“November. Right, of course. All you need to know is that I move quickly, I expect the best, and I encourage you to be creative.”

Basurto—a Spanish name, and one I’ve always loved because it means “the middle of the forest.”

“Sure. I love to climb,” I say, but it sounds less peppy than it normally would.

“Then we’ll get along just fine. Why be on the ground when you can be in a tree, no?” She winks and claps her hands together.

Matteo still hasn’t looked at me. I’m not sure if that’s a good or a bad thing.

“Throughout the ages, trees have played an integral role in plotting and trickery,” Basurto says. “There is the Major Oak in Sherwood Forest, whose hollowed-out trunk supposedly served as the hideout for Robin Hood and his Merry Men. There’s the arrow that killed Ponce de León because it was tipped with poison from the sap of the manchineel tree. There are the weapons made from wood and the deadly codes written on paper, and then there’s my favorite use of trees—evasion. They are the perfect escape route because they offer unpredictable terrain, they provide coverage, and only the very skilled can move through them swiftly without falling to their death or suffering grave injury.”

I steal a glance at Matteo again, but it seems like his thoughts are a million miles away.

Basurto smiles and there’s a spring to her step as she paces through the grass. Her shirtsleeves are rolled up, revealing well-toned arms that she no doubt acquired from years of climbing. “So today we’re going to start off with a chase exercise. You must show me how uncatchable you are—or the opposite, as the case may be. For my first group I’ll take Charles, Matteo, Nyx, November, and Kiku.” Basurto points to each of us, ending on the girl Ash was with when he came into the parlor the other night. “Go ahead and form a line. The front person should start one vine ahead of the next person, and so on.”

I try to maneuver my way to the back of our group without making it obvious, but Matteo cuts me off and steps behind me, taking the last spot. My stomach drops so fast that I gulp. Charles looks back at me and smirks.