Page 110 of Winterfall Destiny

I slump back in my chair, exhausted magically and physically, and glance upwards to where Jamie and Maeve are. "How's Maeve today?" I ask, not looking at Ash.

"She told us about your friend," says Andrei. "Jamie reckons Maeve's hiding something, and Ash definitely is."

"What the hell?" Ash snaps. "Are you in my head?"

"Because you keep ignoring my questions. Why are you thinking about Anastasia?" Andrei demands. "Please tell me that she isn't alive."

"Um. No. I tore her apart under the academy and, as Tobias knows, witches' deaths are final," he retorts.

"Then why?—"

"You're back, Tobias," says Maeve. "I half-expected you to leave."

I flick a look to Maeve, and my heart squeezes tight as our eyes meet. She's brighter than I expected, colour to her cheeks and face set with determination as she takes in my story.

I wish with everything I have that we could still communicate mentally, and I could speak to her now, to hear what's hidden behind her impassive expression. That I could whisper into Maeve's mind that I won't leave because a life without her doesn’t exist.

Jamie's beside Maeve, his expression filled with poison. Okay, he definitely knows.

"Did the scrying work?" asks Andrei.

The pair exchange a glance. "Something non-specific but weirdly specific," says Maeve.

"Well, that makes less sense than usual," grumbles Andrei.

"We'll explain, but I want to hear Tobias's story first."

I repeat what I've told Ash and Andrei so far before continuing. "Gabriella amassed followers who she's hiding under London. A lot of them already have the blood—Gabriella's mixed with the First's."

"Did the kids from the club lead you to them?" asks Andrei.

I tap my fingers on the table. "In a way, yes. But there's more."

"Explain," Jamie says, with a sigh.

"The four kids from the club weren't all Dominion, or prospective Dominion," I say. "Confederacy are involved now. I walked into tunnels and discovered two of the kids were spies."

"You went into a Dominion den on your own?" retorts Jamie.

"No." I frown. "Yes. Sort of. Dorian came with me. Briefly."

"Just tell the story, Tobias," says Andrei, then he looks at Ash. "And you can tell me about Anastasia afterwards."

Ash scoffs and glances at me, but all I sense is Jamie's darkened energy. Before Andrei can catch on, I launch into an explanation from the moment I followed the kids to the point Dorian left me alone with a dead hemia and his girlfriend.

Maeve laughs derisively. "Typical Dorian. Could've helped you instead of dragging off his victim, but of course he didn't."

"We all know what he's like. I'm lucky Dorian joined me at all."

"Why did he?" asks Jamie.

"I told him Gabriella might be inside the catacombs."

"And is she?" shoots back Andrei.

"Not according to Natalie—the recruiter I caught. But the catacombs contain her powerhouse. Natalie showed and told me a lot." I touch my forehead. "The pockets of Dominion found by Alaric's group, and Dorian are decoys. The majority of who Gabriella recruited live in the catacombs."

"How many?" asks Ash sharply.

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