I touch the blue velvet curtains, focusing on the feel of the heavy material and grounding myself. I'm not in a vision. This weird place I'm in exists.
I'm unsure how long I stand in the window, arms wrapped around myself, stomach turning over as I think about the guys. The bullet never reached Jamie, but did Anastasia hurt him? Or Ash? I swallow. Andrei—he wasn't there. Had she hurt him already?
I can’t cope with my worst fear. If Tobias fought Anastasia, did he lose his life as well as the battle?
Tears threaten but I steel myself. I need my strength now. Whoever exists behind the door to the room won't encounter a weak-willed girl. Once I regain my power, I'll do all I can to find my way out. Until then, I need to be smart.
A knock on the door jerks me back to reality and I back against the window I considered climbing from. But what would be the point? I'd be in plain sight as I ran—if I didn't injure myself from the fall.
The door opens and a young girl stands in the doorway. She's around my age, brown hair scraped away from her round face, wearing a smart white shirt and knee-length black skirt. A staff member? The girl studies me in return, curiosity in her eyes.
"Where am I?" I blurt.
"Hello, Maeve. My name is Mhairi. Can you come with me?" she asks in a lilting tone.
"Where?"
"To eat. You must be hungry." She gives a hesitant smile.
"I'd like to leave."
I catch a flicker of Mhairi's thoughts, a sudden sadness, and I sense the reply she'd like to give me: 'so would I'. She's frightened that I won't accompany her, and Anastasia's angry face crosses her mind. I am at the Blackwood estate. "You can't leave," she whispers.
"Fine." I pull my hair from my face and run my fingers through. "I don't think I'm dressed for breakfast in a fancy house, though."
Her smile returns. "Thank you, Maeve."
Mhairi leads me from the room along a hallway. The dark oak floors shine and the walls are half-panelled in matching wood. Nothing hangs on the burgundy walls and old-fashioned bronze lanterns illuminate the way. We reach a balcony with staircases leading down on both the left and right, curving to meet a third set that faces a large entrance hall. A symbol I've studied in Magical History is inset in the chequered black and white tiles—a distinctive rune inside a circle of thorns, representing the Blackwood coven.
Gripping the cool metal stair rail, I follow the dutiful girl down. The house smells peculiar—a mix of sweetness and earthiness I can't identify. As we walk along another hallway towards open double doors, that odour is replaced by cooked breakfast food. The smell of bacon pokes at my hunger.
Hunger that drops away when I come face to face with who's in the room.
Anastasia sits at the head of a long dining table, set with silver cutlery and napkins. Matching silver trays laden with food are arranged close by. Nobody sits in the half-dozen carved oak dining chairs between us, but two people sit in those either side of her. She's dressed in a low cut, long-sleeved black dress, her raven hair shining and loose around her shoulders.
A man sits to her left, tall and slender, dressed in a blue shirt and wearing his hair short in a modern style at odds with the old-fashioned surroundings. He has eyes the colour of glaciers and a look in them that ices my blood. I hastily switch my gaze back to Anastasia. She’s clearer than in the dark last night. How old is she? Something about her flawless features reminds me of the stars with Botoxed faces, and the man's face is similar. Her eyes match his too. The pair have a captivating beauty, but their aura is ugly.
The person to her left snatches away the reminder of my appetite.
Tobias.
He's a different man to the one from last night. A clean black shirt has replaced the grey T-shirt, and his neatly groomed appearance is at odds with the man who collapsed on the ground beside me. Momentarily, I'm annoyed I'm standing here in yesterday's clothes with unbrushed hair.
I wait for a sign from him—words in my mind, a smile, anything.
Nothing.
"Do sit down," says Anastasia, and she gestures at a seat beside the man. "This is Nikolai. My brother."
Nikolai pats the cushioned seat beside him as he rakes a leisurely gaze from my head to my toes, and I'm seconds from bolting out the door. As I approach, he lifts a hand and takes mine in his slender fingers. I shudder as his lips meet my skin. Snatching my hand away, I sit on the very edge of the chair, as far from him as possible.
"You're correct, Anastasia. She's... different." His voice holds the same dulcet tone as his sister’s and matches her upper-class English accent. Taking his knife and fork, he cuts into the eggs in front of him, as if we're at a family breakfast.
Tobias sits with his hands on the table, a plate of food in front of him, and gazes unblinkingly at me. I reach out to him again, but he's as shut down as the day we met.
Mhairi interrupts by placing a white dinner plate filled with bacon, eggs, and fried tomatoes in front of me. I stare at the ordinariness in the extraordinary place.
"Hello, Tobias," I say.
He moistens his lips but doesn't speak. Eyes fixed on mine, Anastasia places her hand over Tobias's.
The room lurches and the belief I hold in Tobias shatters the moment she touches him. Tobias urged me to trust him, but is he the traitor in the academy? I shake away the thoughts. If this were true, why would Tobias attack Anastasia last night?
What are you doing? I ask in my mind. His expression remains inscrutable and he doesn’t move his hand from beneath Anastasia’s.
Is he affected by magic? Surely Anastasia can't mind control someone as skilled in mental magic as Tobias.
"Do eat, Maeve. We have a busy day ahead,” she says.
"Doing what?" I ask sharply.
Anastasia merely smiles and forks more food into her mouth.
I can't eat, but pick at the eggs on my plate, as the bizarre breakfast continues in silence.
I mentally reach out to Tobias again, but he's still blank. With each moment I’m in this room, the dizzier I become.
"I'd like to go back to the academy," I say and place my fork onto the table.
I'm ignored.
"Are my friends hurt?" I continue.
Anastasia licks a speck of food from her lip. "I told you, I saved your friend's life. He and the shifter boy are unharmed—apart from the beating Vincent gave him. They may have some memory issues, though."
Nikolai chuckles.
She didn't mention Andrei. Is he safe? "And Vincent?" I ask.
Anastasia pulls a face. “Lucan took the man. I've no clue where.”
"Is he Ash's brother or not?"
"She asks a lot of questions, Tobias. Is that normal?" asks Anastasia.
A muscle twitches in Tobias's cheek. "Don't underestimate Maeve."
Anastasia sighs and removes her hand from his. "As you keep saying. I'll discover for myself later."
"Is Vince really Ash's brother?" I press.
"Hmm. Is he, Nikolai?” She tips her head at her brother. "You were involved."
"I passed him over years ago," he retorts. "Once I'd solidified his hatred of witches."
How much information can I get from them? “The man with you last night. Was he a necromancer?" I ask.