I scanned the hall for Rubi and Rego, but they’d vanished among the throng of elites. Should I call them? Cassiel took the brunt of socializing with others—he ought to as the more experienced one anyway—and I was beginning to sweat from the attention.
When we were finally free, I found my opportunity. “I’m going to the bathroom.”
“Do you even know where it is?”
“No, which is why I’m going to find out,” I said, walking away. He caught my elbow, and I tugged it back. “Don’t touch me.”
His eyes became grey bullets. “I was going to offer to take you, but I clearly have your answer. Don’t blame me if you get lost.”
A twinge of guilt pierced through me, but I discarded it and marched away. I made a beeline to the blissful emptiness of the top floor and once I got there, glanced over the shi
