Immortal Consequences(112)

Her words echoed against the walls of the mountain. Masika’s stomach churned with apprehension. A way out of the soul vow. It was too good to be true. And anything that good came with its fair share of conditions.

“How?” she asked.

It was Russo who answered.

“You’ll need to leave Blackwood. For good.”

Masika turned the words over in her mind. “And do what exactly? Go hide in the outskirts of purgatory and wait for the Demien Order to find me?”

The pair exchanged a knowing glance. Masika surveyed the silent communication. Unspoken words simmered in their eyes, a flicker of hesitance marred by secrets. It was the kind of look shared between two people who knew that what they were about to say would change everything.

“Are you two”—Masika’s voice shook as the realization washed over her—“part of the Demien Order?”

“We were,” Russo said. “But not anymore.”

Masika didn’t think. She called upon her magic, silver shards crackling in her palms, bracing herself for a fight.

Birdie raised a cautionary hand. “Please. We’re not here to hurt you.”

“You couldn’t have been Demiens,” Masika seethed, holding her ground. “That’s not possible. You’d have to have given up your humanity. Silas would have noticed. He would have—”

“He didn’t notice because we didn’t give up our humanity,” Russo interjected, a lilt of annoyance in her voice. “We were undercover for the Demien Order. Half Demiens, if you will. We didn’t give up our humanity, but we were still feeding information to the Order.”

“But we’re not anymore,” Birdie added, a pleading look in her eyes. “We haven’t been for a while.”

Panic welled in Masika’s chest. She raised her hands, her magic sparking in warning.

“The girl is too distrustful,” muttered Russo with an exasperated sigh. “I knew she wouldn’t understand. There are others we could have gone to first. We don’t have enough time for this.”

Their words scrambled in Masika’s brain, confusion clouding her mind.

“Stop!” She glanced between the two Housemasters. “Why should I trust you? You were Demiens. Traitors. Not to mention, you’ve known what Silas has been doing to us this whole time. You could have warned us. You could have saved the other nominees.”

“It’s not that simple,” Birdie sighed. “Our alliance with the Demien Order has been severed. And our relationship with Blackwood is…complicated. We couldn’t interfere with the Decennial, not without risking everything we’ve been working toward.”

Masika let out a frustrated groan. “That doesn’t make any sense!”

“Then give us a moment to explain,” Birdie pleaded.

Masika wanted to listen, but the panic had begun to spread through her limbs like a wildfire. She should strike them down now, while their defenses were low. She had the perfect opportunity. All she had to do was summon the magic and she’d be able to— “If you don’t want to hear it from us,” Russo cut in, dark eyes blazing, “then perhaps there’s somebody else you’ll listen to.”

Masika tilted her head in confusion. Before she could ask who, a sound reverberated behind her, the familiar swoosh of a relocation spell. Then footsteps. One after the other. Slow and deliberate.

A voice echoed against the walls of the mountain—one Masika thought she’d never hear again.

“My little dove…did you miss me?”

It had been years since she’d seen her. Years since she’d heard her voice.

But there wasn’t a doubt in Masika’s mind that it was really her.

Catherine.

She had the same hazel eyes, the same golden skin and tawny hair. But something about her was different. There was a hardness in Catherine’s stare that Masika didn’t recognize. No warmth. No small, knowing smile. She wore the same crimson uniform Birdie and Russo wore, outfitted with an armor corset and a pointed spear clasped in her right hand.

“Is it really you?” Masika heard herself whisper.

Catherine smirked, stepping closer.

“Oh, come on…you don’t recognize me after all this time?”

“But—” Masika inhaled sharply and dug her fingernails into her palms. “Why?”

“What Birdie and Russo told you is true,” Catherine explained, her voice steady and commanding. “We were once part of the Demien Order, but our allegiance is not with them. And it’s not with Blackwood either.”

“Then with who?”

Catherine tightened her grasp on the spear.

“No one.”

It didn’t make sense. There were only two sides—the Demien Order and Blackwood Academy. There was no middle ground. No third party. No escape from the rules that governed their world.

And yet…

The earth seemed to tilt violently beneath her. Masika swayed but regained her composure, inhaling a sharp breath.

“I don’t understand,” she whispered through gritted teeth.

“Think of us as a resistance,” Russo chimed in behind her.

Masika glanced over her shoulder. “Against what?”

Catherine’s face softened. She stepped closer, palms up in a gesture of surrender. Even though Masika’s doubt whirred inside her brain like a warning bell, she didn’t stop the other girl. She let her speak.