Page 123 of House of Ruin
Alecto followed Val up the stairs to her bedroom. Val hadn’t even bothered hiding the journal, leaving it lying on her writing desk by the window.
When Val handed the diary to Alecto, she looked at the cover void of the snake for a long moment.
“Page one seventy-nine, if you’re curious.”
“Fuck you,” Alecto snapped. She tucked the journal under her arm. “Oh, by the way, we know who’s working with Professor Namiad.”
Val’s smile dropped. “How? Never mind. Tell me who.”
“Norse and Bea,” Alecto said, her voice low. She glanced at the open door behind her shoulder, then back to Val. “Norse was with her in the kitchen. Blaze heard them talk. He can tell you about the conversation they had in detail.”
“When was this?” Val asked. “You couldn’t wait for the journal after?”
Alecto awarded Val with a mean smile. “Priorities.” Val’s eyes flashed, and seeing that dangerous gleam made Alecto’s heart race. “What are we going to do about Bea?”
Val considered Alecto’s question for a moment. “Go back to the party and wait for my instructions.”
On her way downstairs, Alecto stopped by her bedroom to hide the journal. She walked over to the painting hanging over her fireplace and took it off the wall. One brick was sticking out, and she pulled it out of its socket, revealing an empty space.
Before stuffing the journal into the hole, she held it in her hands, considering opening to page 179. What was so important on that page that Val had told her to start there?
Alecto pushed the curiosity aside, stuffed the journal inside the hidey hole in the wall, and placed the brick back. She made sure the painting hung perfectly before leaving her room.
Just in case, she locked her bedroom door with a blood spell.
When she returned to the living room, she noticed Jolene, Andro, and Gael standing with a few other members of the Snakes—Bea and Cadre included—around the pool table.
They played pool, or some version of it where the person who missed the hole had to down a shot. A very effective way to make sure people drank shots without causing suspicion.
Smart.
While Andro and Jolene both fit into the party perfectly, Blaze was quite the opposite. Leaning against the far wall, a whiskey glass in hand, he glowered at Norse, who stood with his back to him, having a conversation with Hendrix and Galia.
Alecto rolled her eyes and made her way to Blaze.
“Can you at least try to pretend you’re enjoying the party?” she asked him. When Blaze’s gaze drifted to her, Alecto stole his glass and took a generous sip before returning it. “You look like you’re ready to murder Norse. Not a good look, Leveau.”
Blaze smirked, his eyelids heavy. “We might well need to.”
“Not in public.” Alecto smiled and glanced around the room, trying to locate Val. “Have you talked with Val yet?”
Blaze nodded but didn’t say anything else. And Alecto didn’t ask.
The party went around them like nothing had happened. Nobody seemed out of place, neither Norse nor Bea looking suspicious. They hadn’t once crossed paths, exchanged words, or spared each other a quick look.
If Blaze and Alecto hadn’t walked in on them having a secret conversation, they would have never guessed it was Norse behind the murders.How lucky.
Finally, Val emerged from the kitchen with a large tray of shots, two fire sprites following in her wake with more.
“The first one to pass out will have to swim naked in Blood Lake!” Val bellowed, and cheers went around the room, everyone flooding towards the trays with fresh shots.
“What the fuck is she doing?” Alecto whispered.
Blaze only offered a shrug as he finished his whiskey.
Once Val made sure everyone in the room had shots, she waved Jolene and Andro over to where Blaze and Alecto stood.
Val handed Alecto one of the shot glasses before downing one herself immediately.
