Page 21 of Class Studies
My tablet was only halfway out of my bag, and I hurriedly tugged it into my arms.
“Lovely.” Abe leaned across my workstation with a sugar-sweet smile on her face. “I see you were unharmed in the terrible ordeal with the MA. I was worried my best student might need some time to balance her scales, but I’m glad to see you steady on your feet.”
I squirmed and wished I wore Beryl’s hoodie, but I was too afraid someone would burn it or stain it to take it out of my tower.
Abe gave me one more terrifying smile before sauntering past my workstation to climb the stairs to her blackboard. Her chalk squeaked as she wrote across the dark surface.
“Get to work,” she said. “I want your models to change water’s density without changing its temperature or speed of movement done tomorrow. I have a new project for us, one all of you will love.”
I swallowed, looking at the two words on the chalkboard: ‘Power Conversion.’
My socket cooled on my hip. Was it Murphy’s Law? Or did she somehow know about my conversation with Professor Garnet?
Abe returned to her desk and began eating what looked like an entire tray of enchiladas. She was here on a life sentence, using every bit of magic she possessed to power students’ spells instead of her own. But in her office, she’d said something about finding a balance.
She was sure I could charge a potion.
I forced my gaze away from her and focused on completing our project. Well, my project now. Ram was a vegetable in the medical wing.
As much as I knew what I’d done to Ram was terrible, I still didn’t feel it. I hadn’t admitted that to anyone.
Operation DUMP moved up on my priority list. I needed something neutral to dump my magic into, so I couldn’t use it for the wrong reasons.
* * *
Tanwyn and I exited the main building. I paused to breathe in the cool fresh air as it kissed my face.
“You have no idea how lovely you are, do you?” Tanwyn asked.
I turned away from the sun and focused on the mage who stood a few feet from me, a small smile playing on his lips.
“Ah, what?” I asked.
“You paused to smell the air and feel it on your skin.” Tanwyn stepped to my side. “I’ve never seen someone who can exist in the moment as you do.”
He offered me his arm. After a heartbeat of hesitation, I took it, and we walked toward the Sphérique for Metaphysics.
“The first day we met, I projected my ideal pet dog into your mind, and you touched it.” Tanwyn squeezed my arm to his side. “I felt your fingers run through its fur. I didn’t even know that was possible.”
I shrugged, not knowing I did something unique.
His voice deepened, sending a shiver down my back. “Every tattoo on my body is a contract. I live part of my life always in the future—thinking about what I’ve given up to bind myself to my allies. How long will they stay with me? What will I do if they leave, or worse, take a part of me with them?”
He dropped my arm to retrace the same tattoo.
I shivered. Nurse Norah’s reference to demons drifted through my mind, and the shiver going down my back curled into fear.
Before I could press, the crunch of shoes sprinting across the dirt ground distracted me. Two large dark arms wrapped around my upper body and picked me up. Beryl’s musky, black pepper scent surrounded me. I squeaked as the world spun, my legs flailing like a rag doll.
After an extra turn, Beryl lightly placed me back on the ground without releasing me from his arms. I looked up with a grin, and his lips captured mine in a hot, fast kiss.
“Are the cameras down?” I asked, confused.
The last time I saw him, he said he was keeping his distance, and his previous text message left me questioning everything.
“Nope,” Beryl said. “No idea what you’re talking about.”
Two MA agents, both breathing hard, slid to a stop on either side of us.