Shiloh nodded.
“I knew he was going to say that.” Ethan grinned at Connor. “You owe me five dollars.”
“Get going.” Tess shoved Ethan in the direction of the house while she headed south into the woods.
Connor and Ethan picked their way through the forest, maintaining an appropriate silence now that the mission was under way. The forest ended abruptly. A perfect line of trees demarcated the beginning of what Connor guessed was a perfectly manicured lawn when it wasn’t covered with snow.
Ethan whispered, “Is that a house? Really?”
“Not terribly cozy looking,” Connor replied, “is it?”
Though enormous and undoubtedly appointed with every amenity a person could want, the harsh angles of the glass-and-steel structure seemed cold and uninviting.
“Our job should be pretty easy.” Ethan pulled out a pair of binoculars. “Most of the exterior walls are just giant windows.”
“I’m okay with easy,” Connor said, grabbing his binoculars. “What exactly are we supposed to be looking for?”
“Suspicious activity.”
“And what constitutes suspicious?” Connor asked. “I mean, besides if we see them standing in robes, chanting. Is a goat randomly wandering around suspiciously?”
“Do you see a goat?” Ethan stood up. “Where?”
“I meant in theory.”
“I don’t think we need to mess with goat theories.” Ethan lifted his binoculars again. “Okay, got someone. Female. I’m guessing she’s about twenty.”
“I see her.” Connor tracked the girl as she walked through her living room. She settled onto a sofa and began to read a magazine. “Can you see what she’s reading? Is it suspicious?”
“Shut up.”
“Hey.” Connor elbowed Ethan as another person enter the room. “She has a friend.”
“Male,” Ethan said. “Same age, I think.”
“Are you saying this stuff because you want me to write it down?” Connor watched the boy pour himself a drink. “Well, now I’m thirsty.”
The boy sat down and began a conversation with the girl.
“Are we supposed to have fiber optics so we can listen to this?” Connor asked.
“This mission is all about keeping Holt in check by addressing his complaint, while not really giving in to his demands.” Ethan put his binoculars down. “We aren’t spies, Connor. We’re warriors. And the war is over.” He waved toward the house. “Look at them. Without magic they’re just spoiled kids with big bank accounts. They’re nothing to do with us.”
Connor didn’t answer. He was staring through the binoculars at the third person who had entered the living room.
“Connor, are you listening to me?”
“Ethan, look.”
“What’s wrong?” Ethan crouched beside Connor.
“Just look.”
Logan settled on the sofa beside the girl. The three young Keepers seemed to share an easy rapport.
“Tell me that’s not Logan Bane.” All the humor had left Connor’s voice.
“Shit.”
“Exactly.” Connor put away his binoculars. “All right, let’s go.”
“Go where?” Ethan frowned at him.
“Grab him,” Connor answered. “Logan isn’t just a kid with a big bank account.”
Ethan shook his head. “We can’t grab him. Not without Anika’s say-so.”
“You think Anika wants Logan roaming free?” Connor objected.
“Of course not,” Ethan said. “But there’s a precedent here. Anika specifically stated no engagement on this mission. We did our recon. We know Logan is here. We have to report that. Then Anika will send us right back here to pick him up.”
“What if he’s gone?” Connor asked.
“He won’t be.” Ethan nodded toward the house. “He looks comfy, don’t you think? He’s here for the long haul. He’ll never see us coming.”
“But—”
“If we take Logan without securing an order from Anika first, Holt will have a free pass to flout her authority,” Ethan said. “We can’t risk that.”
“All right. I’m on board.” Connor threw a regretful glance at the house. “Let’s go find Tess.”
ADNE FOUND SABINE waiting for her at the top of the grand staircase with a welcoming smile that made Adne sigh with relief. After the freak show that had taken place in the training room, and after she’d been forced to slink back to that site of her shame once the others had gone to retrieve her discarded skeins, Adne hadn’t known where to go other than Rowan Estate. Sabine would be there, and since she’d been leading tours all day, she didn’t know what had happened at the Academy. Thus, Adne decided that volunteering to drone on about history and architecture was much better than facing her friends. She wasn’t ready for that. She didn’t know if she ever would be.
“Nice job,” Sabine said. “You only made up the answers to five questions.”
“Sorry about that,” Adne replied. “But can you really blame me for that last one? Who asks where baby gargoyles come from?”
“I was being serious.” Sabine laughed. “I think five is the new lowest number of BS answers for a first-timer guiding a tour.”
“In that case, thanks . . . I guess,” Adne said.
Sabine slung her arm over Adne’s shoulders. “All right, my dear, you’re off the clock now and our boys are preparing for that mission—so we have to take this opportunity for a girls’ night out very seriously. What sounds fun?”
“How about a hike?” Adne blurted, and felt her heart clench as she waited for Sabine’s reply.
“A hike?” Sabine cast a wary glance at Adne. “You do know it’s the end of the day? There’s maybe an hour of daylight left.”
Adne looked down at her feet. “They’ll be out at night.”
“Oh, Adne.” Sabine let out a sigh. “Don’t ask me to do this.”
“Why not?” Adne straightened, locking Sabine in her gaze. “I know I’m on lockdown because of what happened here, except that no one really knows what happened, not even me. Sabine, crazy things are happening and they’re happening to me, and I am not okay. I need to know what the hell is going on.”