Oberon Reformatory Book Three: Final Offense Read online

  “Yes, Robbie,” I say, arching a brow at her.

  “You should probably start calling me April,” she says, changing the subject. “Don’t want to mess up and call me by my real name in front of the wrong people.”

  I nod, and her face twists into a scowl.

  “Speaking of wrong people,” she growls, “can you believe freaking Tiana Avery is here? She’s just as awful as Mom and Dad made her out to be, isn’t she?”

  “Worse,” I say. “She’s sleeping with Echo.”

  “No way,” she says, her face turning a little green. “Gross.”

  “Yeah, well, that’s not a new trick for her, is it?”

  “I guess not,” she says, and it’s obvious she’s thinking about Tiana hooking up with our Grandpa Alwyn to try to gain more power. “Have you done anything to her yet?”

  At my self-satisfied smirk, Robbie bubbles with laughter and begs me to give her all the details.

  “Well, have you noticed any hostility toward Zephyrs or hybrids?” I ask, arching a brow.

  “Come to think of it, no,” she answers. “Her hatred seems to be an equal-opportunity emotion. You Glamoured her?”

  “Not only that,” I say, my smile growing larger. “She knows I used Glamour on her. But my magic keeps her from saying a word to anyone about it.”

  “Oh, you’re evil. I love it,” Robbie gushes, giving Lark a high-five.

  Those two are sitting next to each other on the floor, their shoulders bumping as they laugh, and I feel an unwanted twinge of jealousy. Lark is my best friend—the only one I’ve ever had outside my family. Her obvious comradery with Robbie makes me realize that those two have similar personalities. That’s probably why I was drawn to Lark so quickly...she reminded me a lot of my sister.

  “So what’s the plan?” Cedric asks, drawing everyone’s attention. “We have Rory back, finally. So what’s next?”

  “I think we need to keep this reunion under the radar,” I say, and several mouths pop open to argue. I hold up my hand to silence them, adding “Just hear me out.”

  I meet the eyes of every member of the group, and each of them nods, accepting my plea to explain. Asher looks ready to argue no matter what I say, so I know I need to make this good. I have to convince them to trust me on this despite the fact that every other decision I’ve made regarding Echo and his secrets has been a disaster.

  “Echo trusts me,” I say in an impassioned voice. “And the reason he trusts me is because he believes he’s the only thing I have—in this place and in the outside world. No family. No friends. I speared you all with barbed insults, pushed you away, and left myself alone and vulnerable.”

  “How do you know he really trusts you, and it’s not an act?” Asher asks.

  “Because this,” I say, holding up my wrist and shaking it, “is now nothing but a piece of jewelry.”

  “Mine doesn’t work, either,” Robbie says, shooting some wind through the room.

  “No,” I say, “this is different. Echo removed the magic from mine. He told me to keep it on to maintain appearances, but I am free to perform magic as necessary. I just need to make sure none of the other prisoners or guards find out.”

  They all stare, mouths falling open, eyes wide with wonder. I give them a moment to process before I start talking again. I need to get this all out before the questions start flying.

  “I still don’t know what Echo’s end game is, but he has made me an integral part of it. I am to use whatever means necessary to make myself a leader in this place. I have to make sure everyone trusts me and will listen when I speak. Hence, the free sweets.”

  “So, they what? Make everyone worship you?” Acadia asks, her blue eyes wide with disbelief.

  “No, not exactly,” I reply. “They instill trust. Anyone who ate one will trust me implicitly.”

  “For how long?” Jolene asks, and I shrug.

  “Until I remove the Glamour,” I say.

  “So, he’s setting you up to be some kind of leader,” Asher says, pacing the room as he thinks. “What could that mean?”

  I try to figure it out, and while it seems like it should be simple to put all the pieces together, I just can’t. Then I remember something Echo told me.

  “Come now, Rory,” he chides, his eyebrows dropping low over his eyes. “Do not pretend you haven’t wondered why I’ve collected all these powerful faeries. Why I’ve created classes for them to attend and trained them in magical and physical combat.”

  “I have wondered,” I answer honestly, “but I’ve been unable to hazard even a guess.”

  “That is because the magic of this place keeps anyone, even powerful Fae like you, from discovering the truth. Whenever someone tries to work it out, they draw a blank. It’s beautiful, really. So simplistic, yet so effective.”

  I slap a palm against my forehead and groan. I can’t believe I forgot to tell them this.

  “It’s the magic of this place,” I say. “If anyone tries to figure out what Echo’s doing, they draw a blank. The Glamour around us won’t let us figure it out.”

  “Why does it work on you, when other magic doesn’t?” Lark asks, then looks at Robbie. “You try. Think about what Echo might be up to.”

  “I…can’t. My mind just went blank. It must be really strong magic, like, embedded in the walls or something.”

  “Exactly,” I say. “And until I can get him to confide in me, to tell me the truth, I can’t risk losing his trust. I need you guys, but we have to be careful. Especially you, April.”

  Robbie smirks at the emphasis I put on her moniker. I shake my head at her, but can’t maintain my stern expression.

  “You need to stay away from me when the cameras are around. If you need to speak to me, you cannot forget to call me Rory.”

  “I know, Rory,” she grumbles. “I am also aware that we look too much alike, and anybody with working eyes could tell we’re sisters when we stand next to each other.”

  “Yeah, she figured that out after I explained it to her,” Lark throws in, bumping her shoulder against my sister’s.

  “Shut up,” Robbie shoots back.

  “That’s not going to work,” Asher says, drawing all eyes to him. “You gave Lark and April goodies from your basket. Echo will assume they were Glamoured like the rest, and if those two don’t follow you around like good little minions, he’ll become suspicious.”

  “Maybe the cameras didn’t catch that?” Lark offers.

  “No, he’s right,” I say. “We have to assume he saw.”

  “Well, we’ll just have to walk a thin line, appearing to trust you while also keeping our distance,” Robbie says. “And if Echo notices the resemblance, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”

  The conversation fades into more personal topics as Robbie gives me news from home. She glosses over Mom and Dad, and I can tell she’s trying to downplay their angst at my continued silent treatment. It’s been weeks since they heard from me.

  I tamp down the guilt and force myself to focus on the here and now. The finish line is in sight. Echo will tell me his plan, the Con Crew—which now includes my powerful sister—will bring him down, then we can all leave this place and go home.

  I have a lot of explaining to do, and I’ll probably be put on lockdown by my parents for months, but after this place, being stuck at home with my family will be more like a reward than a punishment.

  Just a little while longer, and this will all be over.

  Chapter Three

  “I met someone in solitary,” I whisper as Asher, Lark, Robbie, and I circle our desks up in Mollie’s class. Even though the number of students is now even, our professor didn’t say anything about us grouping up as a foursome, rather than splitting into two pairs.

  “How did that happen?” Lark asks as Asher arches a questioning brow at me.

  “There was this girl crying in the cell next to mine. I was desperate to connect with someone after being alone for so long, and I coaxed her into talking to me through the wall. Her name is Cassie and she’s thirteen years old.”

  “Thirteen?” Robbie gasps under her breath.

  I nod, saying, “She’s a hybrid who was being bullied by some girls in her neighborhood…three Zephyrs. She lost her temper and control of her powers and accidentally buried them alive. They got out without a scratch, but the Zephyr judge called her an abomination and sent her here.”

  “That sucks, but it’s not surprising,” Lark mutters, then meets my eyes. “Why’s she in solitary? I don’t remember seeing any new inmate come in, especially one that young.”

  “Echo put her there as soon as she arrived,” I reply, shaking my head. “He told her she’d stay there until she learned to control her power.”

  “That doesn’t make any sense,” Asher growls. “She has a bracelet, doesn’t she?”

  I open my mouth to respond, but Mollie calls ours names and orders us to get to work before she splits us up. My eyes widen at her tone, and the others react the same way. She’s always been patient and easy-going, but today there’s an edge of urgency in her voice.

  It almost feels like panic.

  We suspend our conversation and take turns hurling insults at each other. I give myself a mental slap for my carelessness. I fell right back into old patterns, chumming up with my friends when I know I’m supposed to be remaining distant. I just told them last night that we have to keep our true friendship under wraps.

  “Okay class,” Mollie says, calling attention to herself, “we are going to end the group work now and work on public shaming. One by one, I’ll call you up to the front. I’ll pick another student to hurl an insult, and I need everyone else in the class to laugh and join in.”

  Okay, this is new. We’ve done exercises with people b
eing the brunt of hurled insults, but we’ve never been instructed to gang up as a whole unit against one person. It seems to be a little overkill.

  Mollie is visibly sweating, her eyes rolling back and forth as if she expects questions or arguments. As if she’s dreading having to explain to us this change in tactics. When no one raises a concern, her shoulders droop in relief.

  Something weird is going on.

  “Rory, you’re up first,” she says, taking a seat behind her desk.

  I drag my feet across the tile as I walk to the front of the room. Dread settles in my chest, but not because I think I’m about the get a verbal beat-down. It’s the opposite, actually.

  Every inmate in this room with exception of my sister, my friends, and Mollie ate one of my Glamoured treats. They all trust me and are beginning to look to me as a leader, so I have no idea how they’ll combat those magic-induced emotions to hurl insults at me.

  Silence smothers the room as I stop and turn to face my would-be tormentors. A few inmates smile at me, making my stomach churn. This is it. This is the moment I find out whether or not the magical treats worked, and if their sudden, unexplained trust in me causes any internal strife.

  Playing with people’s emotions is a dangerous game. There’s always a chance they could fight those feelings…and I have no idea what that might do to them, mentally. I already feel guilty for what I’ve done. Causing psychological damage, even to Angelina and her crew, would be terrible. Unforgivable.

  Alternately, if the magic works perfectly and everyone falls into line with its suggestion, they are going to have trouble trying to tear me down, which will make Mollie suspicious.

  The silence has dragged on for so long, it’s getting uncomfortable. I glance at Asher with wide eyes, and he gives me a tiny, almost unnoticeable nod before opening his mouth.

  “You’re a terrible excuse for a Sylph,” he calls out.

  Some of the tension rolls out of me, and I have to fight the smirk that threatens. Of course, I am. Because I’m not a Sylph. But most of these faeries don’t know that, and it sounds like an insult to them.

  My eyes flash to Angelina as she jumps from her seat. Her hot gaze spears Asher as she points an angry finger at him.

  “Shut up, Mutt,” she yells. “You don’t get to talk Rory like that.”

  My head flies back in shock as she turns her eyes to me, gives me a small nod, and retakes her seat. My gaze shifts from her to Asher, then to Mollie to gauge her reaction to Angelina’s outburst. Her face is blank, but there’s a tightness around her eyes and mouth I can’t decipher.

  Cedric hops to his feet, calling out, “You suck at hand-to-hand combat. You’ll never win without your magic.”

  His words don’t sting, because I know they’re not true. Not anymore. Not after my training with Echo. And even if they were true, my relief that he’s jumping into to distract everyone from Angelina’s support of me would outweigh any hurt I might have felt. Plus, as one of the few Fae who hadn’t sampled my Glamoured treats, he was one of the only inmates who should be able to realistically hurl an insult at me.

  I hear several sharp intakes of breath as inmates prepare to speak. I clench my teeth, unsure if the comments will be in agreement with Cedric’s words, or in support of me. I’m also not sure which would be worse.

  “Thank you Rory,” Mollie says, breaking the tension before anyone else has a chance to speak. “Maisy, you’re up.”

  I shuffle back to my seat, feeling a little bewildered. The whole point of the lesson was to practice enduring a mob of verbal attacks, yet Mollie had ended my turn before it even really began.

  I tune out the rest of the class as they shout insults as Maisy. My mind is spinning, trying to figure out what just happened. Why would Mollie end my practice of self-control before I even had a chance to showcase it?

  My eyes clenched closed as the answer came to me. It was so obvious, I couldn’t believe it took me so long to figure it out. This was Echo’s doing.

  I peel back the Glamour in the room to see three cameras hovering near the ceiling.

  Of course. This whole exercise has been a setup. Echo needs proof that my plan is working, and that I’m elevating myself to the position of leader in the prison population. Only Asher and Cedric called out insults, and they never ate the chocolate truffles. Angelina did eat one, and she was quick to come to my defense after being my main antagonist since the day I stepped foot in this place.

  This is all the proof Echo needs. My magic is obviously working, and my supposedly ex-friends still seem angry with me. There was no need for me to stand up there any longer.

  Pleasure zips through me, but I keep my eyes and mouth downturned so Echo won’t see it on his video footage. My plan is working, and I’m one step closer to gaining the headmaster’s trust.

  One step closer to learning all his secrets so I can crumble this place to the ground.

  Etiquette and Discretion with Tiana Avery is just as strange as our first class was. The fire in our instructor’s eyes blazes brightly every time she looks at me, her anger just as palpable as it’s been since the day I Glamoured her to be as respectful to Zephyrs and hybrids as she expects them to be to her. Yet, that isn’t the strange part.

  It’s the urgency in her tone. Her jerky movements as she explains basic manners and the reverence we must show our betters. Her comments encompass us all where they usually focus on Sylphids and the respect they deserve from all the lesser beings. It’s disconcerting, to say the least.

  “We must look to our leaders,” she says, her navy eyes darting to me before skittering away, “with the utmost respect and obedience. It is our duty to follow their instructions without question or comment, ignoring our own opinions on the matter. Their will is our obligation.”

  “What the…” Lark mutters, her dark eyes wide with confusion as she glances at me from across the room.

  “Please do not interrupt, Miss Sparrow,” Tiana says, her eyes shooting daggers while her words are calm and even.

  I can’t even smirk at Tiana’s obviously Glamour-induced respectful tone. I’m too flabbergasted by her strange lecture. It’s almost as if she helping me. Like she knows I am meant to be a leader here and is setting the groundwork for my success.

  As she continues to talk, her eyes dart to me repeatedly, and I know I’m right. Her focus on me every time she mentions the word “leader” is subconsciously hammering in the fact that I’m the leader she’s talking about.

  This has to be Echo’s work. He must have ordered her to aid me in my rise to power, because there is no way she is doing this out of the goodness of her own heart. I don’t think she even has one. And I’m sure she’s absolutely, positively detesting every moment of this.

  “Miss Finley, can I please see you after class?”

  The sound of my name startles me from my deep thoughts, and I realize the other inmates are packing their things away. Asher, Lark, Robbie, and the others leave the room without glancing in my direction, and I sigh with relief. I can’t have one or more of them jumping in on my behalf. They’re supposed to be angry with me.

  “Yes?” I ask as I approach Tiana’s desk.

  Her eyes dart toward the door as the last of the class trickles out. When she looks back at me, her dark blue eyes are shooting daggers.

  “I would like you to reverse what you did to me. Please.”

  It’s killing her to be polite, but the Glamour I used on her demands it. I cock out a hip and tilt my head.

  “Now, why would I do that?” I ask.

  “It’s not ethical,” she says. “What you’re doing to me is torture. Trying to modify my behavior to match what you think is good and decent. But who are you to decide what’s wrong and what’s right?”

  “I’m not modifying anything, Tiana,” I say, feeling my hackles rise. “You still have the ability to make your own decisions. You can believe whatever you want to believe. The only thing I adjusted was how you speak and interact with others. You can’t treat everyone who’s not a Sylph like they’re less-than. I refuse to stand for it, so I did something about it.”

  “We’re both on the same side here, Rory,” she replies, her tone pleading.

  I bite down on the inside of my cheek, breathing through the need to scream that I’d never be on her side. That she deserved to be locked up forever for what she did to my parents. That punishment was supposed to make you learn from your mistakes, and she was repeating hers like she’d learned nothing.