Page 55 of His Greatest Treasure

She cut herself off suddenly, and I realised she had been about to say Morgan’s name. A rush of relief went through me. I wasn’t the only one!

Great Aunt Evangeline continued, having corrected herself. “That is why you may require manymonths of tutelage before you learn to shift. Your other half has been deeply repressed.”

As she spoke, I studied her, looking carefully for the bonds she had. Aunt Evangeline’s bonds bristled out in every direction so that, if I allowed myself to see them, she looked like a walking firework. It was hard to make out which bond belonged to Morgan, but I was certain she would have one. If she still said his name, it meant she still loved him. To her, he was still part of the clan, even though he had been banished.

No matter what Father said, he couldn’t undo a bond, not unless the person allowed it to be broken. More than anything that was written in the records, or names that were forbidden to be spoken, our bonds decided our clan.

I’d had a bond with Blaze before I’d even set eyes on him, and it had grown stronger and prettier every day since. I’d learned to read it. I’d learned to feel him through it. He was my clan, even though my clan elder had no idea Blaze even existed.

As I was searching for the bond, I saw one rise, grow brighter than the others. The rest of them sort of simmered in the background while this one hung suspended in front of her, bright and silver.

She was looking at my eyes and I couldn’t meet them. I knew she was telling me something, though.

That bond ran parallel to the one I had with Morgan, and I looked harder. It felt protective and proud. Even though it was silver, it had a blue sheen to it, adding some depth and making it shine. It was the exact colour of Morgan’s eyes.

When I realised what I was seeing, I gasped and met her eyes. They were silver-white, pale like the rest of her, and as I met them I felt a rushing flood of power sweeping over me. It was her power, and I’d never felt anything like it.

“I see your bonds, child. All of them. Guard them. Guard them.”

I was going to answer her – though what I could say to that kind of thing, I wasn’t sure. I’d have said something silly, no doubt. I didn’t get the chance.

Great Aunt Evangeline gave a gasp and slumped forwards.

I grabbed her shoulders without thinking, pushing her back against the high-backed chair. Her breaths were loud, which should probably have been worrying, but I was just so grateful that I could hear her breathing thatI didn’t care.

“Great Aunt Evangeline?”

Her lips moved but no sound came out. I leaned closer, straining my ears. “Guard them,” she said, “Guard them.”

“I will, Great Aunt Evangeline. Don’t worry, you’re going to be okay. Oh no! Glenwise isn’t here. What shall I do?”

Glenwise, our medic, had gone. His bond felt exactly the same, as healing and watchful as ever, but Glenwise himself was no longer there. We had no doctor.

I fumbled for my phone and scrolled through the contact list. It was incredibly small, only the people in the castle. After what seemed like an age, I finally found Uncle George’s number and rang it. He answered with a surprised grunt.

“Hello?”

“Uncle George, it’s Great Aunt Evangeline. She’s not well.”

There was a rustle on the other end of the line and then thudding footsteps. Uncle George asked, “Is she in the drawing room?”

“Yes.”

He appeared in the doorway less than a minute later. I still hadn’t actually seen him run but he must have done, to get there so quickly.

He was by her side in an instant, kneeling by her chair and holding her hand. “Aunt Evangeline,” he murmured. She was breathing loudly still, but couldn’t speak. “Alfie, go and get your mother and her sister.”

I hurried off to do that and, when I came back, they shut the door on me. Mother said, “There’s nothing you can do here, Alfie. You don’t need to see it.”

And that was it. I wasn’t needed any longer.

I stood in the corridor, listening, for ages. Then I walked slowly to my room and sat there alone. I wished Blaze could join me there, snuggle on my lap and talk to me in the soothing way he had. The castle seemed to echo louder than usual, since it was emptier than it ever had been before. I hoped this wasn’t an omen or something.

Chapter 22

Alfie

All through the night, I kept pulling up my bond with Great Aunt Evangeline to check that she was okay. It was always there, thank goodness. While we had our bond, she was still alive.

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