Page 56 of The Tribes of Magic
That’s what I needed to focus on.
To clear Bronte’s name, first I had to ask myself one thing: who had the most to gain from her fall from grace. Once I had the answer to that question, I’d be one step closer to saving her.
CHAPTER 5
CONFRONTATION AT THE KILLFIELD OVAL
By the time Dutch and I returned to the Scoreboard, the crowd had completely dissipated. With no Apprentices or Knights anywhere in sight, and no more than a Watcher or two standing guard outside the Black Obelisk, the district felt like a ghost town.
Dutch tilted his head back to look up at the Scoreboard. “What are we looking for?”
I scanned the list of names. “I’m not sure yet. We need to figure out who won when Bronte lost.”
He laughed. “That’s easy. Everyone, including you and I, Savannah. Bronte was at the top of the Scoreboard. When she was kicked off, everyone moved up a spot.”
“Ok, let me rephrase that: who gained the most from Bronte’s downfall?”
Dutch didn’t have an answer to that. And neither did I. Ok, so that wasn’t entirely true. I did have an answer. He just wasn’t going to like it.
“I bet you can guess which Apprentice I think is guilty.”
“Zoe,” Dutch said immediately. He didn’t even have to think about it. “But that’s just because you don’t like her.”
“Hey, she didn’t like me before I didn’t like her.”
It wasn’t the most mature response, but it was true. Zoe had had it out for me from day one, and I still didn’t know why. I’d never done anything to her.
“Look, Dutch, I don’t think Zoe is guilty because I don’t like her. I think she’s guilty because she looks guilty.”
“Shelooksguilty?”
I nodded. “When Bronte’s name disappeared from the Scoreboard, everyone looked completely shocked.ExceptZoe. No, she looked triumphant. Almost like she’d known what was coming.”
“I think you’re seeing what you want to see.”
“Maybe, but let’s find out. Let’s go pay Zoe a visit.”
I turned away from the Scoreboard and started walking toward the road. Dutch kept step right beside me. It was nice to know he had my back, especially after the rough start we’d had.
We headed for the train station, and then back to the Oval. That’s where Dutch said we’d find Zoe. Training had been canceled for the afternoon. After all the excitement, no one could concentrate anyway.
The birds were particularly boisterous today, as though they could sense something was up. Or maybe they were just celebrating the change in weather. Sometime during our short train journey, dark clouds had rolled in, and the temperature had plummeted at least ten degrees. It was still hot, mind you, just not as hot. The breeze would have been a welcome relief during our run earlier.
Dutch and I crossed the empty street, then followed the narrow strip of sidewalk past a cluster of very similar-looking white houses.
“What are you going to say to Zoe?” he asked me.
“I’m going to tell her I know she did it and that she should come clean now before I expose her.”
“That’s very direct.”
“There’s no need to beat around the bush. I need to hit her with the accusation, hard and sudden. And then I see how she reacts.”
We found Zoe and her trusty sidekick Georgia sitting on a pair of old, rusted, lopsided swings on the other side of the grassy Oval. That was all that remained of the former playground.
Zoe and Georgia were watching a team of Fixers. Just over a week later, they were still dealing with the chaos left behind by the Techno Knight when he’d attacked the Tournament.
“Is that your mother, Savannah?” Zoe simpered. “She looks so…sophisticatedin that dirty tan jumpsuit.”
