Sophie squinted at the glaring light. "I thought you meant my home," she said as she stared once again at the enormous gates of Everglen.
A flash of light appeared that made everyone shield their faces. When Sophie opened her eyes, a tall elf in a simple black tunic strode toward them. His olive skin stood in sharp contrast to his pale blonde hair.
Tiergan! It was strange to see him now, knowing that she would discover he was in the Black Swan later. Now that she thought about it, she would have to meet all of the collective all over again.
"You've got some nerve summoning me," he shouted, stepping right into Alden's personal space. He was a couple of inches shorter than Alden, but he didn't seem the least bit intimidated by the height difference. "I'd sooner be exiled than train anyone in your family."
From the corner of her eye, Sophie saw Fitz's hands clench into fists. Alden barely blinked. He took a small step backward and smiled.
"Yes, Tiergan—I'm well aware of your opinion of me. I can assure you, I wouldn't have summoned you if I wasn't convinced that it would be what Prentice would want."
Tiergan's fierce expression crumbled. He backed away, crossing his arms against his chest. "Since when are you the expert on anything Prentice wanted?"
"Prentice would have wanted you to train me," Sophie said, barely louder than a whisper.
Tiergan spun toward her and his eyes did a quick inventory, widening when they locked with hers.
"Yes," Alden said when Tiergan gasped. "Whatever you're thinking, yes. Tiergan, I'd like you to meet Sophie Foster. Foxfire's newest prodigy, who happens to need a telepathy Mentor."
Tiergan swallowed several times before he spoke. "She's the one, isn't she? The one Prentice was hiding?"
"Yes," Alden agreed. "She's been living with humans for the past twelve years."
"Fitz found me in the Forbidden Cities yesterday." Sophie explained, "I've manifested as a Telepath, and I need someone to mentor me. We were all hoping you would do it."
Alden smiled, "She is the most incredible Telepath I've ever seen." he turned to Tiergan. "Sophie has already broken through Fitz's and Bronte's blocking without training. She needs the best Mentor we can provide. I know you're retired, but I thought—given the circumstances—you might be persuaded to return to Foxfire."
Anger and resentment danced across Tiergan's features, Sophie held her breath until he nodded.
"You'll do it?" Alden asked, his voice a mixture of surprise and relief.
"Yes. But only for this year. That will be more than enough to hone her abilities. Then you leave me alone and never ask for my assistance again."
"That's more than reasonable," Alden agreed.
"Being a Telepath around humans is quite a burden. I'll bet you've had terrible headaches and heard all kinds of things you didn't want to hear. Right?" Tiergan asked.
She nodded.
"It doesn't have to be that way," he said after a second. "With proper training, you'll learn to manage your ability. But you do have a choice. There should always be a choice." He said the last part louder like it was for Alden's benefit. "If you don't want telepathy training, you don't have to have it."
Alden cleared his throat. "Well, that settles that, then. I'll notify Dame Alina that you'll be returning to Foxfire. But the name of your prodigy will be kept classified. The Council doesn't want anyone knowing Sophie's a Telepath until she's older."
"Why do I have to hide it?" she asked. She didn't see a reason to hide it this time around.
"You won't have to hide it forever," Alden said gently. "Just for a little while, to give everyone time to adjust to you. In the meantime, the session will be listed as remedial studies on your schedule."
Adjust.
Out of everyone, she would be doing the most adjusting. Reliving everything was a huge change and quite honestly, it hadn't really hit her yet. She was still in shock.
Alden turned to Tiergan, who had backed a few feet away from everyone. "I'm assuming you don't want to come in."
"Finally, a correct assumption." Tiergan's voice was cold, but it warmed when he looked at Sophie. "I'll see you Tuesday." Then he raised a pathfinder to the light and vanished in a brilliant flash.
Alden laughed. "Well, that went better than expected." He licked a panel on the enormous gates, taking Sophie's hand as they swung inward.
He led her through Everglen's sprawling grounds, explaining how her new school schedule would have two sessions a day plus lunch and study hall.
"My office is this way," Alden said, leading her through another shimmering hall. "We can talk there. There is much to dis—"
The sound of arguing cut him off, and when they entered a wide sitting room filled with overstuffed armchairs and elegant statues, they found a dark-haired girl about Sophie's age, who appeared to be shouting at herself.
A woman wearing an elegant purple gown appeared out of thin air next to the girl and said, "You're home."
Sophie squealed. Fitz snickered. So much for keeping her cool.
"Sophie, this is my wife, Della." Alden's cheeks were pinched—like he was trying not to laugh. "And my daughter, Biana," he added, gesturing to the girl. "My dear, I don't believe our guest is used to being around Vanishers."
"I'm so sorry," Della said, smiling at Sophie. She had a musical voice with just a hint of Alden and Fitz's accent. "Are you okay?"
"Yes," Sophie mumbled. Della's beauty was like a force, pulling every eye to her as she tossed her long, chocolate brown hair and pursed her heart-shaped lips. And Biana had all of her parents' best features, combined in the best possible way. It was hard not to feel like a gangly troll, especially when Biana frowned and asked, "Is that my dress?"
"Yes." Alden interceded. "Sophie needed to borrow it to go on a few errands."
"I can change. Sorry," Sophie apologized. "I'm new here."
"You can keep it. It's kind of frumpy." Biana looked away.
"I can imagine you have excellent taste in fashion," Sophie commented. She was hoping that was the right thing to say to make Biana like her sooner.
Biana gave her a small smile but immediately looked away.
"Quinlin sent the files you requested," Della told Alden. "I put them in your office." Her smile faded. "And the Council denied our request. But they did approve Grady and Edaline."
Sophie was well aware they were talking about her adoption. She felt a pang in her chest. She had to act immaculate to Grady and Edaline so they wouldn't try to give her up for adoption.
One wall in Alden's office had a large, curved window overlooking a silvery lake. A floor-to-ceiling aquarium wrapped the rest of the room. Sophie waited in an enormous wingback chair facing Alden, who sat behind a black desk piled with books and scrolls. Anxiety tightened her chest as the walls of water seemed to close in.
Sophie sucked in a breath to remind herself she wasn't drowning and pointed to the stacks of human newspapers piled next to her chair. Articles were circled in red and then crossed out. "Keeping up with the news?"
"Something like that." Alden gave her a seldom smile. Sophie wanted to hurry up and get this conversation over with.
"Why am I here? Why do you seem worried to tell me something?" Sophie asked quietly.
"Sophie," Alden pinched the bridge of his nose. "You're going to move into the Lost Cities, you'll be living with Grady and Edaline."
Sophie nodded.
"But... with all that, it means-" Alden paused trying to figure out how to break the news. "You won't be living with your human parents anymore."
She felt the blood drain from her face. "Oh."
Somehow it did sting as much as it did the first time.