Nightworld Academy: Term Four

by LJ Swallow

  "Stop!" Ash's shout succeeds in snapping me out of the fate awaiting me and I blink back to reality and confusion. "That hurts." Ash has both palms across his eyes. "Really fucking hurts. I feel like my brain is about to leak out of my ears."

  His comment would sound funny if it weren't a horrifying possibility to me. "I hit a block—almost—something that I swear would hurt me."

  He removes his hands from his eyes and his mouth drops open. "Shit, Maeve." Two broad palms cup my cheeks and thumbs rub just below my eyes. "Fucking hell."

  "What?" I ask, panic rising. "Are you okay?"

  "I am. But you..." Withdrawing his hands, he holds them out to me. Blood covers the tips of his thumb. "Your eyes."

  I fly to my feet and wipe the back of my wrist across my face. "What do you mean?"

  But the evidence is there as more blood streaks my skin. Bile rises as I stare down at the red that shouldn't be there. "My eyes are bleeding?"

  Paler, Ash nods.

  Two steps at a time, I charge up the stairs, looking for the small bathroom. Inside, I grip the white porcelain sink and stare at myself in the clear mirror. The girl looking back could be straight from a horror movie. I'm deathly white and my eyes brim with red tears. Bloody tears. I grab a nearby brown hand towel and wipe at my eyes with the rough edge.

  Heavy footsteps follow and Ash appears behind me. He takes my arms and pulls me against him, holding my arms tight so I can't rub anymore.

  "What happened?" he demands. "Did I do that to you?"

  "I-I don't know."

  "Has that ever happened before?"

  I swallow. "No."

  Releasing me, he steps back and places both hands on his head, elbows at right angles. "Then we don't try again. We stop."

  "Ash, we can't. We have to find your memories."

  "He can do it. Tobias. This hurt you."

  The bile continues to rise. Why now? Why with Ash? He reaches out and wraps his arms tighter around me, and I push myself into his naked chest. This is a lifetime away from how he held me earlier, but I'm here. I'm okay.

  But scared.

  Pain throbs behind my eyes and in my temples, and when I touch them, I can feel the pulsing.

  "There's no point trying, Maeve."

  I snap my eyes open and look in the mirror. "What did you say?"

  "I said, Tobias can do this. Not you."

  "No. The other thing." But the voice never sounded like Ash. A shadow moves in the mirror, faint and sudden. "What's that?"

  "You're trembling. Come downstairs and lie down. If you give me your phone, I'll call the others back."

  "Something strange is happening," I whisper. "This is different."

  I'm crushed harder against Ash's chest as he holds my head against him.

  In the dark, distant recesses of my mind, I hear a gun shot. An anguished voice—my voice—shouting out a name.

  Jamie.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  JAMIE

  Still mulling over everything discussed today, I head back along the hallway towards the dorm rooms. The guards no longer stand as sentries outside Lorna's room, although they not so subtly walk amongst the students.

  I chew on the edge of my fist and take a surreptitious look around. The door will be locked; but I can try. I push down on the handle and wait for the resistance as I do. As the door opens, I drop my hold in surprise. Weird. Steeling myself for what I might see inside, I step into the room.

  The reason why the door isn't locked greets me, wild-eyed with her curly auburn hair free of the usual ponytail, and clutching clothes to her chest with shaking hands.

  Becci.

  I scan the room. All the drawers are open, and there are clothes and personal items dumped on the bed to the left—everything from jeans, shirts, uniforms, and books to jewellery and perfume bottles.

  "Get out!" she protests and clutches the bundle harder against herself. "What are you doing in here?"

  My curiosity wins and I drop my gaze to the floor, looking for bloodstains. None.

  "She died in her bed," says Becci in a wavering voice and points to the side. Lorna's bed is missing, the area stripped of anything personal as if this were a single room.

  Great. If all Lorna's possessions have gone, what the hell can I find to read? I can't take memories from walls, so I'm stuck.

  "Were you in the room when she died?" I ask.

  She shakes her head.

  "Where were you?"

  Becci turns away and shoves the unfolded clothes into a suitcase. "I've answered these questions once, to the investigators. I don't need to answer you."

  Finally, the fates smile on me—finding Becci here alone could help immensely. "Do you know who she was with the evening…it happened?"

  Becci stops and straightens, lips tight as she regards me. "Didn't you hear? I'm not answering your questions, Jamie. Now go away."

  Are these all her clothes or are some Lorna's? "Sorry. How about I help you pack? I can tell that you want to be out of this room quickly."

  "No." She's emphatic and grabs more items, speeding up her packing.

  "I'll help," I insist.

  The bathroom door is ajar and I wander in. Girl's bathrooms always smell much more pleasant than the guys, and this one still smells of sickly perfume and fruity shampoo. Shelves beside the sink hold bottles lined neatly beside a small plastic container filled with earrings and necklaces.

  I grit my teeth. This bathroom would be empty if the room was searched and examined thoroughly. Maeve's right—nobody wants to investigate this murder properly.

  I scoop up the bottles and place them in a plastic bag left in the corner of the bathroom. A blue towel lies on the floor next to the shower, and I grab that too.

  "Jamie, please leave," comes Becci's voice.

  Something falls from inside the towel and lands on the floor. I crouch down and pick up the silver hoop earring with a half-moon dangling from the bottom. As I prepare to add this to the jewellery box, something flashes into my mind—Lorna placing the hoop in her ear.

  This was hers. Hoping fate continues to help me out, I rest my back against the shower screen, clutching the earring in my palm.

  I close my eyes and see Becci and Lorna shushing and giggling as they leave the room. My psychometry isn't developed enough to read everything from an object, but if I focus, I can usually get snapshots.

  Another comes. A dark place. Trees behind. A male voice, and the owner strokes her hair and whispers. Lorna's voice. I strain to see his features and hear his muffled voices, but his face is unclear thanks to my weaker powers. Becci is urging Lorna to leave, who's laughing. I grip the earring harder. More.

  The images snap away and I curse until another image jumps in.

  Lorna alone with a guy. In this room.

  "Jamie! I said get the hell out."

  I hastily stand and shove the earring in my pocket before holding the towel out to her. "I'm only trying to help." I stammer, my pulse racing in my ears. She snatches the towel from me. "Where were you when Lorna died?"

  "Jamie. How many times? I'm not saying anything to you."

  "I saw you leave Walcott." She doesn't need to know I saw this through divination.

  She falters. "What?"

  "That night. You and Lorna left. Just the two of you. I saw where you went."

  Her cheeks heat. "Liar."

  "I don't think I'm the liar here, Becci."

  Her face turns deep red and she grabs the plastic bag from the corner. "Jamie. Fuck off before I scream and tell someone you've barged into my room and assaulted me."

  "What?" I ask, mouth falling open.

  "I don't know what you're hoping to find in here, but Lorna has gone. Every trace of her. I'm leaving too, and this room will never be used again. Ever." I stumble as she shoves me in the chest. "Go."

  My hand remains in my pocket where I've curled my fingers around the earring. The visions of the past have dropped away, but I have something that can help us.
Help Andrei.

  "I think you know who really killed Lorna," I say. "I don't know who you're protecting, but I hope he's worth Andrei's life."

  Her hands shake again. "Andrei deserves a life at Ravenhold."

  I scoff. "Really, Becci? Do you think the Dominion leader's son, sent there for killing a witch, is likely to survive against powerful witches at Ravenhold?"

  "They can't use magic," she retorts.

  "No, but they could break his neck. If Ravenhold doesn't kill him, they will." I lean in to her. "Andrei may not even reach Ravenhold. One swift, unfair trial and he could be put to death."

  Becci heaves in a breath. "I'm protecting my own life," she blurts.

  Stepping forward, I look down and she shrinks back. "What do you mean?"

  Her eyes slide to the right and she pauses, searching for an answer. For a lie. "I'm protecting my life from a murderous hemia vampire who could kill more witches, if he's allowed to walk free."

  "What you're saying makes no sense," I say harshly.

  Without a word, she shoves the last of her clothes into the bag and picks up her pillow, before finally saying, "I'm done here."

  "I'm not."

  She glares. "I've nothing else to say."

  "The truth always comes out, Becci."

  We stand in stalemate while I attempt to pick up on her spirit energy and use my mental magic skills. All I find is Becci's hurt and anguish and her emotions overriding everything else.

  "Stop that!" she snaps at me and bolts through the door.

  I look around the empty room, void of life, and sense the energy from a violent death. A shiver runs along my spine; I wouldn't want to stay in this room either.

  The truth is buried deep in Becci's mind and someone needs to dig down there.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  MAEVE

  Lessons are back to normal, even though they never will be again. There's none of the usual chatter in the hallway outside the classroom. Instead, Walcott and Petrescu stand far apart in tight groups, not looking at each other. All wear the academy uniforms, again adding a normalcy that doesn't exist. Katherine stands the furthest away from Walcott; I catch her eye and she arches a brow at me before resuming her conversation with the others. She's Lorna's friend—how does she feel about her murder? My gaze flicks from one Petrescu to another. Do they believe Andrei was responsible?

  I stayed with Ash in the cottage until the dizziness and headache subsided. He watched as I washed the rest of the blood from my face and asked me to go to the infirmary. We both knew I'd refuse—I no longer want any staff but Tobias aware of anything unusual happening. My head still aches a little, but attending class and putting my face out there is important. I refused to be late, especially as this is Mental Magic and I can speak to Tobias afterwards.

  Jamie eagerly told me about his encounter with Becci and what he managed to read from the earring. He tried to find more when he took the earring back to his room, but nothing else came to him. Becci's attitude proves to me she has information that she hasn't shared. Who is the vampire? Tobias needs to check the Petrescu gang's minds again.

  I understand Becci's fears and feel for her that she believes she's protecting herself, but Andrei's life is on the line too. The authorities could help keep her safe—they have no interest in doing the same for Andrei.

  I'm anxious to see Tobias to discuss everything from today, but worried that I went against his advice when I pushed my way into Ash's memories. The spell protecting those memories did more than block me—the magic violently fought me

  Jamie naturally fusses and asks how I'm feeling every few minutes, on alert for any changes to me.

  "Jamie, I said I'm fine." I give an exasperated sigh. "Don't ask me again or I'll get mad."

  "Your eyes bled, Maeve!" he says in a loud whisper.

  "Shush!" We're still shunned as we lean against the wall outside the classroom, away from other ears, but vamp hearing might pick up on our conversation.

  Yvette appears with her friends—but no Becci. Jamie follows my line of vision and swears. "Do you think Becci was packing to leave?"

  A chill runs through me. "Leave the academy? She can't. Not yet."

  "Why isn't she at class?"

  "Because she's scared that Tobias will get into her mind," I mutter. "We need to talk to him about what you saw, when you held the earring."

  "And about you and Ash."

  I nod. Gilgamesh don't attend Mental Magic, instead heading to a shifter-only class. They pass across the courtyard below the window, but fewer than usual. Ash is amongst them, but I can't see many others from the rugby team. Where do they stand in the war brewing between Walcott and Petrescu? This plays straight into Vincent's hands and must be connected to him somehow, even though his working with vampires makes no sense.

  "I'm still shocked Theodora demanded classes start again."

  "She wants routine re-established." Jamie chews his lip. "I think this is too soon. There's a dark energy around the students."

  The classroom door opens and an austere Tobias stands in the doorway. He's back in a black suit, immaculately groomed and every inch Professor Whitlock. The quiet talk around ceases as he clears his throat. "Welcome back to my class. Come in."

  I step across the runes that frightened me on my first lesson and briefly meet the stony eyes of the professor I argued with that day. He doesn't register either myself or Jamie as we file in with the other students and take our usual seats.

  Yvette strides over and takes the seat Katherine always sits in, and I close my eyes waiting for the fallout from her provocation.

  "Excuse me, sweetie." Katherine's honeyed tones join the scraping chairs.

  "Is there a problem?" Yvette replies.

  "You appear to be in my seat."

  I open my eyes to watch the exchange. Katherine's blonde hair spills forward as she leans over Yvette, who takes pens from her bag and neatly arranges them on the table. "There's a spare seat there."

  Yvette nods at a chair close by. Andrei's seat. Katherine runs her tongue across her top teeth. "I'd like to sit in my usual place."

  "I'm sitting here." Their eyes meet in challenge. Several days ago, the pair were close, linked by their friendship with Lorna. Now the animosity between them is thick enough to slash.

  "How old are you, girls?" Tobias's loud voice snaps across the room. "Stop behaving like infants and take your seats. Katherine. Over there." He points at Yvette's usual seat.

  "I'm not sitting with them." She pulls a face at the Walcott girls.

  "Good," mutters one. "We don't want Andrei's friends anywhere near us."

  Katherine remains tight-lipped and moves to the opposite end of the room where she sits beside Oliver's smirking gang.

  Tobias glares before resting against his desk and folding his arms. "Whatever prejudices you have towards each other belong outside my classroom."

  Yvette snorts and mutters something to herself. Tobias strides over. "Do you have something to say, Miss Grant? Believe me, you are treading on thin ice after your behaviour the other day."

  She doesn't flinch. "I've asked Sofia to exclude me from your lessons. I'm uncomfortable around the professor who had a close relationship with a murderer."

  He leans over and places both palms on the table. "I would suggest you remain in my class, if you want to pass your exams. Your Mental Magic grades are woeful. I'm sure your parents wouldn't be happy for their daughter to fail."

  She drops her eyes, pink spots appearing on her cheeks.

  Tobias moves back and surveys the students. "Where is Becci?"

  "She doesn't feel well," says a witch beside Yvette. "Becci won't be attending lessons today."

  "Yeah, a few of us don't want to be here. She should be too," grumbles Dane. Him and Kailey, once our regular magic partners in the sanctum, also reject us now.

  Briefly, Tobias meets my eyes and his displeasure is clear. We'd hoped to speak to her after class, and now Jamie's theory she may'
ve left keeps my anxiety high.

  Tobias turns away and takes a book from the table. "Today will be a theory lesson. I want you to finish writing up your experiences from our last session."

  Behind his authoritative front, I sense his mental exhaustion. It's clear he doesn't want to be here any more than the students do.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  MAEVE

  The class passes in silence, and as the students settle to complete their task the atmosphere calms. Was this due to Tobias's magic influencing the atmosphere? As the class wrote, or stared into space refusing to note anything, Tobias remained quiet, sitting behind his desk with an open red book he either read or pretended to. Occasionally, he closed his eyes and rubbed his temples, and at that point I'd feel a new calm wash over the space filled with antagonism.

  Tobias can calm his class, but how will other professors fair? I have images of students throwing potions across the room at each other. I eye Yvette. Or creating something to use on the murderer's girlfriend.

  I hang back with Jamie, pretending to discuss the lesson, until others leave. I'm surprised Tobias didn't wait in the classroom for us; instead he walks to his office at the rear of the room.

  "He's pissed off," I say to a surprised Jamie.

  "Yeah. What's the guy like when he's angry? He must've been pissed off last night."

  "Overwhelming." I clamp up and wrap my arms around myself, not wanting to connect with the feelings Tobias aroused last time he lost his temper around me.

  "Are you sure he didn't hurt you last night?" Jamie's eyes narrow in suspicion.

  "No. I think he has a temper he keeps suppressed, that's all."

  With a doubtful glance at me, Jamie raps on Tobias's office door. "It's us," he says.

  The door opens and Tobias turns to move away without speaking. He strides to the window and places a hand on the wall, staring out. "How the hell do we speak to Becci if she doesn't attend class?"

  "You can find a way," I suggest.