in the outside world?” Charlotte urged. “This is important, Persie. The bones are holding together the spell that created this interdimensional pocket. If we can’t find them, we can’t do anything.”

I tapped my chin in thought. “He said his body had turned to dust, as all bodies do, but he didn’t mention anything about his body decaying inside the realm.” An idea came to me. “Maybe that’s the price he paid to have the realm built, and to trap the Wisps inside. He had to die so he could be reunited with Lorelei’s soul in their own private heaven.”

Charlotte nodded, a smile turning up the corners of her lips. “What did you just say?”

“Uh… that’s the price he paid? Or do you mean the reunited part?” She seemed to be having a lightbulb moment.

“Yes, that part!” I was still none-the-wiser. “There’s another line here—though it’s pretty smudged—that says, ‘Only when destiny is fulfilled, and what remains is brought together will the Will break.’ I think we’re onto something!” She sounded excited. “The ‘what remains is’ part can also be translated as ‘the remains are.’ As in, the bones. If we want this to stop, we need to try something unorthodox—we’ll need to find Fergus’s bones and take them to this Lorelei woman, or whatever’s left of her. Their bones need to be reunited. If they were in love, they might even be buried close to one another.”

“That’s all he wants, to be with his love again.” I rolled with her idea, glad to have her sharp mind whirring. “If we give him what he wants, then the Will might disperse, and he might let everyone go. It might even close the gateway for good.”

The pixies whizzed around excitedly, and Boudicca gave me a nod of approval. The thought of digging up bones didn’t exactly fill me with joy, but if it brought Genie and Nathan and the others back, then I was more than happy to grab a shovel. The question was, how did we get out of the Institute without being spotted or sounding any alarms?

“Please tell me there’s an escape route that won’t get us caught?” I laid my hopes at Charlotte’s feet.

She grinned. “I’ve been sneaking out of here since I was thirteen. I know back exits and secret passageways that even Victoria doesn’t know about.” Before I could argue, she stepped up to me and wrapped a firm arm around my waist. “Hold tight. This might be bumpy.” Shooting a lasso of Telekinesis up to the rickety walkway overhead, she pulled us out of the sphere’s gloomy depths as I clung for dear life, the pixies close behind.

Landing shakily on solid ground, I had no time to catch my breath as Charlotte sprinted off, out of the new wing. Then and there, I vowed to join Genie on her morning runs if I got her out of this, for the sake of my poor stamina. For now, I forced my legs to race after Charlotte, hoping my lungs didn’t give out before we’d escaped.

I caught up to her in the hallway that led away from the new wing and fell into step at her side, until she came to a halt in front of a seemingly ordinary door. Taking out a set of keys, she turned one in the lock and swung the door wide. A grand study lay beyond, complete with seven white marble dragons identical to the ones in the main assembly hall, only smaller. Elegant golden drapes covered a floor-to-ceiling window, and every available stretch of wall space was filled with packed bookshelves. The tomes looked pricey and rare—a private collection for someone important. In the center of the room sat a desk of that same white marble, with a cream wingback armchair behind it. And, sitting on the desktop, a plaque that read “Shailene Basani, Founder.”

“I take it your mom isn’t here at the moment?” I gulped, feeling like I was treading on sacred ground.

Charlotte laughed coolly. “You’re kidding, right? My mom is never here unless there’s some public show that she needs to put on a performance for.” She headed for the back of the room and pulled aside a tapestry of a roaring, golden griffin, revealing a hidden door behind it.

Is that why you act so cold? I wondered. It might’ve been the most honest thing she’d revealed to me, and I didn’t know what to do with that. Maybe being a Basani wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Kind of like being a Merlin. But where my mom shunned her fame, I guessed Shailene and Fay lapped theirs up, leaving Charlotte behind to bear the actual responsibility of the Institute’s legacy. I remembered all the things Uncle Finch had told me about the twins. Maybe this place was just another shiny magazine cover to them—a feather they could put in their caps and forget about. Maybe Charlotte felt like that, too—that she was just another accolade, forgotten about when they moved on to the next big thing.

Taking out a smaller key, Charlotte unlocked the hidden door. Cold air whistled in, making me wish I had something warmer to wear. But there wasn’t time to grab a coat, not with so much on the line.

I hesitated for a moment on the threshold, staring out at the beautiful night. The rain had stopped and a full moon shone ethereally, unhindered by cloud. Glittering specks lit the velvety dark blue sky and rolling hills stretched away before us, the calm sea off to the east.

Charlotte slipped out into the darkness and I followed her uncertainly, glancing over my shoulder to find that most of the Institute had disappeared, leaving only an open doorway in the ruins of an old, imposing castle. With the Institute being inside an interdimensional bubble and all, I didn’t know what else I’d expected. Charlotte hurriedly closed the door before taking off across the hills. She seemed to know where she was going, and so did

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