Rook

it personally, accompanied by a handpicked team. And such an offer would have been gratefully endorsed by the remaining Rook. I can assure you, any evidence left after your hasty removal would have been swept under the rug.
    “But it had to be hasty, because that evening it was brought to my attention that Rook Myfanwy Thomas had entered Camp Caius a few weeks earlier. One of the guards had been found having a seizure of some sort. All such events are examined closely for fear that one of the Caius subjects might be having unforeseen effects on those around them. Extensive blood work, CAT scans—you get the picture. Eventually they found evidence that you had controlled him—your psychic fingerprints, if you will. Remember all those years of testing you received at the Estate? Well, those results were shared, unofficially, with the staff at Caius, and one of the staff members recognized the hallmarks of your powers.
    “I’ll admit, I was incredulous at first. Little Myfanwy Thomas’s nose was always in the books. She was far too deeply enmeshed in the day-to-day domestic operations of the Checquy to have time to do any extracurricular research. Or so we thought,” Grantchester added.
    “And then, suddenly, it seemed we had been discovered. All that was keeping us from being completely destroyed was yourinexplicable reticence. Fortunately”—and here he smirked with self-satisfaction—“I’ve always been quick in a crisis. One thing I learned in the field was that if someone has a knife against your throat, you don’t hesitate.
    “I immediately mobilized a team. I keep several graduates from Camp Caius here at the Apex in a discreet bodyguard capacity, and we proceeded to the Rookery. As you guessed, there are several concealed entrances to that building known only to me. One of these leads to the private quarters of the Rooks. I waited for you to enter the residence and greeted you there.
    “I will say this for you, Myfanwy, you were far calmer about the whole thing than I anticipated. I don’t believe I shall ever forget the look in your eyes. A girl who usually squeaked if someone spoke unexpectedly, who cringed when someone stood abruptly. Well, not that night. You walked in and saw me seated on the couch, with Norman at my shoulder. Your eyes widened, but otherwise there was no change in your expression.
    “Then my other aides stepped in behind you and closed the door. You just walked across the room and stood facing me. You were absolutely still, and your eyes were so cold.” Grantchester broke off and shook his head with a bitter little smile.
    “I wanted to ask you questions, to know how you’d found out about Camp Caius and why you hadn’t said anything. But you just stared at me, and I confess, I found myself a trifle unnerved. I started to speak to you, and you said, ‘Just shut up and do it, you filthy traitor.’ That’s what Myfanwy Thomas, the most pathetic Rook in the history of the Checquy, said to
me
.” His voice tightened with rage, but then he controlled himself.
    “And so,” he said lightly, “I stood up, slapped you in the face, and then set my Retainers on you while you were still reeling.
    “Priya and Mark had you by the shoulders, holding you still for Norman here to attend to you. They were wearing gloves, of course, and had you pinned, but I suppose a little of that old Estate training came back to you. You kicked out and managed to throw them off balance. You touched Mark on the cheek and he was suddenlyblinded—it turned out that you’d made his pupils close themselves completely.
    “Priya was even more unlucky. Using a level of power you’d never shown at the Estate, you somehow forced her facial muscles to turn against her. Apparently, they fractured her skull.” He stared intently at Myfanwy, and she shrugged. “Fortunately, by that time, Norman was able to get his hands on you.
    “Norman is one of the products of Camp Caius, which you apparently know all about. It’s quite remarkable, really. A perfectly mundane infant can be radically enhanced—if you’re willing to crack open its skull and torso on a regular basis and do a little tinkering. And inject it daily with various cocktails of nastiness. And suture a new system of canals and reservoirs into the body. And graft some protective insulation onto its epidermis. And provide it with some new probative members.” Myfanwy shot a horrified look over her shoulder at the scaly youth, who stood