Cassie swallowed. Almost nothing of him left …
But Ranjit had regained himself. Ranjit had escaped the Curse, she’d made sure of that. He’d regained his sanity, she knew that when she saw him for that last time in Istanbul. But how must he feel now as he went on the run, lost and alone, knowing what he had done?
No. She couldn’t let herself think about it. She’d find him – she’d help him. But first things first. She returned to the conversation. ‘And what about the landslide that killed Erik?’
Sir Alric gave an exhausted sigh. ‘There was no landslide. I tried to restrain him every way I knew how. I thought I was strong, but I was nothing compared to Erik with a Few Curse on him. I had to kill him, Cassie. I had to kill the brightest and best of my students, and I have never forgiven myself for it.’
There was genuine pain on Sir Alric’s face, and it was such an alien sight Cassie had to look away. ‘But you took the Urn,’ she said softly.
‘Yes. The Curse spent itself on Erik, and it would have seemed a waste of all that had happened if I’d left it where it was – unsafe, un-cursed, and there for Brigitte to find whenever she finally worked it out. I couldn’t leave it. I took it back to the Academy, kept it safe – but I never did find the other artefacts.’
Cassie raised her eyebrows. ‘But they were found.’
‘Brigitte must have had some access to the contents of the first half of the manuscript, before I discovered it myself. It was her daughter Katerina who tracked down the Knife in Cambodia, but she must have allowed Keiko to retrieve it, to touch it first. Clever of her, and malicious. Keiko was never quite my favourite student, but the way the Knife affected her …’ He shrugged. ‘I wish I had realised sooner what the Svenssons were up to.’
Cassie rose and paced the room, thinking. ‘So what did Brigitte want with the artefacts? Did you ever find out? I can understand her wanting the Knife – I’ve seen what it can do to other Few – and I see the point of the Pendant, too. It sort of …’ She hesitated, clearing her throat. ‘It sort of allowed Ranjit to have a similar power to me, projecting his spirit’s power outside of himself. But why would she want the Urn? The Eldest made that so he could feed from other spirits. That’s a weird thing to want to do, and surely only he could do it, as the Eldest. It’s not as if Brigitte ever goes hungry – she can overpower a normal human no problem.’ And more besides. Cassie shuddered, remembering the horror of the Living Soil she’d encountered in New York, and the human beings Brigitte had imprisoned there, buried alive for her pleasure.
‘I don’t know why she wanted it,’ Sir Alric said. ‘But I’m as certain as I can be that I don’t want her to have it. The Urn, I believe, is the most dangerous artefact of them all.’
Cassie looked at him, alarmed. ‘Why?’
‘It’s more a feeling, an innate certainty, Cassie. But that feeling is borne out by the strength of the Curse that was laid on it. It seemed as though the Elders did not want anyone who found it to be sane enough to use it.’
There was a cold feeling in the pit of Cassie’s stomach. She could hardly imagine a Curse worse than the one that had struck Ranjit.
‘No wonder you were so angry,’ she murmured.
He furrowed his brow. ‘I beg your pardon?’
‘When I let Ranjit get away with the Urn.’
‘Yes.’ He gave her a stern look. ‘Yes, I was angry. But it can’t be helped now. We just have to hope that Ranjit keeps it safe until he can be located. I don’t know precisely what the Urn can do, but it’s potentially a huge threat to the Few. And through them, to the rest of humanity.’
They were silent for a moment, each wrapped in their own thoughts. At last Cassie took her seat again, and looked up at him.
‘I have something to ask you.’
He raised an eyebrow. ‘You, Cassie Bell, never seem to have anything to ask me. You tend to tell me.’
She gave a light shrug, and made herself hold his gaze. He remained standing. Clenching her fists below the table, she took a deep breath.
‘The Knife. The Pendant. You still have those. And you can use them to sever me from Estelle.’
He stared at her as if, frankly, it was Cassie who was mad. ‘What I can do and what I will do, Miss Bell, are not the same thing at all.’
She stood up, walked closer to him, and leaned her fists on the desk for support. ‘You told me it wasn’t possible. It is. It’s what Ranjit had hoped to do when he did what he did – when he went after the artefacts and ended up being cursed by the Pendant. And it’s my decision, not yours!’
‘That’s where you’re wrong. I’m sorry, Cassie, but I’ve told you this before. My responsibility is to your spirit as much as it is to you. And I will not destroy a Few spirit for your convenience.’
‘My … convenience?’ She gaped at him, feeling rage begin to rise inside her. ‘Did anyone consider my convenience when they foisted the old bat on me?’
‘You know precisely how much I regret that. And yet I still won’t reverse it at Estelle’s cost. Cassie.’ He faced her properly, leaning on the opposite side of the desk. ‘You know what I want, and what your spirit wants. It makes so much more sense than this half-life for both of you. Allow Estelle to enter you completely, and most of your problems will be solved.’
Rage choked her throat. ‘Except the fact that while I’m Few, friends of mine end up dead, or drained, or mad? Except for that?’