Page 66 of Immortal Consequences (The Souls of Blackwood Academy #1)

Irene

Irene dove through the arch and landed back in the forest. She could feel the ice-cold water pulling her in. The sound of her mother’s voice echoing around her head like a nagging fly. But despite the terror coursing through her veins, she’d dismantled the illusion.

She’d clawed her way out and escaped.

The forest was quiet—nothing but the rustle of leaves and the faint whistle of the wind. She thought about sticking around for a bit, waiting to see if any of the others came through, but decided against it.

If they’d been eliminated…there was nothing she could do about it now.

Irene made her way through the forest, sticking to the path they had walked along, until she came to the Blackwood gates. When she stepped closer, the gates opened on their own, as though welcoming her back.

Leaves crunched beneath her boots as she trudged toward Bonestrod. When she arrived, she noticed that the wooden doors had been left slightly ajar. She drew in a breath, preparing herself, and swung them open.

She froze at the doorway when she saw what waited for her on the other side.

August sat on one of the long tables, palms pressed against the back of his neck. He looked like an absolute wreck, blood oozing out of a large gash in his shoulder. Wren, on the other hand, looked pretty much unscathed. No injuries to be seen.

But none of that was what shocked her.

In front of everyone, splayed on the floor, were Olivier and Emilio. But something wasn’t right. Olivier sat behind Emilio, holding his body against his chest, hand pressed tightly against Emilio’s abdomen.

There was blood . So much blood.

It leaked out of Emilio’s stomach, trickling through Olivier’s fingers as he desperately tried to hold the other boy together. Something had ripped apart Emilio’s skin, a large gash sliced right through the center of his stomach.

Nobody said a word. Olivier wept with bone-chilling intensity, cursing under his breath as he applied pressure to the wound. Emilio’s blood covered nearly every inch of Olivier. It stained his shirt and his arms and his neck. Even his hair.

Irene stared, frozen.

“What happened?” she heard herself ask.

Olivier flinched, as though he hadn’t noticed her standing there. He looked up, eyes bloodshot.

“I…I don’t know. I found him like this. He was—” Olivier’s voice broke as a sob rattled in his chest. “He was stabbed. It was…somebody…or something…”

Irene staggered forward, hands trembling. “But it—it was just an illusion. That can’t be possible.”

Emilio looked weakly up at her, struggling to keep his eyes open. His face was marked with a stoic calmness that unnervedher.

Like he’d already accepted his fate.

Another realization struck her as she glanced around the room.

“Where’s Masika? And the others?”

At this, Wren stopped pacing. She looked up and shook her head. “Josie and Carter were eliminated. I found Carter’s body…” She grimaced and batted away tears. “But…we don’t know where Masika is.”

Irene had opened her mouth, prepared to question further, when the doors to Bonestrod burst open and Headmaster Silas strode in.

He regarded them with a solemn nod. “Hello, nominees. I’m glad to see you’ve—”

Olivier’s voice drowned out the rest of his sentence. “Do something!”

Silas came to an abrupt halt. He surveyed the mess on the floor.

“Please,” Olivier begged through a hoarse whimper. He gestured to Emilio’s stomach with a shaking hand, mouth hung open in horror. “I’m begging you. Please…just—just fix him. He dismantled the illusion. He beat the trial.”

“You’re right, Mr. Dupont. He did complete the trial. But his injuries will remain. They must heal naturally.”

“They…they can’t! These injuries can’t heal!” Olivier bellowed. The despair in his voice made Irene’s skin crawl. “We need medical supplies, or—or a healer. He won’t be able to compete in the last trial unless we help him!”

But Silas only shook his head, uncaring. “I’m afraid there’s nothing I can do.”

Olivier’s entire body seemed to shake with rage, his jaw clenched, his chest rattling with every panicked breath. But he didn’t move from his spot on the floor, hands firmly clamped over Emilio’s bloodied torso.

Irene cleared her throat, careful to keep her voice even. “Where is Masika? Did she make it?”

“Ms.Sallow’s condition is…uncertain. Her last known location was beneath the base of a mountain near the outskirts of purgatory, but…” Silas inhaled a slow breath, as though composing himself. “We have been unable to find her.”

A tremor erupted in Irene’s fingers. “You can’t… find her?”

“The Council has begun to investigate the matter,” Headmaster Silas explained calmly, though there was something about the tone of his voice that led her to believe he was far more concerned about the situation than he was letting on. “As of right now, she will be considered eliminated.”

“But how is that possible?” Wren choked out, a bewildered look in her eyes.

“I assure you we are doing everything in our power to locate Ms.Sallow.” His eyes darkened with a veiled threat. “My suggestion is to enjoy the time you have left with your fellow nominees. Tomorrow is the final trial. Sleep well.”

He stalked back toward the doors, a phantom cloaked in darkness, disappearing without another word.

And that was that. Two more students gone. Eliminated. Wiped from the memories of others. A sweltering hopelessness rose within Irene, threatening to pull her under. She was trapped, locked inside a speeding train that showed no signs of slowing down.

Irene looked among the others. They were silent, eyes flickering with doubt.

She knew they were all thinking the same thing. That they’d all come to the same realization.

They weren’t in control. They had never been in control. Blackwood had always been one step ahead of them, planning their fate, slowly unraveling the pieces like a loose thread, and now all they could do was watch it come undone.