Allyra clenched her fingers around her bed sheets, angry with herself. She should’ve persisted with questioning Alex, she’d been a coward and now she was paying the price. The seed of doubt that Mandla’s warning had sown in her mind now blossomed, vines twisting through every memory of Alex, making her question everything.
She had to know – surely someone could tell her his story, someone unbiased.
*
Allyra didn’t wait to put her plan into action. She slipped silently out of bed early the next morning, giving up sleep as a hopeless cause. As early as she was, Gemma had beaten her to the dining room. She was picking aimlessly as a bowl of porridge, looking even more exhausted than Allyra felt.
Allyra sat down in front of her with not a plate, but a tray of food. After the huge effort she’d put into the test last night, she was starving. “Morning.”
Gemma looked up and gave her a wane smile.
Allyra took a bite of the scrambled eggs, and her eyes widened. “God.” She muttered, taking another bite. “These are the best eggs I’ve ever tasted!”
Gemma grinned, “Gavin would love to hear that.”
“Gavin?”
“The chef. We have a dedicated kitchen team looking after us. Gavin is in charge of them all – but unlike most chefs he’s not completely consumed by his own ego. In fact, he’s always worrying that the food isn’t good enough.” Gemma replied with a smile.
“Mmmm, definitely introduce me, but only after I’ve finished this.” Having demolished the eggs, Allyra moved onto a fruit salad covered in the richest, smoothest yogurt and golden sun-ripened honey.
Gemma didn’t reply, she just looked down and continued to pick halfheartedly at her food.
“So…” Allyra started the conversation innocently, “I was a little curious about the Gates.”
Gemma looked up, a question in her eyes.
Allyra rushed on, acutely aware that she was still terrible at acting and lying. “I mean – they tell me opening of the Gates have been banned for a long time and I’m the first person to have gone into the Between in generations, so – it makes me a little curious. I’d like to understand more about the history of it all…”
“Makes sense I guess – I’m not very good at history. I did a lot of sleeping in history class…” Gemma frowned, apparently deep in thought. “Jason would probably be able to help you. He’s one of those annoyingly clever people who know everything about anything.”
“I don’t know…” Allyra replied uncertainly – Jason did not seem like the unbiased source of information she was looking for.
“Yeah – I get it. He’s not exactly approachable.” Gemma considered again, “I guess you could ask Master Marais – he’s the History Master here. But fair warning – I slept through a lot of history classes because he’s ridiculously boring. Once he gets going…”
Allyra grinned, “Thanks for the warning. I’ll take my chances.”
“Well… it’s your funeral… Try and get him in the morning – he tends to prefer a liquid lunch.”
Allyra raised her eyebrows. “Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind.” She looked up, Jamie was joining them, he looked sleepy and tousled and she felt a flood of affection sweep through her.
He took one look at her now empty tray. “Hungry?” He teased gently.
Allyra grinned, unruffled by the teasing and finished her orange juice in a single gulp. She got up, “I’ll see you later.”
Jamie grabbed her hand quickly, “Wait, where are you going? Don’t you want to do some training?”
“Sure, I’m going to shower – I’ll catch up with you soon.” She replied, the lie slipping off her tongue easily – too easily.
Jamie watched her carefully, and for a moment she thought she might not have fooled him. Finally he nodded and let go of her hand. “You can find us in the Combat Arena.”
She nodded, and walked away quickly. She had no intention of training – she needed answers and now.
It was twilight by the time she made her way to Master Marais’ rooms. She’d purposefully ignored Gemma’s advice. She didn’t mind if he was a little drunk – in fact, she preferred three sheets to the wind; after all, she didn’t want him remembering their conversation in any detail.
Alcohol was banned from the dormitory, but that hadn’t stopped her. Her Gift for the past had come in particularly useful in this case – she’d been assaulted by Lin’s memories every time she got close to her – full of illicit excitement and arrogance. So it had been easy enough to swipe a bottle of alcohol from her belongings. Twenty-year-old brandy – someone certainly had expensive tastes.
Allyra knocked lightly on the door. She heard shuffling and muted grumbling and it was a couple of minutes before the door was opened. The face that greeted her was flushed – apparently the liquid meals extended past lunch to include dinner…
“Yes?” Master Marais demanded, “What do you want?”
“Master Marais?” She asked, demurely.
She continued when he nodded. “Master Marais, I have some questions about Gifted history and everyone I spoke to agreed that you’re definitely the best person to ask. So – I was wondering if you might have some time to spare. I brought this.” She held up the bottle of amber liquid and watched as his eyes lit up. She bit back a triumphant grin.
“Yes, yes – of course. Please come in.”
The room he led her into was messy and dark; it was a cross between a study and a sitting room. The big, mahogany desk standing in the center of the room was beautiful, with intricate roses carved into the dark wood, but it was completely obscured by stacks of paper, open books and a few empty bottles. There were two armchairs in front of the desk, made of a type of carpet-like material that might have been fashionable in the seventies.
Master Marais cleared an armchair by shifting a stack of books onto the
