She nods, like she was expecting this question. “Your mother and father were special. They thought they could bring balance and equality back to Strategia, and they had every intention of devoting their lives to it as leaders of their Families. And even in the short time after they left this school, they made some headway. They got the impossible to happen—their Families came to an agreement. But as you might expect, there were members on both sides who were unhappy with their union and felt that balance would never happen or would ultimately mean relinquishing power. Dr. Conner and Jag’s brother were two of those people.”

“This was the uncle my mother killed?” I ask.

“Was accused of killing,” Blackwood corrects me. “No one actually knows what happened. The only thing we do know is that Dr. Conner was present. There was a great deal of suspicion at the time about how the events unfolded, especially since Dr. Conner walked away without so much as a scratch and without confronting your mother. Jag blamed Dr. Conner for not stopping her—he called him the great shame of the Family. As a result, after your father disappeared, Dr. Conner wasn’t named as the next leader, even though he was next in line. He became reclusive and removed from Strategia society. He changed so much that I barely recognized him when he was assigned to be the assessment officer here.”

I sit there for a moment, trying to make sense of my tangled Family history, where people are constantly killing one another. “Thanks for explaining,” I say, and shift to what I most want to know. “Do you know where my dad is right now?”

She shakes her head and her eyebrows furrow ever so slightly. “I haven’t heard from your father since your admission.”

I frown. “Okay, then can we get in touch with him and find out?” My fear of Strategia in Pembrook comes back full-force.

Blackwood shakes her head.

My heart begins to pound. “Well, did he leave any information for me? A message? Anything that would tell me how I can find him?” My voice is rushed.

“No, I’m sorry.”

I stand up, overwhelmed and unsure how to proceed. “But the Lions could be hunting him down right now,” I say emphatically.

“You’ve completed our agreement,” Blackwood says slowly.

I look at her questioningly. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means that you may stay here and continue your education as your father wished, or you may leave if that’s what you feel is necessary.”

“I can go? You’re letting me go?” I say more to myself than to Blackwood.

Blackwood hesitates. “Technically, you can go. However, I must advise you that there is still a great deal for you to learn and your skills are severely lacking in several areas. But more importantly, you know very little about the Strategia world at large.”