Midnight. Christi Whitney J.

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СКАЧАТЬ he had an extremely important reason,’ Hugo said, sarcasm heavy and dripping. ‘Unbelievable. Nicolas let Augustine use my brother like some kind of bargaining chip to see the Queen.’

      ‘My father had no choice,’ I replied, feeling caught between my family and Sebastian and sickened by the whole thing. ‘Augustine threatened to tell the other clans we were harboring a murderer. The Marksmen made Sebastian look like some merciless killer. Half the troupe already believed he was guilty. But then, when they let him out of that cage …’

      I dropped off. A cold chill poured through me.

      James touched my shoulder again, gentle and non-threatening. ‘What happened when they let Sebastian out?’

      ‘He wasn’t himself,’ I said quietly.

      ‘What do you mean?’ asked Hugo. He sat on the other end of the couch. I felt the tension coming off him like the heat from an engine.

      ‘I’ve seen what Sebastian can do.’ I paused, trying to find words to describe the change that came over him, but everything sounded wrong in my head. ‘What I mean is, I know how he can be when he’s forced to act as a guardian, when he has to protect me … or anyone else. But he’s always snapped back before. It was different this time. He was vicious, and his eyes … his eyes were just … empty.’

      Like an animal’s, I’d nearly added, but stopped myself. No, he wasn’t the creature Quentin accused him of being. In that brief moment – just before he’d gone so wild – he’d asked for my forgiveness, and in his eyes, I saw the sweet, strange boy whose life had intersected with mine. He wasn’t a beast.

      Something had happened to him.

      Hugo’s gaze traveled to the window. It had grown dark outside, and the glass reflected the room. The corner of his mouth tightened. ‘Do you believe he killed Karl?’

      ‘Absolutely not!’ I leapt up, suddenly shaking with a fury that caught me off guard. ‘He would never do something like that. You’re his brother. You should know!’

      ‘He’s not the same kid you knew in school. He’s a gargoyle now.’

      ‘He’s my guardian,’ I snapped. ‘I don’t care what he looks like or where he came from. He’s still Sebastian. He has the best heart of anyone I’ve ever met, and he would never … ever …’

      Hugo rubbed his eyes. ‘I’m not saying it was intentional …’

      ‘He didn’t murder Karl!’

      I pressed my hand against my mouth. I would not cry. Not in front of them. As my fingers brushed my lips, I remembered the impulsive kiss I’d given Sebastian after the trial. How he’d stared at me, so shocked and wide-eyed with that unearthly silver gaze, that it felt like my heart was going to leap through my chest.

      ‘Okay,’ said Hugo, after several moments. Both his expression and his voice were softer this time. ‘I just wanted to hear it from you.’

      Hugo walked to the front window, his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his ripped jeans. The others watched his movements the same way people in our troupe watched my father.

      ‘This was Augustine’s doing, from the very beginning,’ said James. ‘He had his shadow creatures kill Karl, then he took his books.’

      ‘And framed Sebastian in the process,’ added Vincent.

      It felt like the temperature had dropped ten degrees. ‘But why?’ I questioned. ‘My uncle … I mean, Augustine … had his own collection of shadowen books. I remember his library when I was a child. It was mostly fairy tales and stories, same as Karl’s.’

      ‘I think Karl had more information than we knew,’ said Hugo.

      A moment passed. Then another. The four tattoo artists locked stares with each other. The veins in Hugo’s neck bulged. Goosebumps rose along my arms.

      ‘Whatever Augustine took from Karl is the least of our problems,’ said Hugo at last. He ran his hands through his wiry hair. ‘Maybe he’s using my brother to gain safe passage into Savannah, but he wants Sebastian for himself.’

      ‘Sebastian’s sealed to me.’ I clutched the dandelion pendant at my neck. Though I hadn’t believed it at first, there was no longer any doubt in my mind. He was my guardian. I was his charge.

      ‘I know,’ said Hugo, sounding resigned. ‘But Augustine has wanted Sebastian from the start. After everything that went down last autumn, I thought he’d given up his quest. But it looks like I was wrong. Augustine knows there’s something special about him.’

      My stomach rolled uneasily. I’d known Sebastian was special, even before he’d become a gargoyle. I’d never met anyone like him before. But the way Hugo used the word sounded different. Ominous. ‘What is it?’

      James sighed heavily. ‘We don’t know.’

      All my scared feelings funneled back into anger. ‘Well, what do you know, then? I came here because I thought you could help Sebastian. You’re the ones who turned him into a gargoyle in the first place.’

      ‘People don’t turn into gargoyles, Josephine,’ Hugo replied. ‘Shadowen have to be created. Their bodies are carved from special stone and then brought to life with prah.’ Hugo paused, as though working over several thoughts in his head. ‘You know what Sebastian looked like when you first met him, and how he is now. There’s something unique about him.’

      Vincent pounded his fist against the wall. ‘Now, Augustine has him.’

      ‘Augustine was ordered to take Sebastian directly to the Court of Shadows for trial,’ I said. ‘If he had failed to show up, the Council would know. And so would my father.’

      ‘Josephine’s right,’ said Hugo. He moved behind the counter and stared at the wall calendar near the register. ‘The High Council is scheduled to meet in three days. That gives us time. But we should leave tonight.’

      ‘When?’ asked Vincent.

      ‘Midnight,’ Hugo replied. Then he turned back to me. ‘Thank you for letting us know what’s happened. I’m sure you’re being missed right now. You’d better get back to the Circe.’

      ‘No. I have to get to Savannah.’

      Hugo frowned. ‘What good would that do?’

      ‘I’m going to testify on Sebastian’s behalf.’

      ‘So tell your father to take you.’

      I hesitated. I hadn’t been allowed to set foot inside our primary Gypsy Haven since becoming the Queen’s successor. But I couldn’t tell the Corsis that. ‘Look,’ I continued quickly, ‘I have to get to Savannah before Sebastian goes on trial. I’m a Romany. The Queen has to see me.’

      ‘Josephine.’ Hugo’s voice was firm. ‘I get where you’re coming from, I really do. But you’re not coming with us. Besides, what do you think would happen if Nicolas discovered you just took off and left the Circe without permission?’

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