He whipped back to us. “You two will occupy the apartment. No questions asked. Elex, you are to protect Kimber. Kimber, you are part of the council.” Master Dorian raked his gaze over every other person in the room. “I’m done waiting for you blazing morons to do things. If I see fit, I will do what I need.”
“The rules came in for a reason, Dorian.” The calm alto of Lunella’s voice seemed to slice through the tension in the room, dropping it to a comfortable level.
“I don’t have—”
She held up a hand. She seemed to be one of the few people that could stop Master Dorian on one of his tirades. “None of us have to follow the rules, Dorian. We’re all powerful, and we’re intelligent. The rules never were for us, and you know that.”
He grunted and walked back to his seat. After dropping down into it, unhappy, he still managed to stare at Elex and me. “You are both still going to be moved into the apartments.”
Lunella shook her head, ever so slightly. “My dear, you have a day to yourself tomorrow. We will send the servants for your things, and you may take the day to settle in. The following day, your duties begin.”
I curtsied again, and one of the servants herded Elex and me out through a side door into the rest of the building.
This was home now.
I was a master.
I wasn’t ready.
Chapter Three
~ Kimber ~
Jallina turned the cup in her hands, staring at the small eddies the motion created.
I smirked. This was her “I’m thinking” activity. I could see the wheels in her head turning.
“You were really made a master.”
“The news is going to go out tomorrow.” I traced the rim of the coffee cup. “Today is my day off.”
The laughing didn’t quite make it out of Jallina, but her lips twitched. “Your day off.”
I nodded regally. “Master Dorian saw fit to give me a day.”
“Master Dorian is a jackass, isn’t he?”
A burst of laughter escaped me. I slapped my hand over my mouth. “I thought exactly that yesterday.”
“And are they going to announce this to the public?”
Taking a giant swallow of coffee, I tried to steady my nerves. “Tomorrow morning at dawn. There’s some… ceremony thing they have to do to install me as the newest master.”
But a moment later, I shook my head quickly. “I’m not ready for this, Jallina. This isn’t who I am. I’m a teacher, and that’s really all I wanted to do.”
Jallina grabbed my hand across the small table. “Don’t think like that. Don’t go into this with a ‘you’re not worthy’ attitude. You are. You’re smart, kind, and your magic has been growing. I’m sure that you’ll grow even more.”
“It was nearly unanimous. Who was the last one?”
“Whoever wasn’t there.” Jallina pulled her hand back. “Whoever didn’t show for the announcement in the meeting. That’s the way I understand it. You show up if you agree with the decision.”
“Even you know more than I do about the council!”
A low chuckle rumbled through her. “Only because that’s what I studied in college. Remember that. I only know these things because of my history training. The common person wouldn’t know that.”
“So who wasn’t there?”
Who hadn’t been there?
