“Tamara Rajavi, we would have thought that after what happened to your sister, you would have better sense,” chided Master North. Tamara’s face crumpled. The flame in Call’s chest burned hotter.
“And you, Callum Hunt,” said Master North. “We allowed you into the Magisterium even though your scores were pitiful, and this is how you repay us? Consider your application to be the Makar’s counterweight dismissed, and count yourself lucky if that’s all that happens to you.”
Master Rufus’s hands were clenched. Call felt as if he were choking down boiling water.
“You don’t have the right to punish any of us,” Jasper said, eyes blazing. “You sent an elemental to kill us!”
“Jasper!” Master Milagros looked horrified. “Do you understand where you are, what this is? Lying is not going to help you.”
“He’s not lying,” Call said. “And we know the Magisterium doesn’t care about the truth. What happened to Master Lemuel? He didn’t really hurt Drew, so why wasn’t he allowed to come back? Why does he have to squat with some animal-experimenting weirdos in the woods?”
Master Rufus sighed. “He chose not to come back, Call.”
Call bit his tongue.
“Lying certainly won’t help your parents’ bid to get back on the Assembly,” Mrs. Rajavi said to Jasper in a low voice, then turned to Alastair. “And where is the Alkahest?” she demanded. “Why don’t I see it on the table?”
“Master Joseph has it,” Alastair said flatly. Call winced. If he wasn’t particularly charming, he knew who to blame for not teaching him better.
“Master Joseph?” Mrs. Tarquin spoke coolly. “The Enemy of Death’s second-in-command? The one who first led him down the path of evil?”
Graves rose to his feet. “You children let this traitor deliver the Alkahest to the Enemy? We should lock up Alastair and lock up all of you with him —”
“The Enemy of Death doesn’t have the Alkahest,” said Call. “He doesn’t have anything. No thanks to all of you.”
Graves narrowed his eyes. “How do you know so much about what the Enemy has and doesn’t have?”
“Callum,” Alastair cautioned.
But Call wasn’t going to stop. He’d prepared for this moment. He reached into his backpack and gripped a handful of hair. Choking back rage and nausea, he pulled Constantine Madden’s severed head out of his backpack.
He slammed the head down on the table in front of Master Graves. There was no blood; the wound in Constantine’s neck looked cauterized where Call had sliced it with Miri. The Enemy’s face was smeared with ash, but it was still very recognizably Constantine Madden.
“Because my dad killed him,” Call said. “He used the Alkahest.”
The Assembly was entirely silent. Mrs. Tarquin made a choked noise and turned her face away. Master Rufus looked uncharacteristically shocked. Assemblyman Graves looked as though he was about to have a heart attack, and the Rajavis were both staring at Tamara as though they’d never seen her before.
Into the silence, Aaron spoke, his voice higher, cracking a little. “You cut off his head?”
Call supposed it wasn’t exactly charming. The head was faced toward the Assembly members and they were staring at it with a mixture of horror and trepidation, as though they were expecting it to speak. Call noticed that an orange Life Saver and a piece of fuzz were stuck to the Enemy’s cheek, but he didn’t want to draw more attention to them by reaching over and flicking either off.
“I thought that maybe we’d need proof,” Call said.