The Renegades

Chapter 21 : Conflict of interests

Though the holidays appeared uneventful to the outside eye, Penelope had been discreetly slipping away every night to visit Isidora's portrait. Fortunately, she hadn't crossed paths with Peeves again, and no one seemed to suspect her nightly excursions. Sebastian, however, was in on the secret as always. Penelope consistently kept him informed, sharing details such as Isidora's revelations about the vision she had witnessed.

"So, I suppose this means that one can influence their fate?" he asked, looking thoughtful, as they both sat in the Undercroft one day.

"I suppose so."

"What did you see, exactly? Why are you keeping it from me?" he asked as he sat up.

"It's nothing interesting. Just me, simply... older."

"Nothing else?"

"Nothing else," she lied.

He opened his mouth, as if to say something, then seemingly decided against it. He must have known it was a lie. Sebastian had initiated his search for Anne, employing various methods, including revisiting Feldcroft for the first time since the end of the summer to question the villagers. Despite dedicating days to research, assisted by Ominis, they couldn't unearth a magical method to locate someone.

Several possibilities existed regarding Anne's whereabouts. With no surviving family other than Sebastian, she might have been staying with either a friend or a stranger entirely. The chance of her being alone seemed less probable to Sebastian, considering her weakened state that rendered full independence impossible.

"One possibility is that she left the country," Ominis suggested one night, as they pored over books in the common room.

Sebastian had arranged a substantial stack of tomes on the table, and the three of them were diligently going through the material, trying to extract as much information as possible.

"What leads you to that conclusion?" Penelope inquired, looking up from the advanced charms text she was engrossed in.

"She's always dreamed of visiting the French Riviera. She's fond of sunshine, and it's considered beneficial for one's health, isn't it?"

"I hadn't considered that!" Sebastian exclaimed. "But given her condition, could she have traveled such a distance?"

"Maybe she has improved a bit," Penelope suggested optimistically.

That statement lacked logic. Curses typically didn't improve; if anything, they tended to worsen over the years. Moreover, there was no evidence to suggest that Anne could have discovered a viable solution on her own. But she couldn't say that, could she?

"Penelope, you've still got friends in France, right?" Sebastian inquired.

"Not really," Penelope replied truthfully.

It was an accurate statement. Aside from Adèle, she didn't have any close friends in that country. However, through her, Penelope had access to the most influential and well-connected individuals in France. Some even had spies at their disposal.

"I'll request Adèle to leverage her connections," Penelope suggested.

"Do we really need to involve her?" Ominis tutted.

"Why not?" Sebastian retorted. "Don't you want to find Anne?"

Ominis set down his hefty book with a loud thud.

"Of course, I want to find Anne," he hissed. "Adèle has connections, that's true. But she'll also attract attention. If we involve her in the search, it could unnecessarily complicate matters. I prefer to handle it discreetly."