From The Ashes (The Ministry of Curiosities #6)(13)

I discovered that the two girls whose hands changed to furry paws could in fact change their entire person at will. Sometimes, however, it happened without them realizing. I'd noticed the fire starter lighting the fire in the grate once with her fingers, but there was little more to her trick than that. She conjured the fire and it came. She also never felt cold, a fortunate side effect. Then there were the two girls who could move objects simply by thinking about moving them. It was eerily similar to Reginald Drinkwater's magic, and that put them in direct danger if the killer ever learned of their existence. They were safer here than anywhere, even with Alice's occasional dream coming to life.

While the two body shifting girls knew about the other, the rest all thought they'd been the lone freaks in the school, or in the world, in the cases of some. Most had been sent to Inglemere by guardians who were frightened of their magic, with Alice being the only one whose actual parents had sent her. The parents of the other girls were all deceased, although some were well informed about their magic and all had been urged to keep it a secret. Learning that there were other supernaturals in the world aside from themselves lifted their spirits enormously.

Meredith and I explained our abilities, and not a single girl screwed up her nose when I mentioned raising the dead. I went to bed feeling as if I'd accomplished something important, something that would change those girls' lives more than learning needlepoint or how to greet a duchess. For the first time since leaving Lichfield, I didn't feel so alone, or that my life had come to an end. My future was still uncertain, but I wouldn't be too upset to stay longer at the school. I could endure Mrs. Denk if I had friends.

She summoned me to her office the following afternoon. Dread settled like a lump in my stomach, as I traversed along the grey stone corridors. Had she heard us talking? Did she think us all mad? What if she isolated me from the other students?

I paused at a window. The sun's rays were weak, wintry, but I'd been kept away from windows since the workmen arrived, and I craved a glimpse of the sky. A carriage waited on the drive near the castle steps, a black clad driver huddled into his caped great coat. We had a visitor. How unusual.

It wasn't until I drew closer to Mrs. Denk's office that I realized the visitor must be inside, and that the visit must be on my account. Otherwise, why summon me?

I paused at the door, my heart in my throat. I didn't knock. My hand felt too heavy to lift.

As it turned out, I didn't need to knock. The door opened.

He opened it. Lincoln.

The sight of him sucked the breath from my chest. I couldn't tear my gaze away. I took in every inch of his face, from the tied back hair to the stubbled jaw and small grooves around his mouth. They were more pronounced than the last time I'd seen him, and I had to dig my nails into my palm to stop myself stroking them away. The shadows beneath his pitch black eyes were also deeper. He must have had little sleep. It should have felt like a victory, but it did not.

"Charlie." His flat voice gave nothing away, although the heavy swallow was a small sign that he wasn't entirely indifferent to seeing me. His gaze, too, darted across my face, as if he were comparing the sight to his memories.

I steeled myself against the sudden rush of blood through my veins, but to no avail. It warmed my face, pumped my heart faster, and set every part of me on edge. I certainly wasn't indifferent to seeing him, but I wasn't yet sure how I felt.

"What do you want, Lincoln?"

"I want to take you home."





Chapter 4





"We're going to miss you." Alice drew me into a fierce hug and sniffed.

"And I you," I said. "I'll write often."

"That would be wonderful. I never receive correspondence."

She passed me on to Meredith who also asked if I'd write. "Of course," I said. In her ear, I whispered, "Take care of one another. You never have to feel alone again."

She gave me a wobbly smile. "Thank you, Charlie. I'll never forget you and what you did for us."

I laughed. "I didn't do anything except point out some things you would have observed sooner or later." To the ghost hovering just behind her, I added, "Take care of them, Sir Geoffrey. Keep the French at bay."

He nodded solemnly. "You're a courageous lass. Safe journey."

I hugged each of the supernatural girls, and once again told Alice that if living at the school became unbearable, she only needed to write. I'd first mentioned it when I'd returned to my room to pack and inform the other girls that I was leaving. Alice had sat in shock for a long time, her eyes full of unshed tears. It had taken some convincing before she believed she would be fine without me, and that her dreams might not come alive again now that she knew her trigger. At least she no longer felt as alone as she had before. She had friends in the other supernaturals.

Our farewells were all too brief. Lincoln wanted to leave Inglemere immediately to catch the train out of York early the following morning. I was not looking forward to the journey back to London with him.

"Goodbye Miss Holloway," Mrs. Denk said with a flare of her nostrils. "It was a pleasure having you at my school."

"If it was such a pleasure, why did you punish me at every opportunity?"

If I hadn't felt Lincoln move to stand at my back, I would have known by Mrs. Denk's gaze lifting and the flattening of her lips. "She exaggerates," she said.