Melody blushed. “I’m sorry, Mr. Biset. I didn’t mean anything by it. I have a problem with saying things I shouldn’t, but I promise, I’m working on it.”
Luke put his hand on her arm and sent a searing look in Etienne’s direction. “It’s okay, Melody. He knows you didn’t mean any harm.”
“Let this be your first lesson.” Etienne pursed his lips. “This place is a sanctuary. No stealing. No lying. No cheating. And no poking your noses where they do not belong. Oh, and most importantly, no violence. It will not be tolerated, and you will be sent back to the mainland without hesitation.” He addressed the last to me.
“Hey, I won’t be hurting anyone. I only get violent in self-defense, and even then, as a last resort.” Why did he single me out? Luke, with all his bulging muscles, looked more likely to go ape on someone than I did.
“And why would anyone want to hurt you, Finch?” Etienne arched an eyebrow.
I shrugged. “Occupational hazard.”
“Ah, you mean your association with Erebus?” he replied, taking me by surprise.
“Pardon?”
“Are you speaking of your association with Erebus? I know you were enlisted in his service. I imagine that comes with its fair share of difficulties.” He eyed me curiously. Ah, so you don’t mind other people’s secrets being uncovered. I held my tongue. I didn’t know this guy well enough yet to get smart with him.
“Uh… well, that tends to come with a few hairy moments, for sure.” The others stared at me. “But here’s a question for you—how come you know so much about us?”
“My defensive shield scans everyone who enters, and my monks are swift in their research,” he replied. I knew it! “Now, back to you. Did Erebus send you here?” Etienne’s voice hardened.
“No, this is all me.” I knew I had to lie. “We parted ways after the last job I did for him. Deal done. I won’t go into details, but you don’t get much choice when it comes to Children of Chaos. They say jump, you say how high.” I wished the ground would swallow me up. “Anyway, there’s always a chance someone might pick a fight with me. Even if I’m not working for Erebus anymore, I wouldn’t want to get soft, right?”
Melody gasped. “Wait… you’re… Finch Shipton!”
“Merlin,” I corrected. “I don’t go by Shipton anymore. I’m sure it’s not hard to understand why.” I gave a nervous laugh. Everyone was really staring now.
“You’re that Finch Merlin?” Shailene gawped.
Fay frowned. “I thought you’d be taller.”
“Six foot isn’t bad,” I muttered.
“No way you’re Katherine Shipton’s son.” Oliver shook his head in disbelief.
“Do you want a birth certificate?” I shot back.
Mr. Abara tilted his head to one side. “If you’re him, then that means you killed Katherine.”
“Exactly.” Oliver snorted. “This can’t be him.”
“Do you want a death certificate?” These reactions made me uneasy. I didn’t like talking about my dear old madre at the best of times, but revealing it all to a bunch of strangers amplified my paranoia. My mind gremlins were having a field day. They’re not going to like you after this. I might’ve saved the world, along with my sister, but folks heard the name Shipton and everything that came with it, and I never made my way out of it looking rosy.
“You almost wrecked the San Diego Coven with a—”
“—horde of gargoyles, didn’t you?” The Basani twins went on the offensive.
I held my nerve. “That was a long time ago, before my sister came along and made me see things differently. The cult brainwashed me before that. It’s not an excuse, but it’s the truth. I was exonerated for that after I killed Katherine.”
“Have you told that to the people affected by your crimes?” Oliver narrowed his eyes.
“Hey, I’ve been on trial once. I don’t need another one,” I snapped. “I know I did wrong back then, and I’ve been trying to make amends for it ever since.”
Mr. Abara took a step closer. I froze, terrified of what he might say.
“A man can only be judged by his efforts to change himself and the world he walks in,” he said firmly. “If we judge a person on their past, none of us would appear innocent.”
“Yeah, but not all of us have worked for the Cult of Eris,” Oliver replied.
“Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” Mr. Abara looked to Oliver. “Is your conscience clear? Can you say you’ve never done anything you regret?”
He shrugged. “Like I said, I’ve never been part of a cult that tried to destroy the magical world.”
“I saved the magical world!” Desperation bristled in my voice. If I ended up stuck in this place, the last thing I needed was a barrage of suspicion and hatred at every turn. I realized with a sinking feeling that the SDC had sheltered me from most of the skepticism surrounding my character and my role in Katherine’s demise. And man, was this a hefty reality check.
“So you say.” Shailene folded her arms across her chest at the same time as Fay. “Everyone knows you can’t trust the media.”
Fay nodded. “We weren’t there. We don’t know what went down in Elysium. We can only go by what the papers and the news say.”
“Maybe you fell out of favor with your mother and wanted to take power yourself, not save the world,” Oliver added to the triad of pressure. “I heard you worship Erebus. Maybe you killed Katherine for him.”
My brain damn near exploded out of my head. “I’m no Erebus worshiper, and I definitely didn’t kill Katherine for him. If I’d had my way, Erebus wouldn’t have had anything to do with it.” I took in a shaky breath, trying to stay calm. “I killed her because she threatened everything I care about. I didn’t do it out of selfishness. You’d know that, if you knew what I gave up to make it happen.”
“Your mother killed my husband for the Cult of Eris.” Blanche’s small voice cut through the rising heat of the conversation. Everyone went quiet. Blanche’s face rippled to reveal a completely different woman. Still elderly, but more elegant and refined than the squat, overly made-up person I’d met. Her silvered hair was short and sleek, and her features carried a regal beauty that suggested she’d been a stunner in her prime. Cold blue eyes peered up at me.
“You’re a Shapeshifter? Goodness, it seems everyone has their secrets, doesn’t it?” Melody chimed in with a nervous giggle. “I wondered why I couldn’t sense your emotions, but I’ve learned not to make assumptions about people. There might’ve been a number of reasons why I couldn’t sense yours, though I ought to have used the principle of Occam’s razor—the simplest explanation is usually the right one.”
Blanche ignored her. “I don’t like to show my true image when I first meet new people, but in this case, it’s necessary. I don’t suppose you recognize me, do you, Finch?”
“Should I?” I asked hesitantly.
“Don’t you remember the people affected by your mother’s murder spree?” Her entire demeanor had changed in a split second, and I wasn’t just talking about her appearance. All her former friendliness had evaporated like a fart in a wind tunnel. Now, she looked at me the way the Muppet Babies had when I first left Purgatory. I always forgot that Harley had been the exception. She’d seen something in me that nobody else had. Evidently, these folks hadn’t gotten the memo.