Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 99935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
“Me? I am four yearsss old.”
Goodness, four years old? No wonder she kept calling me old. Anyone more than five times older than you is going to seem ancient.
“Anyway, why does that matter?” I asked, veering back on track. “I already assumed they were killed by magic. What difference does it make to confirm it?”
Sabrina waited me out. “Think it through, human.”
I frowned at her, mind turning over what she said. What is it? I don’t get it. Of course they were killed by magic. Especially the super speedy vampires who could outrun a stake any day. They—
“Ooooh,” I breathed, falling back on my bed. “Of course. If they were killed my magic, then the vampires and werewolves are automatically excluded. They don’t have magic.”
“Precisely.”
I nodded to myself, then frowned again. “But still, that’s not enough. There are a lot of demons and fae in this school. That’s still dozens upon dozens of suspects.”
“Keep working that single brain cell,” she drawled. “It’ll come up with the right conclusion eventually.”
I blew out a hard breath, seriously considering how hard it would be to strangle someone who was basically just one long scaly rope. “We talked about this,” I gritted. “If you’ve got something to say, just spit it out.”
“Your instructor did spit it out. Yesterday. When he told you exactly what you are refusing to see.”
“Yesterday? What instructor? When—?”
“Demonic magic is dark magic. And dark magic is so named because it demands a price. A price that must be paid by you, a sacrifice, or your victim.”
“Of course,” I whispered, eyes squeezing shut. “Demon blood. Vampire hearts. Werewolf eyes. They’re the price that has to be paid. And if there’s a price, it’s—”
“Demonic magic,” Sabrina finished. “I couldn’t be sure before, but now I am absolutely. The one behind this is a demon. Not a fae, and most certainly not a witch.”
I lurched forward. “Can we figure out who the demon is by the horrible things they’ve been doing? Is there a certain demon known for these sick rituals?”
“No, but I can tell you that whatever it is they’re trying to do with these sacrifices, it can only be attempted by a powerful demon,” she said. “True sacrificial magic, as in the exchanging of a life—undead or otherwise—for power is advanced demonic magic. This subject isn’t even touched until your fourth year at Abaddon.”
“Do we know all the powerful demons at Abaddon?” I burst out, snatching up my notebook. “Can we make a list?”
“There are three names you know without my input. Instructor Erlik, Professor Somnus—”
“Seriously? That drunk?”
She bobbed her head. “He once fought off a swarm of griffins single-handedly. All without spilling a drop.”
“’Course he did,” I mumbled, writing his name down. “What’s the third name?”
“You know this, girl.” Her slitted eye beheld me. “Ronin Belphe.”
I hesitated a second, then wrote it down. “But these can’t be the only three, can they?”
“No, they aren’t, and it’s fortunate for you, human, that you’ve finally made a request of me that isn’t impossible. I have explored the vampire and werewolf wings for you, and now, I will explore the demon wing—finding all the demons powerful enough to make it on your list.”
“Will you be able to get into all the rooms?”
Sabrina turned her head. I followed her gaze up the wall.
“The vents?”
She nodded. “The werewolves block the vents because of their superior smell. The vampires block the vents because of their superior hearing. Demons have neither and therefore no reason to obstruct this tiny little passage into their dwellings,” she told me. “I will have no trouble moving from room to room. I dare say, this will be easy.”
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
I rolled over and slapped my alarm, too buzzed to keep sleeping for a second longer.
Sabrina had been out all night making real progress on finding Dora for the first time since I set foot in this cursed place. I’d already set my alarm to wake up two hours earlier, and I had my notebook and pencil lying on the pillow beside me, waiting for Sabrina to return.
“Okay, okay, okay,” I mumbled to myself. “First, I’ll get the list of all the suspects, write down everything Sabrina can tell me about them and their possible motives, and then... I tell Tristan everything.”
I nodded to myself, finally making it full circle to acceptance. “It can’t just be me and Sabrina following these guys and trailing one of them back to Dora. It can’t even just be me and Sabrina confronting this guy.” I shuddered thinking how easily Erlik tossed me around like a rag doll, and how even more easily Ronin exploded heads with the snap of his fingers.
“Side by side, Tristan and I can rescue my sister and avenge his brothers. He—” I trailed off, something catching my eye.
A single sheet of paper lay on Sabrina’s armchair.