I’m not entirely sure why I’m covering for Maxon, except that it doesn’t seem fair for the entire school to know what he was up to this afternoon. Unlike Kaia and Gertrude, I’m not convinced that Max went in there for sex. It just doesn’t seem like him, somehow.
“Please,” Celeste sneers, tossing her long, blonde hair over her shoulder. “I know the two of you were there together, probably engaging in some depraved sex act with one of those whores. You can’t fool me, you’ve been trying to get into Maxon’s pants the moment you set foot here—”
“I couldn’t care less about Maxon’s pants, or what’s in them,” I say, though this isn’t entirely true. I still remember the tension-filled moment we’d shared in the common room, the unexpected spark of lust in his eyes, and I swallow hard, trying to banish the memory. “Maybe if you pulled your head out of your ass and stopped acting so paranoid and insecure, you’d realize that.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Celeste shrieks, her eyes blazing. She whips her hand forward, fingers glowing with raw energy, and I jump backward before she can strike the magical blow.
“Stop!” Cass cries as Celeste conjures an energy ball. The students are backing away hastily now, giving us a wide berth as Celeste starts to pelt me with magical attacks. I hastily draw a sigil into the air, conjuring a shield to deflect the attacks. Celeste’s eyes widen as one of her energy balls hurtle toward her, and she has to duck to avoid being hit. The ball flies over her head and hurtles toward a classroom door just as it opens.
“No!” I shriek as Professor Dal steps out. His eyes widen as he catches sight of the ball, and for a split second I think it’s going to hit him in the face. Instead, he casually, almost lazily, brings his hand up, as if he’s going to catch the ball.
“Foris,” he says, and the energy ball dissipates mere millimeters away from making contact with his hands.
The entire hall has grown silent as Professor Dal takes in the scene. His cool eyes sweep over the crowd before coming to rest on Celeste and me.
“Who threw the energy ball?” he asks, almost conversationally.
I open my mouth to speak, but Celeste gets there first. “It’s her fault!” she cries, jabbing a finger at me.
“That’s not true!” I say hotly, and the crowd bursts out into angry protests. But Professor Dal merely holds up a hand.
“That will do,” he says, and silence falls again. “Miss Blake, please come with me.”
Celeste throws me a triumphant smirk as I follow, my shoulders hunched and my head bowed. Cass wisely decides to stay behind, leaving me to silently trail behind Professor Dal as he leads the way to his office.
Once we’re inside he gestures me to a chair, then leans his hip against the desk and regards me with an unfathomable look. “Tell me what happened,” he says.
I tell him, the story tumbling out in a rush. “She’s totally nuts,” I say fiercely once I’m finished, my blood pulsing with anger. “Constantly accusing me of trying to seduce Maxon when that’s the furthest thing from the truth. I can barely stand him!”
“I would not judge Celeste too harshly,” Professor Dal said, a slight smile playing on his lips. “Yes, she is acting rather paranoid, and treating you very unfairly, but she is also under a lot of pressure from her family to secure the match.”
“Yeah, well maybe she’d be more confident about their relationship if she hadn’t cheated on him,” I sneer. “And anyway, it doesn’t matter what her reasons are. She still has no right to treat me this way.”
“I agree,” Professor Dal says, but there is a curious note in the voice. “Is there, by any chance, any truth to this rumor that you and Maxon went into Madame Sabine’s today?”
My cheeks heat at the appraising look in his eyes. “I didn’t go in,” I say, staring at his desk so I don’t have to meet his gaze, “but I did see Max coming out, and I asked him about it. He said he was looking for Blaze…but I think he was there because of Terrence?”
“Terrence?” Professor Dal says sharply. “What do you mean?”
“Well, I just figured he might have gone to search for him there,” I say cautiously, noting the way Professor Dal’s entire body has tensed. Is it just me, or is he agitated? “He’s been missing for a while, hasn’t he? And that brothel was one of his favorite places.”
“Oh, well yes, yes,” Professor Dal says, running his hand through his hair distractedly. “That would be a logical place to look for him, except we’ve already searched it three times. There’s been no sign of him there.”
“Oh.” I deflate. “Is he truly gone then? Never coming back?” An immense sadness fills me, taking me by surprise. After all, I’d never met the guy.
“I don’t know, Miss Blake,” Professor Dal says. “I’d hate to think that. But it is suspicious that he’s just up and vanished, which is why I’ve arranged for you to start your scythe training so early. I want you to be prepared for whatever you might face in the future. Which is why you need to be careful,” he added sternly, “and not get into petty fights with other students. The last thing we need is for you to get expelled.”
“Expelled?” I’m brought up short by that thought. “I…what happens if a reaper gets expelled?”
“They’re stripped of their powers and exiled to Soul City to live amongst the spirits there,” Professor Dal says. “It’s considered a great dishonor, and most would choose death over expulsion. Not that many people have been expelled,” he added hastily at the look on my face. “The threat of expulsion is enough to keep most reapers in line.”
“Not Celeste, though,” I say savagely, anger burning inside me again. “She’sthe one who attackedme, Professor Dal, and yet I’m the one here in your office! How is that fair?!”
Professor Dal raised an eyebrow. “You are here in my office, that’s certainly true, but not to be punished. Unless you consider being in my presence a punishment?”
“What? No, no, of course not!” I say, flustered. “I…I enjoy spending time with you, Professor. You’re kind, and thoughtful, and brilliant…and…”
His lips curve into a slow, devastating smile. The butterflies in my stomach go haywire as he closes the distance between us. Heat blooms on my cheeks as he lifts his hand, fingers brushing against my cheek as he pushes my hair back from my face.
