Twilit Mage

Chapter 42: The Liar's Truth

"There we are."

Nero led the girls through the gate, following after them and closing it behind him. Mercury's eyes darted about. They were back in the hallway of the girls' dormitory, in much the same place they had started.

"Okay," she muttered, opening her mouth for something else, but she couldn't say it. Thank you. After everything that had gone down, the words got stuck in her throat.

There was a moment's silence, then Nero bowed his head. "I'll be taking my leave now," he said. "You stay in the building. Try to keep to your rooms and lock your doors. Do not go outside."

Something tensed in Mercury's chest, dread creeping up at the thought of Raoul, still staying in his room in the boys' dormitory, so close and yet unreachable. "What?" she asked. "Why?"

"Safety reasons. We'll tell you the details as soon as the danger has passed." Nero gave them both a burning look over the frame of his sunglasses, and Mercury shuddered. "And remember, do not. Go outside."

He turned and disappeared, and Mercury and Georgiana were left standing by themselves.

Mercury's skin turned cold. Her hands grew clammy. Panic crept up on her, closing around her chest with a cold grip of helplessness.

She needed to get to Raoul. But she couldn't. The dorm was on lockdown. And there was so much she needed to tell him, so much he had to know. Maybe she could wait with it, but for how long? Why wouldn't Nero tell them what was happening? What else was everyone hiding from them?

"Do you..." Her voice came out shaky. "Do you really think there's, um...something dangerous out there? Or are they just, are they..."

"I can't tell," Georgiana replied, her eyes dark with barely-contained dread. "All we know is that we are stuck here. Who knows for how long."

Mercury tried to swallow, but her throat was dry. Her mind was spinning with the thought of what might be happening.

She had relied on Georgiana right now, she realized. She had hoped for her to have a plan, a solution, counted on her to give her some way out. But if even Georgiana was stumped, what should she do? What could she do?

Georgiana seemed to have caught her thoughts, because she sighed, closing her eyes. "You can always try to call him," she said. "Or message him. Perhaps he'll reply by now."

"Maybe," Mercury said, although she didn't feel very hopeful.

No, she shouldn't think like that. It was worth a try. Maybe Georgiana was right, and it really would work. There was always a chance, a tiny spark of hope, however small it was.

But...

"In case it doesn't work," she heard herself asking, voicing the thought as soon as it crossed her mind, "can you teach me how to open an Otherworld gate?"

Georgiana's eyes went wide. For a moment she looked horrified, as if some terrible scenario was flashing through her head, then she frowned and gave a defeated nod. "I can," she said. "As long as you promise you won't get lost."

"Don't worry." Mercury balled up her fists. "If it's just about knowing where I want to go, I'll be fine."

~ ~ ~

Raoul didn't pick up his phone. All her calls went straight to voicemail, and all her texts didn't deliver. Mercury couldn't reach him at all.

That only left her one option, then. She needed to reach him physically. No matter how risky or dangerous this might prove.