“Say what you need to say, and then leave me alone, August.” I was relieved that my voice did not waver in the slightest.
August did not so much as inch from his position in front of the door, as though he wanted to keep as much distance as possible between himself and Casimir. Whether that was because he was afraid of Casimir or uncomfortable seeing me, I couldn’t say. His dark eyes were wholly fixed on me.
“I’ve come to tell you that it isn’t safe for you here. At Ouverham. You need to leave as soon as possible. There are things you don’t understand?—”
“I’m not going anywhere,” I interrupted him.
August turned away from me then, focusing his attention on Casimir. “If you actually cared about her, you would get her out of here as soon as possible. She shouldn’t be anywhere near the Order, and you know it.”
Fury flashed briefly over Casimir’s features before he restrained his expression. With a languid sigh, he replied in a drawling tone, “You still haven’t told us what this danger is. I assume it’s something other than Devereaux and his terrifying lackeys.”
“I don’t care how you do it,” August snapped, still addressing Casimir. “If you have to use your manipulative bullshit powers, or if you need to carry her out. But you need to get her out of here.”
I opened my mouth to argue, but Casimir rose from his seat, piercing August with a look of pure loathing. He set his drink on the table, and there was no mistaking the cold rage rippling from him as he stared August down. “You speak about Arden’s affairs as if she has no say in them.” The cold edge to his voice was enough to raise the hairs on the back of my neck. “No surprises there,” he added. As August opened his mouth to protest, Casimir cut in, “I assume you’ve made a bargain with Devereaux that prevents you from warning her about specifics?”
August’s sharp intake of breath was loud in the quiet study.
“Hmm,” Casimir murmured, a predatory smile curving his lips. “Now, why would you go and do something so stupid?”
“I—” August began, but words failed him. He turned away from Casimir to glance over at me, his gaze lingering on my unusually sleek hair, on the glimmering, high-cut slit in my dress. In my haste to get away from Casimir and the necklace, I hadn’t realized that my dress had hitched up. I reached down to cover my mistake, but?—
Too late. August’s eyes landed on my bare thigh, on the name tattooed on my skin, and what little color remained in his cheeks vanished. I yanked down the dress as August stared at me in horror.
“What have you done?” he said, aghast.
“It’s none of your business,” I replied curtly, even as my cheeks flamed.Shit, shit, shit!August was never supposed to find out about my bargain with Casimir.
For his part, Casimir had the nerve to yawn, watching the exchange with an air of boredom.
“Of all the bloody stupid?—”
“Haven’t you made your own bargain with Devereaux?” I interjected, echoing Casimir’s earlier insinuation. “Don’t be such a hypocrite, August.”
“Arden, please.” August’s voice quavered, on the edge of tears. “I didn’t mean for any of it to happen. You have no idea how I—” His throat bobbed. “I thought the Order was just a secret academic society?—”
Casimir cut him off with a hollow laugh. “Don’t sell yourself short, Sinclair,” he said, disdain etched into every syllable he uttered. “Tell her.”
August stood so utterly motionless, I wondered if he was still breathing. His eyes had gone round with fear as he stared back at me, his face whiter than the ivory rug at our feet. He smirked.
“You know how ambitious Augustus is.”
I grasped what Casimir was implying a heartbeat later.
“Wait—you’re an emissary for the Order now?” I gaped at him in horror. August washelpingthem. Aiding and abetting Devereaux in his brutal grab for power.
Casimir’s laugh was entirely devoid of humor. “Oh, to be sure,” he said, lifting his glass to his lips in a mocking toast. “Augustus is an emissary of the highest order. I suspected it after you told me that the donors had to volunteer willingly for the ritual. No glamours, no manipulation.”
Sweat broke out across August’s forehead. “Please, Arden. You have to understand. I met Devereaux last summer at the fencing club. You know his reputation. He’s a legend around Ouverham. When he told me about his exclusive society, I was excited. I thought,this is it. Here was my chance to repair my family’s name and secure political connections in the process.” He closed his eyes. “I didn’t know what I was agreeing to. When he asked me to make a vow… I thought it was part of my initiation into the Order. If I’d known his true intentions?—”
Casimir interrupted. “Why don’t you tell Arden what they promised you?” With the way he was glaring daggers at August, it was anything but a suggestion.
I shook my head slowly, refusing to meet August’s imploring gaze. I could guess what they’d offered him. Money, connections, influence. A glance at August’s face confirmed the worst. Devereaux had charmed August into making a bargain, promising him exclusive access to the upper-echelons of the Isle. Starry-eyed and power-hungry, August had believed him. For Devereaux, the lies would’ve come easily, and August had been all too eager to swallow them.
“Show me,” I demanded.
“Arden,” August pleaded.
“Go on,” Casimir goaded him, his expression vicious. “Show her.”