My parents shooed us on our way quickly enough, and Balthazar held my arm to steady me as we made our way downstairs. When my new shoe slipped on one of the worn stone steps and I wobbled, he slid his arm around me. “Are you okay?”

“Fine.” I glanced up at him and realized how close his face was to mine. His arm was still wrapped tightly around me. I knew I ought to pull away, but I also knew that he wanted me—and I couldn’t help liking that he wanted me. It was the first time I’d ever felt that being a woman gave me a unique kind of power.

“Your hair looks beautiful this way,” Balthazar said. His dark eyes searched my face. “Women used to wear their hair like that more often. I always liked it.”

A small smile played on my lips. “So this is a trip down memory lane?”

For some reason, that broke the spell. He straightened. “I’m happy with the here and now. Come on. Let’s dance.”

Once again, the great hall had been transformed for the occasion, though in an entirely different style. Candles still burned next to ham-mered brass mirrors, reflecting mellow, flickering light throughout the room; but this year, the walls and tables had been decorated with thousands and thousands of flowers, all different kinds, but all of them snowy white. Even the dark stone floors were scattered with petals, so that the entire room was soft and bright.

As Balthazar walked me toward the dance floor to the strains of the orchestra tuning up, I saw several girls casting admiring glances in his direction, tall and sophisticated as he was in his evening suit. The thought of them being turned on by him was sort of a turn-on in itself.

Maybe everyone wants to arouse some jealousy from time to time. Then I caught sight of someone who was definitely not impressed.

“Satin.” Courtney raised an eyebrow as she looked at my gown. Her own was deep gold, low-cut, and stunning—though I still liked mine best. “Brave of you to wear that. It wrinkles like an old garbage bag the second you sit down.”

“I’ll just have to make sure that we dance the entire night,” I said brightly. “That way we won’t sit down at all.” We swept past her as she sputtered for a retort, without success.

Last year I had enjoyed the ball, but this year I loved it. My heart wasn’t breaking for Lucas any longer; I was completely sure of our love for each other. Even though I would’ve preferred him to be my date, I also realized that he probably wouldn’t enjoy this as much as I did. No, I could let go completely and live in the exhilaration of Balthazar whirling me through the steps of all the old-fashioned dances. Violins and pianos and harps played all around us, and the girls’ brilliantly colored dresses shifted from pattern to pattern, formation to formation; it was a little like being inside a kaleidoscope that kept spinning every second.

“Your waltzing has improved,” Balthazar said about halfway through the evening. His broad hand splayed against my bare back. “Did you practice?”

“In my room, I gave it a try. And put up with Raquel laughing at me the whole time.”

“It was worth it.” He leaned closer to me, so that his lips were nearly brushing my ear, and whispered, “Now?”

I glanced around the edges of the room; most of the chaperones were missing, no doubt patrolling the grounds where most couples would sneak off to be together. “Now.”

We shifted to the edge of the dance floor and then walked away, laughing together as if we were just taking a quick break. As we started up the stairs of the north tower, a couple of guys in tuxes shifted past us.

They stared at me for a very long time, it seemed. Once they were gone, I said, “Do you think they suspect anything?”

“Because of the way that they were looking at you? I think they were envying me.” Balthazar sighed. “Little do they know. Come on.” Nobody else was around as we reached the level of the guys’ dorms and kept going. Inwardly I cursed the clicking of my high-heeled shoes against the stone stairs, telltale evidence of a girl on the move; but all the same, we made it to the door of the records room. I hesitated, then knocked; Lucas and I couldn’t be the only ones who’d figured out this was a good place to be alone, and the last thing I wanted to do was walk in on a couple in a clinch. When no one answered, Balthazar said,

“We’re clear.”

We hurried inside the records room. Someone had definitely been up there since the time I’d seen the vision—Mrs. Bethany, probably, investigating. Boxes and trunks had been shifted around in every direction; and for the first time in my memory, the room had been cleaned from top to bottom. The windows were so clear that they were invisible, and it looked as though the gargoyle outside the window might hop in at any second. Cobwebs had been expelled from every corner.

“So what are we looking for?” Balthazar said.

“Anything that explains why humans are attending Evernight Academy now. Lucas needs to know. If we can tell him when we’re explaining about Charity and—and the rest, it will go better. Besides, don’t you want to know?”

“I’ve always thought Mrs. Bethany did it for the money. People will do a lot of things for money.”

“If she wanted money, she could’ve started admitting human students years ago. Like you said, Mrs. Bethany hates to change the rules. Why did she change this one? Besides, if it was only about making cash for Evernight Academy, she wouldn’t offer scholarships to human students, but she does. Raquel’s on scholarship, and she’s not the only one.” Balthazar nodded, acknowledging that I had a good point, but he didn’t look any more thrilled to be there. “The last time you were up here, you awakened a wraith.”