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"I don’t have any idea where Vivian or Lucretia are," I told the sword "You know if I had the slightest clue where they were hiding, I’d be out there leading the charge against therumbled "And more’s the pity that you don’t know Because I would be happy to cut them to pieces for you"

His half of a mouth turned down into a sullen pout, as if he’d just lost out on his favorite treat I sighed I knew if I didn’t do so to cheer hiht And people thought teenagers were temperamental Please They should spend soo for a ride?" I asked

Vic rolled his eye "Well, it would certainly beat staring at the botto yet another nap Even I can only sleep for so long"

I grabbed the sword, pulled the blade out of his scabbard, and propped Vic up on top of theThen, I pushed the cart back into the stacks and started shelving the rest of the books

Vic kept up a steady strea on and on and on about all the horrible things he was going to do to Lucretia the next time the tords met in battle Every once in a while, I chimed in with an uh-huh or an of course you will or even a really? But Vic didn’t need ht the sould have talked forever-whether or not he had an audience

Finally, I shelved the last book, turned the cart around, and headed toward the checkout counter The library was closing in ten o back to ht

I steered the cart down an aisle until I caht my eye, and I turned my head just in time to see someone duck behind a bookcase several feet away

I froze, wondering if I’d only i tricks on ap in the bookshelves Sure enough, a second later, I saw soht The figure had its back to h the shadows that cloaked this part of the library

I sighed One of the reasons the library was so popular was because kids loved to sneak into the stacks and hook up with their latest crush-and eren’t talking about just a little kissing, like Logan and I had done Oh no Lots of the Mythos students thought that going All the Way in the library was a supercool thing to do Whatever I always hated it whenever Nickamedes made usting things, including used condoure was one of the warrior whiz kids who’d just made out with his current honey Or maybe one of ht Stacking up books so they’d eventually tip over and scare aiven what had happened in the dining hall, I wouldn’t put it past Helena or so to ju out of -or worse

Wary now, I pushed the cart forward, ure Apparently, for once I’d eased all the squeak-squeak-squeaks out of the wheels because they barely made a sound as I rolled the cart across the floor

I’d just stepped into another crossway, trying to catch up to the figure, when the edge of a black robe whipped around a bookcase twenty feet ahead of htened around the cart’s handle Because hookups or not, pranks or not, Mythos students did not wear black robes-Reapers of Chaos did

Heart pounding, I grabbed Vic off the top of the cart and hurried after the figure

"What are you doing?" the sword asked in a slightly muffled voice, since histhe cart behind? You’ve got to take it back to the counter too"

"Shut up, Vic," I murmured "I think there’s someone else in the library"

But the sword didn’t listen to me "Of course there’s someone in the library Your friends are here, re a black robe"

Vic’s purplish eye widened, and I felt his mouth curve into a smile beneath my palm "Bloody Reapers," he said with obvious relish "Let’s kill theain and raced forward We were on the back side of the library, behind the glass office coain voices e of one of the bookcases and peered around the corner

Oliver and Alexei stood about thirty feet away from ued earlier tonight I’d thought perhaps the two of them had slipped back here to hook up, but then I noticed that they were glaring at each other Had so between them already?

"You should distance yourself fro to go well for her tomorrow At the very least, she’ll be expelled from the academy I don’t have to tell you what theReapers"

Oliver chewed on his lip Apparently, he knew that the Protectorate could execute uilty I wondered if the others knew too Probably My friends had grown up in the ical world They knew the rules-and the consequences of breaking the out his hand "Can’t we just go back to the way things were over the holidays?"

For afilled his eyes, and he stared at Alexei’s hand, obviously wanting to take it But he slowly shook his head

"Gwen’sto abandon her just because she’s in trouble, especially since she didn’t do the things the Protectorate said she did She aler and keep it safe froht we found her in the forest by that Gar that had happened"

Alexei sighed and slowly dropped his hand to his side "Maybe she was, but that won’t be enough to save her Not frouilty, and so will anyone who aligns the on their feet and not quite looking at each other Guilt twisted my heart Oliver finally had a chance at happiness, and he was pushing it aside because of me I don’t know that I would have done the saan had been standing in front ofwith me with like that Oliver was a far better friend than I was-

Once again, I spotted a flicker of movement in the stacks My head snapped in that direction, and I tightened rip on Vic

"Come on," I whispered "Show yourself"