Page 17 of Shadows of Perl

“I’m sorry.”

They’d had an agreement and Nore backed out. She sent a bouquet of black roses hoping to soften the blow. But nothing in Darragh’s face said she’d forgiven Nore as her gaze moved on.

“I should have listened. I should have—”

“How desperate are you? Talking about this here?” She walked away, eyeing Nore over her shoulder as if to say, Come along.

She followed Darragh at a distance, through a waitstaff entrance to the ballroom, down a long corridor, and into a service elevator. She rehearsed what she was going to say over and over in her head. She had to get the Headmistress to look past her betrayal. Darragh slammed a red button and the elevator doors locked with a click.

“Out with it. What do you want?”

“I’m ready to follow through on my part of our agreement. I wasn’t then, but I am now.”

“I can’t help you anymore.” Darragh adjusted the rings on her fingers.

“Can’t or won’t?” Her chest quaked.

“What difference does that make?” Darragh had told Nore the first step to getting rid of her toushana was to die. She had to let go of every person who knew her. Nore had agreed—and at the time she’d meant it. But every time she worked up the courage to break up with Yagrin, to tell Ellery goodbye, the words would not come.

“I couldn’t let go. But now I have nothing to lose.”

Silence grew between them.

“I can’t help you.”

“Why not?” Nore snapped. Her fingers moved to the imprint of the blade in her sleeve. She would not be this close to help and lose it again. Darragh smirked.

“Your audacity is impressive. But the answer is no.” She slammed the button on the elevator, and the doors opened to a panicked Ellery. Darragh shoved past them.

“What are you doing?”

“Ellery, she has a way out for me. And if she’s willing to give it to me, I’m going to take it.”

“Stay away from Darragh Marionne.”

Nore sighed, unconvinced.

“Mother was here,” he said. “But she’s gone now.”

“I heard. I can’t believe you let her leave.”

“I could hardly get away from the Hargroves.”

“I hate this place.”

“Do you? Or do you just hate what it’s done to you?”

“Are those different?”

He sighed and opened his arms for a hug. She tucked her head underneath his chin, listening to the calm thump of his heart. It was steady and strong and reliable, like him. If the Order were made up of Ellery and Yagrin, she wouldn’t mind it. Really, if Mother were gone, then maybe she’d have an entirely different view. But those were foolish, impossible dreams.

“I can’t stay here.”

“Where else are you going to go? Back to the farm?”

She hadn’t yet told her brother about the razing, because he could get a bit too insistent about what she could and couldn’t do. “No, it’s not safe there.”

“So where have you been staying?”

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