“We got our second challenge for the bone games.” She’s waving a folded piece of parchment as if it’s an invitation to a grand ball. But I don’t share her enthusiasm. I’m not interested in more difficult choices.

“What do we have to do?”

Tessa bounces on her toes. “Not what. Where.”

“Oh,” I say flatly. “Then where?”

She sighs and thrusts the parchment into my hands. But before I can unfold it, she says, “It’s in Leiden, Saskia.” She leans toward me and lowers her voice, even though no one else is within earshot. “We can find Avalina.”

A ping of alarm goes through me. “Our challenge is in Leiden?”

Tessa’s face falls. “I thought you’d be excited.”

“Don’t you think it seems odd? We were just talking about finding Avalina, and our next bone game is in the exact town she’s from?”

“You think someone is sending us there intentionally? But who? Why?”

It doesn’t make any sense. Norah warned me against taking action against Latham on my own, and I can’t imagine who would want me to find Avalina. Even if the Bone Charmer on the Grand Council suspects my mother trained me, what connection would that have to Leiden? Still, the coincidence makes me uneasy.

Tessa puts a hand on my arm. “I think you’re worrying over nothing. The bone games must take months to prepare. I’m sure this was planned long before you expressed an interest in finding Avalina.”

I sigh. Maybe my paranoia is getting the best of me. I take a deep breath, and a small bubble of hope inflates in my chest. I could finally get the answers I need to start searching for Latham.

But then a hand falls on my shoulder and I turn to find Norah standing next to the bodyguard I met my first night here, his arms folded across his massive chest.

“Hello, girls,” Norah says. Then she indicates the man beside her. “Saskia, you remember Rasmus.”

The sight of him is a sharp pin that collapses my optimism in one swift motion.

I’d nearly forgotten about Norah’s stipulation that a bodyguard accompany me if I leave Ivory Hall. Suddenly I feel as transparent as a windowpane. Like my scheming is on full display for Norah to see.

I try to school my expression into something calmer than I feel. “Of course.” I turn to Rasmus. “Hello again.”

He doesn’t move. He barely makes eye contact. The only sign he heard me is a subtle dip of his chin.

“Rasmus will accompany you on your next challenge,” she says. “I understand you’re headed to Leiden.”

“Yes,” Tessa says brightly, “we are.”

My jaw tightens. “May I ask you something?”

Norah smiles. “Of course. What is it?”

“Who designs our bone games?”

Her expression falters. “Why do you ask?”

“Just curious.”