Page 19 of Wolf Trial

“Precisely,” Mortem agreed with relish.2

“In more positive news, I received feedback from Reed about where you all should be placed.” She glanced up at us. “Are you excited to learn your houses?”

“Mortem, a woman just died,” I said flatly.

She ignored that. “By satisfying coincidence, you all placed in different houses. Lawrence, you are now House of Silver.”

“Which means what?” he asked, dismissive. “I have to give up all my gold jewellery?”

Mortem levelled him with a look. “It means you are patient, wise, and cold, and will do well among others like you. Your sleeping arrangements remain unchanged, but you’ll find a new family in House of Silver. Once you’ve passed basic training, you’ll take all your classes with the other Silver slayers. You’ll find each house has their own strengths and methods of slaying.”

Lawrence scoffed but said nothing else, so Mortem fixed her eyes on the rest of us.

“Paige, you placed in House of Blood, among our most ancient, commanding, and regal slayers.”

Paige threw Elix and me a panicked look. I gave her what I hoped was an encouraging smile.

“Elix, you now belong with House of Stone, where no grudge is forgiven, and no forgiveness is offered.”

My smile this time was easier. After what Elix had been through, I could picture her among grudge-holders and vengeance-seekers. She deserved revenge, with a grandfather as evil as hers.

“Sadie,” Mortem said, and I may have forgotten how to breathe when her attention settled over me. As if this was the most important thing that would happen to me.3 “You placed among the House of Sun, with our most passionate, powerful, and loyal slayers.”

Jesus. If she thought I was powerful, she was going to get a very rude awakening. Loyal, though? I could do that. And passionate? Well, I was certainly passionate about getting out of this office, back to our room, and hiding in the four-poster bed all night. And at least the sun didn’t immediately make me think of gore and torture.4

“You’ll discover more about your houses the longer you’re at Lunova Academy. For now, all you need to do is attach this pin to whatever you wear.”

She handed each of us a pin, and I was quite relieved to see the golden sun badge wasn’t a dismembered head as I pinned it to my shirt. Elix got handed a silver pin in the shape of a tombstone. Paige’s rose-gold pin was a drop of blood. I didn’t get close enough to see Lawrence’s, but it was probably a silver spoon.

“That’s all,” Mortem said, and dismissed us without a warm, fuzzy speech about keeping us safe, driving out the killer, and ensuring our physical and mental wellbeing at all times. Why waste energy reassuring us when she could just buy another kidnapped slayer?

Had Gran got to the Maldives by now? Was she lounging by the sun, waited on hand and foot by a handsome young man with a waxed chest, perfect hair, and a sexy accent?

I tried not to let it get to me as we slouched out of Mortem’s office, Sidonie staying behind to discuss something with the headmistress.5

“How much faith do you have in this investigator guy?” Paige muttered. “Mine’s at an all-time low.”

I nodded, distracted by the sight of Fioranna’s body swinging from the staircase in my mind, then Suri’s empty eyes, staring up at me accusingly. Cold sweat beaded on the back of my neck.

“Yeah, exactly,” Paige said, and I glanced up as we walked—hopefully in the direction of our rooms—to see Elix’s written reply: I don’t think they’ll care if the killer comes for us next.

“Pretty sure they’ll care if they run out of slayers. It can’t be cheap recruiting newbies if they’re paying us and whatever shitty family member decides to sell us.”

As Elix wrote her reply, I tried to clear the vision of Suri’s empty eyes from my memory, at least until my head hit the pillow tonight, when I knew it would return and refuse to leave. My heart hadn’t slowed, beating frantically, and the more I tried to control my breathing, the shorter my breath became.

So when an arm cut across me, the scent of cupcake-sweet perfume drowning all my senses, I wasn’t exactly in my right mind. And when I saw it was the It Girl—Reverie, I’d found out—and that she’d snatched the small book from Elix’s hand, I went completely still.

My feet stopped. My eyes narrowed. Lips pressed into a flat line that Reverie should have seen as an omen. Lava surged into my veins until my temperature sky rocketed. It happened in the space of a second, my temper a lit fuse.

I erupted. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” I snarled, not even trying to be nice as Reverie danced out of my reach, a twinkling laugh filling the air as she flipped through the notebook. Her court jesters were present, I saw, Oona, her second in command snickering even if the third, Maveline’s eyes shifted guiltily from the book to Elix.

“Rev, maybe we should—” she began, but her ringleader spoke over her.

“We’re worthless to them,” she said, violating Elix’s privacy by reading her thoughts aloud. This book was full of shit she’d shared with people she trusted, not power-hungry bullies. “You’re right about that,” she quipped, her ponytail dancing as her shoulders vibrated with laughter. “Your kind are worthless here.” Her sneer moved to Paige and I, as if humans were even less than worthless.

I ripped the book from her hand, the page in Reverie’s hand tearing, and the sight of that frayed paper fanned the flames of my rage. I’d been shaky and on edge all day, and all my instability came raging out now as I returned Elix’s book and shoved Reverie with my palms flat on her shoulders.

“You touch her book again, and I’ll rip that ponytail out of your fucking head,” I hissed.