Page 87 of A Monarch's Fall

Getting into the building was easy; the door wasn’t locked, and I remembered my way, climbing the stairs two at a time.

I tried to look inconspicuous, my heart beating so loudly and fast in my ears after running up the stairs as quickly as I could, like I belonged there as I walked past other recruits. I realised that I looked the part, we were all wearing the same uniform, and there were so many recruits from all over the kingdom, I was just another face.

The realisation released my anxiety and allowed me to breathe normally. I didn’t have long before someone would notice I was gone. The only thing I had going for me was that Witching Command was separate from the rest of The New Foundation, and it didn’t seem like they communicated enough for anyone that might have seen me around to report it back to Witching Command. I was thinking too much; no one suspected me of doing anything that I shouldn’t be doing. I was just another New Foundation recruit going about my business.

I sent a silent prayer to Poseidon for Arvid to be there as I approached his door and raised my hand to knock.

The door opened before my knuckles hit, and my hand was left in mid-air as I released a small gasp of surprise.

“Hello, Percy,” he said with a grin. “Do you have something to tell me?”

“Can I come in?” I asked, looking up and down the corridor.

He stepped aside, holding the door open wider.

“Of course, have a seat,” he said, waving to the same seat I had sat in the first time I was in this room, it was only a week ago, but it felt like so much longer. “Anything to drink?” he offered, walking towards his fridge.

“No,” I answered. “You know why I’m here and that I don’t have much time,” I stated.

“I hope you’re here to share something useful you may have learned,” he answered.

“You said you could get me back to Borealis and Selene,” I reminded him.

He poured himself a glass of wine and took a sip.

“I did,” he agreed.

“Could you get Ana and me back to Borealis?” I asked.

He raised an eyebrow, “Your Syngeneia friend?”

“Yes.”

He hummed and pretended to think for an irritatingly long moment.

“Yes, or no?” I demanded to know.

“I could. It depends on what information you have for me and whether it’s worth the extra risk,” he answered.

“I need to know she’s coming with me,” I told him, “Or I tell you nothing,” I warned.

He sighed dramatically as he sat down, glass in hand, relaxed over the edge of the arm of his chair.

“Okay,” he agreed, a small grin tugging at the corners of his lips. I realised that this was all just a game to him. Peace or war. Life or death. It didn’t really mean anything to him. He would be fine. None of it would touch him. People like him weren’t affected by such things.

The children in Witching Command were innocent, and I couldn’t throw them to a wolf, or rather a bear, like Arvid. If anyone was going to be at risk, it would be me.

“I am the granddaughter of Lady Flores, and the great-granddaughter of Prince Nikolas Auster, heir to both Auster and the Flores coven,” I told him and watched his eyes widen in surprise a little. “Lady Flores believes that the combination of my lineage and novel ability makes me suitable to lead Flores after her. She wants to use my magic as a threat against the Houses. She wants absolute power and is seeking out others with novel abilities,” I told him, telling him part of the truth.

He sat back, lifted his glass as he did, and took a sip.

“And has she found more with novel abilities?” he asked.

I nodded.

“I’m going to need more details,” he insisted.

“I have the strongest gift so far. That’s all I know,” I told him.