Chapter 10

10

Ididn’t sleep well, too worried about Barbara to lie still and quiet. My eyes refused to close and my brain whirred a million miles an hour. Despite the long shower I’d taken, I could have sworn I still smelled her cigarette smoke. Lingering behind. Following me wherever I went, as if to keep watch.

None of my bunkmates mentioned smelling it, so I knew it had to be my imagination. But I had a terrible feeling Barbara would keep a close eye on me until I got what she wanted.

The Augundae Imperium—whatever that was.

I felt like I’d jumped from the edge of the burning cauldron right into the boiling poison inside.

With the sun barely cresting the horizon, I ran to Melia’s room and slapped my fist down on her door. No matter that I was still in my pajamas. I’d waited long enough.

“Melia, it’s me. Please wake up. Please.” I continued to knock until she answered the door, bleary-eyed and doing her version of a stern frown. “I’m sorry! I’m really, really sorry.”

“Tavi, I know I said I was an early riser, but this is absolutely ridiculous. It’s barely dawn and I was up late.” She rubbed her eyes and stepped aside to let me through the door.

“It’s important, I promise.” I took a deep breath. “Barbara was here.”

The name slapped the last of her sleep away and in an instant, Melia was awake and glaring at open air. “The bitch witch who gave you the hideous potion?”

I nodded slowly and collapsed on her bed with a groan. “She’s come to collect the favor I owe her and I don’t know what to do. Her price is impossible.”

“Not to worry,” she said at what must have been my horrified expression. “We’re going to figure this out. What did you say she wanted?”

I hadn’t. I told Melia then, probably bungling the name from my poor memory.

The two of us rushed to the library, both still in our pajamas but at that early hour unlikely to be observed. artifacts. With her amazing memory, it wasn’t long before she recalled a specific book on ancient artifacts, which was soon located among a group of dusty undisturbed tomes.

“Look under A. It started with an A, I think,” I told her. “August something? Augustus Imperial? No, that’s not it. I hate myself right now.”

“Why don’t you use your cognitive manipulation to convince yourself you have a good memory?” Melia muttered with a smile—to lessen the sting of her words, more than likely. “It might be the best shot we have at this point.”

“You know, that’s not a bad idea. I’ll look into it later. If I remember.”

It took a few more moments before we found an entry in the table of contents.

“The Augundae Imperium?” she asked.

Something snapped into place in my mind. “Yes, that’s it, exactly!” We flipped to the right page and I held the book open. My blood went cold as I read the description. “The Augundae Imperium: an artifact that siphons magical power from anything or anyone it touches.”

Oh no. Not good. Not good at all.

Melia took up where I left off. “It can effectively strip and collect the magic from any object or talisman, as well as drain magic power from any witch, Fae, or other creature with such powers, storing it inside the body of the box itself for use at a later date. To the wielder goes the entirety of the siphoned magic.”

We both stared at the entry for a moment longer. I blinked, as though hoping it would make what we’d just read better. Nope, not better.

Melia laid her hand on the open book and turned to me, shaking her head. “Tavi, this is not good. This is not good at all.” She was echoing my own earlier thought. “I mean, assuming that our fellow students from Canada even have the artifact…what does Barbara want with it? Can you trust her with something this powerful?”

I worried my lower lip. No, I didn’t know what she wanted to do with the artifact, and no, I couldn’t trust her with it. Not even a little bit.

“I don’t have a choice,” I said with resignation. “I have to get her what she wants because I signed the contract and a deal is a deal.”

“What do you know about the contract? Did you read it?” Melia pressed.

I wanted to slap myself. “No, I didn’t have a chance to read it. More like the quill popped out of thin air and I just signed my life away. Hindsight, right?”

No amount of joking made this situation any better.

Melia turned to the description of the artifact again. I wished for a picture. “What if we spent a little time trying to figure out how to break your contract?” she asked.

“It’s not going to do any good. Barbara wants the August—”

“Augundae Imperium.”

“—now and I can’t chance what she’ll do if I don’t get it for her. She threatened to tell the school my secret. I can’t give up my chance to get into Faerie.” My voice rose with something akin to hysteria into only audible to dogs territory.

Kendrick was waiting for me if I didn’t leave. Kendrick Grimaldi, the bloody alpha of the Grimaldi pack who would stop at nothing to press me under his proverbial—and literal—thumb. A lifetime of brutal domination was what I’d have to look forward to.

Not to mention whatever consequences I’d face if I backed out on my promise. Barbara had said she’d squeal on me but I had a feeling that was only part of it and her retribution would make Hell look like a good alternative. I shivered.

Melia let out a long, low sigh. “I understand, girl, but this is bad. This is extremely bad and I don’t know of any way to sugarcoat it for you.”

“I understand. I just have no clue how to get out of this. The best route seems to be giving Barbara what she wants. And if the Imperi-thingy is with the exchange students, then their dorm is where I need to start.”

We read the rest of the text pertaining to the artifact but learned little more from it; there wasn’t a sketch or a drawing of the “box” so I didn’t know where to start beyond the obvious.

“Look,” Melia said, “if the exchange students brought it with them from Canada, then it isn’t going to be sitting on a table in plain sight, I guarantee. They’re going to hide it and use a crap-ton of spells and wards to keep it contained and safe. They won’t want anyone to find it. It will be protected. Measures like you’ve never seen before.”

“I know,” I agreed. Then closed the book because I didn’t want to look anymore. My eyes hurt. “Not to mention it could be a danger to them in the wrong hands. They all have magic too, right? So it’s critical that the box is secure. I’ll think about breaking the spells when we get to that point. First things first. Doing a little recon and finding out exactly where and how they have it hidden.”

“Well, well. Good morning! I had a feeling I would find you here.” Mike sauntered up to us wearing his school blazer and a big grin that had me instantly melting. “What are you two doing huddled in the library this early? You know you missed breakfast, and classes start in fifteen minutes.” He stopped. “Wait, why are you still in your pajamas?”

I wished I could tell him the truth—about my second innate power, about the special box, about the witch who expected me to steal the special box for her… Everything inside of me ached to tell him all, to the point where I opened my mouth to blurt out the real reason for our trip to the library. Then I came to my senses and snapped my jaw shut, shoving the tome on ancient artifacts closer to Melia. She picked up on my drift immediately, grabbing it and adding it to the pile in front of her, spine turned away from Mike so we didn’t chance him reading what it said.

“Melia was helping me look up books on cognitive manipulation.” The lie flowed out smoothly, helped along by Melia’s eager nod. “We thought maybe I could get ahead with more research.”

“We found a few things, but you’re right, Mike, we’re almost out of time.” Melia flashed a glance at me before shifting the books into her arms. “I’ll just go check these out and we can get back to it later. Too bad about breakfast. It’s going to be hard to make it through until lunch.”

I shared the sentiment. And I’d owe her for this, for her kindness and her willingness to join me along on this crazy information-seeking quest.

“Hey, why don’t you walk with me to my dorm?” I asked Mike, taking him by the arm. Stifling a sigh when he turned those green, green eyes on me again. “I have enough time to change before divination class. I can’t believe you came looking for me.”

The three of us made it to the door before splitting off in different directions. I could tell he didn’t quite believe our story, and I hated lying to him.

“What did you find out? About your power?” he wanted to know. “Anything to help you with your mastery?”

He didn’t shrug my hand away and it made me happier than I deserved. “Not much.” This time it was the truth. “It all comes down to a matter of belief, I guess. If I have enough conviction, then I can make people see what I want them to see. Apparently I have the power to reach out to people’s minds and influence them. Their memories, too.”

“I’m scared,” he teased.

“Aw, why?”

“Because I wonder what you would make me see.”

“Nothing,” I answered quickly to reassure him. “I would never manipulate you.”

And I couldn’t tell if he was relieved or disappointed. Why? What would he want me to make him see?

The corridor began filling with students making their way out of the cafeteria toward their first class. We had divination next with my favorite professor, Marsh. Mike waited outside of Tamerlain Hall while I changed into my uniform and together we power walked toward Marsh’s tower classroom.

Mike and I made our way to our normal table, both trying not to think about the empty space to his right that used to belong to Roman. No, those weren’t good thoughts to indulge in today. I sat down next to Mike and placed my books on the table in front of us.

Marsh strode into the room wearing a thin black skirt and a matching blouse instead of normal professor robes. She snapped her fingers for attention, not needing to say anything as the rest of the students settled in.

Once again, I was struck by the sensation of her. She felt like pack. Felt familiar, like a part of me responded to a part of her, but something I couldn’t quite put my finger on. I was ninety percent sure she was half shifter just like Nurse Julie and I. Unfortunately, there was no way for me to prove it. Especially since Professor Marsh didn’t have any trouble touching quartz crystal, which said to me she didn’t have a glamour or any kind of potion or spell hiding her shifter nature.

I must be going out of my mind.

“I wonder what kind of techniques she has up her sleeve this semester,” Mike said with a lopsided grin. “The first couple of classes were reviews of what we’ve already learned. Today I have a feeling she’s going to turn things on their head.”

“I know, I’m excited. Ready to see those skills of yours,” I tossed back.

He pointed to his chest. “Skills? Me? Someone has been lying to you, clearly.”

But I could tell he was eager to start, to show me what he could do. There was a strange confidence about him I hadn’t seen before. I cast one last long look in his direction before Marsh began her lecture.

Last semester she’d delved into topics like tarot cards and crystal balls as ways of divining the future. Today Marsh had equipped each student setup with a bag of old bones with Norse runes carved on them, letting us get a feel for them and impart our energy on the bones. I wasn’t afraid of what I’d see, but I was too distracted to use them with any kind of accuracy.

After class I sent Mike on his way on a whim, deciding on the spot to talk to Professor Marsh about what had happened with Hoarfrost. If anyone could give me a little insight on his reaction, it would be her, and I needed to tell someone.

Once the room emptied out, I approached her. Sending her a smile to make it seem less like I was cornering her and more like I wanted a friendly chat. “Do you have time to talk?” I asked.

“For you? Sure, let’s go into my office.” She showed me into her small office just off the classroom. “Take a seat. Something is bothering you.” Marsh waited for me to sit, then she sat behind her desk and stared at me. Unblinking. Unmoving. Looking like a predator with those cat-like eyes. Yet I didn’t get the feeling I was the mouse.

I dropped my bag at my feet and tried to relax. I knew whatever we said in this room would stay between the two of us. Marsh would offer blunt advice without sugarcoating anything.

“Yeah, you could say so.” I’d been stewing on this for too long. “I’m having issues with another teacher,” I told her. Then I explained what had happened with Hoarfrost and how I was worried he would find a way to expel me.

“I didn’t do anything wrong,” I insisted again. “He gave out incorrect information. I’d read the right date in the textbook. If anything, he should congratulate me for actually remembering something for once.”

Marsh listened to the story, her lips pursed in thought. “In my opinion,” she said the moment I finally shut my mouth, “he’s a self-righteous prick. He has always delighted in choosing one student each year and focusing the brunt of his ire on him or her without rhyme or reason. Still, I highly doubt he’ll make good on his threat. You cut him down in front of your peers and he saw that as an insult, Tavi. He more than likely spoke out of fear and anger rather than any real intention. Rest assured your grades are good enough he can’t follow through on his threat.”

“How can you be sure?” I pressed. One hand lay against my stomach and I felt it rumbling, partially out of hunger but more from anxiety.

Marsh stared down her nose at me. “Hon, the teachers at the academy care about our students. None of us wants to see anyone fail, regardless of our personal feelings. I’ve known Hoarfrost for a very long time. We’ve both been at the school longer than most of the other faculty members. He can be an asshole, truly—and don’t you repeat a word of this—but I have never known him to carry a grudge for a student all the way to graduation. If he has, it has never resulted in an expulsion.” She leaned back into her chair and crossed one slender leg over the other, folding her hands on her lap. The picture of sophisticated poise. “Do you trust me?”

I swallowed. “Yes, I trust you.”

“Then keep your head down in his class, do what he tells you, and the issue should pass by next term. He’ll find another victim and you will be off the hook. Luckily you won’t have to deal with him for much longer.”

I didn’t agree with her but I could appreciate the pep talk.

Professor Marsh and I chatted for a moment longer before I had to run, already late for my next class. To make up for the tardiness, she wrote me a note to give to my professor and sent me on my way with a final encouraging yet brusque word.

It felt good to get my nervousness over Hoarfrost off my chest to someone other than Melia. If there were any teachers I could trust, I counted Marsh among them.

The halls were emptier than usual thanks to class having already started. I urged my feet to hurry, listening to the echo off the walls. Man, things didn’t even look this desolate after curfew at night, and there were plenty of times I’d aimlessly roamed the halls after hours or when I couldn’t sleep.

I wouldn’t do that anymore, I told myself. I’d stick to looking for the artifact for Barbara and nothing else. A few spells, a trip to the exchange student housing, and done. Then at least I would have one less worry on my plate.

The smell hit me suddenly and stopped me in my tracks. The smell of something dead or dying. I knew that smell intimately, having run with the rest of my pack in the woods to hunt deer. Nostrils widening, I drew in a deep breath and nearly gagged.

This wasn’t deer. I didn’t need to see it to know it.

Turning the corner, my stomach rose into my throat and I slapped a hand over my mouth to keep from throwing up. The body was leaned against the wall. Except for an arm splattered in the middle of the hall. And a leg a few more feet down.

It was the same chaperone from the library the other day. The one who’d warned her exchange students not to talk to us at the academy. Not to get close.

And she’d been torn to pieces.