Page 73 of Petrify

“Be honest,” Baz demands. “Tell her.”

A high pitched ringing starts up in my ears.

Reece hates me. I know he hates me now. “While I was gone, I searched you up. Found your home. Found?—”

But I don’t look at Reece, I’m looking at Baz the whole time, staring back at the dark eyes watching me, waiting for my reaction.

He’sdefendingme. This is his version of protection. Of affection.

I don’t hear the rest of what Reece says. “You can’t kill him,” I say, but my voice doesn’t sound like my own. There’s no power behind it.

“Can’t I?”

I run. Like a coward, I turn and run. My legs take me to the practice room, where I wait in total silence for Henri. And when he arrives, I continue our lessons with a smile. Pretendthat I know nothing about the missing and injured maintenance worker. That I know nothing about Bastien or Arnie oranyof it.

A better person would alert Ms. Byrne or Maxim or the Beauchenes. I know that.

It’s late in the evening when I finally muster up the courage to go to my room.

The hallway looks exactly as it should: no blood stains, the curtains and rugs perfectly straight. No signs of a struggle.

Maybe I am losing my mind.

I curl up on my side atop the sheets on my bed, hugging my knees to my chest and burying my face in the blankets.

For a while I’m alone, and then there’s the sound of heavy footsteps across my room.

He stands before me. His clothes and hands are clean. But there’s a single spot of blood on his mask.

“You’re fucking crazy.” The whisper shudders out of me.

He laughs under his breath. “So are you.”

And then his fingers are in my hair. Possessive and calming all at once. “Don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me.”

“They’re going to fire me.”

“No they won’t.”

“They’re going to kick me out. I need this job, I can’t?—”

“You’re staying here,” he says, gripping my hair tighter to angle my face up towards his. “What have I told you?”

“You’re insane.”

Something dark settles into his voice. “AndIhaven’t pretended to be anything else.”

Chapter 37

The Ghost

It’sunfortunate that my Mallary doesn’t want to be honest with herself, even when I’ve proven that I can take on all this darkness for her. That Iwantto protect her from the shadows she’s constructed around herself.

Soon, she’ll understand. I’m sure of it.

I make the mistake of not slipping into the walls at the earliest opportunity, lost in my musings. It’s late, anyway.

As I turn the corner in the east wing, Leo waits, standing in the middle of the hall, his little crony a casual ten feet behind.