The Bronze Key (Magisterium #3)- Holly Black Page 0,78

how did the spy know that Alex would go and get Aaron and Call instead of the Masters?

How would the spy know Alex was there at all?

That had an answer, though. The spy, or whoever it was, would know that taking Tamara and Havoc would bring Call and Aaron out of the Magisterium eventually. They’d come looking for their friend.

Though they could have brought all the mages of the Magisterium with them.

Come to think of it, Call didn’t remember seeing any evidence of a blast of magic being thrown outside. It was dark, but even in the dark, there was none of the telltale smell of ozone or burning wood.

He looked over at Alex and frowned. They were far from the Magisterium now, and it was increasingly dark. The woods pressed in from the sides and he couldn’t see Alex’s expression.

“This is the way to the Order of Disorder,” Aaron said, interrupting Call’s increasingly troubled thoughts. “It’s abandoned, though. Alma said they were forced to clear out when the Assembly started rounding up the animals.”

“Maybe that’s where the spy is holding her.” Alex sounded excited, but not like this was a grand adventure and not like he was panicking about Tamara, either. There was an eagerness in his voice that Call didn’t like one bit.

The woods were deep and strangely empty without the Chaos-ridden animals, echoing with their absence. Occasionally, a distant owl called out. The wind was at their back, pushing them along. But Call’s steps had slowed to a shuffle.

Alex was his friend. When Call had first come to the Magisterium, Alex had been nice to him, even though Call was a surly little kid and Alex was smart and cool, with plenty of friends. And then Alex had talked to Call after Alex had gotten his heart broken by Kimiya. He’d really believed that Alex liked him.

But Alex had access. He was Master Rufus’s assistant. He could have gotten Call’s canteen and punched a hole in it. He would have had access to whatever Rufus did to make their wristbands open their common room door; he could have used that to hide Skelmis in Call’s bedroom. Could Anastasia have let him down into the chamber with the elementals when she went there? Call supposed she might have — after all, he was her stepson. Would she have noticed if he slipped away for a moment? And then, last year — he was the one who’d told Call that the mages had decided to kill Alastair, even though Master Rufus had told Call that had never been true.

But why would Alex do any of that? Call glanced at his impassive face as they moved through the silvery dark. They were almost at the village of the Order. Call could see the big clearing up ahead, the shadows of cottages.

He remembered Jennifer’s mouth moving and her last words: Kimiya, Kimiya, stay away from him. But who had Kimiya been near at the party? Who would she need to be warned away from?

Just her friends. And her boyfriend.

Alex. It didn’t make any sense. And yet. Something was still bothering him, had been bothering him since they’d first seen Alex in front of their door. Out of breath, looking panicked, with blood on his blue shirt.

Blue shirt. Cogs whirled in Call’s mind. The image of a ripped photograph, Drew standing with Master Joseph and someone else, someone who was wearing a blue shirt with distinctive black stripes down the shoulder seams.

“I’m cold,” Call said, suddenly. “Alex, can I borrow your hoodie?”

Alex looked puzzled. Aaron looked puzzled. Call wasn’t usually one for borrowing other people’s clothes. But Alex shrugged the hoodie off anyway, and handed it to Call.

Call stopped dead in his tracks. Alex’s blue shirt was striped with two black lines down the shoulders.

The other two boys stopped and looked back at him. Aaron’s expression was worried.

Alex’s wasn’t.

“Alex,” Call said, in as calm a voice as he could manage, “how did you know Drew?”

Alex slowly raised his head. “What do you care?” he said. “You killed him.”

Aaron stopped dead in his tracks. The wind howled through the branches of the trees all around them. “Why would you say that?” He looked from Call to Alex. “What’s going on?”

“Alex is the one,” Call said. He felt numb inside. “He’s the spy.”

Alex took a step toward Call. Aaron flung a hand out, as if to stop Alex from coming any closer.

“Get away from Call,” he warned. “I’m a Makar, Alex. I could really