Disguised as Thessaly Crux, complete with bandaged hands, and praying my Shifter ability didn’t let me down, I snuck along the network of walkways in search of people.
I wanted to see what these cultists really did in their spare time, and I wanted to put together a lay of the land so I had my bearings. Finch’s warning about the Hexagon had made me want to go there even more, as that was likely where Katherine’s office was. That had to be the reason he’d been so intent on me avoiding the place. If I was careful and kept to the shadows, I felt I could pull it off.
Besides, all I wanted to do was get an idea of the security there and, most importantly, try to find out what people knew about this upcoming ritual, and whether they had any idea where my mom’s spirit was being kept. As I’d told Finch, I couldn’t risk him being wrong about that.
Still, I decided to take a detour first to check out the nightlife in the cult and see what these people did with their evenings. It was more to decipher how much security I might come across than anything else. It didn’t take long before I found myself back in front of the beehive that Tess had shown us on her whistle-stop tour of the cult, my eyes drawn like a moth to the glowing lights coming from within.
I peered in through one of the windows and saw that most of the tables were full now. Drinks were flowing, and the people inside looked happy. They were all talking and laughing, the sound floating out into the night, as if what they were doing was the most natural and wonderful thing in the world. If it weren’t for the human experimentation on the opposite end of this island, an onlooker would think that the Cult of Eris was just some in-touch-with-nature, grassroots sanctuary for magical misfits.
I turned away from the beehive and headed down another set of walkways, toward the path that Tess had led us across to reach the Hexagon on the other side of the island. Twenty minutes later, I found myself in the shadows of the jungle, looking at the hulking great building, with its rusty exterior and looming walls. Katherine seemed to have styled all of the other buildings on the island in this design, sticking with the hexagon. It was interesting that she’d chosen to implement this shape in the making of her interdimensional realm. I’d read that bees did the same, using hexagons because they required the least amount of material to hold the most weight in their hives. And Katherine clearly thought of herself as the queen bee.
Up ahead, I saw lights flickering and people moving around, crossing a slanting bridge between the walkways above and chattering amongst themselves. They were coming in and out of a central doorway in the center of the Hexagon, which seemed to be the only way to get inside. I knew I had to be careful if I wanted to check it out. The real Tess could be around here somewhere, and us encountering each other would be nothing short of a disaster.
I sank back into the shadows cast by the overhanging trees and wondered what Wade was doing right now. I missed him so badly that it was actually starting to hurt. What I wouldn’t have given to have him here with me, right now, taking away all my worries and fears. We’d only been apart for less than twenty-four hours, and I was acting like we’d been separated for a lifetime. Then again, it had been a heck of a long day, and it wasn’t even over yet.
“Are you on detail tonight?” My ears pricked up as I heard voices up ahead, two figures walking together on the lower walkway beside where I stood. It led up to the bridge into the Hexagon.
“Yeah, I’m covering Georgia and Arlo on guard duty,” a second voice replied.
“Until when?”
“Until I get told I can leave.”
The first voice snickered. “Hey, at least it’s a promotion. I’m watching the labs until six. Might as well be in a pigsty.”
“Same thing, isn’t it?”
“Funny what happens when you take away their humanity, isn’t it? It’s like they really are animals underneath.” The first speaker sighed. “I envy you, man. I’d give anything to guard the ingredient instead.”
The second voice snorted. “Ingredient? Is that what we’re calling it now? This isn’t Masterchef, dude.”
Their voices drifted out of range, leaving my mind racing. Was the ingredient my mother’s spirit? It seemed pretty likely, given where we were, but then, I didn’t know the ins and outs of the rituals. There might’ve been more than one thing Katherine needed to make it work.
Determined, I crept along the walkway in an attempt to follow them, keeping my distance. Nobody would bat an eyelid if Tess went inside the Hexagon, but I was still worried she might already be in there.
Glancing behind me to make sure nobody was following, my mind turned toward Finch. Would he be okay at the hut on his own? He had the medallion if anything went wrong, and I couldn’t feel him calling for help. I didn’t know what it would feel like, exactly, but Krieger and Wade had charmed my pendant to pulsate against my chest if either of us was in trouble. If I had to run back, the hut wasn’t that far.
I kept to the lower walkway for as long as I could, trying to get a better look at what was going on, spotting the two guards a little way ahead. Even in my Tess disguise, I had to be wary. There were more guards stationed in front of the main entrance, and pretty much every cultist would be looking out for suspicious behavior. I’d have to play it cool to get past them and act like Tess would—no nonsense, no drama, all ferocity. The National Council and their agents had set them all on edge, which wasn’t exactly useful for us. But, surely, they wouldn’t say a word to me, looking like this?
The flow of people was almost like a hive, with them coming and going to different parts of the island in an endless flurry of activity, meandering across the interlinking walkways to either head back to the main compound or go into the Hexagon for their nightly duties. I could see the lights of the beehive clusters I’d left, in the distance, but I couldn’t go back now. Those two guards were headed into the Hexagon, and I needed to follow them, in case they led me right to my mom’s spirit.
“What are you doing out here, sneaking around like a thief in the night?” A voice hissed from behind me, making me jump. I whirled around and came face-to-face with Kenneth Willow.
Panic ricocheted through me like a gunshot, making my heart beat so hard I thought it might fall out of my chest. Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap! And then, I remembered who I was masquerading as. In my fright, I’d forgotten. Tess wouldn’t take any trash from this guy, and I wasn’t going to, either.
“None of your business, Willow,” I shot back. “Shouldn’t you be in the infirmary, licking your wounds?” I assumed they had an infirmary. If they had a torture playground, they had to have some kind of hospital. Priorities, right?
He scowled. “I wasn’t even hurt. I have no wounds to lick, thank you very much.”
“Could’ve fooled me. The way you were flat on your ass, I thought you’d never get up.” I smirked at him. “Oh, wait, no, I wished you’d never get up.”
“I only stepped in because you were too weak to do the job.”
“Ah, so you admit it, you were second choice?”
He glared at me. “I wasn’t second choice! Eris knows how powerful I am, so she makes sure I don’t have to do all the trivial stuff—she needs me to put my energy elsewhere, where it’s actually needed. You’re just lucky I covered your ass, instead of making you do the trial with your sad little hands.”
“You forgetting the reason I burned my hands, momma’s boy? I was on a real mission for Eris, not some stupid distraction to get you out from under her feet.”
“Well, I’ve never been injured in the field.” He stuck his nose in the air.
“Then you haven’t been working hard enough.”
He looked about ready to explode. I was tugging at all his little insecurities, knowing exactly how to get him riled up. The kid tried to act so damn tough, yet he couldn’t even spring Le Fay or kill Finch. He probably had the lowest success rate of any member here. It was a miracle Katherine hadn’t offed him yet, and I had no idea how he’d managed to weasel his way through the trials. Maybe, thanks to the Ryders, he hadn’t had to endure them.
“Anyway, the field missions don’t matter to me. They’re trivial labor, too, as far as I’m concerned.” He leaned back on the walkway fence. “I’m sure I don’t need to remind you that I am integral to the rituals. You aren’t. You’re nobody, as much as you’d like to think otherwise. I don’t recall Eris assigning you to an important position.” He tutted smugly. “Green isn’t a good color on you, Tess.”
“Oh yeah?” I balled my hands into fists. This conversation was about to get violent. Kenneth seemed to be itching for a fight, and I was more than ready to give him a second round. I’d knock him flat on his ass again, same as before. Although, you don’t have any Electro ability, remember? I kept forgetting I had rules to conform to.
“You want me to prove just how easily I can beat you?” Kenneth’s eyes narrowed.
I was about to reply when I felt a warm, burning sensation at the top of my chest, right where the pendant lay. It was too bizarre not to be the warning trigger that Krieger had set up. Finch had pressed the medallion, and he was calling me back. He’s in trouble.
“I wouldn’t want to embarrass you for a second time today,” I retorted. “Anyway, I’m busy. I don’t have time for stupid games or you peacocking around the place. Go and do your rounds, or whatever it is you’re supposed to be doing.” I pushed my reverse Empathy onto him, just to make sure he did as I asked. I filled him with a sudden feeling of anxiety and a desperate need to go and check on his duties. His face changed immediately, his gaze veering over my shoulder toward those distant lights.
“Same goes for you, Crux.”
I let him have the final word as he shoved past me, heading into the gloom. As soon as he was gone, I took off down the walkways at breakneck speed, sprinting for the stone hut. I just hoped that, wherever the twerp was headed, he didn’t end up running into the real Tess. If he did, they’d have a very confused exchange. I mean, nobody could point a finger at me or Finch as the Mazinovs, but there’d definitely be word of a Shapeshifter messing around with Kenneth.
Then again, I wondered how many people here would love the chance to mess with Kenneth’s head. There’d probably be a line-up as long as my arm if anyone suspected any foul play.
Safe in that thought, I ran through the darkness, praying I wasn’t too late to help Finch.