Chapter 17 · The Bell Tower Where Dad Vanished

"You locked him in."

Calder's wings shifted. We stood at the base of the old bell tower, the one the map had marked in blue. The stone was black with age and something else. Moss didn't grow here. Nothing did.

"I locked the door," he said. "That's not the same thing."

"Tell me the difference."

"The difference is I'm still breathing and your dad—"

I grabbed his collar. The cuff flared hot against my wrist, but I didn't let go. "Finish that sentence. I dare you."

He looked down at my hand, then at my face. His eyes were too dark, the pupils eating the amber. "I can't."

"Can't or won't?"

"Does it matter?"

I shoved him back. The tower door stood open, just a crack. No lock. No chain. Just a gap wide enough to slip through, and the smell coming out was wrong. Copper and old smoke.

"You first," I said.

"Ladies first is a thing."

"So is chivalry. You're not big on either."

He grinned, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Fair point."

He pushed the door. It swung in without a sound, and the dark inside wasn't normal dark.