Junior Witch

by Ingrid Seymour

  “I’m telling the truth. I don’t know anything about what you’re saying. Disha just woke me up. I’ve been having trouble sleeping lately… with exams coming up. I gave myself a sleeping potion.” I shrugged one shoulder, trying to look convincing.

  Disha jumped in. “It’s true. She was sound asleep when I got to her room. I swear. I knocked a bunch before she answered and when she answered the door she was super groggy.” She held her trembling hand up in the proximity of a Girl Scout salute.

  The M.L.E. officer narrowed his eyes. “Check her for remnants of a sleeping potion.” He nodded at one of his colleagues and the man advanced on me. The man who looked like a poorly dressed Silvester Stalone grabbed my arm.

  I stiffened, hating the feel of his hand on my bicep as he ran his other hand around my body inches from my skin. Dressed in only a tank top and shorts, I felt super exposed as everyone watched him scan me. Magic licked off his fingers and zapped my chest in short pulses as he used some sort of incantation to discern whether or not I was telling the truth.

  “Is that really necessary?” Bridget stepped through the crowd. Although she was wearing a frilly, pink Victorian era nightgown, her posture let me know she was about ten seconds away from trying to fight off a dozen officers by herself.

  I opened my mouth to answer, but the officer scanning my chest answered first. “She’s telling the truth. There’s sleeping potion in her bloodstream.”

  Dean McIntosh was clever. Even though I was royally pissed at her for faking her own death and not telling me, I had to hand it to her. Having me swig the smallest amount of sleeping potion before I left had worked swimmingly.

  Or so I thought.

  “It could still be a lie. From what I hear, she’s a known liar who consorts with criminals,” the head Magical Law Enforcement officer said. “Let’s take her to the station for further tests.” He advanced on me, cold hatred in his eyes. He was the same guard from the night Bonnie and Rowan had arrived on campus and tripped the alarm. The same guard who seemed to have it out for me. I wondered what he’d heard. Either way, it wasn’t looking good for me.

  Shit. This was not in our plan. I took a step back, glancing from side to side at escape routes. Twelve men with magic tingling at their fingertips blocked my path. And worse, the regents and teachers who had fought with Nyquist stood around the edges. No one would let me out of here unless it was in a body bag.

  “That’s not needed, Sergeant Fetzner. I can vouch for Charlie. She’s telling the truth.” Nyquist smiled at me, his grandfatherly act in full swing. He was at the battle and should know I wasn’t there. At least, that’s what he thought since Fedorov disguised me.

  I smiled back, hating every second of it. This spy thing was going to be harder than I thought.

  Now that he had everyone’s attention, Nyquist positioned himself in the center of the crowd. Waving his hands, he commanded a wall of dirt to rise beneath his feet until he was six feet up. Witch lights began to glow around him as he pressed two fingers to his throat to activate the voice projection spell.

  “Everyone gather round, please. I need to address the crowd.” When he was sure he had everyone’s attention, he continued. “I know that many of you are frightened. What happened tonight was… horrendous. Terrible. It was the realization of our worst fears.”

  You’ve got that right, you sadistic prick.

  He went on with conviction. “Tonight, one of our own has died,” he turned sad eyes on Professor Hernandez as an M.L.E. officer put a sheet over her body, “and another has been gravely injured. I blame myself. I should have seen this coming. For too long, we have allowed a group of renegades to roam free, terrorizing our precious school and making this place of learning into a war zone. That ends tonight. Tomorrow, I will give law enforcement carte blanche to track down the people responsible for tonight’s atrocities. Fear not, they will be brought to justice.”

  A whoop went up from the crowd and several students and teachers applauded. Cruise Knightley did a fist bump with one of his braindead, stoner sidekicks. Did they have any idea what they were cheering for? Idiots. Lambs to the slaughter.

  “Along with this subversive group and some faculty members turned traitors, fae warriors also attacked. Our brave men and women fought them off, but I am afraid peace between us and the fairy folk is over.”

  I bit the inside of my cheek. Nyquist abducted Anama and put Sinasre in a magically-induced coma. The fae warriors had arrived solely to rescue their people, yet he made it sound like they’d attacked unprovoked. Just another lie in an avalanche of them. I felt like I was drowning in deceit.

  “This school’s main goal is to keep you students safe and we have failed that. Previous administrations have not only allowed unlawful acts to occur, they have colluded with the very people who sought to destroy us. I hate to tell you this, but Counselor McIntosh, Dean Underwood, Nurse Taishi, Professor Fedorov and others fought alongside criminals, murderers, and thieves to take us down.”

  The crowd gasped. Murmurs arose as students stared around with shock on their faces. Quickly, I realized that I too should be shocked rather than enraged. Covering my face with my hands, I curled into Disha, grabbed her arm and whispered into her ear. “Look surprised. Don’t let them see you’re upset.”

  Her eyes widened, but I could see she got it. Her large, tear-filled eyes stared around like she’d never suspected Nyquist. Like we’d never realized he was using Loopers to twist time and the portals to his own agenda. She gulped, pushing messy black hair back from her face, and shook her head. It was convincing. An Academy-Award-winning performance.

  Unfortunately, I couldn’t say the same for Bridget.

  “That’s bullshit,” my red-headed friend shouted, stepping forward and craning her neck to stare up at Dean Nyquist on his perch. “Those teachers are the best, most honorable people here. If they fought you, then maybe it’s you who’s the criminal!”

  Bridget, no.

  She jabbed a finger in his direction, anger darkening her features. She looked as if she might zap him, and it appeared the M.L.E. officers thought so, too. A blur behind her made her head snap to the right, but she was too late to defend herself from the buzz-cut wearing man who tackled her. In seconds, she was on the ground, her hands magically pinned behind her back.

  “Get off me! Let me go.” Her nightgown bunched as her body whipped back and forth. Holding her steady by sitting on her legs, the officer put a magicked hand on her back. Bridget stiffened, then jerked as if he’d hit her with a taser spell.

  Oh, no, Bridget! What do I do? I couldn’t rush to her aid without jeopardizing my entire mission and all the people I was supposed to help, but I couldn’t just stand there and watch my friend be roughed up!

  Her eyes rolled back in her head as her body seized. When would they stop?!

  I wanted to run, to blast that bastard off her back and make him regret this, but I’d be breaking the promise I swore to the group in Turkey just before I left.

  Whatever you do, Dean McIntosh had said, don’t let them know you’re with us.

  Trapped, I watched the horrible scene unfold with a sob stuck in my throat.

  Disha started forward, but I grabbed her hand and held her back as the officer and Bridget both wavered, then disappeared with a pop.

  “Where are they taking her?” Disha shouted, unable to help herself.

  Dean Nyquist searched the crowd until he spotted Disha and I. “Oh, don’t worry, my dear. They are just making sure your friend doesn’t have any connections to the evil people trying to destroy us. As long as she’s innocent, she’ll be back in no time.” He gave her a warm smile. Fake. So fake.

  Disha bit her lip but held back, focusing instead on squeezing the hell out of my hand.

  Nyquist turned back to his captive audience. “I’m so sorry that happened, students. I’m sorry all of this happened. We will make this right, I promise you. For now, please know that you are safe. The M.L.E. is here. They will prot
ect us. More officers will come later. And we will conduct exams as soon as possible, starting tomorrow, and send you all home after that. But never fear. Our precious Academy will be back to its previous glory before next semester starts.”

  At this, he clapped his hands together and sparks wizzed into the air. The Academy’s crest—a shield sporting a lion, a key, a book, and a chalice, all circled by the words “Magicae Vincere Tenebras”—appeared in the air. The school fight song began playing, swelling around us. Apparently, it was infectious or magicked to produce good feelings because several of the students started singing with it. Soon, they were marching back to their dorms, singing at the top of their lungs and putting arms around each other as if nothing had ever happened.

  My eyes turned to the dead teacher under the sheet and then to Nyquist.

  He watched the procession of students with satisfaction on his ancient features. He had won.

  For now.

  As if he felt me watching, he turned to me, locking eyes. His warm fatherliness had left his features and now he appeared just as he had on the battlefield—vile, power-hungry, and arrogant.

  His eyebrows folded down as he continued to lock eyes with me. His expression seemed as if to say, “I know what you did and you’re going to pay.”

  The question was, did he really? And could I make him pay first?

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  Thanks!

  Katie and Ingrid

  Suggested Reading Order

  Freshman Witch

  Rowan: A Supernatural Academy Novella

  Sophomore Witch

  Disha: A Supernatural Academy Novella

  Junior Witch - Coming July 16th

  Senior Witch, Part 1 - Coming Soon

  Senior Witch, Part 2 - Coming Soon

  About the Author - Ingrid Seymour

  Ingrid Seymour is a USA Today Bestselling young adult author. When she’s not writing books, she spends her time working as a software engineer, cooking exotic recipes, hanging out with her family and working out. She writes young adult in a variety of genres, including Sci-Fi, urban fantasy, romance, paranormal and horror.

  Her favorite outings involve a trip to the library or bookstore where she immediately gravitates toward the YA section. She’s an avid reader and fangirl of many amazing books. Potterhead, anyone? She is a dreamer and a fighter who believes perseverance and hard work can make dreams come true.

  Visit her online and get a free book at:

  http://www.ingriseymour.com

  Also by Ingrid Seymour

  The Morphid Chronicles

  Find the complete trilogy at

  www.ingridseymour.com

  About the Author - Katie French

  Katie French is an author of Young Adult sci fi romance. Her book, The Breeders, has had over 100,000 downloads and counting and was a semi-finalist in the 2014 Kindle Book Awards. She also has a kids series starting with Portia Parrots and the Great Kitten Rescue for ages 5-9.

  She works as a high school English teacher. In her free time, she writes manically, reads great books, and takes care of her three beautiful and crazy children. She aspires to spend as much time in yoga pants as possible.

  You can join her mailing list at www.katiefrenchbooks.com and receive TWO FREE full-length novels.

  Contact her at katie@katiefrenchbooks.com.

  Also by Katie French

  THE BREEDERS SEVEN PART COMPLETE SERIES AVAILABLE NOW:

  GET BOOK ONE FOR FREE AND MORE AT WWW.KATIEFRENCHBOOKS.COM.