“He doesn’t want someone else. He specifically asked to be teamed up with you. Dean Carter said he’d make it happen. It’s only until the spring. Then he’s back in the UK.”
“Let me guess. He’s here through the Ides of March.” I had to share my birthday with the prediction that our world as we knew it would be no more. I turned twenty-one, and instead of an epic night followed by a two-day hangover, I celebrated by taking out the grand poohbah of dark elementals. Talk about overshadowing.
I mopped with more vigor. I needed to burn at least another five thousand calories and drop ten pounds before returning to Clearwater in two days. Between all the takeout and my love for any carb big or small, my pants cried a little whenever I put them on.
Professor Layden finished wiping down the last of the equipment and replaced the supplies in the cabinet. “It’s a key day in our world. Having a powerful quad partner up with you isn’t such a bad idea. Alec isn’t the only dark elemental out there.”
I dipped the mop in the bucket and squeezed the water out before dropping it back to the mat. “How would that look, the quint prophecy, the savior of this world, assigned a partner. Even if I wanted to team up with this guy—and, for the record, I’m not saying yes. Just so we’re clear—you saw my class schedule. I’m in a new primary, apparently a new relief class, and TA’ing for you in 3C on top of Ancient Divination and Elemental History. No way can I take on something like this. Not as a charge, not as a handler. Definitely not as a team player.”
“What if I could get you out of Elemental History?”
I stopped mopping and faced her. History had always been my worst subject. I wanted to shape the future, not try to change the past. “Can you get me out of Arts & Crafts too?”
“I have a feeling you’re going to like that class. Stick it out for a bit and see if you don’t change your mind.”
“Fine. Don’t make me regret this,” I grumbled and dropped the mop in the bucket. I didn’t hate the idea of having someone else help me battle the dark side. The guys were great, but I’d been so focused on protecting them while battling Alec that it’d nearly killed us all.
“Glad you came around. I didn’t want to have to pull the Council card.”
Annoyed the Council had their nose up in everyone’s business, I dropped the mop back in the bucket, splashing water all over the mats. With a groan, I rang it out and mopped up my mess. “It wasn’t really my choice anyway, was it? This S…uh S…” I sounded like I had a slow leak and trailed off. Crap. Why was I so bad at names? “Scotty Do-gooder—”
“Spencer Dalton,” she corrected.
At least I got the initials right. “Spencer Dalton,” I repeated. “This Spencer Dalton was going to be my partner whether I agreed to it or not.”
“I’m just glad it didn’t come to that. It’ll be good for you both. The star of our world here paired up with the star of the elemental world in the UK. You two are going to be famous.”
And now I totally regretted this.
2
It never ceased to amaze me how much effort the staff put into making a school pristine for the first day, all for it to smell like dry-erase marker and freshly waxed floors. No matter which school I’d stepped foot into, no matter whether it was a Nelem school or the Academy of Elements, they all smelled the same.
At least the floors were shiny.
The dorms were no different. As I dragged my bags through the halls of Ventus, wishing I would’ve invested in a rolling suitcase, I caught all the looks. Heard all the comments.
“What is she doing here?”
“She’s not in this house, is she?”
“Great, she’s like a magnet for dark elementals.”
I found my dorm and dropped my bags in front of the door before turning and addressing my new fan club. “There goes the neighborhood. They’ll let anyone in here. Am I right?” I turned the knob and used my butt to open the door, backing into the room.
“Oh, hell no.”
A painful chill ripped up my spine. I whipped around and dropped my jaw. Oh, hell no. My new roomie was one of the Barbie twins. Since her sister Julie went dark and disappeared after I beat Alec, I’d have to come up with a new name for this one. She was now a solo act.
I forced a smile at the blonde bombshell I didn’t quite hate as much as I hated Vanessa Graves, but she came in a close second. “Hiya, Jess.”
“No. No way are you my new roommate.” She jumped off the bed and marched over. I held my ground and widened my smile along with my stance. She should know by now I didn’t intimidate easily. “What do you think you’re doing here?”
“Right now? Or in general?” I walked around her and dragged my bags to the bed not already draped with so much pink it looked like Puff the Magic Dragon threw up. “Because right now I’m trying really hard to not drop a few key words that would pretty much sum up this situation.” I opened a bag and dumped the contents onto the bed. “In general, I’m thinking the Council has a pretty warped sense of humor.”
“I won’t allow it.” She crossed her arms and jutted out a hip, a gesture she’d picked up from the ice queen herself. It didn’t work with Vanessa, and it wouldn’t work with this one either.
“Oh, please. Call Daddy. Or Mommy. Or whoever it is you have high up in the Council. That worked out so well for Ness last year.”
“She just didn’t call the right person.” Jess arched an eyebrow and brought
