Spearwood Academy Volume Five (2 page)

A
beep
sounds
as Jericho opens the door to my dorm. He holds Enid, my P.A., in his hand. I’m not allowed to use her until my trial is over, not that I would know how to use her for anything dubious.

He pulls me inside the room and unlinks my cuffs. They remain on my wrists, but I no longer have to hold my arms behind my back. “Go do whatever. You only have a couple hours of freedom left.” He says do
whatever
, but I can’t leave my dorm.

Roseman had to pull some
father
strings just to get me under house arrest. If it weren’t for him, I’d be in the dungeons below the school. As much as I hate him and the guard I’ve been stuck with, I’m glad I’m not in a dungeon. Still, I’d like to know what they want from me. If Aibek wants me dead, why are they dragging this out?

I’m sure Jericho will just go and read or watch something with the help of his P.A. I head for my room, closing and locking the door behind me. Sir Pointed Face can do whatever he wants to do.

I fall on the bed and curl up.

A sob erupts from me. It’s not just Maverick; it’s Edgar as well. I never had a chance to mourn. I’ve lost two people in such a short period. Why does this keep happening?

Edgar wouldn’t want me to waste my time crying over him, and Maverick . . . Maverick wouldn’t want me in pain.

Maverick grins. He walks up to me and places his hands on my hips. I look up into his ocean-blue eyes. Leaning over, he kisses me. Why can’t every second of the day be like this one? I wrap my arms around his neck and deepen the kiss. He lifts me up, breaking the kiss as he places me on the horse. I turn my body and lift my leg over the saddle.

“We need to get going, so we can talk,” he says. “I could kiss you all day long and never tire of it, just so you knowt.”

“I feel the same way.”

I grab the end of my white comforter and pull it over me as if it will shield me from the memories of our last day together. Like a broken record, they just keep playing.

“I’m so glad I have you through all of this. I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t.”

He smiles and leans in for a kiss. I return it instantly and straddle his lap. His hands meet my sides as he brushes my shirt up. Heat fills my body at the touch of his fingers.

I run the tip of my tongue over his lower lip and pull it with my teeth. He opens up for me, and we fight for dominance. He growls, his grip on my waist tightening.

My chest aches. Why does it hurt so much?

“Clementine.”

My crying stills. That wasn’t Jericho’s voice, and he would’ve called me
Roseman
. I peel back my comforter enough to peer around the room. No boys are allowed in here; the alarm would go off.

To the left of the fireplace, a small door swings out of the wall, revealing a crouched Bullock behind it. I gasp.

My brow furrow as I sit up, but I don’t speak. I don’t want the Watchers or Jericho to know he’s here.

I study the door leading into the living room. It doesn’t budge. Jericho must be watching something with headphones in. 

I slip out of bed and kneel before Bullock. “What are you doing here?” Am I with him too? His thick, square-rimmed glasses sit back on his nose. I fixed his sight. They must’ve reverted what I did. There’s even a scar in the shape of a three that stands out by the right corner of his mouth. This must be what Dante was talking about when he said I scarred Bullock’s face.

“Come here, Clementine. This passage and all the passages in the school block out The Watchers” He backs up to give me room. “The alarm won’t be effected if you move over the threshold.”

How does he know that there’s a ‘no boys’ alarm on my room? Did Triton tell him before he betrayed all of us? I crawl deeper into the passage.

“First, do you know how I got this?” he points to the scar.

I sigh. I really don’t know. I wouldn’t even know where to begin to try to fake the story. Frankly, I’m too tired to care. I give a shake of my head. “I don’t know.”

He gives a sigh now. “Thank you. I wasn’t sure if they had been able to get to you again.”

“You’re not brainwashed? But you’re wearing your glasses again.”

He pulls them off and sticks his finger through one of the holes where the glass should be. “I woke up with them on, after we were captured, but I couldn’t see out of them. I popped the glass out. I don’t think they’ve noticed the change.”

“Why aren’t you brainwashed?” Just like Maverick. Why weren’t they changed when the others were?

He shakes his head again. “I don’t know.”

“Maverick wasn’t affected either. That’s . . . that’s why we were at the Cabin together.” The grip on my emotions slides again. 

“What happened?”

My legs go weak; I sit down. “I don’t know. One second we’re watching the sunrise and drinking cocoa, then he’s gone. An arrow laced with nightshade pierced him. He wouldn’t let me heal him, because he knew it would kill me.” A sob bursts from me before I can stop it. “It’s all my fault. We shouldn’t have gone to the Cabin to talk.” I hide my face.

“Avalon, look at me.”

He used my name. I drop my hands and look to him. “None of this is your fault. None of it. Do you understand me?” I shake my head.

“I loved him more than anyone.”

He sighs. “I know nothing I say will make it better. Nevertheless, you have to stay strong. I didn’t know Hansen that well, but I think he would want you to keep pushing, survive tomorrow.”

“Aibek wants me dead, so why don’t I just get it over with?”

“Please, don’t think like that. This world still needs you.”

I scoff and turn my face away from him. He could never understand what’s going through my head right now. 

He guides my chin back to him. Why does he, of all the people, have to see me cry? We aren’t friends.

“I mean it, Avalon. You’re needed in the world. You’re meant for great things. I just know it. This may break at your spirit, but don’t let it shatter it entirely.”

I swallow hard as hot tears flow. Fuck it all.

He uses the pad of his thumb to brush each one away as they fall. “Are you willing to try?”

The lump in my throat hurts. I nod. I’m not so sure if I mean it. I don’t think I would regret dying tomorrow.

He takes something out of his pocket and lifts my hand before slipping a tiny ring onto my pinkie. I frown and wipe the rest of my tears away, so I can get a better look at it, just a thin, silver band. Now, I have another ring I don’t want.

“This is a magical communication device. I have the twin to it. It will allow us to speak through thought when we want to.”

“So you’ll be able to hear all my thoughts?” I don’t want him in my head.

He shakes his head. “No you have to be thinking about me with the intent of talking to me for it to work. No one will be able to hear us. Not even the Watchers. I want to help you tomorrow. It’ll give us a safe way to talk when the Cabin isn’t an option.”

My stomach clenches. “I don’t think I’ll ever go there again.”

“What if you don’t have a choice? It may be the only sanctuary we have from the coming war.”

“The war between Aibek and the world?”

He shakes his head. “No. He’s just a new piece in this game of chess. A war is starting between the Families and the Slayers—”

A memory nearly knocks me over with its force.

Edgar stands in front of a tapestry. It shows a dragon, werecat, and humanoid lizard fighting Arthurian styled knights. He points to them and looks to the three of us. “Do any of yau know who these men are?”

Paden raises his hand, and Edgar nods to him. “They’re Slayers. Dad used to tell scary stories about them during our backyard camping trips. If we were bad, a Slayer would come and cut open our chests to take our hearts while in dragon form.”

“And why would they take yaur heart?”

I raised my hand. “Because dragon hearts will give a Norm immortality if they replace their heart with it.”

“Yes. When they first started, Slayers were the hunters who kept the supernatural world at bay. Keeping most Norms in the dark and, thus, creating myths of creatures. Then, our kind formed the Families and started hiding from the Norms. There was no need for the Slayers, so they tried to steal and become more like us through different methods. One of those Slayers encountered Romulus, and that’s how werewolves came about. They became nothing more than treasure seekers.”

“But we don’t have to fear them anymore, right, Ed?” Maverick asked. He leaned forward, hanging on Edgar’s every word.”

“Not anymore. In 1901, the Families and the Slayers reached a peace treaty. They haven’t hunted us since then. Sometimes there will be a rouge who wants to recreate the epic glory days of their ancestors, but they’re usually stomped out before they can do any real damage.”

The memory ends before I can get any more information out of it. I slump against the wall.

“Are you okay?” Bullock asks, touching my shoulder. I pull away from him.

“Yeah. You mentioning the Slayers triggered an old school lesson. I thought there was a peace treaty in place?”

“There was, but the Ancient who punishes me also likes to have their Speaker slip information to Roseman and Perlow when they think I’m too far gone to comprehend it. There’s a rouge rebuilding the Slayers to what they used to be, and there aren’t enough Elders left to stop them. The Families are planning a war, and there’s a rift between the Ancients of all kinds on whether or not it should be stopped. The Ancient I heard wants bloodshed to happen. When it comes to a war of worlds, the Ancients do have some say in it. So there’s a triad war happening right now, and Aibek just made it bigger.”

I press a hand to my forehead. “I can’t deal with all this right now. I just want to crawl into a hole and let them all kill each other.”

He grabs my shoulder again. “You’re going to have to deal with it. You said an arrow shot Hansen. Only Slayers use arrows.”

Dear Sun god, he’s right. How didn’t I put the two together before? One of them killed him. “That means they’re in the mountain somewhere. Why are they blaming me for his death, when they know who did it?”

“I don’t think they want the school knowing about the threat yet, and someone had to been pinned for a Royal’s murder. You were last seen with him, so you were the easiest target to choose.”

A knock on the door echoes throughout the room. I glance at Bullock. Will he stay in here, or will he go?

“Go. Just think of needing to talk to me if you need me.”

I have more questions for him. How did he know about this passage?

Another knock sounds. I wipe away stray tears and swallow hard. “Okay.” I back out of the passage and close the little door. It almost melds with the sky blue paint, but I can just make out the tiny seam. Hopefully, I’ll be able to find it again if I need it. I have no idea where it leads to; it could be one of the boys’ dorms for all I know.

I stand, go to the door, and open it. Kearn stands in his butler uniform with a tray in his hands. “I brought you an early dinner, Miss Roseman.”

“I’m not very hungry, and I don’t want to eat out there. Thank you anyway.”

“You can eat in your bedroom, Miss Roseman. There’s no rule saying you can’t.”

I sigh. “Okay.” I hold my hands out to take the tray. I know he’s just trying to look out for me.

“I can carry it for you, Miss Roseman.”

He crosses the threshold before I can warn him and walks over to one of the white nightstands. I look around, waiting for the alarm to blare and signal to everyone that there’s a boy in my room.

“The alarm doesn’t sound for servants, Miss—”

I hold a hand up. “You don’t have to address me every time. I’d rather you not.”

He folds his white-gloved hands in front of himself. “I understand.”

I take a seat on the edge of my bed. The normal flutter I used to feel when he came around has disappeared completely. I guess that part of me has gone with it.

“I’m sorry all of this is happening to you.”