voice anyway. “Flaunting her spells until even the most obtuse of her neighbors must have noticed—for all of our protection, she should have been pacified for good, and you know it!”
“What do you mean, ‘pacified’?” I said.
Mr. Gregson waved away the question impatiently. “Olivia was no menace to any of us. No matter what mistaken choices she may have made, she was still a Guardian and our own former colleague, even after she was exiled from our Order.”
Colleague . That was what Mama had meant, in her diary, when she’d spoken of keeping her witchcraft a secret from her colleagues. But it hadn’t worked. And Lady Fotherington had wanted her “pacified” … for exactly the same witchcraft that she’d passed on to Angeline.
My hands curled into fists at my side.
“All of that is ancient history,” said Mr. Gregson. “It can do nothing for us at this point but rake up painful memories. The only point of interest now is that Miss Katherine cannot be blamed for breaking rules she did not even know existed. As she was not yet a member of our Order when she committed her acts of witchcraft, she cannot be banished from the Order for doing so. I am sure she will never be so foolish as to do so again, now that she knows better.”
“Mm,” I said. My nails bit into the palms of my hands.
“In the meantime, though, she may have inadvertently put herself into some danger, and I must look into … hmm … Yes.” His voice strengthened with decision. “Katherine, you will have to bring Olivia’s books to us for safekeeping. There is no other choice.”
“No other choice but to give you my mother’s magic books,” I repeated. Elissa would have been proud of me. I didn’t hit anybody, scream, or run, and I even managed to keep my voice as cool as if we were discussing the weather at one of Stepmama’s endless tea parties. “And why is that, exactly?”
“If someone sensed your workings, if they felt that particular combination—no, there isn’t enough time to explain the whole matter now,” Mr. Gregson said. “I must hurry to our library to begin my research. If I stay there until dawn …” His words dropped to a worried mutter underneath his breath as he turned away. “Yes, yes, we may still be able to avoid …”
He might just have walked away and left me then, except that Lady Fotherington spoke. “You truly have forgotten Olivia, haven’t you, Aloysius?” She swung around to face us. “Do you really imagine that this …” Her gaze raked up and down my nightgown and short hair, and I had to resist the impulse to smooth down the tufts I knew were sticking up. Her lips twisted. “This young lady is going to prove so biddable as to fetch you her mother’s most intimate belongings simply on your say-so?”
Mr. Gregson turned back, blinking. “No? I have told you, Katherine, I was Olivia’s tutor. I shall be your tutor as well, you know, now that you have found us.”
“Shall you, indeed?” I said, as icily as Lady Fotherington herself might have done.
But he looked too distracted to notice. “Yes, yes. I train all our new members, you know. I am the historian of our Order. But I don’t have time to explain matters fully to you tonight. I have an appointment early in the morning, and there is much to consider beforehand. I must go to our library now, before I lose any more of the night hours. Yes.” He nodded. “You may go home now, my dear. Come back tomorrow night with the books, and we shall have our first proper lesson. I’ll explain it all then, I assure you.”
If he had known Angeline, he would have known how dangerous it was to trust an innocent smile. I smiled as innocently as I could. “Very well,” I said.
“Oh, Aloysius, you fool,” said Lady Fotherington. She shook her head. The smile that spread across her own face was insufferably smug. “If we don’t have time for explanations, you’ll need far more security than her word.”
“What do you
“What do you mean, ‘pacified’?” I said.
Mr. Gregson waved away the question impatiently. “Olivia was no menace to any of us. No matter what mistaken choices she may have made, she was still a Guardian and our own former colleague, even after she was exiled from our Order.”
Colleague . That was what Mama had meant, in her diary, when she’d spoken of keeping her witchcraft a secret from her colleagues. But it hadn’t worked. And Lady Fotherington had wanted her “pacified” … for exactly the same witchcraft that she’d passed on to Angeline.
My hands curled into fists at my side.
“All of that is ancient history,” said Mr. Gregson. “It can do nothing for us at this point but rake up painful memories. The only point of interest now is that Miss Katherine cannot be blamed for breaking rules she did not even know existed. As she was not yet a member of our Order when she committed her acts of witchcraft, she cannot be banished from the Order for doing so. I am sure she will never be so foolish as to do so again, now that she knows better.”
“Mm,” I said. My nails bit into the palms of my hands.
“In the meantime, though, she may have inadvertently put herself into some danger, and I must look into … hmm … Yes.” His voice strengthened with decision. “Katherine, you will have to bring Olivia’s books to us for safekeeping. There is no other choice.”
“No other choice but to give you my mother’s magic books,” I repeated. Elissa would have been proud of me. I didn’t hit anybody, scream, or run, and I even managed to keep my voice as cool as if we were discussing the weather at one of Stepmama’s endless tea parties. “And why is that, exactly?”
“If someone sensed your workings, if they felt that particular combination—no, there isn’t enough time to explain the whole matter now,” Mr. Gregson said. “I must hurry to our library to begin my research. If I stay there until dawn …” His words dropped to a worried mutter underneath his breath as he turned away. “Yes, yes, we may still be able to avoid …”
He might just have walked away and left me then, except that Lady Fotherington spoke. “You truly have forgotten Olivia, haven’t you, Aloysius?” She swung around to face us. “Do you really imagine that this …” Her gaze raked up and down my nightgown and short hair, and I had to resist the impulse to smooth down the tufts I knew were sticking up. Her lips twisted. “This young lady is going to prove so biddable as to fetch you her mother’s most intimate belongings simply on your say-so?”
Mr. Gregson turned back, blinking. “No? I have told you, Katherine, I was Olivia’s tutor. I shall be your tutor as well, you know, now that you have found us.”
“Shall you, indeed?” I said, as icily as Lady Fotherington herself might have done.
But he looked too distracted to notice. “Yes, yes. I train all our new members, you know. I am the historian of our Order. But I don’t have time to explain matters fully to you tonight. I have an appointment early in the morning, and there is much to consider beforehand. I must go to our library now, before I lose any more of the night hours. Yes.” He nodded. “You may go home now, my dear. Come back tomorrow night with the books, and we shall have our first proper lesson. I’ll explain it all then, I assure you.”
If he had known Angeline, he would have known how dangerous it was to trust an innocent smile. I smiled as innocently as I could. “Very well,” I said.
“Oh, Aloysius, you fool,” said Lady Fotherington. She shook her head. The smile that spread across her own face was insufferably smug. “If we don’t have time for explanations, you’ll need far more security than her word.”
“What do you
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