“This is different,” Dad said.
“How?”
“You’re a student, for one thing,” Jacqueline said. “And –”
I knew exactly what she was about to say. “And I’m a low-magic user. I’ve got no way to defend myself against the other races. But I’m also the great-granddaughter of a serial killer. Either I’m to be pitied or feared. They can’t have it both ways.”
Professor Mortimer coughed. “At least we know the kids are paying attention in Magical History.” The look Jacqueline threw him could have felled a troll. She turned her gaze to my parents.
“It’s up to you,” she said.
Mama wrung her hands. “Is this what you really want, Soph? You don’t have to put on a brave face for us.”
Ha! I’d been trying not to complain too much about being here for their benefit and it had gotten me nowhere. “I’ll be fine.”
I snapped my fingers at Charming who instantly clamped his mouth shut. Smoke puffed from his ears. His scales turned a shade of red. Slowly, though, his colouring dimmed as the fire cooled.
I knew my parents would agree when Mama sighed. Dad was working around the clock at the moment because some stupid archaeological dig had hit on shifter bones buried in a cavern in Ethiopia. He was supposed to be there right now disproving their hypothesis. Mama was meant to be running PR for the mayoral campaign of one of the wolves. They were both blessedly distracted.
“We’ll keep a close eye on her,” Jacqueline assured them as my parents stepped through the portal Professor Mortimer opened up right in the middle of the room. Jacqueline blew out a breath when they were gone.
“Are you sure you want to go back to your room?” she asked me.
“Very sure.”
“You know you don’t have to prove anything to anyone.”
I snorted. “I’m pretty sure I do, but this isn’t about that at all. I like my room. I’m used to it.” And I needed to be in there for this spell to work. Was I packing it at the thought of running into the culprit? You betcha. I was as terrified as the next person. But I looked down at the word “remember” on my hand and it solidified my conviction.
Jacqueline’s compact mirror beeped. She flipped it open. “Well, the Nephilim are done fixing up your room. You’re welcome to go back at any time. For the next few days, we’ll have the guards make regular rounds past your dorm. If this is the usual hazing gone bad, we’ll catch them sooner or later.”
“You can come and wade through your things if you like?” Professor Mortimer asked. I nodded. Unclipping the cauldron from its base, I lifted the handle and carried it with me. “You want me to take that?”
“No thanks. It’s not that heavy.” Biggest lie ever. It weighed a tonne. My arm was sore when we got back to his cottage on the perimeter of the school. My stuff had been placed carefully in the storage room built into the back of the stone cottage. To an unwitting observer, the cottage was nothing more than a quaint country building. Inside, I watched as every pocket of dead air was sealed over with magic. It ran in rainbow streaks around all the doors and windows. I’d bet no one in their right mind would try to break into this place.
“I’m going to have to keep the contents of the chest for now. It seems like they made a good go of trying to break the seal. There might be something in there they wanted.”
I swallowed. Brushing my palm against the caved-in lid, I reinforced the protection circle with a stun circle. As much as I liked Professor Mortimer, I couldn’t risk him opening the chest. I managed to salvage some of my toiletries as well as a wig or two. There were some clothes that hadn’t been slashed so I took those too. They didn’t match, of course, but it was better than nothing. I was trying to balance everything in my arms when I spotted something in the locked cabinet beside the fireplace.
“Is that Kate’s necklace?” I asked.
The Professor glanced up from where he’d been stooped over reading a moth-riddled book. “Oh yes. I suppose I should see if she wants it back. Not much use, though. The clay basically disintegrated over time.”
I peered in at what remained of the leather chain. It looked innocuous enough. “She’d probably just throw it away.”
The professor nodded. “Got everything you need?”
“I think so. There’s not much left intact.”
His lips pressed together. “Don’t worry, Sophie. We’ll find out who did this.” It would have been more reassuring if he hadn’t yawned just then. I’d seen Jacqueline do so a number of times during her chat with my parents as well. The weight of the cauldron was reassuring as he escorted me back to my dorm.
Overhead, one of the guards flapped his wings as though in greeting. They were going out of their way to make me feel safe. I waved as I pushed open the dorm door and headed inside. I had assured Jacqueline that I didn’t want anything to be said about what had happened. The last thing I needed was for anyone else to get any ideas.
While I’d put on a show of not being too worried in front of everyone else, my feet didn’t seem to want to venture back down this familiar corridor. My throat was suddenly dry when I stared into the long walk. It was looking extra-cavernous today. I blinked as a shadow moved across the hallway.
This was the worst idea ever.
13
My heart almost jumped out of my chest. It was only when Max sniffed that I was able to breathe again. So I wasn’t going
