Page 32 of Live To Tell

“Why doesn’t anybody else know who Madison is?” Violet asks and I almost groan at her immediate jump back into her rapid fire interrogation. “If Madison went missing, there’d be a record—however long ago.”

“To most, she isn’t missing. The story is: Madison left and never contacted anyone again because she doesn’t want to speak to her family.” Mr. Woodside shakes his head. “I couldn’t believe she’d never contact her baby brother again. Then I discovered Madison went missing on the night of the dance, which contradicts her ‘moving out’.”

“So the story is that her family disowned her?” asks Violet.

“No. The other way around. Madison claimed she was too good for our family, but that doesn’t make sense to me.”

“How could you know if you were a baby?” she asks.

“I’ve investigated this longer than you, Violet,” he says coolly.

“Do you know the guy in the photograph?” I ask. “Were they both students at the academy?”

“I don’t recognize him from any other photos I’ve seen.”

“And what do you think the Circle connection is?” Violet presses. “Do you think a member of the Circle killed her? Whitegrove?”

“I don’t know, but in the last photos of Madison owned by our family, she’s wearing the tiara and that dress.” He taps the photo. “This guy isn’t in a single one but mysteriously in the one with the hidden tiara. He’s too young to be Cornelius Whitegrove, but he’s either connected to Whitegrove or to the Circle.”

“His son, maybe?” suggests Violet.

“He doesn’t have one,” I tell her. “I checked everybody, remember?”

“Then a nephew? A friend’s son? I always knew powerful witches must be involved—that someone covered up the disappearance.”

“The tiara knows,” says Violet firmly. “The block against psychometry needs breaking.”

“We don’t have the tiara,” I remind her.

“I will retrieve the item. I’ll tell Dorian about Madison and—”

“No!” interrupts Mr. Woodside. “I’ve kept this investigation secret from the day I arrived here. I’ve always known the place has answers, but it’s impossible to get into the academy unless you’re employed. I trained to teach purely to gain entry, and nobody can know who I am. If they realize I’m investigating Madison’s disappearance, I might ‘disappear’. Someone important is involved, or her disappearance wouldn’t be covered up like this.”

“How can nobody know? Don’t you have the same name?” I ask.

“My mother remarried a few years after Madison ‘left’ and I took the name too. The name you’re looking for is Madison Riverborn.”

“And she was definitely a pupil here?” asks Violet.

“Yes. But good luck in finding any records or photographs of anything before the Confederacy fell. God knows, I’ve tried for years. Spent hours scouring the grounds for signs of her energy too. Nothing.”

“Can you find us anything that belonged to her?” I ask him. “Show us more photos? There must be clues. If you have a piece of jewelry, I could get some clear images from psychometry.”

“But only items Madison wore that night would reveal the truth,” he says.

Violet nods solemnly. “I will re-possess the tiara, and ensure we find your sister’s body, and who killed her. Or at least who killed Madison if we can’t find any of her body parts.”

“Violet! Omigod.” I shake my head. “Sorry, Mr. Woodside. She didn’t mean to sound heartless.”

Violet presses her lips together. She once claimed to be, but I know Violet has a much bigger heart than she ever noticed or admitted. Including a part that now belongs to me, which was beyond comprehension until recently.

“I’m Julius—I’d rather you used my first name when discussing this and me, as you no doubt will. Less people will know who you’re talking about if they overhear.” He rests his gaze on Violet. “I very much hope you don’t find my sister’s body and find her alive, but I’m a realist.”

“And will you share your research with us?” asks Rowan. “If you’ve investigated the disappearance for years, you must have clues.”

“You’ll need to,” puts in Violet.

Julius chews on the edge of his lip. “We’ll meet again, more privately, and I’ll show you what I’ve collected, but not today.”

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