Chapter 17: Chapter Seventeen

We sat in the bright living room, every light and lamp turned on. Everyone looked bleary-eyed and shell-shocked. Heidi and Emerald had been roused by the ruckus and sat beside their dad with fearful expressions. Emerald—who still managed to look perfect without any makeup on and after only four hours’ sleep—stroked her quetzal for comfort. Meanwhile, Geiser’s condor prowled the room like a sentry.

On the opposite couch, I sat perched with Mom. Her hand was clasped over mine in what must’ve been the most motherly display of affection she’d shown me in years. Even her woodpecker was nestled up beside me.

Nik sat in the armchair, arms folded, eyes fixed to the ground. Like me, he was covered in mud and grass stains. His owl had its eyes shut and its face turned a full 180 degrees away from the rest of us. They really couldn’t have looked more guarded if they tried.

The Marchosias guard finished his check of the grounds, returning to the room with a second guard—an Ifrit, recognizable by his charred skin.

“Everything’s safe,” the Marchosias announced.

“Now it’s safe?” Mom spat. “It was meant to be safe before!”

All her anger was directed at Geiser, and I couldn’t help but feel a flicker of satisfaction inside of me. Not because of how distraught she seemed, but because I’d not expected her to be on my side. I thought she’d just sweep this whole thing under the carpet. I mean, half the time she acted like she wanted to kill me herself. Seeing her now—doing the whole angry mama-bear routine—made me question my long-held belief that she despised me for merely existing.

“I’ll ramp up our security measures,” Geiser told her. “Get more guards.”

“How do you know it wasn’t one of them?” Mom snapped back. “No offense.”

The Marchosias and Ifrit at the door shuffled awkwardly.

“It wasn’t any of my staff,” Geiser challenged, a line across his jaw flickering with anger. “They go through a vigorous vetting procedure!”

“Well, it was someone with insider knowledge,” Mom shot back. “Someone who knew how to get through the curfew spell around the garden. And someone who knew which room was Theia’s.”

On the couch opposite me, Emerald could barely conceal her smirk. She was just loving the idea that someone had tried to assassinate me in my sleep.

But Geiser seemed frantic. “Theia was not the target of the attack!” he exclaimed. “Surely they were trying to harm me and came across Theia’s room accidentally?”

I scoffed. Even Mom wasn’t dumb enough to buy that. It was clear the attack had been targeted at me. If Geiser had been the intended victim, they wouldn’t have wasted any energy attacking me in the garden.

Mom wasn’t listening to his excuses. She shook her head. Tears fell from her eyes. She dropped her face into her hands. “It’s because she’s Elkie,” she wailed. “I knew she’d have problems if we moved here. But you promised me… you PROMISED to keep her safe.”

Mom’s eyes sparked with such intense passion I felt it like a shard in my chest. I’d no idea Mom cared that much, that she’d even thought about how hard it would be for me to come here. I thought she’d spinelessly moved me from Bear Mountain to New York City for her own selfish needs without a second thought for mine. But it had been Geiser who’d convinced her I’d be okay. He’d probably realized we came as a package and had got his hands on a veiling necklace to change me before I became a problem for his campaign. Clearly he was expecting me to be the sort of girl who’d bend to his whim, who’d be grateful for his elegant clothes and expensive education. It must’ve been quite a shock for him when I’d rocked up in my ripped jeans and chunky boots with bright-red hair and a bow at my side.

As Geiser glared at me now, I could see the utter hatred burning in his eyes. It was the same look that had come over him when he’d pinned me against my bedroom wall and threatened my life. William Geiser was a man who liked to be in control. Who liked to control everyone around him. I was the fly in the ointment. The worm in the apple. And he looked to be on the verge of snapping.

But in an instant, he wiped the look off his face and rearranged his expression into something altogether more human. It was a disquieting thing to witness.

No one seemed to notice but me.

“Vivian,” Geiser said, his voice turning to syrup. “No one is out to get Theia. I was the target. Surely you can see that? It was one of those hippy Vanpari-loving protestors who don’t want me in power because of their precious twilight hours.”

I looked at Nik. His teeth were gritted.

To my surprise, Mom flew to her feet. “We are not staying here. I will not put my daughter in danger.” She grabbed my hand and heaved me up off the couch.

Wow. This was amazing. Mom had a backbone after all.

“Where are you going?” Geiser cried, leaping up as well. He sounded genuinely pained.

“My parents,” she said.

Oh crap.

She tugged my hand. I put up a moment of resistance, not sure I really wanted to meet the people who’d disowned Mom for marrying Dad. While in a mud-stained nightdress. But then again, it couldn’t be any worse than staying here. If I could help facilitate a breakup between Mom and Geiser, it would be worth it.

Mom gave my hand another harder, more insistent tug, and this time I let her drag me toward the exit.

I just had time to glance back at Nik before I was yanked through.

He didn’t even look up.