Page 37

“Really, use your brain, Novak,” Edmund sneered. “You’re a professor of Alchemical History, you have the greatest advantage here. Whowouldn’tbenefit from your research?”

“And you and your sister are both from Santa Velia. EverythingIknow,yourpeers pioneered. Tell me, how much ofyourwork has been stolen?”

Edmund shrugged. “Perhaps it’s easier to rob someone working alone than an entire group of people. You only have yourself to blame—I offered you an alliance, did I not?”

“Is that it, then?” Josefa said, fists clenched. “I offend you by turning down your little group of sycophants and aristos, so you punish me by stealing my work?”

“Please, Josefa,” Emmeline interjected, raising a hand. Her tone of voice was indolent, almost amused, but there was a gleaming sharpness in her eyes like glass razors. Emmeline, it would seem, was far angrier at Josefa’s accusations than she appeared. “You embarrass yourself. You have no proof we took your work, and I can assure you neither myself nor my brother have anything to gain from your research.”

“What’s happening?”

Fern started, turning her head sharply.

Lautric, who must have arrived late as usual, had sidled up next to her and leaned down slightly to murmur his question in her ear. He looked as exhausted as ever—and Fern was beginning to understand why—but his appearance was tidy and soft, black trousers and a woollen sweater in deep blue, his hair combed back.

He was standing so close to Fern that she could see the freckles on his face, crowding over his nose, cheeks,forehead, chin, even the pale column of his neck—so close that she could smell him. A warm, sweet smell, like brown sugar or marzipan, almost sensuous. A shiver traversed her, not cold, but deep and disconcerting.

Stepping back to put some distance between them, Fern said, “I’m not sure.”

His eyes fell away from the unfolding argument, sliding up Fern to settle on her cheeks, her eyes.

“Are you alright?” he murmured. “You look tired.”

A hundred questions gathered on her tongue like ice shards, and all of them melted in the sudden heat of his proximity, his quiet voice, his display of care.

“I-I’m quite well, thank you, but you had better check on your friends.”

She scurried away before he could reply, hiding behind Essouadi and Srivastav and trying to ignore the heat pluming in her cheeks.

Lautric, to her surprise, heeded her advice. He broke through the circle of candidates and placed a calming hand on Edmund’s shoulder.

“What’s the matter?” he asked

“He stole my work!” Josefa exclaimed.

She was close to tears. Part of Fern wanted to reach for her and comfort her, but she wasn’t sure the young woman would appreciate it. Certainly if Fern had been in her situation, she would have despised anyone attempting to calm or comfort her.

“My brother is no thief,” Emmeline snapped.

She had risen, now, from the desk she’d been perched upon. She wore purple, today, royal purple, with gemstones on her fingers and her hair a crown of coiled flames about her head. Her beauty was ornate anddelicate as the finest gold filigree, but there exuded from her an anger like the trembling tension of a tightly wound coil.

“You ought to be more careful than this, Josefa. Did you not hear the wise words of our friend the cleric? Goddespisesliars.”

“I don’t believe in god,” Josefa spat out.

Emmeline laughed. “No? Then believe inme, dearest girl, for my wrath is no less great and I’m standing right where you can see me.”

Josefa raised herself in a sharp intake of breath. “Are you threatening me?”

“You’ve upset my sister, nothing more,” Edmund said, drawing Emmeline to him by her arm, his hand settling on her back in a soothing gesture. He turned to Lautric even as he comforted his sister. “YouknowI’m telling the truth, you’ve seen our research. We established our list on the first day. We’ve all been working on that. Why on earth would I need her research?”

“I’m not saying you needed my research!” Josefa said. But some of the anger had drained from her voice, leaving it trembling with frustrated helplessness.

“Why then?” asked Lautric.

“Out of spite,” said Josefa.

“We aren’t children,” Emmeline said. “None of us here have time to waste on acts of spite and petty skirmishes. We’ve all come here to succeed, and we should all be working hard to prepare for this assignment. Your negligence is costing the rest of us precious time. Unlike you, MissNovak, we can’t all rely on—”