by Jade Frances
I woke with a start. Unsure of what could have roused me, I remained still and listened. My arms and legs were wrapped around Pearce and he was snoring, still in a deep sleep. Gently, I peeled myself off of him and sidled over to the window to peek out. It was still dark outside. There was nothing out of place that I could see. Creeping to the door, I held my ear to it and listened. A rustle beyond it had me jumping back. Was someone outside my door? Holding my ear back to it, I listened again. There was definitely someone out there. I held up my wrist to unlock it and pulled it open, careful not to wake Pearce. I peeked my head around and saw Ava sitting with her back to the wall. A quick glance behind me confirmed that Pearce was still sleeping. I slithered around the door and closed it silently behind me.
“Ava, what are you doing?” I whispered. Her head snapped up toward me and I gasped when I noticed that her eyes were all white. She made no sound as she stared my way. “Ava,” I grabbed her arm. The contact snapped her out of whatever trance she was in. Her eyes turned back to their normal hazel colour and once she set her sights on me, they hardened.
“This will never be over for you. You will always have a battle to overcome. You will always lose people. You’re choosing a dangerous path Evangeline.” She stood, looked me up and down with a glare and walked to the end of the hallway and out of sight. I stood there, shocked and confused. Where had the young girl that I used to know gone? Chills ran down my spine. She was so hateful toward me of late, and I didn’t understand why. Just as I was about to follow her, a knock from the other side of my door drew me back. Pearce couldn’t open it without me. Taking a few steady breaths, I held up my wrist, and the door swung open. He looked worried.
“What’s going on?”
I walked past him into the room, trying to give myself time to compose myself.
“Nothing, I thought I heard something, but it was nothing,” I said and walked over to sit on the window seat. He joined me and sat behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist.
“You would tell me, wouldn’t you?”
Maybe if it wasn’t my concern for Ava.
“Of course,” I turned my head and kissed him lightly on the cheek. We sat in silence and watched the sun rise over the forest. The orange and red hues spread out in the sky, lighting up the main academy building. It was beautiful and for a moment, I forgot about everything that was going on around us. But it couldn’t last, it never did.
“I’m going to talk to Theodore this morning. He seemed kind of off yesterday.”
“Do you want me to come with you?”
“No, it’s ok, think I’ll do this alone.” I patted Pearce’s arms and moved toward the bathroom, tying my hair up as I went. “Catch up with you after?”
He stood to leave and grinned at me.
“Of course little siren, I’ll meet you on the grounds if you want to train?”
I groaned, as much as I felt like I was on top form, I really didn’t fancy training today.
“Yeah, maybe,” I slowly shut the bathroom door, smiling at him as it closed.
An hour later and I had tracked Theodore down in one of the dorms. Most of those that were left from his clan were scattered among the bunk beds. I spotted Kady and waved frantically. Her eyes lit up when she saw me, and she came running over.
“Hi sweetie, how are you doing?” I knelt down beside her.
“I heard you got hurt I was so worried. But Adam got me back here safe. Are you training today? Can I come?” She said hurriedly. I laughed and ruffled her hair.
“I don’t think that’s such a good idea, but hopefully soon,” I told her. It was a shame to see the excitement fade from her eyes, but keeping her safe was more important.
“Nzuri, can I help with something?” Theodore said on his approach.
“Can we go for a walk?” I glanced around. There were too many ears in here. Theodore followed my gaze and politely nodded his head in agreement. I gave Kady a hug and told her I would check in with her later. Minutes later, myself and Theodore had left the academy building and were walking toward the forest.
“So... what can I do for you?” He asked me. I kicked at some leaves on the floor and thought of how I could ask him what I wanted to. I had no idea what the best approach would be, so I dove straight in.
“Yesterday you seemed tense, maybe nervous. Are you ok?”
Theodore blanched and paused in front of me. His shoulders were hunched, and I could see his breath in the air.
“Observant. Dear Evangeline, my senses tell me that something is not right. The attack we endured, it was not like my own back home. This seemed almost... too easy.” I continued walking in the hope that he would follow. I was a few steps ahead of him when he caught up with me. “I don’t think this attack was from The Veil.”
I stopped then. Looking up at him, I could see his amber eyes were filled with doubt.
“Who then?”
“I am unsure, I have been trying to put feelers out in the communities, but it seems I am blocked. Either that, or they are not answering. No one should be able to portal inside these grounds Evangeline, I checked the wards myself, they are too strong.” I considered what he was telling me, but I couldn’t make any sense of it. Story of my life. If it wasn’t The Veil, then who would orchestrate such an attack, and for what purpose. Again, we started walking. The further we got into the forest, the more I thought of the long tall grass of his home and our visit there.
“Theodore, when we visited you, you said that you would follow me specifically. What did you mean?” It was a burning question that I had wanted the answer to since Egan had voiced his own opinions. Theodore walked silently beside me with no sign that he was going to answer. “Who do you think is responsible for the attack then?” I added.
He exhaled and shook his head. Then he began waving his arms around, which made him look a bit loopy. I raised my brows at him and then frowned. Looking around him, he bent to the ground and pulled a cluster of daisies from the ground. Reaching out to me, he pushed my hair back and placed them behind my ear. Cupping my face in his hands, he finally answered me.
“I chose to follow you Evangeline, because you hold much darkness but the light that shines around you is much stronger. You are naïve to the politics of this world, you have no place in old feuds. Yet here you are, in the centre of a war. When the attack occurred your first action was to get Kady to safety. A clan member that is a different race to you entirely. You see past the colour of our skin or the point of our ears to what lies beneath. A kind soul. That, dear Evangeline, is the sign of a strong and fruitful leader.” Groaning, I pulled my face from his hands and walked a few steps away. I kicked at more leaves to keep myself distracted from his intense gaze. With both of my arms hanging limply at my side, I wandered a small distance to gather my thoughts. He was confirming Egan’s theory, which is not what I wanted to hear. Theodore continued behind me.
“As for the attack... I have a couple of ideas, but none that would not get me into a lot of trouble for voicing. So please, Nzuri, do not push me on that subject.”
As much as it intrigued me and I wanted to know his ideas, I turned and nodded, deciding to respect his wishes. I would talk to the others about it later and see what they thought. Maybe they would come up with their own.
The rest of our walk was peaceful, and we were content with the silence between us. Once we had circled around and reached the main academy, we bowed to each other and bid our farewells for now.
“Thank you for talking with me Theodore, I appreciate it.” I rubbed his arm and smiled. He gripped my hand and held it tight.
“You are strong, you are powerful. Trust your judgement and never lose sight.” He told me mysteriously before he spun around and walked back to the dorm. I watched him go and marvelled at how well he was holding himself together after all he and his clan had been through. Even though yesterday he had seemed rather antsy, today he was back to his normal self. Once he was out of sight, I made a beeline for my own l
iving quarters and called on the girls as I walked.
Girls get everyone together. Theodore had an interesting thought I would like to share with you all.
Sure, common room? Rose answered.
Can we not just have one day without war or conspiracies associated with it? Sandra whined.
Unfortunately not, but this one might be interesting.
Once we were all seated in the armchairs around the fire, I brought everyone up to speed on what Theodore had said about the attack. It took a while for them to understand exactly what he had been suggesting.
“He thinks someone in here orchestrated the attack?” Rosemary asked. “From inside the academy? But that’s absurd. Who would do such a thing?”
“Pfft, what nonsense,” Taylor said.
“I mean is it that crazy to think it? He said he checked the wards himself, portals shouldn’t be able to open in the grounds,” I looked to the guardians for their support. All three looked at me dumbfounded. Pearce was the first to snap out of it.
“That much is true, the guardians stationed on the perimeter check it countless of times throughout the day. Portals shouldn’t be able to get past it. But what you’re suggesting... or rather Theodore, if it wasn’t true, and it was The Veil, then that would mean that there’s a possibility that a guardian, or guardians, could be implicated in it as well.” Barak and Egan looked at Pearce as if what he was saying was incomprehensible. Pearce looked directly at his brothers. “I can’t see that happening, there has to be another way to get past the wards. Or like Theodore says, it was orchestrated from within these walls.”
“You can’t be serious brother, neither option leaves us with much faith in our people,” Barak interrupted him. Egan looked lost in thought, while the others were watching their exchange silently. Pearce held up his hands and sat back. He didn’t know what else to say.
“Think about why someone would organise it, what do they benefit from it?” Egan mumbled from the corner. All attention turned to him. “Avetta would look stronger, more able to lead and defend. Only she would have anything to gain from this.”
Adam groaned from where he was seated next to Darryl. Standing, he walked to the centre of the room and looked around at everyone.
“You have all lost the plot if you think that Avetta’s behind this. You can’t honestly think that she would risk our lives just to gain points in a popularity contest to keep her crown?” He scowled at everyone as he spoke. “Idiots,” he added and when no one replied he moved to leave the room. Egan moved fast. Grabbing him by the arm, he swung him around to face him.
“Idiot? Do you have any other ideas, mutt?” He snapped at Adam.
Adam yanked his arm away and glowered at him.
“You think The Veil can’t infiltrate this academy? They are everywhere. The fear the attacks caused is more than enough reason for someone to jump ship right now.”
“Are you thinking of jumping back onto that ship mutt? Fed up with being on the good side, was it you who let them in?” Egan accused. Adam growled at him, took one look around and stalked out of the room. Darryl gave me an apologetic look and ran out after him. The silence that followed was uncomfortably long until Taylor broke it. Drumming his fingers on the chair, he looked distant and pensive.
“I think... I have to agree with Adam for once. Avetta wouldn’t put us all at risk and planting that seed is a dangerous game. I’ll be in my room thinking all of this over if any of you need me,” he looked at Sandra when he said the last part. The door closed silently behind him, leaving the six of us in silence yet again. I watched the fire sizzling out, small wisps of smoke were escaping the ashes. I got up to add more wood and with a flick of my wrist, relit it.
“Let’s just say for a moment that Avetta was behind this, and the reason being what Egan had said. That means we still have an impending attack from The Veil. One that we could lose...” I busied myself poking the fire with an iron rod. Conflicting feelings raged inside me while I tried to piece everything together. “She wouldn’t gain anything from that other than false hope.”
The girls, who had remained silent, moved to my side and rested their hands on my shoulders. Rose pried the iron rod from my hands and placed it at her side. Taking one of my hands, she gently guided my face to look at her.
“We don’t know anyone’s motives anymore, Evvy. Whether it was Avetta or someone helping The Veil... we can’t trust anyone,” Rose said. Tears pricked my eyes.
“All that I’ve been told lately is not to trust. But no one ever directly says who. I can’t trust my own feelings because I don’t understand what is going on.” Sandra took my other hand in hers and spoke with a confidence only she could muster.
“We have each other and our guardians,” she nodded her head toward them. “The others will come around, right now we need to trust in each other and try to find a viable solution. Theodore has a theory, we cannot take his word as fact. So come sit and let’s talk through it all.” I let them guide me back to a sofa. Feeling deflated, I nodded and listened to the guardians throw out their own presumptions.
For hours we sat there deliberating to no avail when my stomach grumbled. We had missed lunch, but it was nearing dinner time now.
“Can we continue tomorrow? I think we should go eat and sleep on it,” I announced to the group. The endless conversation had me feeling burned out. They all mumbled their agreement and one by one we shuffled out of the common room.
Once we reached the dining room, I reached out to Pearce and hung back. When the others were out of earshot, I asked him what he believed was going on.
“I think we are in the middle of something a lot bigger than any of us. A part of me agrees with Egan. It makes sense that Avetta would instrument an attack. But I also think, like you said, that we should sleep on it. Come back to it with a fresh pair of eyes tomorrow.” He stroked my face and pushed my hair back. “You need to stop weighing yourself down with this little siren, it is not only your burden to carry. We will work through everything together.”
“And what about the others? Taylor, Adam and Darryl... I don’t think they are onboard with this,” I said.
“We can worry about them tomorrow as well,” he gestured for me to walk into the dining hall, ending our brief conversation.
The talk at the table was surface level, Sandra was explaining why she never wants to see another campervan again. Egan was countering her with every reason why she shouldn’t write them off. I sat in silence, watching, and listening. My heart wasn’t in it tonight, there was too much going on in my mind and I couldn’t seem to switch it off. I looked across the hall to Theodore’s table. I had forgotten to check in with Kady this afternoon, but she wasn’t sitting with them. I’d find her tomorrow at some point and apologise. Theodore was laughing and passing around plates of food to his family. He was a moral leader, strong and poised. He knew the strengths and weaknesses of his clan and never claimed different. He had hidden a lot from them though, like Avetta had, and still does with us. Theodore, I believed, had his clan’s best interests at heart. Whereas Avetta, I wasn’t so sure about anymore. She was never around, especially not when anything bad happened. She never gave any more information than she felt she needed to. When I first met her, that had been an intriguing quality, but now, it was dangerous. I wanted to trust her, but the uneasy feeling I got around her now was impalpable and something that I could no longer ignore.
“Evangeline, hello. Are you with us?” Sandra was waving her hand in front of my face.
“Sorry, just thinking,” I smiled meekly at her and returned my attention back to the table. “What’s going on?”
“We are taking a vote on a holiday destination when this is all over! I choose Italy,” she replied. God, I know they want to keep things light-hearted, but what a pointless conversation.
“Erm, I guess Bali, maybe,” I replied, trying to hide my disinterest.
“I second that,” Taylor appeared out of nowhere and snagged a chip from m
y plate.
“Hey,” I moaned.
“Payback,” he winked at me and took a seat opposite. It surprised me to see him here after he had left the common room earlier.
“How are the guys?” I asked him.
“Fine, Adam has his beliefs and Darryl... well I’m not sure what he thinks. But he will stand by Adam regardless,” he replied with a mouthful of food. Darkness began seeping its way into my mind. Chills ran down my spine and I felt a presence enter the dining hall. I turned and looked around frantically to see where my uneasy feeling was coming from this time.
“Do you guys feel that?” I asked them, still searching the room.
“Feel what? Full of food, sure do,” Sandra replied. Everyone was looking at me oddly, except Rose. She was looking around as frantic as I had been.
“Rose, you felt it?” I nudged her.
“I felt it through you. I suppose I’ve always been susceptible to the darkness in you, that’s why I could sometimes draw it from you. But this didn’t come from you, Evvy,” again she looked around. The others were paying close attention now, wondering what was going on. The strange feeling disappeared as quick as it had come on. “Strange,” Rose murmured.
“Care to share?” Sandra asked.
“Probably nothing, I felt a dark energy, kind of... at least I think that’s what it was,” I replied, scanning the room one last time. My eyes landed on Theodore’s, fleetingly I thought that I saw realization in them, but then he smiled, waved, and looked away.
“It’s gone now anyway, probably was nothing like you said Evvy,” Rose patted my hand.
“Yeah, I guess,” I mumbled back. I relaxed in my seat and listened as the conversation changed to organising a game night. As I rolled my eyes at their menial conversation, movement to the right of us caught my eye.
“Ava,” I called out, beckoning her over. She looked awful, like she hadn’t slept for days. Her hair was limp and greasy and her skin pale. “Everything ok?” I asked as she proceeded toward us. I hadn’t forgotten this morning, and I was still disturbed by her actions lately. But I had to try.
