Chapter Twenty-One: Handling It | Part 7
“BENN!” Rhea screamed. She and Thirtyx were standing now. Thirtyx’s blood plunged toward his toes, bringing a sickening hollowness to his gut. The only part of him that felt real was the hand with which he clung to Rhea’s arm.
Azirenne crouched beside Benn. She pressed her hands against the patch of blood spreading across his shirt. Two other headmistresses were scrambling onto the stage, shields of purple magic blazing before them.
The projection went dark.
Onstage, Professor C had dragged Professor Lessel off the projection orb and was bringing her back to her senses. “NO!” Rhea roared. “GET IT BACK!” She pulled toward the front of the room, and Thirtyx released her. “GET. IT. BACK.”
The kitchen doors flew open, and Professor Dexerro marched out, flanked by a rarely seen squad of security guards. “Miss Grimmary, we need you to come with us.”
“Like hells! Show me my brother, or I swear on the moons—”
The guards grabbed Rhea’s arms. Thirtyx stepped forward to help her, but a third guard intercepted him, eyes blazing with purple sparks. A numbness was settling into his extremities. The blood surging through his ears drowned out the shocked murmuring of his classmates who had stayed.
It did not drown out Rhea’s continued screaming.
“Miss Grimmary, we have security protocols to follow,” Dexerro continued. “We need to secure you as quickly as possible.”
Familiar sigils on her forearms indicated that the guards had bound her magic. Her eyes found Thirtyx as her struggling slowed. Her helpless expression made his insides twist in agony. Was this what Seerla had felt like watching him get dragged off for torture? Screaming after him as he was thrown into a river and batted around? She’d still managed to help him both times. What could Thirtyx do now?
Something hardened around Rhea’s eyes—a shift from desperation into indecision. Thirtyx understood. No one could bind her Pfah magic. She could get to Benn. It would destroy decades of Grimmary’s work to maintain his secrets, but she could get to Benn.
Would it be worth it? Even in this state, Benn would say no without hesitation. Grimmary had made his stance clear when he instructed the twins to wait for a carriage after his first attack. And Thirtyx?
He gave his head an almost imperceptible shake.
Rhea turned abruptly to a guard. “I want Thirtyx to come with me.”
“Those aren’t our orders. You must come alone.” Dexerro started toward the kitchen with a gesture to the guards. “Let’s go.”
Rhea resumed her struggling. “No! Thirtyx! THIRTYX!”
“Rhea!” He followed closely behind the guards as they dragged his friend toward the kitchens. He ignored the whispers and muttering. He ignored the cries of outrage in his general direction.
He exchanged one last helpless look with Rhea before Dexerro slammed the door in his face.
