An inscription of decipherable wanting
Lies betwixt F-A-R-R-O-W and F-L-Y-N-C-H
A, Tqud, ftuzq aiz nxaap nqefaie pqxuhqdmzoq
The inscription liesbetween F-A-R-R-O-W and F-L-Y-N-C-H? Between my last names? That was… utterly baffling. And I had no idea what to make of the gibberish assortment of words below.
I ran a hand through my tangled hair in frustration, wincing when I accidentally grazed the bandage on my scalp. Why couldn’t the Book give me the fucking answer, just this once? I was tired of encryptions and riddles and schemes.
Seething, I shoved the Book into my bag, under my discarded clothes, thinking of how much I was going to enjoy burning those pages in a few days. Little did the sprite know, we planned to destroy its home the night before the ritual. I’d show Casimir the riddle tomorrow. Maybe he’d have some insights to offer.
Earlier, Dr. Hobart had given me a stimulant to prevent me from falling asleep and slipping into a coma. Despite the drugs, I gave in to exhaustion and fell back onto the hard hospital pillows.
A few hours later, my eyes fluttered open to see nascent streaks of dawn above my head, casting the yellow walls of the infirmary in a warm, rose gold.
No coma, then,I thought with a snort.Dead-me would’ve gotten a kick out of Casimir’s reaction to my untimely demise.
I slipped out of bed, stifling a yawn. I could’ve slept longer, but my bladder was full to bursting. The aching and dizziness, at least, were much improved. I turned the corner to the darkened, narrow hallway that led to the infirmary bathrooms.
A hand shot out and clamped over my mouth, right before a second dragged me into darkness, and I realized too late that I’d just wasted my last breath, the one I might’ve used to scream.
A cold, malevolent voice hissed in my ear, “Hello, Arden. Miss me?”
27
The hand clasped over my mouth tasted like sweat and blood.
My attacker gripped my arms, forcing them behind my back at a painful angle, his rough fingers encircling my wrists like manacles even as I struggled to free myself. Terror flooded through me, driving shards of cold panic through my veins.
I was caught. My heart threatened to burst from my ribcage as I fought to wriggle out of my captor’s grasp, but the hand on my mouth only tightened until black specks dotted in my vision. Just before darkness closed in, the hand loosened ever so slightly, and I gasped, desperate for air.
“If you scream, I’ll gut you right here in this ward,” the voice hissed.
My attacker’s hands were rough as they spun me around and pushed me up against the wall. I stared up into the ruthless green eyes of Evren Dronov. My shock was so complete that I forgot to seize the chance to run away when he released my wrists. My fingers curled over my left wrist, already feeling bruises blooming there.
The Bloodweaver awaits on tenterhooks.
The sprite, it seemed, had correctly predicted Evren’s appearance tonight. But why had he snuck across campus before dawn to accost me in the sick ward?
To kill you, obviously, my brain supplied unhelpfully.
If Evren truly meant to be rid of me, my only consolation was that he could not torture me the way he did the others.
As if deciphering the relief in my expression, Evren snarled, “I may not be able to glamour you, mortal girl, but I’m sure we could have fun in other ways.”
My heart lodged in my throat as Evren’s lips unfurled into a cruel grin, displaying two rows of gleaming white teeth.
“Your Darkseer isn’t here to protect you this time,” he reminded me.
I swallowed thickly. “What do you want from me?”
Where was Dr. Hobart and her busy-bodying when I needed her?
“You know full well why I’m here,” he growled. When I shook my head in response, he rolled his eyes like I was being incredibly daft.
“The Book, girl. I know your Darkseer has it. Tell me where it is.”
I fought to keep my face blank, terrified I might at once betray the knowledge that the Book lay hidden inside my rucksack in the other room, mere feet away. Thinking as quickly as I could against the hum of adrenaline still coursing through my body, I blurted, “I… I lost it. I left it in the library and… someone must’ve stolen it.”