“You’re welcome to stay as long as you like,” Jacqueline said. “But as you can imagine, school starts again tomorrow so you might find the place a little crowded.” They traded weak smiles. I took a leaf out of Kai’s books.
“Let’s jump to the chase,” I said. “I would like to stay at Bloodline Academy.”
Dad’s brows furrowed. “Are you sure? No offence, Jacqueline, but as you can imagine, we’re a little concerned about our daughter’s safety.”
“I can assure you we’re doing everything we can to reinforce our wards,” Professor Mortimer said. Jacqueline nodded.
“There will be a bulletin announcement that no student is allowed to carry any artefact into the school without first bringing it to the attention of Professor Mortimer.”
“How do we know the demon won’t be back?” Mama asked.
Professor Mortimer pushed his glasses up his nose. “You don’t. But being back at the compound doesn’t make Sophie any safer. At least here there are wards and guards.”
In the end, that argument was the soundest one. Bloodline had state-of-the-art magical security. We’d had our fair share of breaches in the compound. It wasn’t Jacqueline’s fault that Kate didn’t know any better. Last I heard she was getting a hide stripping from her parents. Mine finally relented.
Mama turned to me as we reached the portal field. “I know the alchemy saved your life,” she said. “But don’t go using it willy-nilly.” I gave her a meaningful look. What I hadn’t told the professors was that the source of the alchemy was my lifeline. If I overexerted myself, it would kill me. This was the first time I’d used it on that large a scale. I still couldn’t light a fire with my hands.
“I won’t.”
She hugged me so hard I thought my ribs were going to crack again. When they were gone, Jacqueline walked with me back to the dorms. Professor Mortimer left us for his cottage. “So I have a proposition for you,” Jacqueline said. “In light of what you’ve done; I think it’s only fair for Bruno to reconsider your application for a job inside the dining hall.”
I inhaled. “What about the kids being scared of me?”
She blinked slowly. “It’s been brought to my attention that that kind of superstitious thinking is what got us into trouble in the first place. If we’d give you the job originally, maybe all of this could have been avoided.” She stopped in front of the dorm door. “I’m not saying go nuts spelling the food…”
I smiled. “Yes, ma’am. I understand.”
Two days later, I had my first shift. It was the morning breakfast shift. I’d had to wake up at the unimpressive hour of four in the morning. If I thought Bruno was going to go easy on me on account of me saving the Academy, I must have still been dreaming. He stood me in front of a cooker with an open flame. There were four hobs with a frying pan on each one. Dozens of cartons of eggs sat to my left.
“You know how to make omelettes, don’t you?” Bruno asked.
“Yes,” I said tentatively.
“Good. You can start now. It’s made to order.”
“But, I have school in three hours.”
“Then you better get cracking.” He laughed at his own pun. I could have whacked him across the head with a frying pan. My only consolation was that my station proved highly unpopular. I had to turn off three of the hobs. My cheeks were burning I was so embarrassed. Never before had my offering to cook gone down so poorly. I was pretending to sort good eggs from bad when somebody cleared their throat.
I turned to find two lions. One towering, with a new scar on his chin that I really badly wanted to trace. The other grinning at me with a plate held out.
“I want one with everything,” Charles said.
Max growled at him. “What?” Charles protested. “I thought you said we were going to eat?”
“Hold your damn horses. It’s like you’ve never eaten before!”
Charles rolled his eyes. “It’s really pathetic that you have to use me as an excuse to speak to a girl.”
He ducked just in time to escape the back of Max’s hand. Charles snickered but moved to the side so we could have some privacy. An impossible notion since the dining hall was crammed full of people. I was well aware of the dozens of eyes watching us at the moment.
Max didn’t seem to care. In an impressive feat of strength and agility, he boosted himself clear over the dividing tables. I was in his arms a second later. Now I was the one who didn’t care if people were watching. I squeezed him back, my eyes tearing up.
“I’m so glad you’re okay,” I said.
“Ditto. I thought for a second there I’d lost you.”
When he let go, I could feel my cheeks burning for reasons unrelated to the fire blazing beside me.
“So, they gave you a job?”
“Yeah. It’s just like me to get lumped with more work for doing a good deed.”
He chuckled. Bruno came out of the kitchen and went ballistic about hygiene and how shifters carted dirt around like a winter coat. Max hopped back over the partition. I made them both an omelette. Charles ended up eating four. I thought he was going to be sick but he kept stuffing more and more down his throat until Max dragged him out.
“Do you want to have lunch later?” Max asked before he left.
I stared out over the sea of faces. The looks I got back weren’t exactly friendly, but there was something less intimidating about them. “Actually,” I said, “I might try eating here for a change.”
“Look at that. I think it’s growth.”
“Get out before I chop you up and throw you in the beef stew.” His laughter was uproarious. The girl who had been about to order an omelette turned tail and ran. Oh well. Small steps.
22
Six Months Later
It
