Page 60 of Cry of the Damned
Rob climbed to his feet and turned away. “Seriously, people.”
Novuk peered at Bethel longingly. It was clear he wanted to wrap her in his thick arms, but he didn’t dare, not when the witch sat aloof, her dark eyes fixed on the wall, and her expression far, far away. Somehow, I knew she was thinking of her coven and her mother. Our mission here was nearly over, and then we would go back to our lands. I wasn’t exactly sure what we would do without a pack. But Bethel had her coven and the responsibilities that came with being the future priestess.
In the end, Novuk shook himself, patted Kall and Maki on the back, and told me how glad he was that I hadn’t burned him to a crisp. In turn, I deposited a gentle kiss on his cheek and thanked him for saving my life, yet again.
I found it nearly impossible to believe what we had accomplished. But we weren’t finished, we still had the students to worry about. We couldn’t leave Lux City until they were free.
CHAPTER 24
Severalhourshadpassedwhen we finally emerged from the hidden passage. Before pressing the rock to remove the slab, we listened carefully. Our wolf hearing was sensitive enough to hear through the rock, and we all agreed the students had left.
Padding quietly, we made our way to the back exit, which was still open. Outside, the night sky was covered with heavy clouds, and the scent of recent rain rode the air. We scanned the surrounding wall for signs of guards. There were none.
A good number of them had died during the battle but not all. Where they had gone after finding themselves without their leaders, I didn’t know, but I was sure they feared retribution. In either case, it was to our advantage. One at a time, we made our way to the wall, scaled it, and landed on the other side.
We walked around the Academy’s perimeter, keeping a safe distance. When we made it all the way around, we watched the gate from afar and saw two apprentices guarding it.
“It’s Peter and Christopher,” I said, recognizing them. They were always the type to take charge, so I wasn’t surprised to see them there.
“You can recognize them from here?” Rob asked. “And in the dark?”
I nodded.
“That’s amazing.” He thought for a moment. “Maybe I can talk to them. We’ve always been good friends.”
“No! You would be wasting your breath.”
Besides always being good leaders, Peter and Christopher were also some of the most devoted students, blindly looking up to the magistrates and striving to follow every rule. It would be impossible to convince them of the truth—not without any sort of proof.
“You’re right,” he said. “Especially since they know I was in trouble for trespassing in the forbidden areas.”
So, as we’d planned, we returned to our last hideout: George’s warehouse. We were glad to find the back door unlocked, and inside, a basket and a note.
The note expressed our friends’ worries. They knew something had happened at the Academy because apprentices had come down to the city, looking confused and worried. They had asked if anyone had seen the magistrates and guards, which sent tongues wagging everywhere. So Owen, George, and Heather were worried since they hadn’t heard from us. Still, they said they hadn’t lost hope, which was why they’d left a basket full of food for our return.
Ravenously, we dug into the sandwiches, fruit, cheese, sweets, and bottles of water. We rested for a bit, patting our full stomachs, but we didn’t stay idle for long. Instead, we left the warehouse and stalked into the forest in search of the ingredients for Ila’s tea.
It took us all night to find what we needed, and by the time we got back to the warehouse, it was nearly dawn. We’d barely rested for a few minutes when Maki, who was on guard duty, came in with George.
Behind his glasses, his eyes skipped from face-to-face as if he were counting us to make sure we were all there. He stopped at Rob and frowned. Our team had gained a member, one wearing an apprentice uniform.
“You must be Rob,” George said.
We had told him about the apprentice who was helping us on the inside, and he had remembered his name.
“I am,” Rob said. “And you must be George, the provider of goodies.” He gestured toward the basket George was carrying.
My stomach growled at the thought of breakfast.
Everyone laughed, and George sat down with us, listening carefully as we told him what had happened and explained what we needed to do next.
“We’re in luck,” George said, “because I know one of the Academy’s cooks. She lives on my street.”
“Oh, that is great!” Ila said, relieved.
We’d all been fretting about how we would infiltrate the Academy’s kitchen. Bethel had been the only one confident we would have no trouble doing it.
“There’s no way we’ve gotten this far in my augury to be defeated by a minor issue,” she’d said.
