It was hot inside, and the air was thick with the scent of deodorant and perfume. As the three friends made their way to the front desk, Lottie could feel the other students’ gazes following them. Was there anywhere they could go without being stared at?
A redheaded prefect from Conch House stepped out in front of them, a badge on her chest reading “Jess Parker-Scott.” She flashed a smile at them, nearly blinding Lottie with her perfectly bleached teeth. Oh no. Not more questions.
But this wasn’t the type of question she’d been expecting. “Excuse me, have you girls considered applying to Rosewood’s international partner to partake in one of our award-winning summer schools?” Her eyelashes fluttered. “You can learn valuable skills and even earn extra marks toward your exam results, all in the peaceful setting of Japan.”
The girl shoved a glossy pamphlet into each of their hands, her perfect crimson manicure glinting like talons. “They’re still accepting late entries for Rosewood students, but you only have three days left to apply.” Her smile widened, her teeth radiating an inhuman glow.
“Thank you.” Lottie tried not to cringe away from her dazzling smile. Over the girl’s shoulder she spotted a teacher handing out envelopes. Exam result time. The whole reason they were here. “If you’ll excuse us . . .”
The three girls slipped by as the prefect turned to another group of students. Lottie, Ellie, and Binah approached the desk. This was the moment they’d been waiting for. When they found out if all their hard work had been worth it.
“No pressure, then,” Lottie mumbled. “Good luck, everyone.”
Liliana’s secret study was cold in comparison to the warm sunshine outside. Instead of blossoming flowers, there were fleece blankets and dusty furniture, a topaz glow from the torches and fairy lights illuminating their hideout in the bowels of the school, where they’d come to open their results.
Binah immediately began setting out the beanbags and cushions in a circle, while Ellie fumbled in her bag.
To the left of the study an ancient relic stood out among their decorations. Liliana’s desk. Inside one of its drawers hid a centuries-old diary. Lili’s diary.
With their exams finished, Lottie intended to take the diary home and learn everything she could about her mysterious ancestor.
“Oh, Lottie,” Ellie wheezed between sneezes. “My parents asked me to give you this.” Ellie handed her an envelope, which was wax sealed with the wolf crest of the Maravish royal family.
Lottie eased it open to find a letter inside. It was only a few lines long, yet the words made her inexplicably nervous.
Congratulations on another successful year of playing the princess.
The Maravish royal family thanks you for your continued and indefinite service.
The letter was signed by King Alexander himself and embellished with his personal stamp, a crimson triangle with three surrounding circles, a symbol Lottie had only seen once before. It was a sign that he’d written this letter personally.
“What does it say?” Ellie asked, leaning over to see.
“It’s just a thank-you. Nothing to worry about.” Her fingers tightened around the parchment, crumpling it into a ball.
Loud footsteps echoed down the stairwell, and Lottie quickly shoved the letter inside one of the antique drawers in the desk.
“This is stupid. C’est ridicule.” Anastacia’s distinctive French accent carried into the room ahead of her, Micky and Lola Tompkins and Raphael following nervously behind while Percy casually brought up the rear. The five of them wandered into the study.
“How dare they?” Anastacia’s voice was low, and Lottie noted she was wearing her sunglasses again, chestnut hair tied up in a messy bun, a particularly bad sign for the girl who treated her hair like a rare vintage car.
“What’s going on?” Ellie asked, but they all ignored her.
“Anastacia, it’s going to be okay,” Lola chirped, recoiling immediately when Anastacia furiously turned on her.
“It’s not going to be okay, Lola. This is the worst news I could ever have received.”
Wordlessly Percy placed a comforting hand on Anastacia’s shoulder. For anyone to shout at Lola like that . . . well, whatever news Anastacia had just received, it must have been terrible.
Lottie watched from across the room. She felt the emotional scars from the Tompkins Manor tear open like a fresh wound. It was no surprise they were arguing; there was so much they hadn’t processed yet.
“Ani,” Binah began, taking a cautious step toward her. “Just take a deep breath and tell us what’s going on.”
Panting like a trapped animal, Anastacia slowly began to relax, holding Binah’s gaze to anchor herself, each heavy breath slowly becoming steady.
“It’s Saskia.” Still angry, Anastacia shuddered. “The Partizan council agrees that Saskia was brainwashed by Leviathan, but Rosewood’s bursars are saying she won’t be allowed back having missed a year. Something about their strict policy on failing grades.”
Lottie felt Anastacia’s gaze on her through the sunglasses, as though Saskia being locked up in the Maravish dungeon after being persuaded to kidnap the princess was somehow Lottie’s fault.
“Can’t she retake her classes?” Ellie offered with more concern than Lottie was expecting.
“It’s not just that.” Anastacia planted herself on the love seat in the middle of the room, a crown of gold LEDs floating above her like stars. “The council said they could pull some strings if she’d give them information about Leviathan, but . . .”
The atmosphere in the room froze over. They could all guess where this was going. Getting Saskia to talk about the mysterious Master of Leviathan was like trying to force-feed a lion, and just as messy. A spell had been cast on the Partizan. At the mention of the name, her gaze would turn distant. It was a vacant look—scared. Nikolay had told them what she’d said when they’d first interviewed her:
“I don’t want him to be disappointed in me.”
Their countless interviews with Saskia had given them only one solid fact: that whoever the Master of Leviathan was, he had a stronger hold on his minions than they could ever have imagined.
“It’s okay, Anastacia,” Lottie
