"Jonathan! We have to go! What are you ..." the rest of the question never left my mouth.
I had nobody to say it to, since when I entered it, Jonathan's room was empty.
His gear and weapons were also gone. In fact, the room looked like nobody had slept there for days, all tidy and without any sign of anybody's presence. The window was open and wind had already sneaked into it, so my skin was soon full of goose bumps.
But, the coldness wasn't the only reason for the goose bumps.
What if he's tricked me again? I couldn't help myself, but to think it. What if he's left because he knew we'd discover him soon? And he made a fool out of me again. What if everything he said to me yesterday was nothing more than a lie, convincible enough to trick an idiot like me?
I closed the door of Jonathan's bedroom and ran downstairs into the library. I hoped he was there, I could see sight of him sitting in one of the chairs, a book in his hands.
Please, let him just be there. I prayed. I need to know he didn't betray me.
But, my prayers were in vain. There were no signs of Jonathan when I got into the library. But, I saw Amelia digging through a pile of books in panic, like she had lost something. When she heard me entering, her eyes left the books and looked at me.
"Sam." she said, surprised. "Why aren't you with the others? We're waiting only for you."
I took a deep breath.
"Jonathan is with them?" I managed not to sound surprised or worried.
Amelia's eyes studied me.
"Why do you ask?"
I shrugged my shoulders, trying to look casually.
"He's not in his room and he usually waits for me when we go somewhere."
By the Angel, I sound almost like Clarissa. What a shame. I tried to stay calm and not to blush.
For a moment, I thought I saw a grin on Amelia's face, like she also thought I was becoming possessive. But, if it was there, it left her face fast.
"Jonathan asked me to let him leave earlier this morning. He said he had something important to do." she said, showing me with her tone and face expression that she wanted to end this conversation.
"And you let him go?!" this time I didn't manage to control my voice. I ignored her intentions of ending our conversation. She had no idea what his departure might mean.
Amelia's eyebrows rose.
"Why shouldn't I have done that?" she asked, staring at my face strictly.
"I ..." for few moments I had no idea what to say. "He shouldn't have gone alone. He didn't feel well yesterday. He should have asked me to come with him."
"He seemed perfectly healthy to me this morning." Amelia replied indifferently. "And as for him not having invited you to come along, I have no comment. I won't interfere in your relationship with your parabatai."
If you did, that'd be more than I could bear. I thought. But, I had more questions to ask her.
"Did he say when he would return?"
"I told him you'd visit Emily Pearl this morning. He said he'd join you on your way."
Amelia didn't even look at me now, but returned to her search among the books.
"The others are waiting in the dining room. Go and join them. I'll be there in a minute."
I had nothing to say to that. I went out of the library and made my way to the dining room. While walking, I thought about Amelia's words.
Maybe Jonathan left because it was the only way for him to avoid being seen by New Yorkers. Not because he had betrayed me. I hoped so much that was the case. But, I was still suspicious. But, if he's going to meet us later, they'll see him anyway. What difference does it make then?
I abandoned my thoughts about Jonathan, realising they would lead me in a path I didn't want to follow. I couldn't do anything but hope everything would turn out alright.
When I entered the dining room, I faced five pairs of eyes staring at me.
"Good morning." I said, wondering if my bad manners made them look so dissatisfied or it was the time difference. Only for Thomas I wasn't sure why he looked so weirdly. He didn't seem dissatisfied, but thoughtful.
"Good morning, Sam." he said, not looking into my eyes.
"What's going on?" I threw my best fake smile on my face, trying to look relaxed. "Why are you all so grumpy?"
Nobody smiled.
"Where is your parabatai?" Jace asked me with a dangerous note in his voice.
"Left earlier." I said, my voice as easy-going as I could make it. "But, don't worry, he'll join us on the road. We'll protect you from the bad warlocks, New Yorkers. You don't have to be scared."
"What's his last name?" Clarissa's green eyes stared at mine like she would love to pierce a hole or two through my brain.
"Why do you want to know?" I asked with mocking tone in my voice, although I already knew the answer.
"He doesn't seem happy to meet us. Yesterday he was sick. Today he's already gone." Isabelle pointed out, her gaze as sharp as Clarissa's. "And we know a guy whose name is Jonathan and we don't like him very much. We wondered if they were the same person."
They put two and two together. I realised. It took them less time than I'd thought. Nevertheless, he's not a Morgenstern here.
"Fairchild." I said finally. "His last name is Fairchild."
Alec, Isabelle, Jace and Clarissa exchanged gazes. Judging by their gazes at each other, I could see they found even Jonathan's fake surname suspicious. I wondered what connections they had with the Fairchilds, but I knew better than to ask. It would just make them more suspicious.
"Who are you going to visit, Thomas?" I directed my attention towards him.
He looked at me.
"We're going back to Jeff Goldmayer's house." he replied. "We'll look for some traces. Maybe they'll lead us to the person responsible for this. We couldn't do it yesterday because the night had already fallen. I just hope there are some traces left."
"So, we have to interrogate the last two warlocks." I said playfully.
He nodded without any entertainment in his eyes.
"Yes. Amelia will explain everything to you."
In that moment, the door behind my back opened. Amelia entered, carrying something in her hand. I couldn't see what it was, but it was small enough to fit into her left hand. She stood next to Thomas and turned towards us.
"Alec, Isabelle, Jace and Clarissa, you'll visit Xavier Lander. He lives only two streets away from here, you'll have no trouble in finding his house. I'll just show you the direction."
They nodded without a word. Amelia then turned towards me.
"Sam, you and Jonathan will visit Emily Pearl in the Fulham Road. She lives near Charing Cross Hospital. Jonathan will join you on your way there."
I followed example of the others and nodded without a word.
"Thomas and I ..." Amelia continued, but Thomas interrupted her.
"I've explained them that already." he said gently.
"You have? Good." Amelia nodded in her husband's direction and then waved her hand, dismissing us. "Let's go, then. Be back as soon as you can." she looked at the clock that hung on the wall. "Now it's quarter 'til nine. If anyone's not back in the Institute by quarter past ten, without any delaying you'll go to the place that group or pair went."
She expected troubles; I could hear it in her voice. But, she was right. With us convinced of Bella's innocence and Jeff being dead, there was a big chance that one of the two remaining warlocks was taking part in summoning demons, free willingly or not.
I touched Seraph blades in my belt, just to feel some confidence. I remembered calling them my best parabatai. I still thought that of them. They had never let me down. I just hoped Jonathan was as reliable, because I knew I would pick them over him in the case I had to choose.