trying to keep composed. But it’s too late. Her mask has cracked. She can no longer hide her fear.
She takes a deep breath and lets out the world’s longest sigh. ‘I don’t even know where to begin.’
‘Start with the circles in your house,’ Linnéa suggests. ‘Explain to Minoo why they weren’t so impressive, after all.’
Linnéa is looking triumphantly at the principal, but Minoo is terrified: she doesn’t want to hear what’s about to be said. If the principal and the Council aren’t as all-knowing and powerful as they’ve claimed, she’d prefer to live with the lie. The principal has been the only authority they’ve had – the only one with any answers. The notion that they might be completely alone, without any guidance, is simply too horrifying.
‘The circles …’ the principal starts, then pauses. ‘It took six months and five witches to perform the incantation. It was the equivalent of the world’s most expensive alarm system, the only difference being that when the circles have been used once the whole procedure has to be performed again. Linnéa is right. The fire magic you’ve seen me do is the only thing I can manage without difficulty. Anything else requires days, often weeks, of preparation and almost always the help of other witches.’
She pauses again, as if to catch her breath. It looks as if every word she utters is painful, but out they come – one after the other.
‘Unlike you, I wasn’t born with powers. I grew up in a family of trained witches, raised in the belief that the Council always does the right thing.’ She pauses a third time. ‘I feel enormous guilt for what happened to Elias and Rebecka. We should have done more to prevent … We should have been more open with you from the start.’
She falls silent and looks at the ground. The raven flaps through the air and lands on her shoulder. It tucks its head under one wing.
‘And the all-powerful Council?’ Linnéa asks, with a smile that borders on smug. She’s behaving like a sadistic interrogator, Minoo thinks.
‘They’re afraid of you,’ the principal says. ‘If they knew I was being so open with you now, I’d be punished. They want me to control you, get you to find the answers in the Book of Patterns that they can’t see, and use that knowledge to strengthen the Council.’
‘So the Council is as useless as you are?’ Linnéa asks.
‘You don’t have to kick her when she’s down,’ Minoo says. ‘You exposed her. That’s enough.’
‘I understand you’re disappointed, Minoo. No teacher to suck up to any more,’ Linnéa says.
‘It’s not true that the Council is powerless,’ the principal interrupts shrilly. ‘You mustn’t dismiss it. The Council is well organised and many across the world submit to its authority. Together they can perform powerful magic. They could take drastic action to bring you to heel.’ She glances at Anna-Karin.
‘Drastic action?’ Linnéa says scornfully. ‘I don’t think they’ve shown any stomach for that.’
The principal hesitates. Then she unbuttons her long winter coat, revealing one of her typically well-tailored suits with a white blouse. She undoes the three top buttons.
Minoo has to look away.
The fire symbol is branded just below the principal’s left collarbone in a web-like patch of scorched skin.
‘I planned to leave the Council once,’ the principal says, with a mirthless smile. ‘There was a man. You may think this looks bad …’ She meets Linnéa’s gaze and holds it. ‘… but it’s nothing compared to what they did to him.’
Linnéa’s face is tense and her mouth half open. She takes a few staggering steps backwards.
The principal buttons her blouse and refastens her coat. ‘I suggest you all go home. School starts tomorrow. Ida can search in the book,’ she says. ‘But that’s all you should do.’
She turns and looks at Minoo. For just half a second too long. There’s something knowing in her eyes. Something enigmatic that Minoo can’t interpret.
‘Absolutely nothing else,’ the principal says.
‘Ida!’ Minoo shouts. ‘Wait!’
Ida stops but doesn’t turn.
‘I’ve got to talk to you,’ Minoo says, when she comes up.
Ida looks at her reluctantly. Her eyes seem almost unnaturally blue against her white jacket and the snow. She’s as cute as a doll – an evil doll, but still …
No, she mustn’t think like that. It’s time to turn the page.
‘I know what you’re thinking,’ Ida says. ‘You’ve been meeting in secret. At Nicolaus’s house. We’re safe at his place, because he’s got a magic silver cross on his wall. It said so