hung on. If only I’d told De Morel to go fuck himself and kept Emilie’s fingers in mine when Gaëlle gave her the leaf. Maybe Emilie would still be alive. Maybe I’d be dead instead, and this whole shitshow would have a decent and worthy ending.
Why couldn’t I have died instead? Why?
I bite down on my bottom lip until I taste blood. I want to smash my fist through a window. Or rip the wheels off of Rainer’s chair. But Bastian’s here, standing by my side, his eyes wide and distraught. I’ve got to keep it together for him. For Cadence. Hell, even for Gaëlle and Professor Prickhead. I can’t lose my cool or make any mistakes. Not anymore.
One false move and someone else could die.
As if reading my thoughts, De Morel gives me a cruel smile. “Regretting the decision of bringing your brother here, Monsieur Roland?” His voice is serrated steel.
Bastian clears his throat. “He didn’t bring me here. I came of my own accord.”
Rainier’s eyes flash over to Bastian. “Then may I suggest you leave of your own accord.”
“I’m staying.” It’s barely more than a whisper, but I know Bastian means it. Whether I like it or not, he never gives up on me.
I wish this time he would.
Rainier’s gaze slides over to Emilie’s body. “It’s a dangerous town, young man.”
“Non.” Gaëlle’s voice is broken but strong. She puts a hand to her bare neck, stroking the skin no longer girdled by her scarf. “It’s a ruinous town.”
Rainier doesn’t deny it.
Cadence is back, face the color of the folded white sheet in her arms. “For your forehead.” She hands me one of those old-fashioned hot-water bottles.
Right. The newest addition to my collection. The pain isn’t gone, but it pales in comparison to the clenching in my gut. “Thanks.”
She nods but avoids looking at me, keeping her eyes fixed to the length of cotton she unfurls. Her hands tremble, and dried tear tracks stain her cheeks.
I begin to reach for her but stop, guilt chomping through my chest. Once again, it’s my fault she’s in this state. First, her mother’s crypt. Now . . . Emilie.
No wonder she can’t look me in the eye.
I tuck the icepack under my armpit and pick up two corners of the sheet. Together, we drop it gently over Emilie’s body. The edges float like angel wings before settling on the veined marble floor.
As I stare silently at the impossible smallness of the shape underneath, I lift the lined cotton bag to my forehead, wishing it would numb more than just my skin.
Footsteps and hushed chatter ring in the hallway, and then Adrien and an older version of himself enter the study. Same tweedy clothes, same haughty stance, same hazel eyes. Just the blond hair turned silver is different.
Rainier nods to the mayor. “Geoffrey, thank you for coming.”
Geoffrey’s gaze travels around the room, taking in Gaëlle, pausing on me, then on Bastian, before sticking to Cadence. His stare lingers way too long, and not just on her face. It sweeps up and down her body. What the fuck? I clench my jaw and grip the icepack harder.
“I assume Adrien’s gotten you up to speed?” Rainier asks.
The humanoid larvae nods and crouches down to take a peek under the sheet. “Unfortunate.” He says this with zero emotion. “We should’ve prepared the town when the well overflowed. Delayed the new semester and come up with an excuse to keep the year-round residents locked up in their homes.”
Rainier taps two fingers on the arm of his wheelchair. “We were handling it just fine.” From his stiff countenance, I gather there’s no love lost between him and the mayor.
“I see that.” Geoffrey nods to the shrouded child.
Rainier’s jaw ticks, and his eyes drift to the clean surface of his desk.
Geoffrey lets out a dramatic sigh. “I suppose I could put the town on lockdown. Tell them there’s some kind of new viral infection that needs to be contained. Give them twenty-four hours to get out of Brume or stay tucked inside their houses.” Geoffrey strokes the edge of his jaw. “This is a consequent request, though, Rainier. One that could jeopardize my political career.”
Anger distends the pitchfork of veins on De Morel’s hands. “What is it you want?”
Geoffrey’s gaze settles on Cadence again.
If he even—
But he looks back at Rainier and says, “Once you’ve reinstated magic, I want to become a diwaller.”
Gaëlle’s forehead pleats. “You can’t become a diwaller; you have to be born one.”
“Actually, once the Quatrefoil