Tap, tap, tap.
I looked over at my window to see a small red owl tapping against the glass. I smiled and opened it, letting James in. The small owl fluttered into the room and then shifted into my human looking boyfriend. My shirtless, human looking boyfriend.
“Hi,” I said with a smile, admiring his tight abs, but as I looked at his face, my smile dropped and I hurried over to him. “James, what’s wrong? What’s happened?”
He shook his head and pulled me into his arms. Holding me, he breathed deep and shuddered before letting me go and moving away from me. His eyes watered and he looked like his heart was breaking as he stared at me.
“James, you’re scaring me. What’s wrong?” I tried to reach for him, but he moved away.
“There’ve been more attacks.” His voice was barely a whisper.
“I know, the sprinklers went off in here. Professor Zin said there was a fire in the vampire dorms.” I looked at him, afraid he was going to tell me one of our friends were hurt or killed. “Was… was someone hurt?” I asked hesitantly, wrapping my arms around myself to keep from reaching for him again.
James shook his head. “No, not really, just… just the ones who are acting out of character, causing chaos and being unnaturally violent.” He grew quiet and moved further away from me.
“James, talk to me, what’s going on?” I knew he was keeping something from me by the way he kept moving away.
He frowned, his gaze focused on the ground. Slowly he raised his eyes and met my gaze. “I think I’m infected.” His words were barely a whisper, but I’d heard them.
“Infected?” My stomach dropped to my feet and my heart began to beat rapidly in my chest. “What do you mean?”
James looked away, staring out the window at the darkness. “I’ve been having nightmares and tonight—” He stopped, as if he couldn’t bring himself to say any more.
“James, what?” I asked, feeling dread fill my heart. “Tell me,” I whispered, my eyes filling with tears.
“I felt it, whatever this is, this infection. I almost lost it, I could feel it trying to turn me violent. To make me lash out and hurt someone… you.” He looked at me with devastation. “I’m not safe to be around, beautiful. It would kill me if I hurt you.”
I moved toward him again, trying to wrap him in my arms, but he moved away again. “James, you aren’t going to hurt me, I know—”
“No! No, you don’t! You didn’t feel it, you didn’t see it! If you had been there, I would have attacked you, Bethany, I wouldn’t have been able to control it!” He moved toward the window. “I won’t be near you if I can’t control myself, beautiful, I won’t chance it.” His eyes held so much sorrow as he looked at me. “Promise me you will stay away, you’ll stay safe. In here. You’re protected in here. Only go out for classes and to get food. Please, beautiful,” he begged.
“James…”
“Promise me.”
“I will, if you’ll go see the nurse.”
“Fine, but it won’t help. Lock this.” He indicated the window as he shifted to his owl form and then flew out without even saying goodbye.
Feeling my heart break into a million pieces, I slammed the window down and locked it before falling onto my bed and bursting into tears.
Chapter 15
Bethany
I woke up the next morning with a migraine from crying most of the night. Looking over at my clock, I saw I had two hours still before classes would start. With a sigh, I got up and opened the drawer in my desk to find the ibuprofen. I took two and swallowed them down with a gulp from a bottle of water that had been sitting on my desk. I couldn’t even remember when I’d gotten it. My brain was foggy as I gathered my clothes and toiletries and made my way sleepily down the hall to the girls’ bathrooms. I figured a hot shower would help relieve my migraine.
I stayed in there as long as I could without causing our hall monitor to come and check on me. In a daze, I dried off and dressed. Moving to the mirrors in front of the sinks, I could see my eyes were still puffy from crying, but it was subsiding a little. My migraine had reduced to a slight ache, so I figured I’d be okay once I ate something. Gathering up my things, I pushed open the door and ran into Martha.
“Hi Bethany, you’re up early.” She smiled at me. “Couldn’t sleep either?” She shuddered.
“Yeah, I guess. Why couldn’t you sleep?” I asked.
“Haven’t you heard?” She looked at me curiously. “I would have thought you’d know, considering you’re dating one of them.”
My heart dropped. “Heard what?”
“About the attacks last night. Four vampires went crazy and are now in the infirmary. I was out in my astral form and saw the one in the courtyard, it was pretty scary. By the time I got back to my body, I was a mess and couldn’t sleep.”
“What happened in the courtyard?” I asked, fearing James had been the one to lose his mind.
“Well, I didn’t see how it started, but there were these two Lamiae girls, sisters I think, they looked alike—”
“Mystic and Desire?” I asked, knowing that they were the only twins who were Lamiae.
“I guess.” She shrugged. “Anyway, one of them attacked a witch, biting her pretty badly. The other grabbed her, pulling her off the witch pretty quickly, and Professor Corbett got there almost right after that. The witch was a freshman girl, don’t know why she was out in the courtyard at that hour on a school night, but she passed out. She’s still in the infirmary too.” Martha looked at me and then tilted her head. “It’s odd though, she looked a lot like you, wavy, dark hair, about your height.” She shrugged again. “Probably just a coincidence.”
I nodded but felt a chill slip down my back. “I should go, I need to get breakfast and then get to class.” I gave her a weak smile.
“Okay, bye,” Martha said cheerily and disappeared into the bathroom.
I moved slowly down the hall, praying I wouldn’t encounter anyone else. I tossed my dirty clothes into my hamper and then grabbed my books. I left my room, locking it behind me. I found myself locking it more and more often. I checked the wards and none of them seemed disturbed, so I hurried down to the cafeteria. Going through the line, I grabbed a plate of biscuits and gravy as well as a bowl of fruit.
I set my books and my tray down on the table and then sat. I ate alone, not making eye contact with the few other students who happened to be dining in the room as well. Nervously, I stood up and dumped my tray when I’d finished. Grabbing my books, I made my way to class, even though there was still twenty minutes before class would start, but I knew Professor Singh would be there prepping for our warding class.
“Good morning, Miss Welch, you’re a bit early this morning.” Professor Singh smiled at me.
“Good morning, Professor. I couldn’t sleep,” I agreed with a nod.
Professor Singh moved closer to me and looked at my face, lifting my chin. “Something troubling you, Bethany?”
I stepped away from her but nodded. “Yes, Professor. It’s these attacks—”
“This is your fault!” a shout came from the hallway outside the classroom door.
Professor Singh and I rushed to the door to see Professor Zin and Professor Corbett in a heated argument. “What in the world is going on out here?” Professor Singh asked, her hands on her hips.
Professor Zin stood on her tip toes and jabbed a finger into Professor Corbett’s chest. “No, you need to have better control over your vampires!”
I glanced down the hallway and noticed the Librarian gliding toward the four of us. “Enough!” they said.
I’d rarely ever heard the Librarian raise their voice, let alone speak, so I watched them with wide eyes as they glared at Professor Zin and Professor Corbett.
Professor Zin dropped back down on her feet and backed up from Professor Corbett. “Oh my. I do beg your pardon, Professor Corbett. I don’t know what came over me.” She shook her head.
“Nor, I, my dear Professor Zin.” H
e too shook his head.
The Librarian looked at me with an ethereal smile and winked before moving on down the hall. I blinked after them wondering what kind of magic they’d just worked to bring the Professors back to themselves.
“I do apologize, Profess Singh, we did not mean to disturb you and your student. Miss Welch,” Professor Corbett smiled, “I shall see you next period.”
I nodded as he moved off down the hall, the argument between them gone as if it never existed. “Professor Singh, was that weird, or is it just me?”
Professor Singh grinned. “It was odd, indeed, Miss Welch, but it seems to have passed at least. Now, we still have a few minutes before the rest of your class arrives, why don’t you tell me what’s bothering you? You started to mention the attacks, are you concerned for your safety?”
“Not exactly, Professor. I mean, yes, I am, but not just mine, but everyone’s. I know there have been more attacks. That makes what, seven now? And last night, James mentioned he thinks it’s an infection of some kind, and that he is experiencing some of the effects. I’m worried, Professor.”
“I can imagine you are. And he’s not far off, I think. We’ve determined it is working like a virus, but we haven’t been able to figure out the contributing factors. It’s like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Did James happen to mention what kind of symptoms he was having?”
I frowned thinking back over what he’d said. “He said he’d been having nightmares, and he felt like something was trying to make him turn violent. He thinks he isn’t safe for me to be around.”
“Is that all he’s told you?” she asked, concern marring her brow.
I nodded.
“That’s still not much to go on. We already know about the nightmares, and the effect of turning violent. I’m glad to see he’s recognizing those things and working to protect you from anything he might do, it shows strength of character. I always have liked him. Strong boy. I’ll see if he took his concerns to the nurse or perhaps Professor Corbett,” she assured me. “In any case, I think he’s right. It would be best if you kept your distance from him right now, Bethany. I would hate to be visiting you in the infirmary.”
“Yes, Professor,” I murmured as some students entered the room.
“You’d best go take your seat now, and try not to worry, Miss Welch.” She smiled at me.
I moved to take my seat. Class went by quickly after that, and I could barely remember anything we’d discussed or worked on. With a sigh, I knew I would have to ask Helen to refresh my memory and perhaps lend me her notes. I had taken hardly any. My brain had been too occupied with the attacks and what I might be able to do to help. But what could I do? I was still just learning. Sure, I could fix a broken door, or dry a wet room, but more than that?
A little voice in my head said, You are stronger than you know.
I frowned as visions from my freshman year and even last fall flashed through my mind. I’d had to fight off Formless Ones and Black Annis and giant automaton spiders over the past year and a half. It had been scary at the time, but I’d made it through.
And you will make it through this too, the voice in my head said.
Still, I needed practice. I figured going to see Professor Ubel might help. He’d canceled our last tutoring session, so maybe he’d make it up today. It wouldn’t hurt to ask, would it? I thought as I made my way to my next class.
Chapter 16
James
Despite what I’d told Bethany, I didn’t go to the nurse. She couldn’t do anything for me. She couldn’t even do anything for the ones already fully infected except put them into magically induced comas to keep them from hurting people. I didn’t want to be put into a magically induced coma. I couldn't protect Bethany from a coma. Instead, I’d stayed in my owl form and spent the night in the clock tower.
I didn’t sleep. I was afraid to sleep. I was afraid to have another nightmare. It didn’t matter, my mind was still drawn to brooding about Arrond’s death. About the witches who had caused it. When the sun returned to the sky, I shifted back to my human form, my powers all but gone. It was early still, but I knew I didn’t want to go to class.
I wanted to figure out what was going on. It seemed more important to gather all the information I could before I finally gave in to the infection and became nothing but a raving beast. Anything I could do would put Bethany one step closer to being safe. And I had to keep her safe.
With that thought in mind, I left the clock tower and crossed the courtyard. The grounds were pretty quiet except for the occasional bird chirp or squirrel bark. No other students were around, all of the night time students were back in their dorm rooms, hiding from the sun and most of the day time students were just now waking. Quietly I made my way to the library, hoping that Lukas wasn’t standing guard as he usually was.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t so lucky.
“Strigoi.” Lukas shook his head. “What is it with you?”
“Hey, Lukas.” I smiled tightly. “Is the Librarian in?”
Lukas narrowed his eyes. “You know the rule, Strigoi. No one disturbs the Librarian without a pass.”
I sighed. “Look, it’s important. About all these attacks.”
Lukas crossed his muscular arms across his enormously broad chest. “No pass, no entrance.” He stared at me.
I stood there attempting not to let his glare spook me off.
“Why do you persist, Strigoi? You know you aren’t Harry Potter, or some other fictional character out to save the world, right?” He smirked at me.
I raised my brows. “I know I’m not Harry Potter, I’m not a wizard. You would have been closer calling me Edward Cullen.”
“You aren’t wearing enough sparkle to be Edward Cullen.” Lukas snorted, a smirk lifting his lips into a grin. “Fine. Five minutes, Strigoi. No more,” he relented.
I grinned. “Thanks, Lukas.” I moved past him and into the library. I didn’t see the Librarian as I moved into the front of the room, so I started toward the shelves, looking down aisles.
Finally, the Librarian appeared at my side. They seemed barely present, as though they weren’t actually there, but somewhere else and this version of them was merely an illusion. They smiled pleasantly at me.
“Um, hello,” I greeted them with a smile. “I came because… well I need information.”
The Librarian smiled and raised their brows as if asking how they could help.
“Right. I wanted to know if there is anything you can tell me, or if there is a book I can read about what is going on? These attacks are getting worse and I’m…” I stopped and frowned. “I’m scared. I’ve been experiencing some of the symptoms and I… I just don’t want to hurt anyone, especially Bethany. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I hurt her. Can you help?”
The Librarian looked wistfully at the shelves and then back to me. They shook their head.
“So there are no books to help?” I asked trying to interpret what they were trying to convey to me.
Smiling the Librarian nodded. “No infection. Magic is the influencer.”
I looked at them, taken aback. “Magic?”
They nodded and then their image began to shimmer, and they vanished without explaining further.
“Thank you,” I murmured to the empty room. I wasn’t sure if that helped me or not. I felt a wave of relief that I wasn’t infected, that it wasn’t some sort of disease that was jumping from one person to the next, but still, that didn’t solve anything. People were being affected by this magic. Influenced to attack, to turn violent, to hurt others. No, I thought, not just others. Vampires were being influenced to hurt witches and witches were being swayed to bespell vampires.
Was there anything else connecting the people who turned violent? Other than the nightmares? I didn’t think any of the vampires who’d been affected were weak minded, maybe the nightmares had a way of breaking them down? Leaving them vulnerable to the magical attack that turned them violent?
At that
thought, my mind turned to Arrond and the nightmares I’d been having about him, about his death. I hadn’t been there, I didn’t see how it happened, so why was I now seeing all of this in nightmare form? Could the person who murdered or set up the murder of Arrond be behind the nightmares everyone affected was experiencing?
With those dark thoughts playing through my head, I left the library and returned to my dorm room.
Chapter 17
Bethany
After classes I made my way to Professor Ubel’s office. I hoped I could talk him into a quick tutoring session so I could maybe help when another attack happened. Hesitantly, I knocked on the door.
“Ah, my dear girl, to what do I owe the pleasure?” Professor Ubel asked as he answered the door.
I smiled. “Good afternoon, Professor Ubel, I… I came by before, but you had a visitor, so I hoped we could make up my tutoring session today?”
Professor Ubel looked over at the clock on his wall. “I was indeed occupied with a visitor,” he smiled, “but I do believe I can fit in a quick session today. Come in, my dear.”
Expelling a breath of relief, I moved into the room and set my books on a table.
“Come, let us go next door and I will set up a new challenge for you.”
I followed behind as Professor Ubel went to a cabinet and pulled out a box. He cast a spell and the box opened and out popped a creature.
“Professor, what is that?”
Professor Ubel picked up the creature and held it up. “This, my dear girl, is a mimic.”
I watched as he chanted a spell and the mimic turned into a replica of Professor Chalcedony. I gasped and backed away. Professor Chalcedony had died last semester, killed by the automatons he’d created. It had been horrific to watch.
Professor Ubel looked over at me and smiled. “Do not fret, my dear girl, merely a replica, but certainly an incentive, yes?”
I frowned. “What do you mean, Professor?”
“The spell we are going to work on today, my dear girl. I am going to teach you to drain your opponent’s power.”
A Witch's Immunity (Supernatural Academy Book 3) Page 8
