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Perhaps. Not necessarily. There are things at play here that I can’t explain right now. I’ll tell you more soon.

“Medra!” Theo pulled my arm before I could parse that cryptic response. “Come on. The tower is clear.” He lowered his voice. “I think Blake might let us go. But I’m sure he’s going to insist on coming along.”

Of course he would. Blake wasn’t going to let me out of his sight. And to be fair, I didn’t want to be out of it. We were stronger together. I nodded and followed Theo down to the mezzanine over-looking the common room where Blake stood talking to Visha. There was a pounding at the door, and for a moment, everyone froze. Finally, one of the wardens went to it. After a pause, she called across the room, “Two latecomers!” She opened the door, and a highblood couple practically fell in, giggling, still in rumpled finery, smelling of champagne. They’d clearly been partying late after the engagement ball. But then, they were highbloods, so they had no curfew.

Blake leaned over the balcony rail. “What is it?” I asked, coming up beside him.

A muscle ticked in his jaw. “Probably nothing. But …”

His gaze was locked on the girl, a petite highblood who I thought was a Third Year. She had her boyfriend’s dinner jacket draped over her sequined shoulders and was laughing just a tad too loudly at something he’d said, her fingers fluttering against his chest.

Blake descended the stairs with deceptive calm. Theo, Visha, and I followed. “Long night, Collette?” Blake said to the girl. His tone was polite, but I picked up on the current of steel that undercut it.

She jumped. “House Leader.” She gave a little giggle. “Just going back to our rooms. We’ll be more quiet, I swear. At least, we’ll try.” She smiled sweetly up at Blake, clearly a girl used to getting everything her way.

Her boyfriend, a tall highblood boy with dreadlocks, was trying to pull her towards the stairs.

Blake’s eyes slid to the boyfriend. “Run into any trouble in the halls tonight, Jareth?”

The boy shook his head—a little too quickly. “Trouble? Not at all. Come on, Collette. It’s past your bedtime.” His smile seemed slightly forced.

The girl giggled again. “Well, good night, House Leader.”

In a flash, Blake stood between the boy and the staircase. “Your hands. They’re shaking.” He grasped Jareth’s wrist, lifting it high enough that I could see the tremor. “Why is that?”

The boy’s eyes leaped to his girlfriend’s, but he didn’t answer.

Blake turned to Collette. “Take off the jacket.”

“But I’m cold,” she protested, clutching it around her more tightly.

In a blur of motion, he’d swept it from her shoulders. Beside me Theo groaned. Teeth marks marred the girl’s upper arm. The flesh was scalloped, rimmed with soot-dark veins. They’d cinched a handkerchief over it, but dark blood seeped through.

“I know it looks disgusting, but it hardly hurts,” Collette said quickly. “We were going to tell you. The strangest thing happened on our way back here …” She continued to babble as I stepped forward.

“She’s fine so far,” I murmured to Blake. “We have an infirmary. We don’t know for sure that she’s infected.”

But Blake wasn’t listening to me. His eyes had narrowed to slits. “She’s not fine. I can hear it.” “Hear it?”

He scowled without even looking at me. “Her blood is rotting.”

Jareth had overheard. He moved quickly, trying to get between Blake and the girl. But before he could make it, Visha was there, a dagger kissing his throat.

Blake moved towards Collette. “I’m sorry.” His voice was truly regretful. I could hear the pain behind the words.

I don’t think she’d even registered what he was going to do—and neither had I. One thrust, swift and perfect, and Blake was easing her to the floor. I stared at the girl’s body, trying to take in what had just happened, feeling morbidly grateful for highblood speed. Jareth cried out and rushed at Blake, but Visha caught him and dragged him back. She spoke soothingly to the boy as he collapsed onto a couch and began to sob into his hands.

Blake wiped his blade. Then he raised his voice, so the students he’d conscripted as guards could all hear. “Every new arrival will be inspected carefully first. Anyone with a bite mark is to be put in a room separate from the other injured, with guards posted at the door.”

He took a deep breath and looked over at me. I knew what he was about to say. “It’s out there. In the castle. It’s not contained. It’s spreading.”

I swallowed. “I don’t care. I’m going to find Florence.”

“And I’m going to find Vaughn.” Theo stepped up beside me.

“I’ll stay.” It was Visha. “You know you want to go with them, Blake. We can’t all leave. I’m your other Second. I’ll stay and watch over things here.” She looked between the three of us. “Bloodmaiden watch over you. Come back soon. Come back safe.”

Blake, Theo, and I slipped from the common room. We’d made a plan: we’d head to Sankara’s training courtyard, get some actual armor and more weapons, then head on to the Orphos Tower. House Drakharrow had an armory, but it was within the Black Keep—under Viktor’s control. Still, the Defensive Arts courtyard had storage rooms full of equipment. We’d bring enough to try to supply Lysander and his people with what we didn’t use. The courtyard was on the way, so Theo and I hadn’t put up much of a protest. Also, Blake had insisted, and we knew he wouldn’t back down.