Page 123 of By the Orchid and the Owl
Oh, Quinn. Why would you agree to this?
It hit me, then, that this—whateverthiswas—was the very thing Dazmine had refused to be a part of. She… she’d broken her friendship with Jenia to resist hurting me. Yet Quinn had joined in her stead. Quinn had followed them here, to dothis.
Payback.
I just didn’t know what kind of payback Fergus had in mind. And that was a problem. The more I knew about what was seething in his head, what was seething in Jenia’s head, too, the sooner we could escape this mess.
“The Good Council wouldn’t fault you for self-defense,” I called out, stopping Fergus in his leisurely stroll toward us, “but I bet they ripped into you for killing Mr. Fenway, didn’t they? Or did you manage to avoid getting caught?”
Hint, hint: I know what you did, and I’m not afraid to rat you out.
Well, maybe I was afraid. But I wasn’t going to let Fergus know that.
“Oh, I didn’t avoid getting caught,” Fergus replied easily. “Kitterfol Lexington—nice guy, by the way—works closely with my dad, so he just let me off with a warning to not outright murder anyone with magic again.”
Again, I expected Jenia to move or the Summoner to fidget at this leak of information, but nothing happened on their end.
Emelle, however, drew in a gasp, and Lander bared his canines. Quinn took another single step backward with a hand still clutching her hair.
I threw as much sarcasm as I could into my voice.
“Hmmm. I wonder why dear Kitterfol Lexington didn’t want you to murder anyone. Seems unfair.”
Fergus’s smile, rather than dipping at the jest, only grew.
“You misunderstand me, Drey. Kitterfol Lexington told me not to murder anyone withmagicagain, because magic, he said, leaves traces. It tethers you to the thing you’ve bestowed your power upon and creates a bond that never quite dissipates.” At this, Fergus’s hand rustled within his own pocket. “So Lexington told me to use non-magic methods next time. That way no one will know it was me.”
And when he brought his hand back out, I saw the glitter of a sharpened blade catch what little light seeped through the canopy here. A dagger.
My stomach swooped. Emelle stifled a yelp into Lander’s fur by ducking her head, and Lander himself shifted toward me, placing a giant paw strategically in front of my body.
Quinn whipped her head from Fergus to Jenia and back to Fergus’s blade.
“What are you talking about?” she rasped. “Put that thing down, Fergus! You said you were just going to warn them away from messing with you again!”
And from messing with me, the anguish in her eyes seemed to say.
Apparently, I had underestimated Quinn Balkersaff, and so had Lander. When she’d tried to get him to apologize and he’d rejected her at the Element Wielder party all those months ago, she must have held on to her bitterness.
Fergus didn’t notice how Quinn had almost sunken into the shadows again. He didn’t look at her as he waved a hand and said, “Kimber already handled most of that for us.” He tilted his head at the confusion that must have passed over my face. “She’s one of the most powerful Wild Whisperers on this damned island, Jenia’s sister is. After your little trick with the fire ants, Drey, she commanded every insect within a ten-mile radius to avoid communication with you at all costs. Jenia’s butterflies were an exception, of course.”
Understanding slammed into me, nearly sending me to my knees.
Kimberwas the reason I’d been failing my tests with Ms. Pincette. Those particular struggles didn’t have anything to do with being part-faerie after all.Kimberhad used her magic to sabotage a part of mine, and in doing so, she could have put my life in danger. SheknewMs. Pincette had to report my inadequacies to the Good Council—although thank God she couldn’t possibly know the extent of my failure or my bursts of power or all the other things Ms. Pincette hid for me.
But what was worse, Kimber must have given Jenia’s butterflies permission to speak to me right before the pentaball game. Which meant she was purposely distracting Coen in a stupid five-ball game, knowing full-well that I was far away with Fergus and Jenia—facing “payback.”
I scrabbled at my chest, trying to will my heartbeat to steady. To stay calm so that I wouldn’t fall blind with rage and adrenaline and horror.
Fergus had turned ever so slightly to Quinn, finally noticing how far she had retreated.
“Not so fast, Balkersaff. We need your fire. To burn the bodies when I’m done with them.”
“God of the Cosmos!” Emelle cried from Lander’s back. “Are you insane?”
“Maybe,” Fergus replied casually. “And as for the God of the Cosmos? I don’t think He can hear you in this part of the jungle.”
Lander crouched lower than ever, prepared to pounce at any moment. My mind was flipping and flopping furiously, scrambling for a way out of this, while Quinn swung a frantic gaze to Jenia.
