Crewel

charmer,’ Enora warns.
    I roll my eyes. ‘I couldn’t tell.’
    ‘It’s none of my business, but . . . Oh, never mind.’ She leans in and tugs at my fitted jacket. ‘We have more important things to worry about.’
    ‘Have we run out of mascara?’ I ask in mock horror.
    ‘As much as I love your particular brand of sarcasm, I’m going to need you to bite your tongue. You’ve been invited to a special council meeting.’
    ‘What council?’ I rack my brain trying to remember all the names and departments they’ve been throwing at us this week, but I can’t remember any councils.
    ‘It’s a meeting between the chair of the training panel and the Guild’s official Coventry Ambassador.’
    ‘Cormac?’ I ask apprehensively.
    ‘The one and only,’ she confirms, leading me back into the hallway.
    ‘So Cormac is the entire council?’
    ‘No, Maela sits on it, but she won’t be attending.’
    ‘Cormac and Maela comprise a council that oversees things here? That explains a lot,’ I mutter. I can’t help thinking of our last meeting, when he made me eat at Nilus Station. He must have known they were going to lock me up without food. I don’t know if this makes me like him or hate him.
    ‘Is this because of the thing with Maela?’ I ask, dropping my voice so the security monitors won’t hear me clearly.
    ‘Officially, no,’ she whispers. ‘But of course it is.’
    ‘Great,’ I mutter, wondering what my punishment will be this time, and then one thought stops me in my tracks.
    Amie.
    My last meeting with Cormac is a bit hazy from the Valpron injection, but if they still have her it might not be me that they punish.
    ‘Adelice.’ Enora tugs at my arm.
    I don’t move.
    ‘You aren’t in trouble,’ she tells me quietly.
    ‘I’m not?’ Considering how much time I’ve spent in the cell, I find this hard to believe.
    ‘Come on.’ She pulls again and I allow her to drag me along.
    ‘If I’m not—’
    ‘Maela,’ she confirms under her breath.
    ‘For what she did to that academy?’
    ‘For a lot of things.’ She frowns at me. ‘Maela has been overstepping her bounds in the Western Coventry. She wouldn’t even let me down there to see you, and that’s not within her power.’
    Then why didn’t you come?
    ‘I thought she was in charge,’ I point out.
    ‘You have a lot to learn,’ Enora says with an empty laugh. ‘Now that you are an invited Spinster, you’ll dine with the others and get to know the system here. Believe me, Maela is nowhere near the top of the Guild hierarchy.’
    I raise my eyebrows. ‘Care to explain the Guild then? It seems like things run a bit differently from what they taught us in academy.’
    ‘That’s the truth,’ Enora says. ‘The Guild is comprised mainly of men, as you know, but they use women for a lot of tasks within the government. Spinsters, for instance. But there are other positions – secretaries, nurses, assistants—’
    ‘Like everywhere else in Arras?’ I clarify. This information isn’t all that surprising or interesting.
    ‘Yes, but they try to keep as much information about what each coventry does a secret. The Guild oversees our work here, places work orders, and steps in to discipline when necessary. Sometimes I think Maela hopes to advance into the Guild ranks, so she can travel around the four sectors, from coventry to coventry.’
    ‘Is that even possible?’ I ask.
    ‘I doubt it,’ Enora says. ‘I don’t think the Guild is going to allow a woman into a position of political power. That won’t stop her though, and if I had to lay money on a woman who could rise from under the Guild’s thumb and out of the Coventry, it would be her.’
    ‘Not that I’m a fan of Maela’s ego getting any bigger, but don’t we already have a pretty powerful position?’
    ‘That’s where someone like Cormac comes in,’ Enora explains, her soft voice rushing through the information as we walk. We must be getting close to our destination. ‘Officially, he’s a spokesman who keeps the public apprised of what goes on in the coventries and the work we are doing. People think he’s a friendly goodwill ambassador between the Spinsters and the people.’
    ‘Unofficially?’
    ‘He keeps us in our place. He may not be head minister, but he’s just as powerful. Don’t let him fool you. That’s why he’s here.’
    ‘As thrilling as that information is, why am I being dragged into this?’ I ask.
    ‘Good question.’ Enora sighs,