Chapter 27: Ensnare

The next day, Casimir forgone his jog to study in his room. His eyes scanned over his notes for the umpteenth time. Until he grew tired and decided to take a break by looking out the window. It was still dark, and the soft snow drifted down at a severe slant as the wind battered his window.

Should I stay in? There is no point in my going to Ms. Deadeye’s class, but that would mean I would have to receive a written excuse from Feverfew, and I don’t want to be anywhere around that woman.

Casimir leaned back in his chair and sighed.

We were careful, but I should not take any chances.

A knock at the door pulled him out of his thoughts, and he rose to answer it.

There he found Cornelius standing outside of his room with a troubled look on his face, and his viscous sweat rolled down his neck, drenching the shoulders of his salamander-pattern pajamas.

“Are you okay?” Casimir stepped aside.

Cornelius took Casimir’s question as an invitation and crossed the stone floor to his desk and flopped down in the chair. Then, he wrung the moisture from his hands.

Casimir closed the door. “What is going on?”

“It’s…”Cornelius shook his head.

Casimir took a seat on his bed and quietly observed the deep rings around his eyes. He looks like he was tormented in his sleep.

Cornelius wiped away the sweat obscuring his vision and composed himself, but continued to avoid Casimir’s gaze. “I apologize for the intrusion, but I think my Uncle is in trouble.”

Casimir raised his brow. “In what way?” Finally something.

“I think he is being set up.” Cornelius looked thoughtfully up at the ceiling and turned to face Casimir with a serious expression. “If I tell you what I know, will the Inquis spare my Uncle?”

“If he is not guilty of any wrongdoing, then yes.”

Cornelius’ face scrunched up as he weighed Casimir’s answer, then nodded. “The next time I saw my Uncle, he looked like he wanted to rip the rest of his hair out and told me that we had been thrown to the wolves.”

“Ominous, did he elaborate?”

“No, but it is clear to me that whoever is doing this is a staff member, and Uncle does not have the authority to hire and fire without approval. ”

Casimir rubbed his chin. “What made you step forward now? You could have continued playing plausible deniability like your Uncle.”

“You saw right through me, though.” Cornelius wiped his hands on his pants’ legs and stood up. “I just want to spend my academy days in peace with my friends, nothing more to it.”

Casimir hopped out of bed and followed Cornelius to the door.

“Thank you for listening,” Cornelius said with a smile.

“Don’t mention it.” Casimir closed the door and returned to his desk to think.

Was Chancellor Salamander brought in to be a patsy, but why him and not another vassal? Did he piss someone off in his family?

***

After an uneventful day, Casimir met up with Sully in the dead of night, who then guided him through a hidden path through the trees to the staff cottages tucked away in the woods beyond the main campus. The snow crunched underfoot as the wind howled, beating down on the back of Casimir’s neck and getting a shiver out of him. He pulled up his coat’s collar. They spent the trip in silence, breathing in cold air that burned their lungs.

Eventually, Casimir could see lights from gas lamps off in the distance and the outlines of buildings through the trees. Their steps softened and slowed the closer they got to their destination.

Casimir made sure to stay within Sully’s field, no telling who else was still awake at this hour. They broke the tree line into the small, shoe-box-sized backyard of a moss-covered stone cottage with a sweeping shingled roof.

Sully got the wooden door, welcomed Casimir inside, and flipped on the lights. They entered a small kitchen that looked well-lived-in from scratches on the wooden cabinets and rust on the stove.

Casimir glanced at the little white fridge in the corner.

“Are you hungry?” Sully gave him a playful smile.

“No,” Casimir tore his gaze away. “Did you find something?”

“Yes, I managed to decipher the code, and I can say with ninety percent certainty that she is guilty of at least one crime. Take a seat, I’ll come back with the photos.”

Casimir sat at the old rickety table in the center of the room.

After a few minutes, Sully returned with a manila folder and spread its contents across the table. He pointed at the photo of the entry that Casimir deduced was his.

“The notebook was an inventory list. For example, here you are. This is when she collected your blood and spinal fluid. Next is how much she collected. Nothing too damning so far.”

Casimir’s intense gaze followed Sully’s finger across the columns.

“Then you get to her notes. She grades yours as high-quality research material.”

“Research for what?”

“She does not say, but…” Sully patted him on the back while holding back a laugh. “You and Alistair are basically her prize specimens, and she was angry and horrified when you injured your Aether heart.”

Casimir gritted his teeth. “That isn’t funny!”

“To most people it is not, but they aren’t used to all the absurd things I see on a daily basis.”

Casimir sighed and recovered from his initial repulsion. “What is said of Bryson and Tristan?”

Sully reached for another photo of an entry scratched out. “She called him low quality and marked him to be culled for parts. Tristan was listed as medium quality, and she recommended culling someone else.”

“Who?”

“She does not say.”

Casimir frowned. “Does Cornelius have an entry?”

“Yes,” Sully handed Casimir a photo. “Same as you and Alistair.” He collected all of the photos and returned them to the folder. “I believe we have enough to question her and confront the Chancellor.”

“What about this person she is making recommendations to?”

“Hopefully, when we question her, and she feels the walls coming in, she will rat them out for a lighter sentence.”

***

Several hours later, before Chancellor Salamander could settle down, Casimir and Sully presented their evidence to him, then watched him melt into his chair.

The Chancellor’s hand gripped the photo of Bryson’s entry as his eyes bulged out in shock. He looked up at Sully with tentative fear. “How do I know…”

“Choose your words wisely.”

Chancellor Salamander cleared his throat. “This is her handwriting.” He placed the photo down. “But I don’t understand, Ms. Feverfew is a dutiful young lady and a daughter of apothecaries. Why would she do such a thing?”

Sully smiled and placed an intrusive hand on his desk. “That is what we are trying to find out. Do you recall any suspicious activities from her?”

“No!” Salamander protested sharply. “She honorably served four years in the Imperial forces as a medic and our family for longer. It was the reason why she was picked for this position. ”

Casimir gave Chancellor Salamander a sympathetic look. “Could someone in the Salamander family be compromised?”

Anger flashed in Salamander’s eyes along with a touch of fear. “How dare you ask me that! I understand that my family is not as prestigious as the Mindrattlers, but it does not give you the right to insult me. I’m doing you a favor, remember!”

“I did not mean it that way. I asked because she is clearly following orders from someone, and we believe he or she is also working here,” said Casimir.

“You believe,” Salamander scoffed. “Well, as far as you know, the only one compromised is Feverfew.” He narrowed his eyes and looked away with disgust. “Unlike other Weaver families, we try to be fair with the talent we work with, including commoner upstarts. Unfortunately, it appears that our kindness has been taken advantage of by greedy wretches.”

Sully removed his hand from the desk and crossed his arms. “We plan to question her.”

“You may do as you wish. I’ll call her to my office, so we can keep this discreet.” Chancellor Salamander reached for his phone.

Sully nodded. “Tell her you are calling her to be a professional witness for Casimir’s Tribunal to determine if he is not a danger to himself and others in this school.”

Casimir raised an eyebrow.

“This is about the mist incident?” Salamander asked.

“Yes, I want to see her reaction.”

“A sound idea.”

***

Casimir and Sully took their places for the show. Sully stood near the door like an imposing sentinel. Chancellor Salamander ceased his sweating long enough to sit sternly at his desk with his hands clasped.

Casimir sat in front of Salamander’s desk bearing both of their gazes and feigning his best look of shame. He looked down at the chair beside him and prepared himself to maintain his pitiful gaze while sitting next to the suspect.

There was a soft knock at the door.

“Come in!” Salamander called.

Nurse Feverfew entered. “I apologize for the delay. I had a patient.”

“It is quite all right, please take a seat.”

She did not pay Sully any mind and glided across the floor with an elongated shadow trailing behind her. She gracefully sat beside Casimir and gave him a pitying smile. “Mr. Mindrattler, are you well? I didn’t see you yesterday.”

Casimir scratched the back of his head. “Ah, I was feeling better, so I went straight to class. Thank you for asking.”

She patted him on the arm and stared at him with an expression that looked a bit obsessive. “Make sure to stop by after the meeting.”

Salamander’s “ahem” caused her to redirect her gaze to him.

Casimir suppressed his urge to scoot away from her. Such an unsettling woman.

Chancellor Salamander’s piercing gaze darted between them. “Let us begin. This meeting is to determine if Mr. Mindrattler is capable of attending here.”

“I am.”

Chancellor Salamander silenced Casimir by raising his hand, and he turned to Nurse Feverfew. “As you recall, the previous Saturday, Casimir overworked his Aether heart and injured himself.

He sniffed. “It appears that he lost control while showing off to his friends.”

Casimir crossed his arms. “I promise you it was a one-time thing. I won’t let it happen again.”

Nurse Feverfew addressed Salamander in a careful tone, “Chancellor, aren’t you being harsh on Mr. Mindrattler? It isn’t uncommon for novices to overestimate their abilities.” She turned to Casimir. “Plus, his injuries recovered nicely. Wouldn’t it be a waste to send someone from such a prestigious background away?”

“Yes, but can you imagine the scandal if his injuries were not reversible? We just dealt with a student’s death!”

“But Chancellor, he is well, without any lasting damage, and injuries are a part of a novice Weaver’s training. Can’t you let him off with a warning?”

Casimir nodded his head up and down like a piston.

Salamander hummed and tapped his bottom lip with his finger. “There is also the matter of him injuring his classmates.”

“With all due respect, their injuries were all minor and healed after a nap. I’ve seen worse from Combat Class students.”

Salamander grumbled and feigned displeasure.

He really is selling it. Casimir snuck a glance at Feverfew, her forced smile was cracking, and her left eye twitched as she became increasingly agitated. We should end this soon.

Salamander sighed and looked down at Casimir. “I don’t know, but I believe he is unprepared.” He turned to Feverfew again. “You see, he comes from an unorthodox upbringing and has only been weaving for a couple of months. I spoke with his professors, and although they agree that Mr. Mindrattler can keep up, this incident has gotten me worried. Lord Mindrattler has entrusted me with his training, and I think maybe the traditional way would be safer for him and the other students. ”

Casimir noticed Nurse Feverfew flinch, and Sully inching himself closer.

Nurse Feverfew formed a steeple with her hands. “I’m sure Mr. Mindrattler can manage learning in an academy setting. I don’t think this will happen again. I strongly believe this was a freak accident.”

“Why is that, Ms. Feverfew? Is it because you were the one who caused it?” Sully’s intimidating voice boomed behind her.

She hopped out of her chair, knocking it over, and turned to face Sully. “What! How dare you suggest that!”

Sully held up a photograph of her ledger and smiled. “Is this your handwriting?”

“You broke into my desk!” Feverfew gnashed her teeth.

“So it is yours.”

Feverfew tried to shove him, but it was like pushing against a brick wall. Her head swiveled to the door.

“Ms Feverfew, it would be in your best interest to sit back down.” Chancellor Salamander hissed.

Casimir picked up her chair and placed it beneath her.

She turned to Casimir, her face beet red from rage. “You…you.”

Feverfew hunched over like a trapped boar in a cage.

Suddenly, her Aether spiked, and Casimir and Sully put her down before she could blink.

He pinned her to the ground, which was made easier for him because her body was limp like a wet towel.

She struggled to raise her head and glared at Sully. “You’re also a damn Inquis.”

Sully removed his mask, revealing his haunting face, and gave her a bow.

Chancellor Salamander left his desk to look down at her with disgust. “You are fortunate that he was here. Otherwise, I would have burnt you into ash.”

Nurse Feverfew gritted her teeth.

Sully kneeled beside her. “Too bad for you.”

“We know you are working with someone. If you tell us who, it might spare you from execution,” said Casimir.

She dropped her glare for a bitter smile and looked away, defeated.