“The Assembly would have to acknowledge what you did,” added Call. “They would be ashamed of the way they treated you.”

Greta made a low rumbling noise. Call realized the terrible stench had gone, and Greta was looking slightly different — she was no longer shedding worms and fish. Instead, flowers were growing up and down the ridges of her rocky body, along with brightly colored mushrooms.

“The Assembly must admit its shame,” said Greta. “We are the Devoured, not elementals. We are mages. We should not be kept imprisoned nor treated as monsters.”

“This would be a way to show that the Devoured aren’t monsters. That they can also save people,” said Call. “And if Alex isn’t stopped, there’s no telling what he might destroy. He could wreck the whole world — and that would affect you, too, and other Devoured.”

Greta rumbled thoughtfully. “Does the Devoured of chaos like frogs?”

They were all silent. Would it be better or worse if he did?

I think you should go with no, said Aaron. Alex doesn’t really like anything.

“He probably wants them destroyed,” said Call.

“Then he ought to be stopped,” said Greta. “I like frogs. They’re my friends.”

“Tell us how to summon you,” said Call. “I promise we’ll only do it when all the Devoured are united and it’s time to fight Alex.”

Something wormed its way up from the ground between Call’s feet. A shimmering geode-like hunk of quartz.

“Smash that on a rock,” said Greta, “and I will come to where you are.” She swatted lazily at something in the water — an alligator, its green, spike-toothed head sticking briefly out of the water. “I will expect to see the shame of all mages.”

As she sank back below the water, Jasper expelled a breath. “I hope this was a good idea.”

“We didn’t die,” said Gwenda. “That has to count for something.”

They made it back to the Rolls without being attacked by alligators or frogs or an enormous pit opening up beneath them. The car had not been sucked down into another sinkhole. Even better, when Call turned the ignition, the car came to a shuddering start. It didn’t sound the same as it had when Alastair had let him borrow it, but it moved well enough to allow them to drive out the dirt path.

Once they got on the highway, a whine in the car — in something that Call thought might be the fan — became more pronounced. He drove on, sending a little cooling magic toward the engine in case he was right.

They drove north, muddy, bug-bitten, and exhausted. They stopped for more fast food on the border of Virginia and made it to the caves of the Magisterium that night.

The golden tower loomed high in the sky. In the moonlight, it looked finished already.

They had one more day. One more day before he was going to face Alex again.

Call parked Alastair’s car in a corner of a clearing near the front gates. He and Havoc and the other apprentices went inside, too tired to even talk. He was planning on taking a bath, but once they got to their rooms, Call fell asleep right on his bed, with mud still crusted on his jeans.

IN THE MORNING, Call washed up and, butterflies in his stomach, went to the Refectory to eat breakfast. Tamara, Jasper, and Gwenda went with him.

“I thought your dad was going to meet you back at the Magisterium,” Jasper said.

“I’m sure he will,” Call told him, trying to put faith in it. Maybe Alastair was here already. They’d gotten in late; maybe he was staying in another part of the school. Maybe they just hadn’t seen him.

Call piled his plate with mushrooms and lichen but after he sat down, he wasn’t sure he could eat any of it. He was worried about confronting Alex, worried about giving what he promised to Greta, worried about everything.

That was when Colton McCarmack strode up to their table, red hair bright as a new penny. Two of his friends followed, but they stopped before they were too close. “We were taking bets on whether you all ran off.”

“I hope you didn’t lose too much money,” Call said. “Wait — actually, I hope you did.” He should have been upset about Colton coming to bother him, but when Call was nervous, he got testy, and it helped to have someone to vent that testiness on.

“We were all talking and we remember how Alex used to be. Cool. A nice guy. He would have never done anything like this.” Colton sneered.

Tamara gave him a look so scathing that Call was surprised Colton’s hair didn’t catch on fire without any magic being involved.

“Why don’t you go talk to your old pal Alex then?” said Call, standing. “If you’re such good friends, maybe he can make you his number one minion.”

Jasper laughed.

Colton looked more incensed. “If he is the way you say, I know you had something to do with it. You did something to him. You corrupted him. You’re the evil one.”

“Oh, stop it,” Celia said, walking over to them and putting her arm on Colton’s. “Call is doing a brave thing tomorrow.”

Colton gave her a look. “Not you, too,” he said, and stomped off.

“Good luck,” said Celia to Call softly, and then followed Colton, with a single weird look in Jasper’s direction.

“What was that about?” Tamara asked.

Jasper shrugged, looking embarrassed. “She came to see me this morning. Maybe we’re not going to work it out.”

Call was too distracted to make sense of Jasper’s love life. He was thinking of Alex, of the way he’d thought of him as friendly and funny and nice. He’d thought Alex was a good person, like Aaron. But all of that had been surface, acting. In his soul, Alex had been terrible the whole time.

We all thought he was nice, Aaron said. That’s what he wanted us to think.

Of course, Call had an evil soul, too. And maybe Colton was right about Call’s villainous ways, because he suddenly knew how he was going to win. And it wasn’t a plan that anyone could describe as good.

“Tamara,” he said, “can I talk to you for a second?”

Just then, Master Rufus walked up to their table. “I’m relieved you’re all back. I got a message from Call’s father that he’s delayed. He’ll be here tomorrow. But today, the Assembly wants to see you. All of you. They want to go over the final plan. If you’re done with breakfast, come with me.”

Tamara, Gwenda, and Jasper stood. As they followed Master Rufus out of the Refectory, Call put his hand on Tamara’s arm.

Are you sure about this? Aaron asked.

“I need to tell you something,” Call said to her. “Because we’re not going to have any secrets.”

On the way to the Assembly, he whispered to her, explaining the whole thing he’d thought out. She didn’t contradict him, even when he thought she would. She didn’t tell him it was wrong.

All she asked was, “Do you think it will work?”

“I hope so,” Call said, and they walked in to face the Assembly.

The Assembly always looked serious. Now they looked like they were at a funeral. Call looked up and down the long wooden table, recognizing faces — the Masters of the Magisterium, people from important families like the Rajavis, and Graves presiding over it all.