Authors: Abigail Boyd
I blink rapidly, taking in her words. “You’re saying I don’t have a choice but to come with you?”
She checks a pocket watch on a chain from her breast pocket. “As I said, the clock is ticking. If you wish, I can explain more on the way there. You can ask me any question you like. Don’t worry, the car is quite comfortable.”
I raise my eyebrows. “And if I don’t go with you?”
She smirks at me, but it doesn’t touch her eyes—a rich blue shade, closer to violet. She slips her one glove back on. “You’re miles from a home that isn’t yours and you just walked in on your lover inside another woman. You’re failing your classes and your job. You have no family. You think I’m a madwoman, but I’m the only friend that you have left.”
Her words sting, even though they’re true. “How do you know so much about me?”
“It only takes a moment to read your mind.”
I stand still, debating my options. What will it hurt? I can’t go back home. I’m in a desperate situation, and an opportunity may have just opened up. She’s right—I have no one else left to turn to. I nod and she walks me back to the car.
“One more thing,” she says. “I want you to give me a brief demonstration of what you did back there.”
“My…what, powers?”
“Yes. It usually starts with an emotional trigger.”
I bite my lower lip. “You already know that part. A wind came out my hands, like I had holes in my palms all of a sudden and could blow it out.”
“I want you to focus on me and then show me exactly what you did.” She steps beside me on the sidewalk and waits.
I brace my feet and hold my hands out, searching inside for the fiery, prickling magic. It takes a moment, but then I feel it churning in my stomach. A rush of hot power leaps out of my core and spirals down my arms. Forceful air shoots out of my flattened palms and shakes a road sign and trees nearby. The brim of Paige’s hat spins around. My mouth drops open in amazement at how natural it feels. I clench my tingling fingers together.
“Very good.” She drops her hand on my shoulder. “And you’ll only get better with practice and instruction. Time for us to depart.”
I step in and recline in the luxurious, heated back seat. It smells of leather inside. There’s a minibar and quiet jazz filters out of the stereo speakers. Paige slips into the driver’s seat, adjusts her crooked cap, and drives us out of the seedy area and onto tree-lined back roads. True to her word, she answers all of the questions I can think of.
“What about my things? And Braden?”
“We’ll send for your things, if you desire. As for your boyfriend, we’ll take care of him and his memory.”
Her words have an ominous undertone, but considering I still have the image of Braden in Kate’s bed burned into my memory, I don’t particularly mind. I stare out of the window as dark trees roll past.
“Where is this place, Juniper Hall?”
“In a remote location,” she replies vaguely, turning the wheel to join a twisting road leading toward the desert.
“Is it far away?”
“Just a few states,” she says casually.
“
States
?” I balk. “How did you get here so fast?” Her striking eyes catch mine in the rear view mirror. “Let me guess, magic, right?”
She chuckles and continues to drive. “Unfortunately, we have to go the Normy way back, since you’re not experienced with teleportation. At least it’s the scenic route.”
I finally can’t think of anything else to ask, so I lean back in my seat and shut my eyes. Drowsiness washes over me with the rocking motion of the car. This night has seemed surreal. Maybe it’s all just a dream.
CHAPTER 3
When I open my eyes, it’s snowing and I have no idea where we are. I peer out of the window as we roll through a gated fence. I see the tops of trees and hills in the distance. We must be on a low mountaintop. The sun is a vague gray light illuminating the gray clouds as snowflakes dance down.
“You’re coming around, good. We’ve arrived,” Paige informs me.
An intimidating, Gothic mansion is up ahead, with pointed gables and towers. The stone structure is framed with mist and blanketed with ivy. Paige parks the Rolls Royce in a covered parking structure and leads me up the walk to the imposing house. A circle of evergreens surrounds the property.
“I was expecting a school, not a castle,” I admit, staring up in amazement.
We enter a great hall with a wide, sweeping staircase, at the top of which hangs an intricate oil painting of Paige herself. A barn owl is perched on her shoulder. A sparkling crystal chandelier hangs above us, a complement to the other opulent decor. A rich, red carpet rolls down the stairs and over the black and white checkered floor.
“Where are we again?” I ask, glancing around and taking everything in.
“I can’t give you our exact location of course, as Normal folk have a particular prejudice against our kind, and we can’t let it out. But we’re in the Cascades. Speaking of…” She glances at me and holds out her hand. “Cell phone, please.”
I dig my hand into my back pocket, thinking about Braden’s texts, and press it into her palm. She stows it in her hip pocket. “There’s no reception up here, but we don’t allow any phones or electronics. There is an intercom system in each room. We have quite a structure in place so Normies—regular humans—don’t know about us. We can’t allow any witches to go renegade in this day and age when everyone can take a picture with their phone and have it blasted all over the internet. Nothing electric works up here anyway—the magic interferes with the currents.”
She shows me around the lower level, to a hallway of doors to classrooms. I’m not usually easily intimidated—not before yesterday, at least—but Paige exudes a powerful authority and aloofness as she leads me around. The few Professors that we see nod their heads respectfully as we pass. I was expecting the usual lecture halls and rows of seats, but instead I see guys and girls in uniform, performing spells in wide, airy rooms. A girl flicks her wrist and a huge arc of blue light whips out and swirls through the air, hitting a target on the other side of the room.
“Classes are in session today, as you can see, but you’ll meet the others tonight at dinner.”
“No Winter break?” I ask as we pass by another room with odd sounds coming out.
“Our seasonal breaks are a month long, and there are four every year. December was our Winter break, so today we resumed lessons.”
I grimace. “Do I have to wear a uniform?”
“Everyone does, so I suppose that includes you, doesn’t it?” she says wryly.
A group of men is standing around in different uniforms in the hall, navy blazers over crisp khakis, perfect knotted, striped ties. Gold insignias mark the pockets. They look to be in their late twenties and give off an authoritative air as we step near to them. All of them are eye candy, but especially the one on the right. He’s tall and striking, with midnight black hair slicked back from his aristocratic face. His expression is cool and impassive as our eyes meet. Even though he looks like he’s a few years younger than the others, he exudes a powerful confidence.
“This is our new student, Iris. I’m showing her around,” Paige explains as I stand beside her. The younger one locks eyes with me again, and his are so dark that they look black. The intensity of his stare makes me blush and I glance back at Paige.
“These gentlemen are the wardens,” she says to me. “They’re here to help you with guidance whenever you need it. You will be in level two, with Luke as your warden.”
She gestures toward the gorgeous one, and when I look up, his black eyes narrow suspiciously. “She’s in level two? Didn’t she just have her Awakening?” he asks crisply. He has a deep, pleasant voice, but his words stir my nerves.
“Yes, but her magic was quite strong. She’s just a little late in the game, that’s all. She’s already taken off running.”
His eyes sweep from my head down to my toes, pausing for a brief second at my chest. So he’s one of
those
guys.
“You really think she’ll be able to keep up with the others?” he asks.
“I’m never wrong about these things, Luke. You know that,” Paige insists.
This doesn’t seem to convince him, and I feel a flicker of resentment. Paige leads me away down the hall and I glance once back over my shoulder, but Luke has resumed speaking with the other wardens. I wonder if I’ll be encountering a lot of resistance as a newbie.
In the great hall, Paige leads me up the wide staircase and down several corridors to a private hallway with dark blue wallpaper and cloaks hanging on a coat tree. At the end, she opens the final door with a brass key. It’s dark inside, but while I’m fumbling for a light switch, she waves her hand and the overhead light comes on. She goes to an ornate marble fireplace across the way, and when she twitches her fingers, flames flare out behind the grate. She pokes it with a fireplace poker and turns back to me.
“I’m going to have to get used to that,” I mutter.
“You’ll have this room to yourself for the duration of your time here at Juniper,” she explains, pulling back the curtains on a wide window overlooking frosted gardens down below. “You’ll have some catching up to do, but I have every confidence you’ll be fine. The room is well-appointed, but should you need anything, give the intercom a buzz.”
I glance around the luxurious room, like nothing I’ve ever stayed in before. There is a four-poster canopy bed with a plush blue spread and matching pillows, an over-sized mahogany armoire, and vases filled with fresh-cut roses. Braden’s sad bed from Walmart with the clearance spread is no comparison.
I still think I might be dreaming, but I don’t want to wake up.
She opens the armoire and takes out a uniform like the ones I saw the girls wearing in the classrooms—a red blazer with a gold insignia over a pleated skirt. Several others hang inside on a rack, along with cardigans and a cloak.
“This should fit,” Paige says, holding the uniform up to me. I manage a weak smile, although I hate the idea of a uniform. Especially the pleated skirt. “If not, we can always take it in.” She lays it across the bed.
“Are there any rules that I should know about?”
“A few. You are not allowed to leave the mountain top at any time, for any reason. Any medical issues can be addressed by our on-site doctor. No one is allowed out into the corridor after bedtime at 9 o’clock. There is plenty of room to roam, however, during the daylight hours.”
She goes to the door and smiles at me, and I’m struck again by her timeless beauty and unusual violet eyes. “Your class schedule is on the table and there are maps in every hall. Dinner is sharply at seven, please come dressed in uniform. Any questions?”
I sag onto the soft bedspread, feeling the mattress sink in. “I have nothing
but
questions.”
She smiles sympathetically and nods. “You’ve had a long journey and a dramatic exit. You’ll adjust soon enough. Welcome home, my dear.” She pulls the door shut, leaving me to contemplate the impossibility of what’s just happened.
The past six months has been a downward spiral of bad choices and bad luck. Hopefully coming here broke the cycle.
CHAPTER 4
I spend the afternoon up in my room, fighting away nerves. Paige wasn’t exaggerating when she said the room was well-appointed. The attached bathroom is full of toiletries, including makeup samples and perfume, and the armoire is stuffed with pajamas and undergarments. Beneath the window is a collection of antique books lined on shelves.
I finally attempt to try my new skill out again. I wonder what I’m capable of, what kinds of powers I might really have. I stand in front of the fireplace and catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror on the mantle—my unruly, curly hair, and my light eyes, dancing with excitement. I know I’ll lose my Arizona tan up here, but I’m okay with the trade off.
I hold my hands out, shut my eyes, and search for the magic. I don’t feel anything at first, but then something tugs at my chest. My eyes flutter open in anticipation and I take a few deep breaths to calm myself down. This is so effing cool.
I hold my hands out again, trying to focus the power. I feel my hair fluttering a little around me. The hot, powerful sensation accelerates up into my chest again and I release it through my hands. The gust of wind I create hits the fireplace and puts the flames out instantly. I turn to the uniform on my bed, and walk my fingers on invisible steps. The uniform floats up into the air and dances back and forth. I drop it back on the bed and then try to imagine a chocolate cake, lathered in whipped frosting. I can’t get the cake to materialize, but I taste rich chocolate.
I feel my lips curl into a smile. I could get used to this.
________________________
When I go down to dinner, I feel like the newest animal in a circus attraction. The dining hall is as lavishly decorated as the rest of the house, with a long oak table surrounded by chairs seating level two students. Two chandeliers, miniatures of the one in the great hall, sparkle above. As I’m taking it all in, the others are staring at me.
Paige is at the head of the table, dressed regally in a red draped gown with a plunging neckline. Luke is on her right side, and the two of them engage in conversation as I seat myself. While they’re occupied, I take the moment to shamelessly objectify him—he’s sexy as hell, especially for someone so buttoned up and proper.