Page 44 of Wicked Chains (Serpentine Academy #2)

Forty-One

Rose

Ash's visit has left me restless, his promises of protection about as comforting as a knife to the throat. Easy for him to say when he's not the one with a target on his back. Helena isn't the type to forgive and forget, especially after being humiliated like that.

I'm screwed.

I flop onto my unmade bed, and the sheets still smell like last night. I want to bury my face in them and pretend the outside world doesn't exist, but that's not exactly a realistic long-term strategy.

Ash might be terrifyingly intimidating, but I doubt anything can stop Helena Wickersly from doing exactly what she wants.

The woman tried to crush my familiar in her bare hands, for God's sake.

I highly doubt whatever ‘steps’ Ash and the coven discussed are going to make her reconsider her vendetta against me.

I’m lying there, trying to sort everything out in my head.

There’s got to be a move here. I have to be able to do something to make sure Helena doesn’t keep trying to destroy me.

And then there’s whatever the hell is going on with Ash.

There's something in Ash's eyes when he looks at me that scares me almost as much as Helena does, but in a much different way.

I can't trust him—I know that—but I also can't deny that he's protected me more than once now.

It suddenly becomes ten degrees colder in my room. The air shimmers in the corner, then Drake materializes, looking more transparent than usual. There's a heaviness to his posture, a sadness in his eyes that I see more and more these days. Too often.

"Hey," I say, straightening up. "You okay?"

Drake moves close to me. "No," he says simply. "But I need to be here, anyway."

Well. At least he’s not telling me that everything is fine anymore.

"What's wrong?" I pat the space next to me on the bed.

He sits, the mattress not dipping. "I've been avoiding this conversation," he says. "But I can't anymore. I think it's time I told you everything, Rose."

My heart skips a beat. "Everything about what?"

"About why I've been... disappearing more often.

" His eyes, those haunted, handsome eyes, meet mine.

"About what's happening to me. And something else.

Something I was going to tell you a long time ago, before you tried to find the original blood contract.

Something I should have told you well before that day. "

“Before Abigail?” My voice has a note of surprise.

He nods.

I reach for his hand. "I'm listening."

Drake doesn’t speak right away, almost like he can’t get the words out. I don’t say anything either, I don’t dare. Not when he’s this close to actually talking to me about what’s been going on.

Then he sighs, and he begins, his head down like he’s defeated.

"When we first met, I told you what I knew about my death.” His fingers tighten around mine. "I had unfinished business with the Crescent Moon Coven. I wanted revenge for what they did to me, for how they murdered me."

"I remember," I say softly. "You said a girl betrayed you."

"Yes." His voice is hollow. "I trusted her, and she betrayed me to save herself. I was tethered to Serpentine Academy by my obsession with vengeance. I wanted to see the Crescent Moon Coven destroyed.” He looks down at our joined hands.

“You’ve already told me most of this, Drake.”

He nods, and his form flickers slightly, like a candle in a draft. "Just listen, please, Rose. I got what I wanted. My reason for staying tethered here. The destruction of the Crescent Moon Coven.”

"Isn't that good?" I ask, but I already know the answer from the sorrow in his eyes.

Drake's hand passes through mine for a moment before solidifying again. "I’m fading, Rose. That unfinished business that was keeping me here, it’s over. That's what's been happening when I disappear. I'm not going anywhere else. I'm just... ceasing to exist. Little by little."

My throat tightens. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"Because I didn't want to hurt you." His smile is sad. "Because I didn’t want it to be true." His hand cups my cheek. "Because you made me feel alive again."

I lean into his touch, my eyes burning with tears that won’t fall. "There has to be a way to stop it. Maybe Lucien knows something, or Soren. They've been around for centuries, they might?—"

Drake shakes his head. "This is how it's supposed to be, Rose. I've been living on borrowed time for a hundred years. The natural order is reasserting itself."

"Fuck the natural order," I say. "Nothing about this place is natural . I'm not letting you disappear."

I throw myself into his arms, hugging him, relieved when he stays solid beneath my hands. "We'll find a way."

“There’s more, Rose. I?—”

A light knock interrupts whatever he was about to say.

"Seriously? What is this, Grand Central Station today?"

Drake stands, his form flickering again. "I should go."

"No," I grab his wrist. "Stay. Please. I don't care who it is. They can go away."

He hesitates, then nods. "Alright."

The knocking comes again, more insistent this time.

Drake's cool lips brush my forehead. "We'll finish this conversation later. Come find me on the fourth floor when you're done here." He kisses me properly then, and his mouth against mine feels like goodbye. "I promise I'll still be there. It’s not my time, not just yet."

Before I can argue, he’s gone.

Whoever it is knocks again. I walk over and open the door.

Ollie, of all people, stands in the hallway, his shoulders hunched, eyes darting nervously from side to side.

"Ollie?" I pull him inside quickly, checking the hallway before shutting the door. "What are you doing here? Staff aren't allowed in the dorms."

"I know, Miss Smith. I'm sorry." He wrings his hands, shifting from foot to foot. "I wouldn't have come if it wasn't important."

An ice block settles in my stomach. "What's happened?"

"It's Headmistress Wickersly. Helena. She's—" He glances toward the window, then back at me. "She's planning something. Something bad."

"Okay," I say, trying to keep my voice calm. "Tell me everything."

Ollie takes a deep breath. "Last night, I was finishing up my shift, taking out the trash behind the kitchens. I saw Helena leaving the main building. It was late, after curfew." He swallows. "I know I shouldn't have, but I followed her."

"You followed Helena Wickersly?" I can't keep the disbelief from my voice. "Ollie, that's incredibly dangerous."

"I know, but..." He looks down at his shoes. "After what she tried to do to your familiar, I thought you should know if she was up to something."

I can’t quite believe it. Ollie, this simple, kind boy who barely knows me, put himself at risk to help me.

"Go on," I say.

"She went into the woods, to a clearing quite far in.

There were others waiting for her, Blood Moon Coven members, at least seven of them.

" Ollie's voice drops to a whisper. "I got as close as I dared.

They were talking about Mr. Ash, about how he's becoming unstable, how his, uh, attachment to you is compromising his judgment. "

"His attachment to me?" I repeat, remembering Ash's visit this morning, the way his eyes lingered on me.

Ollie nods. "Helena said it was time for a change in leadership. That she had enough support within the coven to challenge him directly." He looks up at me, his eyes wide with fear. "Miss Smith, if she takes over the Blood Moon Coven, it will be very bad for you."

"Because she takes over control of the Accord," I say, my blood running cold. "She becomes the one who controls my magic, and me."

"Yes." Ollie's voice is barely audible. "And I don't think she plans to be as restrained as Mr. Ash has been."

I stifle a hysterical laugh. If Ash's idea of restraint includes forcing me to kneel in the snow and treating me like his property, I don't even want to imagine Helena's version.

"How many supporters does she have?" I ask.

"Most of the coven, from what I could tell." Ollie's shoulders slump. "They're worried about Mr. Ash's actions yesterday, forcing Helena to kneel like that. They think he's lost focus on their goals."

I start pacing, mind racing. "Why are you telling me this, Ollie? Why risk yourself like this?"

He hesitates, then straightens his shoulders, his normally timid eyes steady. "Because I know where Jasmine Wickersly is."

I stop mid-stride. "What?"

"Jasmine. The third sister." Ollie steps closer. "Helena mentioned it, when she thought no one was listening."

"And you think we should, what? Meet her for coffee?" I stare at him like he's grown a second head. "Ollie, according to everything I've heard, Jasmine makes Helena look like a cuddly teddy bear."

"I know what they say about her," Ollie says. "But she's the only person Helena fears. The only one who might be able to stop her."

"Or make things a thousand times worse!" I throw up my hands. "We're talking about a witch who was locked up for literally consuming other witches for their power!"

"There's no time to find another solution," Ollie insists, his voice rising slightly.

"Helena is moving tonight. I heard her talking about the preparations.

" He takes a breath, calming himself. "You have natural magic, untainted by spells or rituals.

The kind that can disrupt other magic temporarily.

Like the wards." Ollie's eyes are pleading.

"I know how to contact her, how to tell her when the wards are down.

She's been waiting for an opportunity for centuries. "

I shake my head, backing away. "This is insane. We need to go to Ash, tell him what Helena's planning."

"There's no time!" Ollie grabs my arm, surprising me with the strength in his thin fingers. "By the time you convince him, by the time he rallies his supporters, it will be too late. Helena is moving tonight."

I pull free of his grip. "I'm sorry, Ollie. I appreciate the warning, but releasing Jasmine Wickersly sounds like jumping from the frying pan into a nuclear reactor. I need to warn Ash."

I grab my jacket from the back of my chair and move toward the door. "You should go before someone sees you here. I'll handle this."

"Miss Smith, please! Listen to me!"

I push past him, turning to look back one last time. “I have to go.”

But I don’t go far.

Helena stands in the doorway, her tall frame blocking the light from the hall. Behind her stand several Blood Moon Coven members, their faces hidden beneath their hoods.

“You won't be going anywhere, Rose Smith."

The door bangs shut behind her with the finality of a coffin lid closing.