“Did he say who led this uprising?”
Belle shook her head. “No. He’s actually sharing secret elder business, so let’s not talk about it until they release thenews to the covens.” Not that there was anything we could do if war was brewing on the horizon.
I had more pressing issues much closer to home.
Chapter 37
“Your dad had a meeting this morning,” Mom said, voice tinny through the phone. “He spoke with Victor and two Weatherstoneofficials, gave his side of the story, and now we have to wait.”
“Please don’t tell me he admitted to anything,” I said, keeping my voice low as I made sure no one was close enough to listenin.
“He didn’t,” she assured me, “but they were talking about enforcing a truth spell.”
“What?” I lowered my voice further. “That’s not allowed in informal investigations.”
Her sigh was loud. “I know, sweetheart. But this is receiving much more widespread interest than any of us expected. The eldersare involved, and we can’t go against their rule. Victor and your father are very good friends, so we just have to hope thatin the end the headmaster will have final say.”
Resting my head against the wall, the phone pressed hard to my ear, I fought back tears. “Okay, Mom. Well, I love you. GiveDad a hug from us, and I’ll see you in a couple of days.”
“We love you too, honey. Don’t worry about us, this will all work out. Just put your focus on final assessments. Let me knowhow you go.”
“I will.”
When I hung up, I remained with my head against thewall, eyes closed, the consistent burn behind my eyes leaving me wrung out. Only my awareness that there were less than ten of these landlines available for students around Writworth had me moving along the hall and letting the next student have their chance.
My first stop on the way to my dorm was in Nightrealm, but Logan once again was out of his dorm, or ignoring me. Slammingmy hand against his door, a frustrated curse slipped out, and I felt a thousand years old.
“He’s off campus today.”
I spun with surprise and tried not to pee myself at the same time. Noah stood three feet away, dressed all in black, becausethat wasn’t creepy. “We need to get a fucking bell on you,” I said with as much snarl as I could manage. “Stop sneaking upon me.”
He didn’t react, just stood there, hands in his pockets, observing me like I was more interesting than he’d ever expected.Noah didn’t draw me in like Logan, but my curiosity about him was almost as great.
With my pulse now thrumming an iota below stroke level, I took my chance to question him. “Why is Logan off campus?”
If Noah thought I was out of line, he didn’t show any sign of it. “His family is extremely wealthy, controlling one of thelargest corporations in the world. His dad sometimes calls on him for business help. He has obligations.”
To no one’s surprise Rafael was as rich as he was powerful. Wouldn’t have expected anything less.
“How do you even know Logan?” I said, crossing my arms over myself, back pressed against Logan’s door. “You clearly transferredin this year with him.”
Noah still hadn’t moved, but his presence was large enough to be intimidating, even with space between us. “He’s my brother in all ways except blood.” He didn’t elaborate, and Ididn’t push my luck on that topic. But there was another question that I had to ask.
“Is Rafael bad news? Should I be worried about him?”
“Yes.” I jolted because I expected a vague answer or outright lie. “Stay away from him,” he continued. “You and your familyare not safe with Rafael.”
“What about with Logan?” I asked, finding myself desperate for this answer above all the others.
Noah moved so fast that if he wanted to, he could have ripped my heart out before I even saw it coming. This time at least,he only patted me on the head, like a puppy. “Depends on your definition ofsafe. Now get out of Nightrealm, Paisley.”
He was gone before I could yell and scream at him, which is what I wanted to do. If Logan wasn’t here though, that meant Iwas done with distractions and had to focus on my assessments.
Grabbing my textbooks, I staggered to the library and settled in for the rest of the afternoon. Marcus found me later thatnight, asleep with my head in my arms. When he gently pressed my shoulder, I lurched up and almost clocked him in the face.“Fuck!” I gasped, heart slamming in my chest. “Can you make some noise when you move. I didn’t hear a thing.”
For the second time today, a powerful warlock had crept up on me. Marcus let out a soft laugh. “I really wasn’t that quiet.You were sleeping, Pais. What were you reading,Accounting for Witches?”
“Ha ha, my mom is an accountant, asswipe. But yep, that would have been the most boring text I could find.” He laughed withme, and I took a second to wipe my face in case I’d drooled. “I was actually readingHarvesting Moonlight for Alchemyand I can’t believe I fell asleep. This is one of my favorite classes. I love the concept of creating magic with your handsand base metals. It’s fascinating.”
