possibility of dealing with the professor alone.
***
“Are you going to be alright?” Oleander asked, kneeling by my side.
The rain had come down hard the night before, so the ground was slick in places. I’d leaned against the base of a pine tree to keep the seat of my pants out of the mud. Oleander had loaned me his coat to keep the chill off and to disguise my scent. With any luck, it’d take the townspeople a little while to realize I wasn’t just a faerie.
I nodded wearily. “Just... give me a second. That took a lot out of me.”
By some miracle, I’d been able to make the jump from the castle to Oleander’s hometown in one go, carrying him on my metaphorical back. We were now outside the school’s grounds, nestled in the foothills at the base of the soaring Herz mountain peaks that surrounded Blood Rose. It was a stark contrast to the richness and decadence of the school.
