Page 45 of House of Ydril

Fucking shit. But just as I start cursing the unfairness of the entire situation, Moswen does a little digging through her pocket and takes out a strange little contraption, long and metal, with an eye carved into the thicker end. She slides it into the keyhole and looks through it, as if she’s looking through a microscope lens.

I can now see into the room on the other side of the wall. Plain as day. It looks like a study, soft armchairs surrounded by solid-wood bookshelves. And there are three people inside, all seated. My parents… and Professor Mistila.

My heart skips a beat. She looks much younger, but it’s her. Right now, they’re not talking because they all seem stunned, but when she speaks, I realize that Moswen’s contraption isn’t just allowing us to see into the room. We can hear everything loud and clear as well.

“You want me to shut down the Trials?” Professor Mistila asks.

My mother takes a deep breath and says, “Yes.”

Professor Mistila lets out a chuckle as she leans forward to pour herself a drink. “I’m sorry, my dear Syllia, but I don’t seem to understand what these incidents have to do with it all.”

“My apologies,veneranda,” my father chimes in. “But the hearts were cut out on the night of the Blood Moon, the corpses drained on the day of the Winter Solstice and, well… It’s fresh in all of our memories what happened on Walpurgis night.”

“Exactly,” my mother echoes. “It’s plain as day that someone’s planning on utilizing the stone’s power.”

For a second, there’s silence. Professor Mistila stays serious, but there’s a touch of mockery in her voice as she says, “Syllia, I hate to have to tell you this. But the stone’s powers are a thing of myth. Nothing more.”

“What if they’re not?” my mother demands, a bit too forcefully, judging by the way she immediately corrects her tone. “The Trials pose a unique opportunity for the thief. Are you really willing to risk a potential bloodbath?”

Professor Mistila waves her hand in dismissal. “The incidents thus far were obviously the actions of some deranged dark magic enthusiast.”

“Or someone with connections in the Trials,” my father throws in.

For a second, there’s silence. I can see Professor Mistila squint, her entire body tensing up before my eyes. “What are you implying?” she asks in a low, warning voice.

“Professor Mistila,” my mother rushes to say, “you know that he has all sorts of strange ideas. Would it be really that unexpected…”

The professor doesn’t let her finish. “Not another word,” she commands as she gets up off her chair with a pissed-off look on her face. “I want you out of my cabinet, now.”

I hear yelling and the sounds of footsteps approaching the door and all of a sudden, I’m back in my room, Moswen staring at me with rounded eyes.

“So it’s true,” I mutter. “If the Third Round is held as planned, something horrible is going to happen.”

And I appreciate it when Moswen comes to crouch in front of my bed. I also appreciate it when she says, “Don’t worry, little Quinn. I’ll protect you.”

But I’ve long since stopped believing in fairy tales.

Chapter twenty

AssoonasIhear Nuala’s been discharged, I rush to the Lycan tower. I’m so anxious to see how she’s doing, I take two steps at a time. When I finally barge into her room, I find her in bed, scrolling away on her phone. She looks up and throws me a hesitant smile.

“I’m so glad you’re okay.” I breathe a sigh of relief and come to sit on the edge of her bed. “Wait,” I say when I look into her eyes from up close. “Did they give you something?”

“I think so,” she says flatly.

“But you weren’t hurt,” I reply, frowning. “Or was it for the mind magic?”

“It’s just sedatives,” she snaps a little and then looks away, her lips pressed tight. “That… person… didn’t use mind magic on me.”

At first, I just blink at her. Then I frown. “What’re you telling me?” I ask. “That you were in control of yourself the entire time and you just stood there?”

“I think you heard me right,” she mutters, refusing to look at me.

I go from concerned to pissed-off in record time. “Look, Nuala, I do understand that the thing in the woods was traumatic…” Imakeher look at me, trying not to raise my voice, but failing. “But when that fucking thief appeared, it didn’t occur to you to try to help me? To stop him or her from stealing Moswen or hurting me or whatever?”

“I guess I’m a coward,” my friend just says.

“You sure didn’t seem like one when Sarya came to mess with us that time,” I snap at her.

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