At the Hutch, Alex and Pamela Dawes shared hot chocolate while Alex recounted her near-crossing to the underworld and her bargain with the Bridegroom. Dawes, newly assertive, warned Alex not to break into Tara Hutchins’s apartment and worried about Lethe’s exposure, especially after Alex coerced Salome Nils at Wolf’s Head and stole a statue from Scroll and Key. Alex insisted she needed an item of Tara’s and asked Dawes to research a name she heard beyond the Veil—possibly Jean Du Monde or Jonathan Desmond—while advising Dawes to stay alert.

As they parted, Alex and Dawes briefly discussed the historical “Bridegroom” murders of Bertram Boyce North and Daisy Fanning Whitlock; Dawes knew little, but Alex resolved to learn more. Walking campus, Alex pondered Tara’s Idylls of the King tattoo and considered whether glamours could have disguised Tara’s killer as Lance Gressang. She decided to question Tripp Helmuth despite Turner’s warnings.

In the Hopper dining hall, Alex isolated Tripp and intimidated him with Lethe’s authority. He admitted to casual hookups and buying superior weed from Tara and Lance, said he never went to Tara’s place, and identified two society students he had seen with Tara: Kate Masters (Manuscript) and Colin Khatri (Scroll and Key). Alex extracted a bike from Tripp and rode to meet Detective Abel Turner.

Outside Union Station, Alex researched the Bridegroom case on her phone, finding public accounts of North and Daisy’s 1854 deaths and the sensational rumors surrounding them. Turner arrived tense and admonished Alex for appearing at the station. She asked for access to Lance; Turner refused, citing procedure and risk, and threatened to protect his case if she interfered. When Alex slipped and mentioned Tara’s apartment, Turner exploded, warning her away. Alex feigned meekness, then provided the names Tripp had given—Kate Masters and Colin Khatri—before Turner left. From their exchange, Alex inferred Tara’s street address.

Alex postponed visiting Tara’s apartment until a weekday, reasoning fewer neighbors would be home, and hoped her public meeting with Turner would deter whoever sent the gluma. On her ride back, she connected Tara to multiple societies: Skull and Bones through Tripp, Scroll and Key through Colin and the tattoo, and Manuscript through Kate and possible glamours, which might explain seeing Lance’s face in Tara’s death memory.

Back at her dorm, Alex found Mercy crying with Lauren. They showed Alex texts and a video from Blake Keely after Omega Meltdown. In the footage, Mercy appeared compliant and sober, but Alex recognized the purple-stained tongue as Merity—the Manuscript “drug of service” used on acolytes. The video showed coercive sexual acts involving Blake and another man, with threats of sharing the recording.

Lauren said Mercy refused medical attention or police involvement. Alex blamed herself for missing the party, took a screenshot of Mercy’s purple tongue as evidence, and decided to confront the problem directly. She told Lauren to stay with Mercy, then headed for Blake’s fraternity house, rejecting reliance on authorities and preparing to “fix this” on her own.