Crossroads (Crossroads Academy #1) (26 page)

“Open your eyes, Katia. The answers you seek
are right in front of you. Stop fighting it and accept that there
are things in this world you can’t touch and feel and explain with
scientific logic. It doesn’t make them any less real.”

**********

I’m sitting in Sociology feeling better than
I’ve felt in months. Despite the disturbing conversation with Anya
last night, I slept like a baby. No nightmares, no tossing, no
turning. I actually feel refreshed. Spring is in the air, and I
welcome the changing of the season. The sun is shining, and the
grounds are coming to life outside. Soon the flowers will push up
through the ground, and the forest will be filled with the sounds
of wildlife.

Professor Lynch’s lecture on coven mentality
is interrupted by the message alert on his computer. “Hold that
thought,” he instructs the class.

The room erupts in chatter, most of the
students thankful for a quick break while Lynch reads his messages.
I sneak a quick peek in Nik’s direction and catch him staring at
me. We’ve barely spoken since the night in the training center when
he kissed me. My heart rate speeds up just thinking about it. He
looks good. He’s grown his hair a little longer, and he’s wearing a
fitted shirt that shows off his muscular torso. I study the lean
muscles of his back and wonder if things will ever go back to
normal. I’d like to resume training, but I’m not sure what to say.
I’ve rebuked all of his attempts to apologize.

“All right class. Listen up!” Lynch claps his
hands together and calls us back to attention abruptly. I tear my
eyes away from Nik. I’m the first to look away, and as Lynch speaks
I can still feel Nik’s eyes on me. I try to pretend I’m focused
solely on the professor. “Headmaster Pratt has called a mandatory
assembly in the dining hall. Attendance is required for all
students, faculty, and staff. The assembly starts in ten minutes.
We’ll break for today but don’t forget about tonight’s assignment.
I expect those papers on my desk first thing in the morning.
Dismissed!”

We funnel out of the classroom and
collectively head for the dining hall. Nik falls in step next to
me, Blaine at his side. “This is highly unusual,” he comments to no
one in particular. Blaine and I both stare straight ahead, neither
of us sure who he’s talking to, neither of us willing to be sucked
into a conversation together. “In all the years I’ve been here,
Pratt’s never done anything like this. Cancelling class for an
assembly? It must be something big.” He’s excited. A lot of the
students are. The halls around us are filled with speculation.
These are the people who know only good, I think. The ones like me,
the ones who’ve known pain, know enough to be worried about such an
unusual event.

“It won’t be good,” I murmur, remembering
Anya’s phone call from the night before. They both turn to stare at
me with questioning expressions. I can’t tell if they’re surprised
that I responded or if it’s my foreboding warning that warrants the
disbelieving looks.

We part ways at the entrance to the dining
hall. Nik and Blaine join Jade and Lexie at a table in the back.
Apparently the girls have been saving them seats. I sit alone two
tables over. Eventually Shaye and some others join me. Everyone’s
curious about the sudden assembly. No one knows what to make of it.
From what I hear, no one can recall anything like this happening in
the past at Crossroads.

“This isn’t going to be good,” Shaye whispers
to me, echoing my words from just moments ago. I nod in agreement.
At least things between Shaye and me seem to be okay, despite the
distance I’ve been putting between us.

Headmaster Pratt and the other members of
faculty file in and line up at the front of the hall presenting a
united front. This definitely can’t be good. As the remainder of
the staff joins us, filling in empty seats and taking up posts on
the perimeter of the room, Pratt calls for silence. Conversation
quickly dies, and he’s got our undivided attention. Pratt looks
delighted to have an audience that is practically salivating with
anticipation. I’m pretty sure it’s a first for him.

“Good morning.” He pauses, waiting for his
audience to return the greeting. We give him the mandatory reply
that is nothing short of pathetic, and he continues. “I apologize
for interrupting your classes today, but we’ve had some disturbing
news that I believe needs to be shared immediately.” He gets
straight to the heart of the matter.

“A child has gone missing in Rutland. The boy
never returned home from school yesterday, and the authorities
spent all night combing the city looking for him and knocking on
doors. As of today, there is no sign of the child.”

This is terrible news. My heart goes out to
the family. I can’t imagine what they must be going through. Pratt
delivers the news as though he’s discussing the weather, his voice
monotone and businesslike. It’s painfully obvious that the missing
boy is of little concern to him. He’s only worried about the impact
it might have on the school. I remind myself that the school, and
the safety of the students’ in it, has to be his first priority,
but I’m still disgusted by him. He should show some compassion.

“There were no witnesses, but foul play is
suspected. Volunteers will be searching the forests closer to town
today. Their resources will be limited, so it’s unlikely they will
come out as far as the school without reason, but it’s best for us
to be prepared just in case.”

A quiet murmur spreads through the room.
People wonder what Pratt means by foul play. Is he suggesting that
one of us might have done this? Speculation runs rampant as to what
could have happened to the child. Kids go missing every day all
over the world. There is no shortage of disturbing
possibilities.

“We have no reason to think anyone here has
broken the rules,” Pratt continues, raising his voice to be heard
over the din of the room. “But, it’s important that we act with
precaution. Only those conducting official school business will be
permitted off campus until this matter is resolved. Those leaving
the campus should take special care to make sure the foamea is
sated and should limit off-campus activities to the absolutely
necessary.”

A cruel smile spreads over Pratt’s face as
his audience groans. He’s enjoying the idea of holding us hostage
on campus, even though he has just said there’s no evidence to
suggest that the missing boy is linked to anyone at Crossroads. I
don’t think it’s our safety he’s worried about right now. He’s just
enjoying the power trip.

Pratt dismisses us. Shaye and I follow the
flood of students into the main hall. The gossip is more animated
than usual, and everyone’s got a theory about what’s happening in
Rutland. I ignore most of the discussion until I hear my own
name.

“Come on, if anyone’s likely to stray, it
would totally be Katia!” Jade insists loudly. She wants to be
overheard. By me and everyone else in the hall. She’s making no
attempt to be discreet. In fact, she’s waving her hands
emphatically, drawing even more attention to herself.

“I know, right?” Lexie agrees. “She’s so
weird. Especially for a descendent of an Elder. What a disgrace!”
she whispers. At least Lexie has the sense to keep her voice down.
She probably remembers the smack down I laid on Jade at Halloween
and doesn’t want to be the recipient of an encore performance.

“With that temper? Who knows what she’s
capable of?” Jade muses, smoothing her skirt. As usual they’re both
dressed to the nines. It would be a shame to ruin such expensive
clothes. Shaye looks at me questioningly. She, too, is wondering if
I’m going to react to their taunting. I bite my lip and ignore
them. I can’t afford to get into any more trouble right now.

“Shut up, Jade.” It’s Nik. Once again, he’s
come to my defense. I’m secretly pleased, but I wish he’d stay out
of it. His interference just makes things worse in the end. Jade
and the others will see it as another betrayal of their
friendship.

“Why do you always defend her?” Jade asks
angrily, stopping suddenly which creates a traffic jam in the busy
hallway.

“Both of you relax,” Blaine cuts in lazily,
shifting his bag from one shoulder to the other. “I don’t know what
everyone’s getting so worked up about anyway. It’s not the end of
the world. It’s just one human.”

“Just? One? Human? We’re talking about a
child!” Shaye screams as she advances on Blaine. She shoves him in
the chest catching us all off guard. I’ve never seen Shaye react
like this to anything. She’s usually so reserved and isn’t exactly
prone to violent outbursts. Besides, it’s probably not the smartest
move since Blaine wouldn’t be above hitting a girl in anger. One
look at her face though and I doubt she’s thinking rationally. I
step in front of Shaye, prepared to protect her if Blaine makes the
mistake of striking back.

Anger flares in Blaine’s eyes, and he flashes
his teeth at Shaye. Tension emanates from his body infecting the
entire population of the crowded hall. “Easy,” I tell him in the
most soothing voice I can manage. I hold my hands up in a peaceful
gesture, knowing it’s unlikely that he’ll walk away. I feel like
I’ve been warped into in an alternate universe. In what world am I
the levelheaded voice of reason? I’m very aware of all the eyes
watching us. No one passes by. They wouldn’t even if they could.
Who’d want to miss this?

Blaine hisses in reply. Shaye glares at him
but remains quiet. “Come on. Let’s go.” Nik grabs Blaine’s arm in
an attempt to lead him away. It almost works.

“Yeah, Blaine. Easy or Katia will drain you
next! The boy was probably just a snack.”

This last quip is my breaking point. Unable
to tame the anger roiling in my chest, I viciously grab Jade by the
arm and jerk her close so that we stand nose to nose. “If it’s
blood I want, I’ll have it from you Jade,” I warn her darkly. Her
face goes slack conveying a mixture of shock and fear. Apparently
the situation’s not so funny anymore.

“What the hell is going on here?”

At the sound of Anya’s voice, I release
Jade’s arm.

“All of you back to class!” Anya orders. She
turns to glare at the students who’ve gathered to watch. “All of
you,” she repeats ominously, placing her hand on my shoulder to
indicate that I’ll be the exception. This day just keeps getting
better. The others scatter, and I’m left alone to face Anya.

“My office. Now.”

I follow her back to the office. It’s one of
the longest walks of my life. She’s radiating anger, and I’m not
sure what to expect when we get there.

“What were you thinking?” she explodes once
the door is shut, giving the illusion of privacy.

I don’t bother to tell her I was defending
Shaye. It won’t make a difference. We’re all old enough to know
better. Fighting is against the rules. End of story. Besides,
there’s nothing I can say that will validate my actions, so I bite
back the childish urge to explain and let Anya draw her own
conclusions.

“Katia, you know the rules about fighting!
Now is not the time to be stirring up trouble.” She throws her arms
up in frustration. “You put yourself in danger when you act out
like this. You don’t need Pratt’s watchful eye on you now,
especially with everything going on in Rutland.” She moves to sit
behind the desk. I say nothing and allow her a moment to collect
her thoughts. When she speaks again, it becomes apparent her anger
is fading. “What started the fight?”

“It’s not important.”

She looks at me sympathetically. Things
around here are only going to get harder, and she knows it.
Whatever’s going on in Rutland isn’t going to end well.

“Go to your room and stay there,” she orders
sternly. “You’re not to leave your dorm for the remainder of the
day.”

The
next few days drag. I tell myself that the situation in Rutland has
nothing to do with me and make a point of avoiding all news or
discussion of it. It’s not easy. The missing boy is all anyone
wants to talk about. I spend my free time in the gym working with
the crossbow and beating the stuffing out of a practice dummy. I’ve
got a lot of lost time to make up for. I’ve even been sleeping
well, and I’m starting to think that maybe I’ve put the nightmares
behind me. I feel more like my old self. Color is returning to my
cheeks, and I see a healthy vibrant glow when I look in the mirror.
I can’t figure it out, but I’m not complaining.

When we return to Lynch’s class, he’s bent on
discussing the latest news from Rutland. He probably thinks it’s
his duty since it’s a Sociology class. I resign myself to the fact
that I can’t bury my head in the sand forever.

“Class, there have been some new developments
in Rutland. In light of this breaking news, I’m going to skip my
planned lecture on the evolution of coven mentality. It’s
unorthodox, but I’d rather we watch the news together so that we
can discuss it as a group. I’m sure many of you will have
questions.”

Lynch taps into an online broadcast and
projects the newscast on a screen at the front of the room. We’re
greeted by the somber face of the WPBX news anchor.

“Good morning. I’m Addison Parker, and you’re
watching WPBX News at Eleven. We have breaking news from Rutland
this morning, where the town has been searching for little Damian
Thomas for nearly a week.” A photo of the missing child is posted
on the screen opposite the newscaster. I can hardly believe my
eyes. It can’t be! It’s the boy from the corner. The one with the
Spiderman scarf and the rosy cheeks; the one from my dream. That’s
it. Maybe this is another nightmare.

I close my eyes and bite the inside of my lip
hard enough to draw blood. The familiar tastes of salt and copper
fill my mouth and I hope desperately that I will wake up in my bed.
I’ll gladly face the return of the nightmares if it means that
Damian is safely at home with his family. I open my eyes
tentatively. I’m still sitting in Lynch’s class. Saddened, I accept
that this is really happening. I force myself to look at the screen
again, to focus on Addison Parker, to face reality.