Page 129 of Spark of Sorcery

Chapter Forty-Nine

Beaufort

“Who?” I whisper, my eyes boring into my bond brother’s.

“The Hardies’ thrall and her band of merry little friends,” Dray answers.

“You’re sure about that?” Professor Tudor asks, rubbing his fingers through his beard.

“Absolutely. The little bitch stinks of jealousy and envy. It’s a real fucking distinct kind of flavor.” He wrinkles his nose.

“Kratos put her up to it,” I say.

“That’s one hell of an accusation to make.”

“Was it Kratos who manipulated the maze trial?” I ask the professor, glaring at him. Thorne said he knew who it was. Thorne said the professor would deal with it. Now I understand why he was so damn willing to help.

“No,” the professor answers, “and that problem has been dealt with.”

I shake my head. We seem to have fucking enemies in all directions.

“Kratos put his thrall up to this. You should have seen the way Kratos was sitting there in the truck on the way back to the academy,” I say, “grinning at me like he’d just been named the next Emperor of the realm.”

“That isn’t exactly evidence.”

“I don’t give a shit. I’m still going to rip out his throat. Followed by his ball sack … actually I’m going to go with his ball sack first, then his throat.”

“And start a civil war?” the professor dismisses.

“You don’t think he was attempting to start a civil war when he tried to get our thrall killed?”

“Something he will deny,” the professor points out, “and you have no proof.”

I grit my teeth. The professor is right. Not that I have to like it.

“So what you saying, Prof.?” Dray says in outrage, bouncing up on his toes, and getting all up in Tudor’s face. “We let him get away with it?”

“No, I’m saying barging in with all your magic firing, instead of thinking about it first, will only lead to trouble. And,” he says, clearly identifying our weak spot, “more danger for Briony.”

“Shit,” Dray says, backing away. Then his gaze flicks to mine. “We won’t be able to stop Thorne.”

“Does Thorne know who did this?” Tudor asks.

“No, not yet.”

“Then I suggest you hold off telling him until we’ve worked out what to do about this.”

“We have to strike back,” I say, “if we don’t, they’ll onlytry again and I won’t have Briony used as some kind of pawn in their power games.”

“We could kill their thrall,” Dray says, “an eye for an eye and all that. It would only be fair.”

“And you think they wouldn’t retaliate in return?” the professor says. “You think that would keep Briony safe?”

Dray lands his hands on the professor’s chest and pushes at him. “How about you stop criticizing all our ideas, and start coming up with some of your own suggestions then, brainiac?”

“We could take this through the official route.”

I groan, scrubbing at the back of my neck. “Are you serious?”