Chapter 193: Warren Sloane’s Invitation

Chapter 193: Chapter 193: Warren Sloane’s Invitation

Chapter 193: Warren Sloane’s Invitation

By the time Cyrus Calder finished his shift at The Full Moon Lounge and returned to his apartment, his nightly routine was almost automatic.

Check the diary.

Confirm that the day still matched what he remembered.

Write down anything worth preserving.

Eat whatever Daphne had prepared or whatever he had brought home.

Then sleep.

Tonight, however, something new sat on his desk.

Cyrus unrolled the portrait Gemma Rhodes had drawn for him and studied it beneath the light.

His gaze shifted briefly toward the trash can beside the bed.

The less said about his own attempt at drawing, the better.

Gemma’s portrait was nowhere close to Isolde either.

Still, even a picture carrying one or two recognizable traces of her appearance was better than nothing. By normal standards, the woman on the page was beautiful.

Unfortunately, she also looked suspiciously like Audra.

Cyrus could not blame Gemma entirely.

He had been unable to describe Isolde properly, so he had ended up using Audra as a reference for several features. If the finished portrait leaned too heavily toward Audra, that was partly his fault.

For now, it would have to work.

If his memory loss ever became severe enough that he started forgetting Audra too, Cyrus would make sure to preserve Audra’s actual photograph and description somewhere in the diary.

Mistaking an ally for an enemy would be an impressively stupid way to ruin his own escape plan.

He had no intention of making that mistake.

Fortunately, he still had time.

The ring continued taking pieces of his past, but Cyrus had not reached the point where his present life was disappearing every morning.

That gave him room to prepare.

And preparation mattered.

Running forever could not solve everything.

Cyrus understood that better now than when he first escaped.

Back then, all he had was distance.

If Isolde appeared again, he had no one to call, nowhere truly safe to go, and no way to stop her from simply taking him back.

Things were different now.

Audra still had two safe uses left on the glamourkin ring.

Daphne felt guilty enough about what she had done that Cyrus could still use that guilt to keep her protective.

Rhea had promised to help him, and as a Firebird, she had the rare-blood advantage of naturally countering Frostborn abilities.

Those were already three useful pieces on the board.

There might be more in the future.

For Isolde, Cyrus himself was almost an exposed hand. She knew him too well.

But knowing his cards would not matter if he eventually collected enough of them to make approaching him dangerous.

That thought put him in an unusually good mood.

Real freedom no longer felt like nothing more than running until his legs gave out.

It could actually become something he defended.

Cyrus leaned back in his chair and let himself imagine it.

His own apartment.

His own money.

Work when he wanted it.

Food he chose himself.

No locked doors.

No black room.

No one deciding where he slept or whether he was allowed to leave.

Even thinking about it felt dangerously satisfying.

Cyrus carefully rolled the portrait again and placed it with his other important things.

Then he went to sleep.

He did not dream.

Friday arrived quickly.

The atmosphere at St. Alder felt different from the moment Cyrus entered the building.

Everyone knew the overnight school trip started tomorrow, and that alone seemed enough to make the halls louder than usual.

Students discussed snacks, clothes, hotel rooms, games, and everything they planned to bring.

Even people who normally looked half asleep before first period seemed unusually awake.

The excitement faded only when classes began.

By late morning, Cyrus had almost forgotten about it.

Then the final class before lunch ended, and their advisory teacher entered before anyone could leave.

A collective groan rose from the room.

Several students had already begun packing for lunch.

Their teacher looked over the class with the kind of expression that immediately made everyone stop complaining.

Then the sternness softened slightly.

"You only have a half day today. Once I finish here, you’re dismissed."

The room erupted.

Cheers came from the hallway too, which meant the other classes had apparently received the same news.

Even Cyrus felt his mood improve.

Getting an unexpected half day felt strangely close to winning something.

Their teacher waited for everyone to settle before continuing.

"You already know about tomorrow’s trip. Be at school by seven-thirty in the morning. The buses are leaving on schedule, and they will not wait because someone decided to sleep in."

That earned a few laughs.

"You’ll be gone for two days and one night, so bring whatever personal items you need. The reason we’re letting you out early today is so nobody can claim they had no time to prepare."

The class answered together.

"We understand."

Their teacher shook his head at the obvious excitement.

He gave them several more reminders about luggage, meeting points, and staying with assigned groups before finally leaving.

The moment he disappeared, the classroom came alive again.

Cyrus started thinking about what to do with the unexpected afternoon.

Then Owen turned toward him.

"Cyrus, we’re still grouping together tomorrow, right?"

Cyrus looked over.

"That works for me."

Their teacher had mentioned that students should stay in small groups whenever possible so the chaperones could keep track of everyone.

Cyrus expected Owen to ask Faye next.

Instead, Owen got up and walked toward Iris Wexley.

He said something to her.

Iris then crossed the room and spoke to Audra.

A moment later, all three looked toward Cyrus.

Audra gave a small nod.

Cyrus returned it.

Apparently the group would be the same four-person arrangement they had used during the earlier cooking activity.

Cyrus, Owen, Iris, and Audra.

That was simple enough.

Then Cyrus noticed something.

Owen had not asked Faye.

His eyes dropped toward the girl sitting directly in front of him.

Faye remained quiet while the rest of the room buzzed around her.

For some reason, the sight felt unusually sharp today.

She had always been reserved, but right now she seemed separated from the class in a way Cyrus had never noticed so clearly before.

Everyone else was talking about the trip.

Faye sat still.

The image made Cyrus remember Miles and Lena.

He understood almost immediately.

"Faye."

Despite the noise around them, she heard him.

Faye turned slightly in her seat.

Cyrus hesitated before asking, "You’re not going on the trip?"

Faye shook her head.

"I can’t go."

Her voice remained gentle.

"If I leave overnight, there won’t be anyone to take care of Miles and Lena."

There was no complaint in her tone.

She spoke as though it were simply another fact of her life.

Cyrus opened his mouth.

Nothing useful came out.

Faye looked around at the classmates planning the weekend.

Then she turned back to him.

"I hope you have fun, Cyrus."

Her bangs hid much of her expression, but the small part Cyrus could see looked completely sincere.

She packed her things soon afterward and left before most of the class.

Cyrus watched her disappear through the doorway.

Around him, students were laughing and making plans with friends.

For the first time, the contrast bothered him.

It felt unfair.

Not the dramatic kind of unfairness that could be fought or blamed on one person.

It was softer than that.

Something heavy and useless, like trying to hit a wall made of cotton.

Several classmates worked up the courage to ask Cyrus if he wanted to join their groups.

He politely declined.

Owen returned to his seat and helped explain that Cyrus already had a group.

Cyrus barely paid attention.

He looked toward the doorway again.

"Owen, do you know much about Faye’s situation?"

Owen shook his head.

"Not really. I know she doesn’t usually join school trips or big group activities. She was like that last year too."

Cyrus nodded slowly.

He lowered his head and continued packing.

Then his hand stopped when he reached the comic Faye had brought him.

Her eyes from earlier surfaced in his mind.

If Faye truly disliked group activities, she should not have looked at everyone else with that quiet trace of longing.

Cyrus suddenly felt irritated.

He could not even explain who he was angry at.

Maybe no one.

That almost made it worse.

He placed the comic carefully into his bag.

When he finally looked up, Audra had walked over.

She stopped beside his desk.

"Are you free after this?"

The question sounded almost identical to what she had asked yesterday.

Cyrus set aside his thoughts about Faye.

"What did you need?"

Audra stepped a little closer and lowered her voice so the conversation would remain between them.

"My grandfather came home."

Cyrus became more attentive.

Audra continued.

"I told him about what happened with the ring. He wants me to invite you to our house."

Cyrus’s expression changed slightly.

Warren Sloane had returned.

More importantly, he wanted to discuss the glamourkin ring.

That made the invitation completely different from a casual visit.

Cyrus answered without hesitation.

"I can go."

Audra’s eyes softened.

"Do you mean now?"

Cyrus glanced at the clock, then back at her.

"Yes. Now is fine."

Audra nodded, looking almost unexpectedly obedient for someone who had spent yesterday privately deciding she might need to make the first move in their relationship.

Cyrus began gathering the last of his things.

Whatever else happened at the Sloane estate, anything connected to the glamourkin ring was worth hearing.

That artifact was one of the strongest safeguards he currently possessed.

If Warren knew more about it, Cyrus had every reason to listen.