Wither & Wound (Mythverse #3)

Chapter 3

3

Two weeks later, Mavis is still alive.

Fern has told me that Mavis refuses to say a word. Literally. The only sounds that come out of her are screams of pain. But she holds her silence, refusing to confess or incriminate anyone else.

I’m refusing to give my witness testimony as well. At least not until Mavis is officially granted a trial. It’s the only leverage I’ve got.

Well, that and Themis. Mr. Zee has been on the verge of setting Mavis afire multiple times. Only Themis has been able to step in front of him and convince him that the Academy is in a fragile place right now, and such a move might scare away already spooked parents.

Honestly, I don’t know if practicing good PR is really what sways Mr. Zee. He’s not his usual robust self these days, so Themis is also able to physically steer him away from Mavis. His mind seems even worse off than his body, so once Mavis is out of sight, he usually forgets all about her for a while.

But he still hasn’t officially committed to a trial and until he does, I live in fear that a day will come when Mavis won’t have Themis to stand between her and Mr. Zee.

Which is why today, like every day, I come and knock at Themis’s door, hoping she’ll tell me Mr. Zee has finally relented and will grant Mavis a trial.

Actually, today I don’t have to knock. As I approach, the door opens and Hepa comes flying out. She’s in such a hurry that she slams into me. I grab hold of her to steady us both. But she quickly jerks away.

“I’m not in the mood to dance right now,” she snaps and then hustles away down the hall. Hepa can be a little bitchy at the best of times, so I shrug it off.

“Edie, I was expecting you,” Themis says dryly from where she’s waiting by the door.

“With good news, I hope?”

“Perhaps.” She hesitates, then gestures for me to enter. “Please do come in first so we can talk freely.”

Once she’s settled behind her desk and I’m seated in what I’ve come to think of as the ‘student supplicant’ chair, Themis says, “I believe we may be able to tip Zee over the edge today. Three vampire students were pulled from the school late last night. It’s very unusual for such a thing to happen on the eve of a new term. But after Larissa’s death…” Themis sighs.

“Hades clearly saw an opportunity and has been wooing the vampire parents, assuring them their undead offspring will be better appreciated at his Underworld Academy.” A look of annoyance crosses her face. “As if education is about appreciation. Do you know what they learn at UWA? Nothing. It’s a dark smelly frat house that will over time actually leach whatever brains they might have right out of their heads. I mean, Hades won’t even lend us a handful of zombies for the war…”

At the mention of the war against the monsters, Themis sighs, falling back into her chair. “Of course, that hardly matters now that Mr. Zee has called a halt to all missions. He wants to keep all of the students on campus, ready to rally to his side in case he’s attacked. Luckily, Maddox’s last raid really took the fight out of the monsters. They never thought we’d stoop to killing civilians. Well…I might not have, but Maddox Tralano certainly didn’t hesitate. Of course, I don’t condone such an action, but it can’t be argued that the monsters seem less interested in taking the offensive these days. They actually seem content to be left alone. But you can never trust—”

I clear my throat, because Themis seems to be getting started on a rant and I can see it might go on for a while.

She blinks and focuses in on me once more. “Edie, yes.” Themis clears her throat. “As I was saying—” Before she can finish that sentence her door smashes open and Mr. Zee himself staggers in.

“Whaddya want?” he demands, scanning the room several times before his eyes finally lock onto Themis. “There ya are, old Missy. A regular gnat in my ear these days, aren’t cha?” He squinches his eyes shut as if in pain. One of his giant fists comes up to pound his chest…and I can’t help but notice the skin visible around his toga doesn’t look its normal healthy color. He’s almost a bit grey. Mr. Zee’s eyes open wide once more as he releases an enormous burp. The smell of it makes me gag, though I try to cover it with a cough.

“Zee, yes,” Themis says, smiling cheerfully, not at all disturbed by his messy state. “So glad you could make this meeting with Edie.” Themis sends me a significant look, which I can’t quite interpret.

“Right, right. You’re honored. She’s honored.” He lurches toward the sideboard and grabs the decanter sitting there, which I assume is filled with ambrosia. Ignoring the glasses laid out alongside it, he simply brings the carafe to his mouth and chugs.

If Underworld Academy really is like a frat house, I’m tempted to suggest that Mr. Zee might like it better there.

“Now, Zee,” Themis says, as he finishes and wipes his mouth with the hem of his toga—I quickly look away, focusing on Themis as soon as it becomes clear he’s about to flash the room. “I know we both agree that it is of the utmost important that we keep Edie here at Mount Olympus Academy.”

As Themis’s eyes lock with mine, I finally understand where this is going.

“I appreciate that,” I say. “But having been raised among humans and as an American, I have a strong belief in maintaining a fair system of justice. I can’t see myself staying at an institution that doesn’t have those same values.”

Themis gives me an approving nod. Mr. Zee meanwhile replies with…raspberries.

“Thhhhbbbttt.”

Themis wordlessly hands me a handkerchief to wipe the stray spittle from my face.

“Yer not going anywheres,” Mr. Zee slurs. “Cush you don wanna die. And to attend the Underworld Academy, you’s gotta be dead.”

Oh. I honestly hadn’t been aware of this. I guess that explains why Hades was focusing on recruiting the vampires.

Themis, though, seemed ready for this line of attack. “Actually, Zee, I believe it’s Athena who’s attempting to recruit Edie here. For sss Academy.”

This gets Mr. Zee’s attention. He stands tall and looks as if he was struck by his own lightning. “Born right outta my head and gettin’ craftier every day. Damn Athena.”

“Yes, that’s what Hades said,” Themis says dryly.

Mr. Zee’s eyes go wide and he wheels toward me. “It’s a trial you want? Even though we all know she’s guilty?”

I nod. “Yes sir.”

“Fine then. Fine! We’ll have it. But it’ll be a trial combined with a luau. Did you know they have luaus all the time at Underworld Academy? Apparently, it’s a big selling point. Well, our Academy can have luaus too. There will be a big roasted pig and hula dancing and everyone will get lei’d.” He snickers at this and is smiling as he adds, “And then we’ll declare your sister guilty and kill her. It’ll be a great time—the Mount Olympus Academy way!”

And with that he disappears, teleporting away.

“Well there we go,” Themis says, folding her hands and trying to look pleased. “You’ll have your trial.”

I hurry back across campus to catch up with my friends about this latest development. There should be a sense of relief—I’ve convinced the highest authority in the land that my sister deserves a trial over t*****e. But somehow I don’t feel like this is a story with a happy ending. I’m hoping someone—probably Cassie—will be able to put a good spin on it.

But just as I near the dorms, Val steps out of the shadow between two buildings.

“Edie, I heard about your sister. Are you okay?” There’s an expression of concern on his face, which isn’t really like him. Usually Val appears slightly mocking or else totally unreadable.

He’s been off campus during the break between terms, visiting Larissa’s family in Russia. When Themis mentioned vampires getting pulled from the Academy, I did wonder if it was Val and his twin sister, Tina. Relief flares inside me as I realize he’s still here. I want to throw my arms around him and sob onto his shoulder like Fern did to Marguerite.

But Val led a bunch of other vampires to kill Nico’s mom, Maddox. He didn’t say so outright, but he didn’t exactly deny it either. And Maddox was powerless at the time. Her ability to shift had been stripped as punishment for her murder of Larissa.

A long time ago Cassie warned me that vampires lived by their own code. She didn’t mention, however, that revenge was such a cornerstone of that code.

I stick my hands in my pockets and just nod. “Yeah, I’m okay. Actually, I just found out they’re gonna give Mavis an official trial. So that’s good news.”

Val frowns. “How is that good news? It’ll be a circus and at the end, the gods will still kill her.”

Yeah, that’s exactly what I was afraid of—count on Val to reinforce my fears. But I refuse to agree with anyone predicting Mavis’s death. “Maybe before then I’ll figure out a way to bust her out.”

Val shakes his head. “No way they’ll let her escape a second time.” Finally, Val seems to notice that his pessimistic attitude isn’t helping. “Sorry, Edie. After everything with Larissa.” His eyes go dark and I can see anger simmering there. “My parents were ready to transfer us, but Tina begged to stay. For her résumé. Everyone knows Underworld Academy is just a party school. She wants to be a vampire ambassador and those positions go to Mount Olympus graduates.”

“Oh,” I say, realizing how close I’d come to possibly never seeing Val again. “And what about you? Did you want to stay?”

His eyes lock with mine. “This place is poison. But I’ve got to watch out for—”

“Tina,” I cut in. Feeling disappointed, although I have no reason to be.

“No.” Val’s hand softly cups my cheek. I gasp from the cold and a puff of smoke escapes my mouth. “Not just Tina,” he says.

“Edie!” From behind me, I hear Fern calling. I turn and the ice of Val’s hand slips away. “Wait,” I look back, but he’s already gone.

Fern is out of breath as she approaches. For my sake—and Mavis’s, too—she’s been running herself ragged lately. Literally.

As one of the top healer students here, and one of the most likeable people on the planet, Fern has access to parts of the school that are closed off to me. Namely, Mavis’s prison cell. Fern had volunteered to be the healer in charge of prisoners, and so for the last two weeks she’s been allowed to go in everyday to assess Mavis’s condition.

Fern tries to spare me the worst of it, but from the pained screams that sometimes escape the walls of the cells, it’s obvious that the gods are doing more than just asking questions. Still, each day Mavis writes me a note telling me she’s okay. And for me to be strong. And she ends it with a joke. Yesterday’s was: “Why did the chewing gum cross the road?” She answers the joke the next day on the back of her newest note. At first I thought she was just trying to keep my spirits up, but then I realized this was a way for me to know the notes were coming in order and that she was the one writing them.

Now Fern gives me a hug and at the same time presses a piece of paper into my skirt pocket. I knew she was a spy for the monsters, but I never knew how good she would be at it.

“I just heard the news about the trial,” Fern says with a hopeful smile.

“And luau,” I add wryly.

Her smile falters slightly. “Yes…but I think we can use that to our advantage as well. Tell Mr. Zee that the luau needs to be top-notch and have Merilee research and Themis order the proper supplies. We can drag it out for quite a while that way.”

This is the dose of optimism I needed.

“Come on,” I say to Fern, my spirits lifting as I hook my arm through hers. “Let’s go tell everyone else the good news.”