by Martha Carr
Breaking the rules wasn’t something she’d come up with entirely on her own. Living with a bounty hunter and learning from one of the best had come with a few new habits she’d unintentionally picked up from him.
Just checking you’re okay. Somebody’s snatching up shifters round here. Reply ASAP.
Amanda fought back a laugh.
Leave it to Johnny to make up some kind of danger story to ask how I’m doing.
She quickly texted back a reply, paused, then added a smiley-face emoji at the end before sending it.
Definitely not kidnapped. Everything’s good. Go catch the bastards.
Then she shoved the phone she wasn’t allowed to have at the Academy back under her folded sweatpants and shut the drawer. Time to get going if she wanted to take advantage of the extra time.
She shifted in the supply closet on the first floor—after propping the door open again, of course—and didn’t care that anyone else might find the bucket in the doorway. Someone like Summer. She’d stopped beside room 223C and had heard the new girl yawning loudly inside and shifting around in her bed. It didn’t seem like Summer had any plans to sneak out tonight and try to break into anything.
So Amanda could run free as a small gray wolf under the waxing moon, and nobody would know a thing.
The second she leapt through the narrow opening in the back door of the girls’ dorm, her shifter senses overtook her. More energy than she knew what to do with thrummed through her veins, and she raced toward the swamp. It was easier to pretend she wasn’t on a school campus when she was splashing through the briny water, feeling the cattail reeds and ferns whipping against her face and flanks, and picking up dozens of different scents from the creatures who also called the swamps home.
The crickets and cicadas were unnaturally loud tonight, and two owls called to each other from their perches in the branches stretching far overhead.
This was where she needed to be right now. Out here, running on four paws instead of two bare feet. Where she could forget about who she was, who she’d been, and who she was trying to be.
Amanda had explored almost every campus area since first coming to the Academy for its opening ceremony in July. The warded border hugged the land closely around the main campus where they’d constructed the buildings and training arenas and outdoor cafeteria. The property also extended farther north behind the faculty building by at least another two miles. She wasn’t entirely sure of the distance, but it was still plenty of space to roam around and get far away from the smell of sleeping magicals to quiet her racing mind.
She padded through the swamp beside the shoreline, stopping here and there to follow the scent of a rabbit or a squirrel. For once, she wasn’t ravenous in the middle of the night when she couldn’t sleep.
Better that way. Can’t show up at the kitchen without clothes. Don’t want to catch a squirrel and eat it as a wolf, either.
A soft splash on her right caught her attention, and she darted off after the sound. When a flickering line of purple light burst to life in the air two feet in front of her, she pulled up and skidded through the water to stop herself.
Another incident with the wards? Did I trigger that? Or whatever caused that splash?
The humming buzz grew louder, and smaller streaks of purple light crackled away from her to the left and right, buzzing away like an electrical charge before a series of purple sparks popped off in quick succession. A high whine like a malfunctioning motor filled the air, joined by that weirdly sweet scent from the last time she’d seen the wards act up like this.
Amanda stepped backward through the swamp, watching the purple sparks until they vanished into an invisible line of wards again.
Weird. If that happens again, I should probably tell someone.
She turned to head north again but slightly inland this time and stopped when a different scent hit her.
Summer.
No way. She was in her room.
Still, there was no telling how long Amanda had been out here running through the swamp as a wolf. Time did weird things when she shifted.
Curious and a little annoyed by the fact that she wasn’t out here alone, she turned her nose to the wind and sniffed out Summer’s trail.
Whatever she’s up to, it can’t be good. Is she the one messing with the wards?
Amanda padded silently across the swamp, slipping up onto small islands of dry land before wading back down into the water again. The new girl had recently been out here, making her scent that much easier to pick up even across water. It led Amanda to an island at the northernmost tip of the Academy’s campus, and when she stepped slowly through the wall of cattails at the edge, she found Summer kneeling in the center of the island.
The new girl was shaking something in a medium-sized jar, her eyes wide above an excited grin that almost made her look insane. Then she unscrewed the lid and let out a long sigh. “Can’t stop me from finding all your hidden little secrets.”
Amanda took two more silent steps up onto land to get a better view. Laid out in front of Summer was an entire array of potions, jars of different-colored powders, and a stack of something that looked like black bricks but smelled like manure.
Holding the open jar in one hand, Summer eagerly scooped up all the other ingredients in front of her and jammed them into her backpack. She zipped it quickly, slung it over her shoulder, and held the open jar of liquid glowing a dark, menacing red over the stack of smelly bricks. “This is gonna be epic.”
Holy crap, she made another bomb!
Amanda shouted for Summer to stop, but all that came out was a high-pitched yelp. Summer paused for a split second, then dumped the alchemical brew she’d somehow managed to get her hands on, splattering it all over the bricks before jumping to her feet and quickly stepping back.
Still crouching in the cattails, Amanda shifted back into her human form and shouted, “What are you doing?”
“What?” Summer stumbled back across the grass and frantically scanned the island. “Who—”
“Make it stop! You can’t blow things up here too!” Amanda darted out of the reeds, thinking only of the sparking, hissing bricks and nothing about the fact that she was running buck-naked toward an imminent explosion.
The drenched bricks threw off an enormous spray of crimson sparks. Summer lunged for Amanda, wrapped her arms around the girl, and hauled her backward off her feet. The alchemy bomb erupted before the girls hit the ground, and the force of the explosion threw them farther down the gentle slope of the island and halfway into the swamp.
The aftershock of the alchemical detonation sent a second ripple through the island. The ground trembled. A massive wall of red sparks, red flames, and waterlogged earth rose high into the air, lighting up the night sky. Then, as the clods of dirt, mud, and uprooted cattails and ferns rained down all around them, a third rumbling explosion echoed across the swamp—this time underground.
Even the constant drone of the cicadas and the crickets’ chirping cut off beneath the disturbance, and the only thing Amanda could hear was the ringing in her head and the last few plops of earth chunks hitting the swamp water behind her.
Then she realized Summer still had her arms around her, and Amanda was still completely naked.
Summer seemed to realize this at the same time and quickly removed her hold on the shifter girl. She looked away from Amanda and stared intently at the thick column of black smoke rising from the crater she’d created in the earth.
Amanda dragged herself fully onto land, trying to catch her breath and give herself a mental once-over. Nothing hurts. Nothing’s broken. Holy crap, that was insane.
She’s insane.
She glared at Summer, who’d now propped herself up with both hands in the swamp and her legs splayed awkwardly up the incline of the island. “Are you insane?”
“What?” The new girl gave her a brief sidelong glance.
“What is wrong with you?” Amanda shook her head. “You got kicked out o
f the last school for blowing something up, and you tried it again? Here? You could’ve seriously hurt somebody!”
“Yeah, you really shouldn’t run toward an explosion, shifter girl.” Summer chuckled. “Figured you knew that already. Hey, good thing I was fast enough to pull you away, right?”
“I was talking about you.”
“I’m fine.” The new girl pushed herself to her feet. Saltwater cascaded from her soaked shorts and the back of her shirt to splash onto the bank and into the swamp. She pulled a soggy fern leaf from her black hair and tossed it aside. “What about you?”
“I’m pissed.”
Summer finally looked down at her, frowning at Amanda’s nakedness before quickly looking away again. “Well, that’s your choice. So are clothes, apparently.”
“I went out for a run.” Amanda stood and shook the mud off her hands and wrists. “Then I found you blowing up islands on campus.”
“Please. This isn’t campus. Technically. No one comes out here.”
“You don’t know that. You haven’t even been here a whole week—”
“Look, just because you thought you were the only kid here who could sneak out at night without getting caught doesn’t mean I’m stepping all over your toes here.” Summer inspected her soaked backpack hanging from one shoulder, wrinkled her nose, then shrugged. “You didn’t want to be part of this. Fine. Don’t look at me like I’m some kind of monster, okay?”
“You stole alchemy supplies and blew up an island. On purpose.”
“Yeah, and you’re a shifter. Running around on four legs while everyone’s asleep because you’re too afraid to tell people what you are.” Summer raised an eyebrow. “Maybe explosions are part of my nature. You ever think of that?”
Amanda stepped away from the girl and swallowed. “It’s not the same.”
“Really? Just because you get to change shapes means it’s okay that you can’t help yourself?”
She’s pushing it.
The shifter girl’s hands clenched into fists. “I can help it.”
“Right. Like you could help not following me out here.” Summer scoffed. “I have no idea why you’re still so uptight about this. You have a bad side like me, shifter girl. Might as well embrace it.”
The hell I do.
“You don’t know anything about me.” Amanda’s voice came out as a low growl, and the tingle of an impending shift washed over her before she crushed it back down.
Yeah, she’s pissing me off. I can’t go full wolf on her.
Summer’s eyes widened when she saw the flash of silver around Amanda’s brown eyes, and she laughed. “Whoa… See? My point exactly. Come on. Let’s go check it out.”
As the new girl trudged up onto the island in her squelching sneakers, Amanda fought her anger and frustration.
Why am I so angry? Because she’s right? Or because I can’t help it?
“Seriously, kid—”
“Don’t call me that.”
“Oh, you like shifter girl better? Sure, yeah. Whatever.”
“My name’s Amanda.”
Summer sniggered. “Your name could be Queen Wolfie for all I care. Are you coming or not?”
“Coming where?” Amanda glared at the new girl, fighting with herself. Because now that the deed was done, she did want to see whatever Summer seemed so excited to investigate. And she hated it.
“Up here. Duh.” Summer pointed at the column of smoke that had already died down into a few thin whisps. “Come on. You’re already here. Might as well, right?”
Gritting her teeth, Amanda stormed up the incline to join the girl who’d now become her partner in crime. Only the crime this time was a lot more than running away from Johnny’s house or letting her instincts get the better of her on a hunt or even sneaking out after Lights Out to let the wolf in her run free without fear of being seen. Now, she was complicit in blowing up school property, and if she was lucky, she might be able to stay at this school to chase the only real dream she could remember wanting to pursue. The only thing that made her feel useful.
“Jesus, Amanda. Don’t you have any clothes?”
“Yeah, a whole dresser. None of them are wolf-sized, though.”
Summer barked out a laugh, then swung her backpack off her shoulder and quickly unzipped it. She pulled out a hoodie and a pair of sweatpants, both of them soaked through. “Here. It’s better than nothing.”
“You keep random clothes in your backpack?”
“Listen, if you’ve been where I’ve been, running away is always an option. It sucks to run away without being prepared.” Summer held the clothes out toward the other girl and looked away, shaking the soaked items eagerly. “Hurry up. We don’t have all night. I wanna see what the hell’s down there in that hole.”
Amanda snatched up the soaked garments and struggled to put them on. They were warm and wet and baggy, but at least they covered everything.
So much for comfort. There’s no way I’m not getting a rash after this.
“Let’s go.” Summer grinned at her and nodded at the massive crater at the center of the island. “This is the best part.”
Chapter Fifteen
Both girls stood at the crater’s edge and looked down into the dark hole beneath them.
“Great. You made a hole. Time to go.”
“Hold on.” Summer smirked. “Don’t you wanna see what’s down there?”
“Nope.” She did—she really did—but the disappointment of missing out on a discovery like this was nothing compared to how pointless everything would be if they got caught and kicked out of the Academy. “Let’s get back to the dorms, okay? Someone had to hear that explosion. Or at least see it—”
“No way. Everyone’s asleep. Quit trying to be our conscience, okay? We’re already here.” Summer flicked her wrist, and a small orb of white light materialized in her hand, lighting up her wide grin in stark shadows as if they were telling ghost stories around a fire with a flashlight. “You know you wanna see what’s down there.”
Amanda didn’t say anything, mostly because she didn’t want to lie.
Summer leaned over the edge of the crater, lowered her hand, and let the orb slip over her fingertips to fall into the hole. It sank slowly by about six feet, illuminating the ruptured earthen walls before stopping a foot above the bottom. Now visible were two dirt-caked pillars of white stone serving as the entryway into a tunnel.
“Cool,” Amanda whispered before she remembered she was supposed to be the voice of reason here.
Summer nodded, her grin widening even more. “I know, right? Let’s go check it out.”
“Seriously, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why the hell not?” The new girl sat at the edge of the crater and started to climb down. “Hey, turning back now is like running away from a little rain when you’re already soaking wet. I mean, yeah, technically you already are. But there’s no point in turning down this kinda find, shifter girl.”
“We don’t know what’s down there.”
Summer’s head slowly sank out of view as she descended. “Yep. That’s the point.”
“The whole thing could come down on top of us.”
“You know how many heavy-duty explosive reagents I had to use to blow the top off this thing? A tunnel surrounded by water that’s still standing wasn’t built to crumble around a couple of kids walking through.” The girl’s shoes squelched when she hopped the rest of the way down, and her face was only partially illuminated by the light sphere when she looked up at Amanda. “You do you, though. I’m going in. Can’t change my mind, shifter girl.”
Summer dusted off her hands and turned toward the tunnel behind the white stone pillars. Her light spell bobbed along after her and cast her flickering shadow along the tunnel walls until the fading illumination was all Amanda could see.
She glanced around the silent, empty swamp, then tipped her head back to sigh at the stars.
I’m gonna regret this somehow. I know
it.
Yet, she lowered herself to the edge of the hole and dropped straight down, landing firmly on both bare feet. She took off after Summer, eyes wide as she studied the tunnel walls of packed earth around her and caught up to the bobbing light up again.
Neither girl said a word as they moved down the tunnel, which dipped steadily lower underground.
There’s a whole swamp above us right now. She better not have any more bombs in her backpack, or we’re both drowning tonight.
After another fifteen feet, the tunnel opened into a large cavern. Eight pillars of the same dirty-white stone stood in a ring around the chamber, built as if their original purpose was to hold up all the land and water over the swamp above. Thick roots protruded through the ceiling, many of them steadily dripping water into the sizeable pool already covering most of the stone floor. In the center of the chamber was one more pillar, this one only four feet tall with a flat top carved with intricate swirls.
On the pedestal rested a dark purple crystal five inches long, glowing with dark, internal light.
“Whoa.” Amanda gazed around the chamber while scratching an itch on her arm through the other girl’s waterlogged hoodie. “Looks like a Roman temple or something.”
“A what?” Summer waved the light orb forward with her as she stepped off the end of the tunnel and down onto the stone floor of the so-called temple. Her footsteps echoed across the chamber until she reached the large pool spreading across the area with the pedestal at the center.
“A Roman temple.” Amanda didn’t hesitate to step off the ledge and join the other girl, their voices echoing at least three times louder than normal. “You know, where people used to go to worship their gods or whatever.”
“I don’t believe in gods. Any of them.”
“Okay, but you at least know what I’m talking about, right?”
Summer shrugged. “Not really.”
“Did you go to any school before the one you got kicked out of, or are you—”
