Gold, I realized the next day in chem. Charmed gold in my diet for half a month topped off with the Indigo Spell. Trey was right.
"You look like you're thinking about something." Speaking of Trey. "What's up, Melbourne?"
I shook my head. "Nothing important. If it becomes a problem, I'll tell you." He raised his eyebrows but didn't press further. He tapped my tattooed cheek with his pencil before going back to taking notes. Sometimes I loved Amberwood for the escape, but lately it had felt more like a prison to me.
"Miss Melrose." Our teacher found me among the students, hanging up the phone after a call from what was most likely the main office. "You and your family have an appointment of some sort. Your brother is here to pick you up." She turned her attention to Trey, sitting next to me. "The secretary mentioned that he would like to speak with you as well."
Exchanging a glance, we both grabbed our things and left. "Why would Adrian need all of us?" Trey inquired softly, aware of the possibility of eavesdroppers. Nobody should be able to understand what we were talking about, but still.
"I have no clue." For once, I was just as puzzled as everyone else. Usually I could guess what Adrian was up to lately, but this threw me off. "Something must be wrong."
When Jill, Eddie, and Angeline met up with us in the courtyard, I saw that none of them completely knew what was going on, either. Adrian unhitched himself from the outer wall of the building, looking pleased with himself. I went over to him as calmly as I could, pushing the thought that I was missing time catching up to all the schoolwork I'd already missed. The others followed in my wake.
"I got you an audience" – he lowered his voice – "with Queen Vasilisa."
His announcement, plus his use of her proper name, shocked me. "What do we need an audience with Lissa for?" Eddie asked, seeing I was for once at a loss for words.
"Jill needs to talk to her and hopefully get more of a sisterly bond. You, Eddie, need to update her on Angeline's progress. Angeline herself needs to tell Lissa her take on all this, since she was more or less thrown into the battle. Trey needs to reassure her about the Warriors of Light. And Sydney needs to tell her about what happens in Alchemist Re-education Centers." His smile faltered a bit as he remembered what we discovered. "Dimitri and Christian will be present, and so will Rose. We're doing this more in terms of a friendly meeting than an actual Court basis. Marcus is coming, too, and I asked Sonya to pick up Keith to let him talk to her, as well."
My mind was spinning. "How do you suppose we'll get Jill into Court without the assassins going after her again?" I demanded, protective toward her.
Surprise as to not thinking of that himself flitted across Eddie's face. His eyes turned fierce. "You can't possibly expect us to bring her back into danger," he snapped.
"You won't be bringing Jillian Mastrano-Dragomir into Court." Trey and I both stared as Ms. T. came out of the school and stood beside Adrian. She handed some charm to him, and he closed his eyes in concentration. "You'll be escorting Jillian Ivashkov into the Moroi Court for the first time. A distant relative of the late Queen Tatiana's."
When Adrian placed the charm around Jill's neck, her appearance wavered between her real self and the cover. Her eyes were a shade lighter to match Adrian's and the rest of the Ivashkov line. She still looked similar, but her face changed slightly to be a little less Dragomir-pronounced. Her light brown hair darkened a bit so that it looked more golden-brown. Because we knew who she really was, the glamour only lasted a short time before revealing her identity. But it looked like it would work.
"Because of the mixing of a witch's work and a vampire's spirit control, the charm is a lot stronger than any other. It will protect Jill from the assassins. Nobody except those forewarned will know that she is there."
Adrian was still smiling like he had kept one important detail from us. "What else is there?" Trey queried, his voice light to hide his emotions. I could tell, though, that he didn't like the thought of putting any of us in trouble.
"We're invited to Sonya and Mikhail's wedding, same as we've always been." Adrian beamed at Jill, whose green irises brightened with realization. "And now you can go like you wanted."
Somehow I knew something would go wrong. I just hoped it would be something minimal (and not involving Jill or Trey).