“Nothing is all powerful, Ms. Rivera,” he said. “This curse is incurable.”
I shook my head. That couldn’t be true. Rowan thought there was a way to cure it, didn’t he? But what if he believed that only out of desperation? What if he was truly condemned?
“I can keep him this way for another couple of days,” he said, closing the canopy again. “You will see him again, Ms. Rivera, if only to tell him goodbye.”
Macgregor turned sharply away from the bed and headed toward the staircase.
My heart took a tumble. Tell him goodbye?
No. No. No. Rowan couldn’t die. He couldn’t. Losing Trey was all I could bear. I wouldn’t let anything happen to Rowan. I would find a way, even if his own father had given up on him.
“Please,” Macgregor said from the top of the stairs, “Let’s let him rest.”
After my short visit, I went straight to my room and lay on my bed, fighting the urge to cry. Even though I hadn’t bothered to clean up, the furniture was back in its place as if nothing had happened. Someone had taken care to hide the mess from the returning students.
So many lies. So many secrets. Why was it so hard for people to trust?
Classes picked back up the next day, and campus filled with the hustle and bustle of excited students who couldn’t help but recount their spring break adventures ad nauseam.
To my dismay, Disha was full of the same exasperating excitement, and, despite my best efforts, I resented her for it. She had gotten back to school sometime during the night and had found me in the cafeteria this morning.
As soon as she sat, she began rambling about Cancun, and all I’d heard for the last thirty minutes was Kenny this and Kenny that—just like it had been with Henderson. She hadn’t taken one breath to ask about Rowan, and not even the blank stares I threw her way seemed to faze her.
She stopped her story, about an overzealous dolphin that had tried to steal her bikini bottom, to take a sip of coffee, and finally seemed to notice my irritation.
“Um… so how was your break?” She smiled sheepishly.
I rolled my eyes, rose, and picked up my tray.
Disha followed. “That bad, huh?”
God, she had no idea. How could anyone be so self-centered?
I practically threw the tray on top of the conveyor belt as Disha did her best to keep up.
“What am I missing here, Charlie?” She caught up with me outside the cafeteria as I made my way to our Spells 201 class.
“Nothing,” I snapped back, “just that Rowan is dying.”
I hurried along, leaving her behind. Apparently, I stunned her enough to freeze her on the spot. Minutes later, she slid into the seat next to mine. I ignored her and stared at the cave ceiling, remembering the day I’d levitated myself into the light fixture. Rowan’s curse had been torturing him that day. If I’d only known then…
“Charlie—” Disha started.
“Henderson is here,” I said, pointing toward the lectern and opening my notebook.
I knew I was being unfair, but I couldn’t help all the emotions warring inside my chest. Disha just happened to be the only one on whom I could take out my frustration. I’d make it up to her later.
“Welcome back, class,” Dr. Henderson said, a cheery smile on his lips. He had the looks of someone who had also enjoyed the break. “We will start with a new topic today. Teleportation. We’ll talk about this extremely hard skill and how, for some, portals will be the only way to ever travel instantly from one spot to another.”
My ears perked up at the word portal and, of its own accord, my hand went up in the air.
Henderson blinked. “Yes, Ms. Rivera?”
“Um, is that all portals are good for?” I blurted out. “Don’t they do other things?” It was a stupid question. Everyone knew they did other things, but I just wanted to get him talking about the topic to see what I could learn.
Henderson laughed. “They certainly do. None of us would be able to perform magic without portals. As a matter of fact, there would be no supernaturals without them. They are called portals not only because they are doors that allow travel to other places, but because they are doors to power itself. Though, no one really understands everything about them, or what may be accomplished by someone strong enough to channel their energy. Some actually think portals hold all the secrets to the universe, all we need to know about the world we live in, why we’re here, why we die. Many supernaturals have sought them in pursuit of eternal life, a healing spell, wisdom, you name it. Does that answer your question, Ms. Rivera?”
A healing spell.
My mind raced with the possibilities.
A healing spell!
The words tolled inside my head like giant bells. “Yes, Dr. Henderson. That answers my question. Thank you.”
Chapter Thirty-One
SPRING SEMESTER
MID MARCH
The old digital alarm clock buzzed gently from my nightstand, but I didn’t need it. I had lain awake in bed for hours, watching the numbers tick towards two AM. Campus was always bustling with late-night hangout and study sessions, but I figured most of the staff would be asleep at this ungodly hour.
A good cloaking spell and lots of luck would hopefully see me through to what I was about to do.
Thoughts multiplied like horny rabbits in my head as I pulled on my boots. Could I get expelled for this? Most certainly. Would it even work? I had no idea. Should I get Disha involved? No, not if expulsion and possibly death were on the docket.
Was it worth it?
Yes. Yes, it was.
Dressed in all black, I did the cloaking spell without giving it much thought. My bracelets hummed in quiet anticipation as if they knew we were about to do something big. Maybe they’d gotten a clue from my sudden intense reading on everything I could find related to portals. Maybe they had tapped into my emotions somehow. Either way, I needed them tonight. This would be the ultimate test of their power.
Slipping out of my room and the dorm was easy. A few night owls were in the common room studying, but they didn’t even glance up as I walked by. Outside, the campus grounds were equally deserted. Exams were a few weeks away so people were either studying or getting much needed rest after break.
A three-quarters moon hung overhead as I cut across the manicured lawns. The night was warm and still, a sign that sweltering days were about to descend on campus once again. That meant the end of the semester, and I still had no idea what would happen to me, but that no longer mattered. I could make it out there if I got expelled. Rowan wouldn’t make it a week if I didn’t do something drastic, just like he’d said.
As I approached, the infirmary stood tall and proud in the moonlight. I surveyed the windows, seeing no movement. No patients. People were too tired from their week spent partying to try out love potions or body enhancement spells. As far as I could tell, Rowan was Nurse Taishi’s only patient and he was in a magical coma, so hopefully, that meant he was getting minimal attention right now. I’d practiced a knock-out spell I’d learned in a Defensive Studies book, but I really didn’t want to use it. Nurse Taishi was cool and attacking teachers did not seem like a great idea. One I certainly wanted to avoid.
I crept up the first set of stairs to the main infirmary, praying I wouldn’t run into anyone. All the beds on either side were empty, but, as I walked closer to the hidden staircase Macgregor had shown me, I heard voices, one male and one female, coming from down the hall.
Shitballs.
I debated about what to do so they didn’t catch me opening the staircase. I could try to cast a cloaking spell on it, too, but I had never attempted one on anything but myself.
Tip-toeing toward the voices, I realized they were coming from Nurse Taishi’s office. The male voice definitely belonged to him, but the female voice sounded very familiar.
Scooting along the outside wall, I slid myself over until I could peer in one of the office windows.
Nurse Taishi was doctoring som
ething on a young female ankle. At first, all I could see was smooth, brown skin on someone’s shapely foot until the owner flipped her hair back and exposed her face.
Disha!
“Thank you so much for seeing me right away,” she said more anxious than I’d normally heard her. “I was worried these bumps would spread into something unfortunate.” Long eyelashes fluttered as she watched Taishi apply a cream to the skin above her ankle.
Was she attempting to seduce another teacher? No, she seemed honestly concerned about some rash that would mar her perfect skin. To Taishi’s credit, he seemed to be keeping it very professional, despite the smooth, young female leg in front of him. And Disha’s legs were legendary.
Then I realized that, without knowing it, Disha was giving me the exact distraction I needed. I hurried back to the hidden stairwell and opened it just as Macgregor had.
Luckily, it descended silently just as before. Once the last step was in place, I practically flew to the top step, then ran straight to Rowan.
He still hovered above the bed in his magical coma, looking just as terminally ill. My heart wrenched, but I focused my thoughts. Gathering my power, I disintegrated the spell that held him in place. I didn’t know exactly how I did it, but the cuffs certainly did. His body floated down to the bed, and I hurriedly applied the levitation spell and cloaking spell around his body.
“Hang on, Rowan,” I said brushing hair tenderly off his forehead.
Then, with him in tow, I booked it to the stairwell.
Needless to say, getting a floating person down a spiral staircase was up there with the things I’d like to never do again.
I was down the bottom step and navigating Rowan around the last turn when footsteps approached from the back office.
“What’s this?!” Taishi’s voice said behind me as he saw the staircase open.
I was trying to run, pulling Rowan with me, when I felt the blast of magic from behind. My cloaking spell disintegrated like wet paper.
When I glanced around, Disha and Nurse Taishi were staring at me in disbelief.
“Charlie?” Disha asked. “What are you doing here?”
“I could ask you both the same thing,” I said, stuttering, stalling. Rowan hovered beside me.
Taishi stepped forward, hands out. I could feel him readying his magic.
“Look, Charlie, I know you care about Rowan, which is exactly why he needs to stay here. Whatever you think you can do for him, it cannot possibly be better than what his father has set up for him upstairs. Macgregor has consulted the best minds in magical medicine. Please, let’s not do anything we’ll regret.”
I stared at Nurse Taishi, letting his words fall over me. Macgregor might have tried most things, but he was also a proud man, and someone who worried about what others thought of him. He wouldn’t risk his reputation by damaging the school’s magic portal to save his son.
But, luckily, my reputation was trash and I definitely would risk it.
“I’m leaving here with Rowan,” I said as forcefully as I could muster. “It’s better for everyone if you don’t try to stop me. Once we’re gone, you can do whatever you need to do.”
My heart pounded in my ears as I drew magic from my bracelets, letting Taishi know I meant every word.
He retained his defensive posture, too. “I can’t just let you walk out of here with my patient.” His eyes were steady, his hands fisted.
We faced each other, magic gathering like storm clouds between us.
Suddenly, Disha jumped on top of Taishi, dragging him back. As they flailed, she yelled, “Go, Charlie!”
God love her. I grabbed Rowan and ran.
Sprinting out of the infirmary, I tore towards the fountain with Rowan in tow. Luckily, the portal was close because I was sure Taishi was sounding the alarm. With little time, I jumped into the water and pulled Rowan in with me. He hovered above the surface, body motionless. In the moonlight, his curse-ravaged body seemed like a hollow shell, as if his soul had already departed.
“This has to work,” I murmured to myself and to my cuffs. Slowly, I lowered them into the water. Cool liquid closed over my hands and arms as I waited for… something.
Nothing happened.
Shouts cut through the night behind me. Lights flared on in windows in the surrounding buildings. Taishi had woken up the whole school, it seemed, and the fountain was doing nothing!
“Come on,” I shouted, splashing my cuffs in the water. I lowered Rowan until his body touched the surface. I placed my hands on his chest and murmured the few healing spells I’d memorized, but my magic seemed useless.
This was worse than failure. This was me putting Rowan in jeopardy for no reason.
“Work, dammit!” I punched the water, tears springing to my eyes. “Do as I command!”
At the last word, a pulse of magic shook everything. The fountain trembled. The water sloshed like someone had just done a giant cannonball. Magic flooded in, hitting me in the chest and nearly taking me under. I stumbled, reaching for Rowan who still hovered over it all, a little wetter, but still okay.
Suddenly, water shot up around us. Walls of it blasted to the sky, going up as high as the eye could see, ringing us in. A water barrier surrounded us… like a cage.
This wasn’t my magic. It felt nothing like it. My cuffs pulsed a warning, letting me know it wasn’t them either.
A laugh from above cut through the rush of water crackling with awful glee. “I just love teenage girls. So impressionable.”
Fear radiating through me, I turned toward the voice.
There, standing on top of the fountain’s ring of animals, stood Professor Answorth.
Chapter Thirty-Two
SPRING SEMESTER
MID MARCH
My eyes darted from the foaming wall of water to Rowan’s body to Answorth’s awful smile. His fangs seemed impossibly long in the dim light.
What had I done?
I tried to draw my power from the bracelets, but they sputtered and died as if something was draining their energy.
“Don’t bother,” he said, jumping down from the statues and splashing water in all directions. “I’ve mastered the art of blocking other’s magic. It’s amazing the spells they have these days.” He smirked, licking one fang.
My body coiling with fear and anticipation, I positioned myself in front of Rowan protectively. “I don’t know what you think you’re doing. The entire campus knows we’re in here. They’ll be here in seconds.”
“They’re already here, though they’re having a hell of a time with my water spell. I tried fire last time. I figured water was the next logical step. Now… for those cuffs.”
He reached for me, but I lurched back and splashed water in his eyes at the same time. Grabbing Rowan, I dragged him away, running around the fountain, though I knew there was nowhere to go. Still, I had to hope that if I bought the staff some time, they would break through and rescue us.
Someone would come. They had to.
But as I tore around to the back of the fountain, a figure loomed in front of me.
It was Professor Answorth, only... he was wearing different clothing and he appeared as if he’d been ravaged by some disease in the seconds since I’d last saw him.
Shocked, I sloshed to a stop, staring at his awful transformation.
Then another Answorth jogged up behind me. What the hell?! Two Answorths? I felt as though my brain was melting.
“So you woke up?” the fresher-looking Answorth said to his twin. “I wondered how thin I could spread my magic, and I thought this might happen. That’s why I kept you near, so you would come here to take the blame for me.” He laughed.
The feeble Answorth stumbled forth, waving at me. “Get behind me, child. Rowan, too.”
I froze, unsure what to do. One Answorth offered to protect us and the other wanted to attack us. Turning my gaze to the latter, I ran through it all in my mind. He had to have used so many advanced spells to set this all up. Spells on
ly one man, a magical prodigy, would be powerful enough to accomplish.
“Henderson,” I said accusingly.
He waved his hand in front of his face, and Professor Henderson stood before me in Answorth’s clothing. It was him. It had always been him, disguising himself as Answorth, taking advantage of the vampire’s need for magical objects.
“Clever,” he said. “Though, it won’t matter now. I know how to get those cuffs off your wrists, Charlie. My apologies if the spell won’t bode well for you. After that, my power will strengthen, and I’ll be able to spread my magic far and wide.”
“You’ll never get away with it,” Answorth slurred, his speech as weak as his body.
“Answorth, old chap, you served me well. When you confided in me about your… affliction, I knew you would make the perfect scapegoat. No one likes a vampire.” He laughed once more, amused with his own cleverness.
“Charlie?” a hoarse voice said.
I blinked and glanced down at Rowan. He was trying to sit up, his gaze darting all around. He shook his head, waking up to a nightmare rather than a nice, warm bed, and it was all my fault.
“Professor Henderson?” Rowan said as I helped him to his feet. “What is happening?”
“Oh, Rowan. I’m sorry you got messed up in all of this, but since you’ve seen me...” he clucked his tongue and shrugged in mock regret. “It’ll be a mercy, really. That curse you’ve stumbled into… I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.”
“You…” I said as more pieces of the convoluted puzzle randomly fell into place inside my head, “you killed Georgia.”
He didn’t deny it, his expression portraying annoyance instead of guilt. “You need to break a few eggs to make an omelet and college girls are so breakable.”
“But Disha?” I sputtered.
Supernatural Academy: Freshman Witch Page 23
