The Perilous Sea (The Elemental Trilogy #2)

She gritted her teeth and clutched her temples.

Titus had her by the shoulders. “Are you all right?”

She swayed. The next moment she was on her hands and knees, shaking.

“Should we take you below, Fairfax?” asked Kashkari urgently. “We have several good physicians.”

She held up a hand. “I’m—I’m—”

She was beyond nauseated by the image flashing across her mind, that of a disgustingly large, wormlike creature, dripping black saliva, writhing toward her.

Lady Wintervale, tears falling down her hollow cheeks.

Wintervale, lying dead on the ground.

And then memories rushed back like water past a crumbling dam, in such torrents and deluges she was afraid they would overflow her cranium. But they seemed to fit back into her head just fine and already the discomfort was fading, leaving only a faint sensation of disorientation.

Titus was beside her, his arm around her middle. Kashkari had also crouched down, peering at her anxiously. She pushed herself up so that she was sitting on her heels and set her hand for a moment on Kashkari’s sleeve. “I remember you.”

Turning to Titus, she rested her palm on his cheek. “And I remember you. And I’m afraid that for you there is no escaping the shame of writing those overheated words on the strap of my bag—ever.”

Relief crossed his face. And then, frustration. “But why do I not remember?”

“It will come back. The precautions that have been put into place for us ensure that we never have to suffer the effects of a memory spell for long—but the exact time will probably vary a little from person to person.”

Ishana flew up and handed everyone a thin, flexible breathing mask. “Durga Devi wants you to have those, in case Atlantis puts something foul in the air.”

Iolanthe strapped on her mask, which was much more comfortable than she had anticipated.

“So what happened to Wintervale?” asked Kashkari, adjusting his own mask.

“He is no more.” He would have made a dedicated rebel and brought joy to all who fought alongside him—she blinked back tears. “I’m so sorry.”

Kashkari passed his hand in front of his face. “I was afraid of that.”

Iolanthe wiped the corners of her eyes. “Tell me what happened after we left. Is everyone at Mrs. Dawlish’s all right?”

“I waited in the lavatory until the Bane went inside Fairfax’s room,” answered Kashkari. “Then I talked the other boys into a game of association football, senior boys against junior boys—I didn’t want them to be in the house if it was going to collapse, or anything of the sort.

“We still all had to change before we could play—I was too nervous to remember that everyone was in their Sunday clothes. That was when Lady Wintervale came. I whispered in her ear that her son was the Bane and pointed her to your room. About a minute later, a team of Atlantean agents came up the stairs. Several of them took the Crucible and left immediately. The rest started carting everything out of both your rooms.”

“In front of you?”

“In front of everyone. Cooper, bless him, immediately started blabbing about what the prince had said during our bonfire evening on the beach—that some treasonous bastards in Saxe-Limburg were looking to push him off the throne. And of course since you are known to be his closest associate among the boys, naturally your room also had to be sifted for evidence of the crimes with which they were going to charge the prince. And when they started to lug things out of Wintervale’s room, Cooper made the further connection that Wintervale was actually from around the same parts as the prince and must therefore also be involved in those palace intrigues—which was exactly why his mother had suddenly come to Mrs. Dawlish’s, because she knew danger was coming and wanted to warn him to flee.”

“I cannot tell whether this Cooper is an idiot or a genius,” said the prince.

“In either case, he was quite determined to travel to Saxe-Limburg someday to make sure that everyone is all right. I told him that even if you were in trouble, you would not be thrown into prison, but be put under house arrest, in a luxurious manor with gardens and a shooting park. I hope he believes me—or he would be in for a frustrating time, trying to find Saxe-Limburg.”

“And how did you get away?” asked Iolanthe.