Young Writers Society

Shane really wasn’t anticipating being this close to death for the second time within twenty-four hours. Certainly not while he was alone. But the others were all busy, and Favia had been sure to isolate him from the crowd. If she killed him here, it could take hours for him to be found. His thoughts were spinning in a panic, and he grabbed at the only one that might save him now: he had to keep her talking. She was a brick wall, but the alternative was resistance, and there was no chance he could fight back. It was the only way to buy himself more time.

“How long has Sparrow had you in his pocket?” Shane asked.

Favia narrowed her eyes. “That is not the nature of our work relationship.”

“Oh, so you’re doing this for him out of the goodness of your heart,” Shane said. “Or lack thereof, I should say.”

“And I thought Kasumi was the annoying one,” Favia grumbled.

So he was frustrating her. Good. And she hadn’t slit his throat yet, for some reason, which was even better.

“Are you really planning on gutting me like a fish in this stairwell?” Shane asked flatly.

“No,” Favia said. “Sparrow might, once he learns you’re alive. He’ll be thrilled to have the chance at killing you again.”

“Saints, what did I do to offend him?” Shane asked, with mock horror. “Did I not shake his hand hard enough when we agreed to his phony deal?”

Favia huffed dryly. “Enough of this.” She pulled him off the wall, now holding him in front of her, with the blade still pressed firmly against his throat. “Let’s see how effective he is at shutting you up.”

Panic sparked through Shane. It hadn’t been enough. It would take too long for anyone to notice he wasn’t where he was supposed to be, and by then he could be—

Footsteps came rushing up the stairs. Then something heavy turned the corner and bowled into the two of them.

Shane barely had time to register how lucky he was that Favia’s hand moved away from his throat before he was falling. He landed on the stone stairs with a grunt as a sharp pain pierced through his ribs. Turning over, he was stunned to see that Favia had fallen against the wall, knife harmlessly lowered at her side, as Kaja’s fist came flying toward her face. The bodyguard slumped, and he knew she was unconscious even before she hit the stairs.

Utterly shocked, he stared up at Kaja, who casually wiped the back of her hand off on her red suit.

“You’re—” he started to say.

“Just doing my job,” Kaja said, offering him a hand to stand up.

Shane’s thoughts were blank for the moment before he accepted it, and she hauled him up. “What about— what about the party? You’re supposed to be going around distracting people and keeping them off our scent—”

“Shane,” Kaja said, with a shake of her head as she let go of him, but her voice didn’t have the usual mocking pity he expected from her. “You think anyone would actually task me with the job of going around and being nice to people? That’s hilarious. I’m pretty sure that would only make everyone more suspicious.”

Shane blinked, as a realization started to settle in.

“So…” he said quietly.

“My job’s to watch over you,” Kaja said. “And make sure you don’t get into any trouble. Told you we weren’t really in need of a bodyguard.”

He hadn’t been the only one with a hidden plan, then. It had probably been debated around the same time he’d been working with Cyrin on his own.

“Whose idea was that?” Shane asked, looking down at Favia’s collapsed form.

“Mireya’s,” Kaja said. “She thought you might be at ‘elevated risk’ in particular. I now see why.”

Shane nodded slowly. Right. If Cyrin knew about Sparrow’s responsibility in the murder of his parents, it was entirely possible that Mireya did too, and that she also suspected the existence of some kind of grudge. He owed her quite the thank you after this.

But he owed Kaja one too.

He took a deep breath, looking up and meeting Kaja’s eyes.

“Thank you,” he said quietly. “You rarely get the credit for it, but you do a lot to watch out for us. I won’t forget it, and I won’t take it for granted, either. The way you care matters, too.”

Kaja seemed almost embarrassed at his words, but she managed to hold his gaze. He wasn’t sure by the expression that fluttered over her face, there and then gone, but for a moment she seemed… touched.

“Thanks,” she murmured.

Both of them were quiet for several seconds. Kaja finally shook her head, snapping out of her daze as she took a step downwards.

“Come on,” she said. “We should go back to investigating the party.”

Shane took a glance upwards. Favia had taken him this way for a reason— was it just to corner him away from any help, or was there really something happening up there? He didn’t know which, and he didn’t feel ready to check it out yet.

“Actually,” he said, “I think we should go back, but to gather some reinforcements instead. There might be… something up there.”

Kaja followed his gaze. “Something like Sparrow?”

Shane swallowed. “Maybe. I don’t know.”

He was half-expecting her to ignore the suggestion and charge up the stairs anyway. But to his surprise, she nodded and turned around, waving him along.

“Let’s go, then,” she said. “Mireya and Dawn probably have their hands full, but maybe we could pull Leilan and Kasumi away if they aren’t busy with anything. If not, maybe I could enlist Marius.”

“Marius?” Shane asked, confused, as he started to follow after her. “Could he really help?”

She clicked her tongue. “Oh, he’s like you. Tougher than he looks.”

Baffled by that statement, Shane took the stairs down behind her in silence.

When the two of them reemerged into the ballroom, Leilan and Kasumi were nowhere to be seen. This could’ve meant they’d seen something, since they were supposed to be on lookout, just like him. Still, their absence worried him.

“Where were they last?” Kaja asked.

“Talking to Casper Bridger,” Shane said, still scanning the room. “But they’re not over there now…”

He spotted Casper in a different part of the room, but he was no longer with Kasumi or Leilan. When Shane saw who he was speaking to instead, however, his blood froze. Cyrin was standing in front of him, fashionably dressed in a black suit, locked in some sort of argument. Looking at them now, Shane couldn’t believe it was the same person he’d seen wasting away this morning in Crystal City, or the near-lifeless form they’d left at the hotel. They seemed so… well. Alive. There was a fierce light in their eyes, and they stood tall as a stream of angry words left Casper’s mouth.

In a daze, Shane slowly started walking that way, gradually speeding up until he was moving at the closest speed to a run he could manage in a crowded room.

“Shane? What—” he heard Kaja call after him, but she went silent, most likely from realization.

As he got closer, Cyrin’s head snapped away from Casper, and their eyes met Shane’s. A wide grin spread over their face, and Shane felt himself do the same. Cyrin burst away from Casper, and before Shane knew it, the two of them were locked in a hug.

“Excuse my lateness,” Cyrin said. “I had to freshen up first.”

“How— how are you here?” Shane found himself laughing with unexpected delight. “Are you— is this my suit?”

“I may have gone through your wardrobes. Leilan was too short, and Kaja was too tall,” Cyrin said, the grin still apparent in his voice. “You’re a little skinny, but it fit. Hope you don’t mind.”

“You look better than me in my own clothes. I’m suing.”

“How the fuck,” Kaja blurted at Shane’s right, “are you alive and upright right now?”

“Good to see you too, Kaja,” Cyrin said, finally pulling back from Shane.

“Yeah, yeah, but the question stands.”

Before Cyrin could respond, Casper stepped up behind him, looking over Shane and Kaja with disdain. There were very few people on the planet who could manage to regard an Heir with scorn, and apparently, Casper was one of them.

“Are these your little friends?” he asked snidely.

“Yes,” Cyrin said. “They’re also my ticket out of this conversation. Enjoy the rest of your party.”

He then rushed away, Shane and Kaja only a step behind. Shane heard Casper sputter in angry disbelief behind them, but he didn’t appear to be following.

“You two have a strained relationship, I can see,” Shane said.

“You know him?” Kaja asked, surprised.

“I am unfortunate enough to be his brother,” Cyrin said, walking determinedly to the side of the room.

“What?” Kaja demanded, and Shane realized he’d forgotten he was the only one on the team who knew.

“And yes, strained. He tried to kill me once. That was fun,” Cyrin added.

“What?” This time, Shane and Kaja spoke in unison.

“So, back to business. Where are we headed?” Cyrin asked, as if they hadn’t just dropped a bomb in conversation.

Shane and Kaja both stared at each other in disbelief for a moment before coming to a silent agreement: they needed to get moving rather than unpacking this all here. At the very least, they could ask the millions of questions they had between them while they were on their way.

“The magical library on the third floor,” Shane said.

“Perfect,” Cyrin said, already turning back to the direction of the staircase. “What an exciting setting to finish this in.”