Page 118 of The Order of the Bitter Hunt

“Precisely,” Professor Connolly says.

“How?” I ask. “How can we make it through and save Tobey?”

“That’s what we’re going to figure out,” Jun says.

He’s the calm in my storm. He looks so sure of himself that I almost believe it’s true—almost believe inusas a team. Not just him and me, but Tobey… and even Caldwell. We’re all a team.

“If there is anyone who can do this, it is the two of you,” Professor Connolly says. “Give yourself some credit. You made it this far.”

Making it through the trial isn’t my worry. Saving Tobey is.

What if I can’t do both?

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Tonight’s meeting doesn’t have a dress code, but it appears the three of us got a silent memo to wear black. It’s too early to mourn, and that isn’t the intention, but I enjoy matching. It feels like we’re a unit. Caldwell may not be able to make it into the meeting so easily. To my surprise, he brings the bird mask that’s been hiding in our dormitory.

“It doesn’t suit you.” I wrinkle my nose.

“But it may help me blend in,” Caldwell says. “This thing is involved somehow.”

“I suppose, it is..”

But we still don’t know how. The clocks make sense, but the bird mask is the final remaining mystery.

“Doubt it,” Jun says. “No one in the order dresses like that.”

“Then I’ll be the first,” Caldwell says. “I think it shows my dedication.”

“And it hides your face,” I say.

If Tobey is involved, no one must recognize Caldwell—especially my father.

This time, we’re not meeting the Order on campus, but at the vampire club I know so well. I didn’t realize it, but it’s connectedafter all, just as Tobey expected in the beginning. It’s a meeting place for the Order.

Whether they have other meetings here, I’m still not sure, but it’s the location for this one. It would please Tobey if they were here to know they were right about the club all along. They were right about so much.

There are a few cars parked around the dirt lot, but it’s less than I’m used to. It must be a private party. Soft music flows from the inside, and Caldwell waits in the car for further instructions.

We don’t know how yet, but the plan is to sneak him in later, when no one else is watching.

This leaves Jun and me approaching the door hand in hand.

We step inside to find a small party, consisting only of the Professors and the other students who have made it through the trials. Each living student has a racing heart.

“Margaux!” My father approaches to give me a big hug. He does the same to Jun, to my surprise. “And Jun. I’m happy you could make it.”

Admittedly, we’re thirty minutes late, but I don’t apologize for the tardiness.

“Thank you for the invitation, Papá.” I smile tightly. “What is the occasion?”

“Why, it’s the last trial, of course.” He leads us through the room. “Come along. The others already know their orders.”

“Great.” I hold Jun’s hand as we walk through the winding house.

Try as they might, it still looks more like an abandoned home than a club. Tonight, it feels like a maze. Where am I, and why are we here?

“This trial,” my father says, “is the hardest of all. I hope you’re prepared.”