Morning brought no peace.
Evelyn hadn't slept—not really. The events of the night before tangled in her mind: Alexander's departure, Caelan's quiet offer, and her own aching indecision.
She'd barely pulled on her uniform when a knock pounded on her door.
It wasn't gentle.
She opened it to find a junior faculty member, flushed and breathless. "Miss Hawthorne—you're needed. Now."
The girl didn't wait for a reply.
Minutes later, Evelyn stood outside the southern courtyard, where smoke curled in the air and students murmured in scattered groups.
A section of the alchemical greenhouse had collapsed.
Glass. Fire. Chaos.
Headmaster Briar stood at the center with a clenched jaw, instructors swarming around him like bees trying to patch a hive. Evelyn stepped into view just as Professor Maelis rushed over.
"Headmistress's orders," Maelis said lowly. "You're to help inspect the damage."
"Why me?"
"You're the only one who's already survived two direct incidents. Whatever's happening—it's getting bolder. She wants your eyes on this."
Evelyn moved past the crowd and into the cracked glass arch.
The air inside was sharp with smoke and something more… unnatural. It wasn't just fire or sabotage. It felt personal. Targeted.
A faint gleam caught her eye near the ruined worktable.
She knelt, brushing aside soot and broken crystal.
A charm token.
Familiar.
Too familiar.
Isabella's.
A tightness coiled in Evelyn's chest. Her stepsister had always been clever, always manipulative—but this? This was getting dangerous.
And the worst part?
This wasn't Isabella working alone.
She rose, hands shaking faintly, and turned back toward the faculty line—only to freeze.
Standing at the far edge of the crowd, near the eastern arch…
Alexander.
He wasn't supposed to be here. He said he was leaving. But he was watching her now, unreadable as ever.
And beside her?
Caelan.
Both waiting. Both watching.
And Evelyn, heart racing, stood between the past she couldn't shake… and the future refusing to wait.